Our Corporate Plan

Last updated:31 August 2023

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Chief Executive Officer's foreword

Geoscience Australia is the national public-sector geoscience organisation. Commonwealth geoscience has played a vital role since the formation of the Australian Survey Office in 1910; the nation’s first national topographic mapping program was driven by the need to defend Australia’s people and develop our regional areas. Geoscience Australia came into being in 2001 when the Australian Surveying and Land Information Group (AUSLIG) merged with the Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO). AGSO’s predecessor organisation the Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics (BMR) was established in 1946 and undertook the systematic geological and geophysical mapping of the continent to inform mineral exploration. AUSLIG, formed in 1987 when the Australian Survey Office joined with the Division of National Mapping, provided national geographic information and the provision of satellite imagery to industry and government; work that was started by the Australian Landsat Station in 1979 and was renamed to the Centre for Remote Sensing (ACRES) in 1986.

This work, our history, has allowed us to map the nation’s geology and geography to understand our resource endowment and drive new discoveries that continue to underpin our successful economy.

Highlights of our forward plan include:

Through the Positioning Australia program, Geoscience Australia is implementing a national system for reliable and high-accuracy positioning across Australia. Positioning is a critical component of all location-enabled data and technologies, which are increasingly integrated across our economy.

The Exploring for the Future program continues to deliver high quality data and information that improves the understanding of the nation’s mineral, energy, and groundwater resource potential. This is driving the next generation of discoveries in Australia that will underpin Australia’s path to net zero, attract investment, generate jobs, and secure the resources we need into the future.

As part of the Australian Government’s National Critical Minerals Research and Development Hub, Geoscience Australia will undertake research on Australia’s future critical minerals needs and supply. The Hub brings together Australia’s world-leading research capabilities of Geoscience Australia, CSIRO, and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation.

Geoscience Australia will continue to deliver the Data Driven Discoveries program. Geoscience Australia is applying modern analysis techniques to reprocess existing geoscientific information and data and will be collecting new geoscientific data to deepen our knowledge of a key underexplored area of south-west Queensland.

Geoscience Australia has partnered with the Bureau of Meteorology, CSIRO, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics to establish the Australian Climate Service supporting better connection and leveraging of the government’s extensive data, information, and capabilities to inform climate and disaster risk management.

The Digital Atlas of Australia brings together, curates and connects trusted national datasets from across government into an interactive, secure, and easy-to-use online platform. Anyone, anywhere will be able to explore, analyse and visualise location-based data on Australia’s geography, people, economy, and the environment. Exploring data by location will empower governments, businesses, and communities to make better informed data-driven decisions about planning, infrastructure, and investment at the local, regional, and national level.

Through the Digital Earth Australia program, Geoscience Australia will continue to provide free and open satellite land imaging data and derived information products to support Australian governments to make better decisions on policy, investment, management and operations, and support Australian industry and business to create new capabilities that increase efficiency, productivity, and employment opportunities across the Australian economy.

Geoscience Australia will achieve its outcomes by focusing on science excellence, optimising our data and knowledge, fostering collaboration and strong partnerships, and through a diverse and inclusive workplace.

We continue to deliver data and knowledge of enduring value, and advice that helps government, communities, and industry to address challenges and enhance opportunities facing Australia now and into the future. Respectful engagement and collaboration with all stakeholders, particularly our First Nations Peoples, is something that we continue to do. We are moving towards better understanding and acknowledgement of the experiences and contribution of Australia’s First Peoples and their impact on the work we do.

This 2023–24 Corporate Plan sets out how we will achieve our purpose and deliver on the government’s priorities. It is designed to propel us to achieve the ten-year targets outlined in our strategic plan, Strategy 2028. I encourage you to look at this strategy to see our vision for the future.

I am pleased to present our corporate plan as required under paragraph 35(1) (b) of the Public Governance Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act). This is our primary planning document, prepared according to the requirements of the PGPA Act and which aligns directly with our vision for the future, as articulated in Strategy 2028.

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Dr James Johnson
Chief Executive Officer
31 August 2023

2023–24 Corporate Plan [PDF 7.6 MB]