One Basin Cooperative Research Centre

What One Basin Cooperative Research Centre does

One Basin Cooperative Research Centre is an Australian industry-led, non-profit research partnership that delivers applied water and climate research for the Murray-Darling Basin. Its core product is a portfolio of four interlinked research programs (Foresight and Decisions, Technology and Opportunity, Adaptation and Innovation, and First Nations) delivered through four regional hubs in Loxton, Mildura, Griffith and Goondiwindi, supported by a PhD scholarship program (26 researchers, projected 30 by 2027), internships, and a Leadership Development Program.

The organization's underlying technology stack combines quantitative modeling and remote sensing tools: a Climate Stress-Testing Methodology using machine-learning emulators to run thousands of climate scenarios across the Basin, an Evaporation Loss Assessment Framework that quantifies farm-dam evaporation via satellite/aerial imaging, a Rapid Inundation Modeling Tool that compresses floodplain mapping from days to minutes, and Water Banking Technologies for drought resilience. These are applied to projects spanning digital irrigation advisory systems, regenerative agriculture impacts, biochar production from organic waste, citizen-science fish tagging, and Indigenous-led water research.

Its business model is government grant-funded through the Australian Cooperative Research Centres program (administered by DISR AusIndustry) with matching cash and in-kind contributions from 88+ partner organizations spanning six universities (ANU, Charles Sturt, Melbourne, Sydney, UniSQ, Adelaide), the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, state agencies, Research and Development Corporations (CRDC, Hort Innovation, Wine Australia), irrigation corporations, water utilities, and First Nations groups. The CRC does not sell products commercially; its outputs are research outcomes, tools, publications, and trained PhD graduates distributed to partners and the broader Basin community through publications, webinars, regional hubs, and annual partner events.

Name

One Basin Cooperative Research Centre

Legal name

One Basin Cooperative Research Centre

Website

https://onebasin.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

One Basin CRC is an Australian government-funded, non-profit research partnership that delivers applied water and climate research for the Murray-Darling Basin through four regional hubs, 88+ institutional partners, and a growing PhD program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Resource Research Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

Water Supply (4941)

akta.pro primary industry

Disaster Risk Reduction & Climate Risk Management (BPADALAK)

Keywords

• Water resource research
• Climate adaptation research
• Cooperative research centre
• Agricultural water management
• Murray-Darling Basin

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. CRC Government Funding: Funded through the Australian Government's Cooperative Research Centres program, with matching contributions from industry and research partners. The CRC brings together researchers, industries and communities across the Murray-Darling Basin.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

One Basin CRC is an industry-led, collaborative research partnership that delivers applied water and climate research for the Murray-Darling Basin. It runs four interconnected research programs (Foresight and Decisions; Technology and Opportunity; Adaptation and Innovation; First Nations) and executes numerous projects on evaporation loss, digital irrigation, water delivery operations, climate stress-testing, citizen science, and economic diversification, supported by a PhD program, internships, and a Leadership Development Program across four regional hubs.

Product overview

One Basin CRC is an industry-led, collaborative research partnership focused on the Murray-Darling Basin, operating as a multi-program research organization rather than a single product company. The organization delivers four interconnected research programs: Foresight and Decisions (climate risk tools and decision support), Technology and Opportunity (digital infrastructure and water optimization), Adaptation and Innovation (community and agricultural capacity building), and First Nations (Indigenous-led water research). Supporting these programs are educational services including a PhD scholarship program, internships, and a Leadership Development Program, with research activities coordinated through four regional hubs across the Basin. The organization conducts numerous specific research projects spanning evaporation reduction, digital irrigation, economic diversification, water delivery optimization, organic waste conversion, fish conservation, and climate adaptation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Foresight and Decisions Program Research program helping government, industry, and communities prepare for a different future by building understanding of possible futures and providing information, tools, and resources to manage climate- and water-related risks across the Murray-Darling Basin.
• Technology and Opportunity Program Research program that grows and diversifies water sources and optimises the treatment, storage, delivery, and use of water by developing on- and off-farm digital infrastructure, with a goal of zero net emissions.
• Adaptation and Innovation Program Research program developing products, practices, and strategies to increase stocks of human, economic, social, cultural, and natural capital in the Basin, supporting adaptations and transitions in agricultural, environmental, social, and cultural systems.
• First Nations Program Research program embedding Indigenous governance and knowledge systems within the CRC, advancing a model of Indigenous-led, Country-centred inquiry to address water, environmental, and economic sustainability across the Murray-Darling Basin.
• PhD Program Scholarship-based doctoral program supporting researchers to undertake projects embedded in regional hubs across the Murray-Darling Basin, with 26 current PhD students and a projected 30 by 2027 across six participating universities.
• Internships Student internship opportunities embedded within partner organisations to address real-world challenges facing the Murray-Darling Basin, with past placements at SA Water and Water Technology.
• Leadership Development Program Program that trains future leaders in research, business, community, and government to support regional communities to innovate and grow across the Murray-Darling Basin.
• Regional Hubs (Loxton, Mildura, Griffith, Goondiwindi) Four regional hubs located across the Murray-Darling Basin providing local research presence, PhD student support, and community engagement in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia.
• Understanding and Reducing Evaporation Losses Project Project designing systems for quantifying evaporation from farm dams through satellite and aerial imaging, weather and farm data, and surveys of mitigation measures for small (up to 20 ha) and large (20-300 ha) dams.
• Digital Irrigation Advisory Systems Project Project evaluating and designing improved extension and advisory service models to help agricultural advisors deliver targeted support to growers transitioning to digital irrigation, with the goal of higher yields with less water.
• Future Basin Economies Project Project co-designing local economic investment approaches and fostering diversification and resilience in local Basin economies using Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Smart Specialisation approaches.
• Reducing Uncertainties in Water Delivery Operations Project Project developing prototype tools including floodplain inundation models, frameworks for assessing benefits, and control systems to aid water delivery decisions across Basin irrigation networks.
• Producing Novel Biological Products Project Project evaluating technological solutions for converting organic waste such as rice straw and timber by-products into bioenergy, biochar, and other products, with biochar shown to increase soil water holding capacity by 10-30 tonnes per hectare per 1% increase in soil carbon.
• Citizen Science Fish Tagging Project Citizen science project training community members in fish tagging techniques to expand data collection on fish movements and support conservation efforts across the Basin.
• Water Futures Project Project bringing together community, industry, and researchers to support bottom-up adaptation initiatives designed by local communities for water security and adaptation across the Basin.
• Putting People at the Centre Project Project developing a people-centric approach to climate risk assessment, providing tailored actionable information for different stakeholder groups to support water security and delivery decisions.
• Regenerative Agriculture Impacts Project Project using simulation models to quantify how different regenerative agriculture practices impact water retention and movement within the Basin landscape.
• Truth Telling in Agriculture Project PhD project uncovering narratives of Indigenous Australians' involvement in agriculture through a decolonising lens and historical document analysis.

Quantifiable outcome

• Climate change projected to decrease river flows by 20% in Murray-Darling Basin; CRC stress-testing models help stakeholders prepare
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Australian National UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey research partner contributing to water delivery operations research, climate risk assessment, and stakeholder engagement projects. ANU researchers lead projects on reducing uncertainties in water delivery and climate adaptation.
• Charles Sturt UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor university partner hosting the Gulbali Institute, contributing to fish research, First Nations projects, and future basin economies research. CSU researchers lead citizen science fish tagging and regenerative agriculture projects.
• University of MelbournecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey research partner providing expertise in hydrology, water resources, and climate modeling. University of Melbourne researchers lead the evaporation loss project and climate stress-testing initiatives.
• University of SydneycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner contributing to Water Futures project and geospatial modeling of crop water use. University of Sydney researchers lead community engagement research on water security.
• University of Southern QueenslandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner leading evaporation loss research for the northern Murray-Darling Basin. USQ researchers conduct satellite-based assessment of water losses from farm dams.
• Adelaide UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey partner contributing to climate risk assessment and water futures research. Adelaide researchers lead the 'Putting People at the Centre' climate adaptation project.
• Murray-Darling Basin AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal government agency responsible for Basin management. MDBA is a critical partner in multiple projects including water delivery operations, climate stress-testing, and water futures research.
• Horticulture Innovation AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch and Development Corporation for horticulture sector, contributing to digital irrigation advisory systems and evaporation reduction projects.
• The Goyder InstitutesupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch institute providing expertise on water management and environmental sustainability for South Australia.
• PIRSAsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Australian government department supporting primary industries and regions, contributing to regional development and research initiatives.
• Cotton Research and Development CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDC funding cotton research and development. CRDC partners on evaporation loss reduction project for northern Basin cotton farms.
• Wine AustraliasupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDC for the Australian wine sector, partnering on digital irrigation advisory systems project.
• Murrumbidgee IrrigationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIrrigation corporation in NSW, partner in water delivery operations research project.
• Coleambally IrrigationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIrrigation corporation in NSW, partner in water delivery operations research.
• OzFishcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNot-for-profit organization supporting recreational fishing, partnered on citizen science fish tagging project.
• Western Murray Land Improvement GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organization leading organic waste conversion and biochar research, working with First Nations communities.
• Water TechnologysupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnvironmental engineering company hosting PhD internship on remote sensing for water modeling.
• SA WatersupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Australian water utility, hosting PhD internship to study pumping operations using AI optimization.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• CSIRO: Australia's national science agency conducting large-scale water, climate, and agricultural research including work in the Murray-Darling Basin; overlaps broadly with the CRC's mandate but at national scope across many domains.
• International Water Management Institute (IWMI): CGIAR-affiliated global research organization focused on water management for agriculture and climate resilience; comparable in its applied, partnership-based approach to water research for food security and basin resilience.
• Deltares: Dutch independent applied research institute specializing in water, subsurface, and infrastructure; comparable as a non-profit collaborative research entity producing tools and models for water management worldwide.

Direct peers

• Goyder Institute for Water Research: South Australia-focused water research institute and One Basin CRC partner; comparable as a regionally embedded, multi-stakeholder water research organization addressing Murray-Darling Basin challenges.
• Water Research Australia: Australian water industry collaborative research organization pooling utility and government funding to deliver applied water research; directly comparable as a partnership-based water research body serving Australian stakeholders.
• Water Research Centre (WRc): UK-based water research and consulting organization serving utilities and regulators; comparable in providing applied research, modeling, and advisory services across water and environmental themes.
• UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR): UK collaborative water research organization funded by water companies; structurally analogous as an industry-funded, partnership-driven water research cooperative producing applied outputs for its members.
• Smarter Water Futures (formerly eWater CRC): Australian collaborative entity operating source water models and tools inherited from a prior CRC; directly comparable as a former water CRC continuing as a research-and-tools platform for Australian water management.

Others

• Bureau of Meteorology (Australia): Australian national weather, climate, and water agency that provides the hydrological data underpinning much Basin research; comparable as a major public-sector producer of climate and water data and forecasts relevant to the same stakeholder base.

Regional players

• Murray-Darling Basin Authority: Federal agency responsible for integrated Basin management and a core One Basin CRC partner; comparable in its Basin-wide water focus, but its mandate is regulatory and operational rather than research-driven.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/one-basin-crc
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about One Basin Cooperative Research Centre