Associate Professor Lee Hickey is a plant breeder and crop geneticist within the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation at The University of Queensland, Australia. He leads a research team specializing in plant breeding innovation. This includes the discovery of new genetics for disease and drought adaptative traits, developing phenotyping tools, and developing new breeding technologies for plant breeders. His research outcomes have featured in 82 refereed publications, including articles in high profile journals such as Nature Plants and Nature Biotechnology. He is a prolific science communicator and his research outcomes have appeared in mainstream media such as BBC World News, National Geographic, and the New York Times. He is passionate about training the next generation of plant breeders and currently mentors 20 PhD students, while 12 of his previous graduates now work for leading plant breeding companies and high-profile research institutes around the globe.