Professor John Cary has 30 years experience in human and social behaviour related to natural resource management and water use, socio-economic and social impact analysis, public attitude measurement, policy development and technology transfer.

John was Interim Director of the Institute for Sustainability and Innovation 2005 to 2006; and formerly Director of Key Research Area - Integrated Food Value Chain at Victoria University. He has been Principal Research Scientist at the Bureau of Rural Sciences, Canberra and Head of the Department of Agriculture and Resource Management, University of Melbourne. He was an Honorary Principal Fellow, School of Resource Management, at the University of Melbourne from 1999 to 2007.

He is a member of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Social Science Expert Advisory Group and is an FSANZ Fellow, in recognition of his standing in the field of sustainable food production.

His research interests include:

  • human behaviour related to natural resources and water use
  • sustainable food production
  • water policy.

Contact details

+61 (3) 9919 5481
+61 (3) 9919 5479
[email protected]

Research projects

  • Partner-investigator – Public perceptions and response to desalination in Australia. (with Deakin University and Murdoch University) funded by the National centre for Excellence in Desalination.
  • Partner-investigator – Victorian state-wide river health social condition benchmark project. (with Queensland University of Technology and Department of Sustainability Victoria).
  • Partner-investigator – Development of a social index of stream condition (with University of Queensland and Department of Sustainability Victoria).
  • Partner-investigator – Socio-economic influences on water use. Smart Water Fund, Victorian Water Trust [with URS].
  • Partner-investigator – Understanding climate change impacts. North-East Greenhouse Alliance.
  • Project Leader – Exploring a sustainable mechanism for innovation in a knowledge-based rural scientific and technical initiative. United Nations Development Program and Ministry of Science and Technology, China.
  • Principal investigator – Green marketing and EMS: Assessing potential consumer influence on EMS development. Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.