The Australasian Forensic Science Summit was held 7–8 December 2016 with the theme of ‘Towards 2030’. The aim of the Summit was to develop a united vision for the future of forensic science and put forward clear recommendations to progress forensic science towards 2030. This edition of the Australian Journal of Forensic Science is a special issue focusing on the presentations, discussions and outcomes of the Summit.
The objectives of the Summit were to reflect on the fitness of Australia and New Zealand’s forensic science capability with reference to contemporary and emerging threats and challenges and to assess how changes in crime, communities, technology and policy will affect the future of forensic science service delivery.
The Summit was co-hosted by the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the Senior Managers of Australia New Zealand Forensic Laboratories (SMANZFL) and the National Institute of Forensic Science (NIFS), of the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA). The three hosting agencies provided representatives to the Australasian Forensic Science Summit Board who organized the Summit; the members of the Board were:
| • | Dr Simon Walsh PSM, National Manager Specialist Operations, AFP | ||||
| • | Ms Sharon Neville, Acting Director Criminalistics, New South Wales Forensic and Analytical Science Service (SMANZFL representative) | ||||
| • | Dr Serena Abbondante, Specialist Operations, AFP | ||||
| • | Dr Linzi Wilson-Wilde OAM, Director NIFS, ANZPAA | ||||
Approximately 100 forensic science stakeholders were invited by the Board to participate in the Summit. Summit participants were identified based on their ability to contribute to the theme of ‘Towards 2030’, whilst also ensuring a broad representation from the various stakeholders in forensic science, including the police, science, policy, legal, academia, research and leadership sectors, and at the state/territory and federal levels.
The outcomes of the Summit are presented as papers. The first paper, by Dr Simon Walsh, provides the context for the Summit and reflects on the activities of Day 1, where presentations were given by invited eminent speakers. Speakers were requested to consider the broader forensic science environment in 2030, including any significant implications that would need to be considered by the forensic science community. The intent of this first day was to stimulate discussions by presenting a broader context of the environment in 2030, from which participants could extrapolate their considerations for forensic science. Dr Walsh describes the issues raised by the speakers and provides readers with a summation of the Day 1 discussions.
Participants were required to actively participate in the Summit; so on Day 2 attendees were divided into one of five working groups:
| (1) | core capability and capacity, | ||||
| (2) | future technology and research, | ||||
| (3) | external environments, | ||||
| (4) | business models, and | ||||
| (5) | education and training. | ||||
The remaining five articles stemming from the Summit articulate the discussions held in the five working groups and detail statements arising from the discussions. The statements are aimed at reflecting the position of the working group participants, in determining where forensic science needs to be focused in order to achieve the required outcome for forensic science service delivery, to meet law enforcement and criminal justice needs in 2030.
The statements reflect common themes such as developing a holistic and integrated approach to service delivery and increased collaboration and coordination, with improved engagement between industry, academia and non-traditional partners. Utilization of new technology, operationally focused research and innovation, and incorporation of forensic intelligence were also strongly emphasized, in order to prepare for future changes in the way forensic science needs to adapt to changing crime and police needs. Underscoring many of the discussions was the need for flexibility.
The statements arising from the Summit have been considered by the Australia New Zealand Forensic Executive Committee (ANZFEC), whose members are the Heads of all government forensic service providers of Australia and New Zealand. These agencies are the funding bodies to the ANZPAA NIFS. ANZFEC and ANZPAA NIFS will now develop recommendations and prioritize actionable and measurable activities and projects for NIFS and the broader forensic science community. Progress against the statements and recommendations will be reviewed in five years.
The Summit was an excellent opportunity for the broader forensic science community to discuss and assess where it is currently placed and where its future activities should be focused, in order to meet the needs of the future changing environment. I believe it will be important to balance forensic science activities in progressing the science forward, whilst also continuing to improve current capabilities and address issues raised in recent international critical reports. I believe this is a challenge the forensic science community is more than ready for and I look forward to working with the community over the coming years to meet this challenge.
Director National Institute of Forensic Science, Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency
[email protected]