Climate proofing Australia’s cotton industry through improving crop water use and photosynthetic carbon assimilation (Climate Proof Cotton)

This project aims to generate new, in-depth knowledge around abiotic stress physiology to fortify Australia’s cotton production under future climates, specifically increasingly severe and frequent heatwaves and droughts. The research seeks to identify novel heat tolerance and water conservation mechanisms existing in cotton and its wild relatives. The long-term objective is to redesign cotton photosynthetic biochemistry to enable cotton to withstand environmental extremes and improve resource-use efficiency (nitrogen and water).