Art4Agriculture Young Farming Champion Melissa Henry visited St. Michael’s Catholic Primary School and Crestwood High School in Baulkham Hills last term to present the fresh young face of farming to students

The Young Farming Champions initiative pairs students participating in the Archibull Prize school program with a young farmer who comes to the school and talks to the students and shares their farming experiences.

The Young Farming Champions demonstrate passion for their industry while providing a real life example to young people who may have never considered a career in agriculture. Because they are young they can relate to students and are adept at breaking down stereotypes of farming and agricultural careers to introduce the dynamic, innovative and high-tech industry in which we all operate.

Melissa is our Sheep Meat /Wool Specialist and is proudly supported by Australian Wool Innovation and Meat and Livestock Australia.

Here is what happened in Melissa’s words ( I am confident  you
will agree it’s pretty obvious Melissa enjoyed presenting the sheep industry to
the students just as much they enjoyed hearing about it )

The St. Michael’s students were from years 3-6 and selected to be
part of the Archibull program. They were all so keen to be part of the Young
Farming Champion visit and volunteered for a role on the day.

They had two students filming me and an official note-taker for
their Blogs. All students had their own note book and all were encouraged to
ask questions – which they certainly did!  Wow the students maintained their
attention for over an hour and were obviously enjoying learning about sheep –
meat and wool.

 It was a very interactive session. Their main interest was in learning about sheep and what happens on-farm through-out the year.

My favourite question was “what do I think of the stereotype of farmers (being 65yr old male)?” This highlighted to me that I wasn’t what they expected and they also recognised there are a lot of different people in farming.

The question which was asked by both schools was “do I feel isolated living in a rural town?” .  I replied that I feel more connected with people now than when I was living in Sydney where I felt almost anonymous. I told them it was just small things that make you feel part of the community like seeing people in the supermarket you know and
stopping and talking to them.  

I took different types of fleeces and wool products into the school, which they passed around and really loved.

The teachers at the school are so passionate about the Archibull Prize
program and are integrating the program within classroom activities.

My Crestwood High School visit was equally exhilarating. I spoke with the whole Yr 9 Ag class and a handful of Yr 9 Visual Arts students who were interested in participating in the Archibull program. As the Visual Arts students were the minority in my audience, I felt like there was a divide in the room and it may have been better to present to these 2 groups separately.

However I was wrong and as soon as I finished my presentation, the Visual Arts students came up to me and were ALL asking questions and then took me to the Visual Arts room and showed me their Archibull cow and their design drawings.

 I was very impressed! They will certainly do the Australian Wool Industry and the Archibull Program proud!

 The High School students were also very interested in my study and career path and also the opportunities that are available to them across the supply chain. They asked a lot of questions about wool and lamb prices, scale of production, cost of production at a commercial level. The Agriculture class were also looking at BioClip as a technology in the wool industry.  See it on YouTube here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zy3Rh0rYvUE

 

There is also a great video about sheep shearers here

I would like to say a special thanks to Claudia Wythes from
Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) for supplying me with merino fabric samples to
take into the schools, so the students could feel the difference in wool types.

I would also like to say a special thanks to Deborah Leake from
MLA who is not only investing in the Young Farming Champions program but also ensuring the Beef/Sheep Young Farming Champions and the schools have access to all the resources created for schools by MLA

 “Being part of the Art4Agriculture team is so rewarding as our programs celebrate the immense diversity within primary industries, our people, the range of produce and our commitment to environmental stewardship” says Melissa

Melissa also created her own resources for her school visits

See Melissa’s video here:

and Melissa’s PowerPoint presentation here

http://www.slideshare.net/art4agriculture/baa-baa-black-sheep

This week Art4Agriculture is thrilled to feature Young Farming Champion Melissa Henry.

We love Melissa she is a dream to work with. Lucky Lachlan Rivers CMA- the job that pays the bills which means she can spend her valuable spare time sharing her stories and inspiring other young people to take up careers in agriculture and natural resource management.

Melissa has joined the Young Farming Champions because
she is passionate about being part of our Art4Agriculture programs developed to bridge the geographic divide that prevents urban students from learning about and observing modern farming practices. The Young Farming Champions value-add to this process by providing urban students with a human face to put to the research they undertake as part of our programs. This gives urban students an opportunity to ask questions of real farmers who are able to relate their learnings to what happens in a modern agricultural enterprise.

Melissa sees that attracting people into agriculture starts with exposing our primary and high schools students to the diverse and exciting opportunities available in the primary industries sector. A critical factor in engaging young people in agricultural career pathways is the timing of career education interventions. Capturing their attention in early to middle secondary years is crucial and she is very proud to play a significant
role in raising their awareness of agrifood sector career pathways by helping
deliver Art4Agriculture programs to this key audience.

“Our industry needs to provide students with positive role models and
experiences. It is also important for students to be able to see how they can apply their knowledge and skills to help feed and clothe an ever growing population sustainably.” says Melissa.

Melissa’s Tree Change saw her move to Boorowa in Central NSW and her career goal is to link her animal science and natural resource management background with a  community focus to empower our urban cousins to successfully and sustainably achieve their own farming goals, no matter how small or large the scale.

“I’m really enjoying living and working in a rural community. I’m able to work side by side with farmers and the community to help them achieve their goals in Natural Resource Management. Many people from Sydney and Canberra are moving into rural areas, redefining the structure and vibrancy of rural communities and contributing to the sustainable local production of food and fibre and this can only be a good thing” says Melissa

See the video Melissa has created to share her story with the students here

In our next blog Melissa will share her school visits to St. Michael’s Catholic
Primary School and Crestwood High School in Baulkham Hills.

Lynne Strong is this year’s runner up in the National Rabobank Farm Industry Leader
of the Year. 

Lynne shares her journey to overcome the microphone shy hurdle see “Women are farmers too, so why don’t we hear them more? “ See here http://blogs.abc.net.au/rural/2011/06/women-are-farmers-too-so-why-dont-we-hear-them-more.html

Lynne says

“Firstly we all need to acknowledge men and women are different in many ways and recognise that’s a good thing

Secondly we need to redefine what a farmer is and farmers are many things

In the first instance they are members of the noblest profession.  They feed and clothe the world. Today farmers feed 5x as many people as they did in 1950 which allows consumers today to spend only 10% of their income to stay alive compared to 50% in the 1900’s.  

But farmers produce so much more than food.  Australian farmers protect and enhance over 60% of the Australian landscape. On top of this our farmers produce experiences
and values that are often overlooked like our farming culture and heritage and
generations of handing down of skills and knowledge,

But sadly it’s not just urban communities who forget this. Farmers and industry, too
often fail to acknowledge that women farmers are champions not only behind the
farmgate they contribute at an unparalleled level beyond the farmgate.

Its undeniably true there are amazing women out there who can hold their own and
stand side by side with men driving headers, handling bank managers, drenching
cattle, artificially inseminating cattle, birthing calves and the list goes on. Yet they are not acknowledged as “real farmers” because of their sex. This is a travesty and many women are justifiably lobbying hard to change this mindset

There are also many farming women who are doing equally amazing things beyond the farmgate who are celebrated by the community, but go unrecognised by industry.

Why is this?  That is the question I pose

Surely it’s as obvious as the nose on your face that it is pivotal for agriculture to build
relationships with consumers and decision and policymakers. To help address this and create a culture of change, I have focused on advocacy and telling the positive farming stories in preference to taking on agri-political roles.

I am the first to admit it is petrifying being interviewed. Radio was bad enough the idea of TV bought on a panic attack.   

When I first put my hand up to do this I planned, rewrote and practiced what I was going
to say over and over. I began to grow more confident as new and different speaking
opportunities arose   

Then one day I spoke in front of 40 people at a Slow Food brunch and froze. It
should have been easy. I wrote my speech, practiced it and decided I could do it
without notes. But instead of just telling my story I had over thought the talk
and the content to my peril

Whilst I just wanted to hide, I was even more determined to never make the same
mistake again

So I found myself a vocal coach. Her name is Annie Burbrook and she is very special
and now supports our Art4Agriculture young farming champions,

Annie is so many things. She is a former ballerina with the Australian Ballet company
plus a NIDA graduate actor and director. Her CV includes roles in Blue Heelers
and being the voice of WIN TV and Estee Lauder. Annie is also vegetarian and a very
proud greenie and I have learnt so much more from her. She shares her
professional knowledge and skills with me as well as her insights into her life
choices and her social responsibility passion. I have listened and learnt and found
the confidence to proudly shout from the rooftops that I am a farmer and I don’t
have to milk cows to prove it.

I know I can talk on the radio (and TV) because I have done it. Our Art4Agriculture young farming champions are doing it and all farming women can do it. All we need is some professional development and capacity building and support networks. I have found in my case it has been a much faster journey by looking beyond industry for some of these skills and networks.  

Female farmers have so many untapped skills. The benchmark for too long has been measuring how many farming women sit on boards.

We need to define our own futures, step into the spaces and fill the gaps that we are good at and who better to inspire us than ourselves.  

I would also like to acknowledge the spirit and resilience of the farming men in my life. My husband Michael and son Nick. Our journey hasnt always been easy but its been worth it 

My son Nick who runs our two farms

       

               

and we have women on our farm team who stand side by side with the men milking our cows who produce milk for over 50,000 Australians each year 

   Emma also spends lots of voluntary hours beyond the farmgate promoting careers in Agriculture

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzy3VnBBr1E

  

        

 

Girls are Farmers too

Another post in our call to arms to address this question recently posted by the ABC story “Women are farmers too, so why don’t we hear them more? “Found here http://blogs.abc.net.au/rural/2011/06/women-are-farmers-too-so-why-dont-we-hear-them-more.html

The Art4Agriculture network was formed with a key objective to reverse this trend

In fact our vision is an Australia wide network of enthusiastic, inspirational young farming professionals who can confidently

• Share their stories and have two way conversations with urban communities to help bridge the gap between city and rural communities by increasing knowledge, generating trust and understanding of modern farming practices.
• Promote Australian agriculture as a dynamic, innovative,
  rewarding and vibrant industry and a great career choice.

Whilst it was certainly not our intention our network is currently all female and
believe us we are working hard to rectify this   Com’on guys give us a ring we will welcome you with open arms.

Back to question posed by the ABC story we are very proud to say Art4Agriculture team of young farming champions is NOT microphone shy. Pivotally they are committed to building momentum and creating the necessary critical mass to reverse this trend by inspiring other farming women to join their ranks. But as I said guys can be agriculture advocates too and we look equally forward to convincing them they can do it just as well
as us.

As a testimonial to the power of AGvocacy Art4Agriculture Young Farming Champion “Farmer Steph” has now visited all her Archibull Prize schools and found the experience exhilarating.

Here are some highlights in her own words from her school visits.

 “At the primary school I was talking to 85 Yr 5/6 students. The children asked
so so so many questions with hardly a topic not explored! A teacher had even
prepped a boy to ask if I was looking for a husband but the student was away, thankfully!

I had questions that were easy to answer and some not so easy

Such as “what happens to a calf if it is born with a disability”, “how do cows have babies”,  “what if that hurts coming out”, “do cows fart” haha

The children were really interested in asking questions but also telling me about their farm experiences.

I was also told that “your too pretty to be a farmer”, “me and my friends like your shoes” and not just by the students but I was also invited to the staff room for recess
and told by many teachers “oh you’re not what I was expecting a farmer too
look like” and “oh not all farmers are men”. The hour and twenty minutes I had with them flew past and was not long enough to answer all the questions so they would like me to visit again!

The high school I visited doesn’t offer Ag as a subject so I was talking to creative
arts students from all years. The students were similar to the primary school
in that they asked lots of questions although some a little more serious around
topics of how much farmers earn, price we are paid for milk, is university
essential for farmers, and received lots of comments about how the media
portrays a really different image to what I represented. They all told me I
wasn’t what they were expecting when they were told a farmer was coming to talk
to them and one girl told me she had never known farmers could be girls!

P.S They also loved my shoes! haha

Visiting the schools has proved to be a real highlight of my farming journey and I am confident all the Young Farming Champions will enjoy their Archibull Prize school visits just as much as I did ! “

 See the video “Farmer Steph” created for the school visits here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Pbkxc6QUOo

and her Powerpoint Presentation can be found here

http://www.slideshare.net/art4agriculture/farms-girls-have-fun-too

 

 

Art4Agriculture Young Farming Champion Stephanie Tarlinton began her the Archibull Prize journey this week.

Firstly “Farmer Steph” joined students and teachers from Schofield Primary and Rouse Hill Anglican College for a photo at the Archibull Prize official launch at Woolworths @ Bella Vista on Monday

Then on Thursday she visited both schools to share her farming stories and her passion for cows and shoes

 

Want to be inspired?

See Farmer Steph’s video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Pbkxc6QUOo

Woolworths played host to the launch of the 2011 Archibull Prize yesterday at their head office at Bella Vista.

Community Investment Manager Virginia Tomlinson said “Woolworths is proud to be a supporting partner of Art4Agriculture and the 2011 Archibull Prize.  It’s an exciting program with a fresh approach to talking to future generations about the importance of sustainable food production.  The Archibull is a very smart way to build agricultural and environmental awareness through art, creativity and teamwork.”

Students from 21 schools have begun their quest to learn what it takes to feed Sydney for a day.

The students are participating in the Archibull Prize, an Art4Agriculture initiative that uses art and multimedia to promote the important role agriculture plays in our lives.

Art4Agriculture is a network of young farming champions who deliver events and activities that focus on youth, career opportunities, the environment and the arts, all with a link back to agriculture.

This year, the Archibull Prize asks students reflect on the theme “The Rural – Urban Divide – What does it take to feed Sydney for a day?”  Schools are provided with a blank fibreglass cow that students will decorate to highlight what they’ve learned about the challenges of housing and feeding the world with a declining natural resource base.

“The average person doesn’t consider the resources required to keep a city well fed, let alone the world!” says Jamberoo dairy farmer Lynne Strong, who Chairs Art4Agriculture.

“It’s staggering enough to discover you need 90,000 cows to produce 1.3 million litres of milk that Sydney consumes every day, but then how much land do you need for those cows? How many people to run the farm? How much feed for the stock?  These are the questions we hope the students will consider along the way.”

Participating schools have received their blank cows and have been randomly allocated an agricultural commodity that they are to feature in their artwork. These include beef, grains, sheep (wool & meat), dairy, chickens (eggs and meat) and cotton.   They then use the blank fibreglass cow to inspire or create an artwork or design.  They can paint it, film it, project onto it, create an animation with it, drape it with things, photograph it, or create an installation or a sculpture.  Students are also required to make a video, keep a blog and design a PowerPoint presentation tracking their journey from blank cow to masterpiece.

The completed “Archibulls” are judged by an independent panel to determine the winner.  They then go on display at various locations around Sydney allowing the general public to vote for the People’s Choice award. The “Archibulls” are also exhibited at the Sydney Royal Easter Show, providing a total audience of around 1 million people for the students to share what they’ve learned.

“This year we are excited that a group Young Farming Champions will visit and support the schools during the project” said Lynne Strong. “These young farmers will provide information about their industry, assist the students with the development of their ideas but most importantly, provide a young face of modern farming which we hope will inspire the students.”

The Archibull Prize builds a bridge for farmers and communities to reach out to each other, share stories and improve understanding and work through potential solutions together.

“It’s so important that farmers and consumers reconnect.  This will help our young rural people farm with confidence that they’re responding to consumer needs, while the city students will learn about agricultural production and be able make better decisions as consumers.” said Lynne

In addition to Woolworths, the program is also supported by RIRDC, Meat & Livestock Australia, LandLearn NSW, Kondinin Group and Primary Industries Education Foundation.
.

The “Archibulls” will be completed by 11^th November with the winners announced early December,

List of Schools Participating in the 2011 Archibull Prize

PRIMARY SCHOOLS
Maraylya Public School
Macarthur Anglican School
Windsor Public School
Schofield Primary School
St Michael’s Catholic Primary School

Alice Betteridge RIDBC School

Mt Druitt Tutorial

SECONDARY SCHOOLS

St Ignatius College

Richmond High School,

Caroline Chisholm College,

Colo High School.

Rouse Hill Anglican College,

Muirfield High School,

Northholm Grammar School,

Model Farms High School.

Terra Sancta College,

Crestwood High School,

Cranebrook High School,

Hurlstone Agricultural High School,

Quakers Hill High School,

Castle Hill High School

Photos of the Launch can be found on our Flickr page

Art4agricultue Chair Lynne Strong celebrates 2nd feather in cap this week. Not only is she a finalist in the Eureka Prize she has now been selected as a finalist in Rabobank Farm Industry Leader of the Year 2011.

The winers of the Eureka Prize will be anouced in 6 September and the Australian Farmer of the Year awards will be held held in Sydney on 7 September 2011.

A memorable week indeed for Lynne

Hosted by the Kondinin Group and ABC Rural, the Australian Farmer of the Year Awards celebrate the highly professional, innovative, and sustainable approach farmers take to developing the agricultural industry across Australia.

The Rabobank Farm Industry Leader of the Year award recognises farmers who pursue industry development beyond their own farm gate, creating positive change for Australian agriculture.

Lynne recognises central to a great number of issues facing Australian agriculture is
lack of consumer understanding and acceptance of agricultural production and
processes. To address this Lynne has committed hundreds of voluntary hours to
initiatives that encourage two way conversations between rural and urban
communities and introduce young Australians to careers in agriculture

Lynne has championed the delivery of the innovative and engaging Art4Agriculture events and activities that focus on youth, careers the environment and the arts all linked to agriculture.

Art4Agriculture education programs present a unique opportunity for young Australians to use creative arts and multimedia to gain knowledge and develop skills related to the production of the food they consume, the fibres and other natural resources they use and the gardens of their environments. Art4Agriculture web based education resources have now attracted over 50,000 web hits in just over two years.

Some of Lynne’s key achievements that impressed the judges include

At the farmgate

• Establishing an active and successful farm business which is focussed on sustainability and continuous improvement
• Adopting new technologies and innovative marketing strategies
• Lynne is one of 34 farmers involved in the Climate Champions program who are
  advancing climate change knowledge to inspire other farmers to adapt and use
  resources wisely, reduce pollution and mitigate the impact on their business of
  climate change legislation.

The Climate Champions are also engaging with scientists to ensure climate change
research is delivered to farmers in a language they can understand and results
they can use.

Equally, Lynne and her fellow Climate Champions recognise most farmers learn from other farmers and are motivated by seeing the science work in their own backyards. To
facilitate this they are actively engaging with government to ensure funding
for extension is seen as high priority.

Beyond the farmgate

Lynne believes that while farmers in general don’t see the need to build relationships with consumers and decision and policymakers, it is pivotal to agriculture. To help address this and create a culture of change, Lynne has focused on advocacy and telling the positive farming stories in preference to taking on agri-political roles.

To achieve her advocacy objectives, Lynne and her Art4Agriculture
team including the Young Farming Champions design and deliver projects and activities that bring consumers and rural producers together to build trust and confidence in Australian farm production systems.

Some of Lynne’s key achievements beyond the farmgate include:

• Creating relationships which look beyond the farm-gate
• Actively increasing the profile of the dairy industry and agriculture generally
• A champion for connecting the next generation to agriculture and extending this to non-farming children
• Educating the Australian community about all aspects of the farming sector – including Australian farmers comittment to producing nutritious, affordable and ethical food for consumers
• Mentoring young people looking to agriculture as a career choice, working with young farming champions, andproviding and encouraging pathways for young people into the industry

Lynne’s vision for the future isn’t too difficult; it just requires a different way of
thinking. She believes a profitable and sustainable healthy future for the
farming sector is achievable – the health and welfare of all Australians and
many people around the world depends on it.

To drive the process of change requires champions and leaders. But to change grass roots perceptions, we need grass roots action. Farmers care about the country, their
livestock and the people they provide with food and fibre. Beyond best farming
practices, farmers have to be out in communities, walking the talk – from
paddock to plate, from cow to consumer – and building trust between rural and
urban communities. Lynne wants farming men and women to go out and sell the
message that feeding and clothing the world is an awesome responsibility and a
noble profession, and that it offers great careers. Just imagine if we could
achieve her vision of an Australia-wide network of trained, passionate farmers
talking directly with the communities they supply!

Climate-savvy farmer Lynne Strong announced as finalist in Eureka awards

Art4Agriculture Chair Lynne Strong is one of a group of 34 Australian farmers who have been announced as a 2011 Australian Museum Eureka Prize finalist for their work in motivating action to reduce the on farm impacts of Australia’s increasing climate
variability .

The EurekaPrize is recognised as Australia’s most prestigious science award

Lynne has been involved for 18 months in the national Climate
Champion program  which brings researchers and farmers together to
share information

The farmers, who represent most major agricultural commodities from all over Australia, have been selected for successfully adapting their farms to produce more food using
fewer resources whilst generating less on farm waste.

The climate champions are sharing stories with fellow farmers to improve the farming
communities understanding of the impact of Australia’s increasing climate
variability and increase the adoption of practices and tools for managing
climate risk.

“Farmers live and die by the weather. They want to know when it’s going to rain, how much, and what the season promises.  Farmers can’t control the weather but we
can control how we prepare for it,” says dairy farmer Lynne Strong from
Jamberoo,

The Climate Champions are also working with the scientists to trial early research products and practices, and ensure the research is communicated in a language the
farmers can understand and transfer into on farm action.

We are also working with the government to ensure the research reaches the paddock. Surveys say 9 out of 10 farmers learn from other farmers. They want to see results in
their own backyard.  If we are going to feed the families of the future the government of today must invest heavily in on farm extension”  says Lynne

The Climate Champions program is run by science communication consultancy Econnect Communication on behalf of the national Managing Climate Variability program, the Grains Research & Development Corporation, and Meat & Livestock
Australia.

Presented annually by the Australian Museum, the Eureka Prizes reward excellence in the fields of research and innovation, leadership and commercialisation, school
science, science journalism and science communication. The Eureka Prize for
Advancement of Climate Change Knowledge, which is worth $10,000, is designed to
highlight work that has achieved outstanding outcomes in three areas:

• increasing understanding and positively changing attitudes about the cause, process and impacts of climate change and the need for action
• improving skills to respond to climate change
• Positively changing behaviour towards helping reduce the impacts of climate change.

The Eureka Prize winners will be announced on 6 September 2011.

For interview:
Lynne Strong, phone: 02 4236 0309, lynnestrong@cloverhilldairies.com.au

Media assistance: Sarah Cole, Econnect Communication, phone: 0402 833
193, sarah@econnect.com.au

Eureka Prizes:
http://eureka.australianmuseum.net.au/