ProfessorMatthew Harrison FTSE

Professor Matthew Harrison FTSE is an award-winning scientist at the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA), University of Tasmania, based in Launceston, Australia. He is internationally recognised for advancing the sustainability of agricultural systems through the development of innovative, demand-driven solutions to complex production and environmental challenges. His work integrates systems thinking with applied science to deliver practical outcomes that enhance food production, enterprise profitability, social licence to operate, and whole-of-system agrifood sustainability. The long-term impacts of his research on carbon removals, greenhouse gas mitigation, climate change adaptation, and global food security are expected to deliver benefits for decades to come.

Professor Harrison is Director of the Carbon Storage Partnership, where he leads interdisciplinary teams developing the skills, technologies, and management practices needed to accelerate climate-positive agricultural transitions. His research bridges biophysical science, farm systems modelling, economics, and policy, ensuring that climate solutions are both scientifically robust and commercially viable.

His leadership and research excellence have been recognised through the University of Tasmania’s highest honours. In 2022, his team received the Vice-Chancellor’s Research Medal for distinguished contributions to research of the highest quality, encompassing leadership, innovation and impact, mentoring and early-career researcher development, and community engagement. In 2023, his team was awarded the Vice-Chancellor’s Sustainability Award for outstanding internal leadership in climate action, greenhouse gas mitigation, and environmental stewardship. This award recognises staff leadership that enables the University to act as a global “lighthouse” for the transformative change that is both possible and urgently needed. Both awards represent the highest distinctions among approximately 3,000 full-time equivalent University staff.

In 2023, Professor Harrison was named the Premier’s Tasmanian STEM Researcher of the Year, the highest scientific honour awarded by the State of Tasmania. In 2025, he was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (FTSE). Only 30 Fellows are elected annually across Australia, based on outstanding achievement and impact through the application of scientific and engineering knowledge to practical challenges.

Professor Harrison’s interdisciplinary expertise is widely sought by governments, advisory bodies, and industry at regional, national, and international levels. He serves as a member of the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee (ERAC), where he advises the Australian Minister for Climate Change and Energy on the development, amendment, and revocation of greenhouse gas emissions legislation. ERAC is an independent statutory committee established under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011, with members appointed through an open, merit-based process in recognition of their expertise, experience, and professional standing.

Within TIA, Professor Harrison serves as Lead for Climate Science, fostering strategic coherence across the Institute’s research portfolio, ensuring curricula related to climate action remain contemporary, and strengthening alignment between research priorities and industry climate needs. The knowledge, capabilities, and technologies developed by Professor Harrison and his collaborators have contributed significantly to the University of Tasmania’s ranking as Number 1 globally in Climate Action, and to “well-above world standard” ratings in Excellence in Research Australia (ERA) for both Agriculture, Land and Farm Management and Crop and Pasture Production.

Professor Harrison also holds Adjunct Professorships at Lanzhou University, Yangtze University, and China Agricultural University, appointments conferred in recognition of sustained, high-impact international research collaborations with each institution.