Tag / Agricultural Networking

by Lynne Strong

Breeding Leadership – People are our greatest resource and we are investing in them

The Young Farming Champions program is well known for creating confident agricultural advocates and equipping them with the skills to expand and continue their leadership journeys

Recognizing people are our greatest resource and leadership is a key component of business and industry success, as well as achieving sustainable development in regional communities we are excited to announce Young Farming Champions Dione Howard and Katherine Bain have been selected for the AWI Breeding Leadership course.

The week-long course, to be held in South Australiaā€™s Clare Valley from Feb 20-25, is designed to empower young people in the wool industry. AWI acting CEO John Roberts says this is all about fostering the next generation of leaders.

ā€œThe Australian wool industry has a bright future and we need to continue to attract smart and enthusiastic young people to it. I am impressed by the high quality of participants representing all facets of the wool industry and AWI is looking forward to boosting their industry involvement via this valuable program.ā€

Twenty five participants have been selected from across Australia and through the course will develop skills and knowledge in personal leadership as well as strategic planning and team leadership.

AWI sponsored Dione through her initial YFC training and she feels ready to take the next step in the wool industry.

ā€œI believe that for me the time is right to focus on developing the strategic, interpersonal and business skills that are offered by the intensive week-long program. I am also looking forward to expanding my industry networks and (as a bonus) visiting the beautiful Clare Valley.ā€

Former business analyst with Paraway Pastoral Company, Katherine Bain has now returned to her sixth generation family sheep station in western Victoria and is looking forward to applying knowledge derived from the course to her own operation.

ā€œI am excited to join the Breeding Leadership course to improve my communication and leadership skills for my own business to ensure I can run it to the best of my ability. I am excited to meet people from the wider wool industry who are passionate and excited about its future. During this course I look forward to discussions about potential changes to the industry in the future and how we can best adapt to these changes on farm. I hope to come home with a better idea of how to implement strategies successfully to build a better farm.ā€

Dione and Katherine will be joined by Tom Steele, Nicole Davies, Alex Lewis, Ellie Bigwood, Bridgitte Brooks, Luke Button, Bridget Pullella, Alex Brinkworth, Shannon Donoghue, Declan Harvey, Genevieve Kelly, Monica Ley, Kara Murphy, Duane Simon, Tom Taheny, Jesse Moody, Alec Merriman, Matthew Martin, Bea Litchfield, Nick Kershaw, Sally Crozier, Jackie Chapman and Jock Cartwright.

Congratulations everyone, people are our greatest resource

Keeping pace with this rapidly changing environment requires us to have a stronger capacity to analyse, innovate and respond. If we want to transform our agri-food systems to be more productive, sustainable, inclusive and equitable, we need to invest in the people behind them.

#YouthinAg #BreedingLeadership

 

by Lynne Strong

Its Archie Action Time – Case-study 1: Meet Lorraine Chaffer who has a passion for geography and itā€™s ā€˜placeā€™ in education

When Emeritus Professor Jim Pratley AM speaks people listen. Speaking recently in the media Jim was quoted as saying

“Agriculture as an industry doesn’t engage with the education system and it’s about time it did, otherwise we won’t have a workforce.

The dependence on itinerant workers and students participating in gaps years is a pretty shallow strategy. I can’t see that operating too long into the future.Ā 

The organisations who are operating in the space must publish their results. If you donā€™t do itĀ  you may as well not have done it because nobody knows about it.”

We are listening Jim and we look forward to sharing with the world the extraordinary impact our programs are having in Australian schools

For over a decade Action4Agriculture has connected school students to Australian agriculture through The Archibull Prize and Young Farming Champions. In that time a multitude of learning areas including science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) have been employed to deliver the program. Increasingly geography teachers are is embedding aspects of agriculture in the curriculum, as a direct result of participating in our programs, as it provides place and context to learning.

Lorraine Chaffer is the Vice President and ā€˜immediate past presidentā€™, of the Geography Teachers Association of NSW & ACT and has a passion for her subject. She realised there was often a lack of understanding about agriculture and that the opportunities and challenges that it presents are an important component of the geography curriculum.

ā€œIt’s all about STEM [or STEAM] now and our argument is that Geography is the perfect STEM subject because we tie it all together. With geography you can link the science etc to what’s going on at a place. Geography marries science and agriculture – it makes the learning authentic and linked to the real world through ā€˜placeā€™,ā€ she says.

To increase her agricultural knowledge Lorraine began attended an agricultural conference where she heard Young Farming Champion Dr Anika Molesworth speak on climate action.

ā€œI saw Anika present at the Brave New World Agriculture to 2030 Conference in Sydney in November 2018. Much of what she said had links to topics in the NSW Geography Syllabus. I was impressed by Anikaā€™s positivity about the future and her message about taking action and later found a TED talk she had made the previous year. The link to geography was very strong so I approached Anika, via Twitter, with a request to present at the GTANSW & ACT Annual Conference in Sydney ā€“ using a mix of her Brave New World and TED talks. We were not disappointed. Anikaā€™s got the practical, common sense of a farmer and the science knowledge from her academic studies, but also ideas about what needs to be done about climate change.ā€

Through her association with Anika, Lorraine was connected with Lynne Strong and Action4Agriculture and realised the strong messages delivered through programs such as The Archibull Prize were a perfect fit for geography. She promoted the program through the official association journal, the Geography Bulletin and made Action4Agriculture the official charity of GTANSW & ACT.

The NSW Geography syllabus for Stage 5 (Year 9 and 10) has a content area centred around food, fibre and industrial production using the earthā€™s biomes. Lorraine says that her focus has been promoting geography as an issues-based subject that integrates issues related to agriculture and the underlying science on which sustainable agriculture and food security depend. The skills developed through a study of geography marry well with the transferable employment skills developed through programs such as The Archibull Prize.

ā€œItā€™s great that schools are doing things that are not out of the textbook, such as participating in ā€˜the Archiesā€™ and taking students to visit farms. This is demonstrating real world solutions to problems. And the great thing with geography, especially in NSW, is that we have great flexibility in what we do. We have a broad curriculum that says ā€˜okay, youā€™re talking about food production and biomesā€™. Itā€™s not saying that everybody has to study rice. If thereā€™s an issue around in agriculture in a particular year thatā€™s what you can focus on.

Something Iā€™m always on the lookout for is new resources, new ideas, and new ways of teaching the old stuff, but in a bit more of an exciting way. And if you can engage the kids and make them think about agriculture as an option in their future careers, open their eyes a little bit, then even better!ā€

To support teachers and geographers like Lorraine to incorporate agriculture into the geography curriculum Action4Agriculture establishes a two-tiered Ecosystem of Expertise:

  • Building long term partnerships with best practice farms the students investigate and report on
  • Working with our Young Farming Champions to get a big picture understanding of the agriculture supply chain and the diversity of people and roles that feed and clothe us, supply us with ecosystem services and renewable energy

Further case-studies in our geography series will look at three schools ā€“ The Lakes College (YotS), Eden College(YotS) and Pymble Ladiesā€™ College (PLC) ā€“ and how they put the Ecosystem of Expertise into practice.

Opportunities in agriculture are the worlds best kept secret no more

 

#agricultureinthecurriculum #partneredlearning #ecosystemofexpertise #ArchieAction

 

 

by Lynne Strong

Got a big idea for the future of agriculture? What to take it from “Go to Whoa”

Graduates of the Action4Agriculture two year Cultivate Growing Young Leaders program join our Young Farming Champions alumni where they have two opportunities to practice what they learn in a safe environment

To practice their communication and trusted voices skills they become role models of who you can be in agriculture and the faces of our in-school programs

To put their leadership training into practice and lead teams they can join our iHub

 

The iHub isĀ a Young Farming Champions (YFC) alumni community of practice for individuals and groups to build an innovation mindset, explore new ideas, collaborate, experiment and accelerate learning applied to a real-world project that nurtures a bright future for agriculture.

This year several YFC have imagined projects they see as beneficial to agriculture as a whole and to future YFC. Helping to realise these projects has been leadership coach Josh Farr from Campus Consultancy.

Josh initially gave the YFC a list of six options to explore and asked them to select the ones they felt would be most beneficial to their projects.

The six options were:

  1. Vision and Ideation
  2. Strategic planning
  3. Metrics of success ā€“ objectives and key results
  4. Marketing and promotion
  5. Personal branding
  6. Financial sustainability

Vision, strategic planning and marketing were popular elects.

ā€œWe are working with YFC on a range of ideas starting with the ideation stage, which is thinking what and why are we doing this, and how does this help everyone in agriculture from students in high schools all the way to established leaders in the field. From there we are going into a bit of depth about strategy and execution and how do we make sure really busy YFCs not only have clarity on what they are doing but also have a lot of fun bringing their big ideas alive.

The YFC see a need and a value to their idea and they want to know how to get that out in the world, and how to make something that cuts through the noise,ā€ Josh says.

Developing their ideas with Josh at one-on-one workshops have been Dylan Male, Emily May, Francesca Earp, Steph Tabone and Tayla Field.

ā€œMy big idea is to encourage YFC to contribute to our monthly Muster content by starting up a monthly ā€˜YFC 5-minute Muster give and takeā€™ initiative. Josh is providing strategy advice and support and I have already created a draft strategy document. I will continue to seek feedback on the initiative to help develop it before hopefully launching next year,ā€ Dylan says.

Tayla and Steph are collaborating on an idea to create a platform for people with experience in agriculture to share their key learnings with young people.

ā€œThat could be anyone from university students to those in the workforce to those who might be interested in a career in agriculture. The platform, which might be a podcast or video series, is planned to be short, sharp and effective in communicating some key take outs and learnings from a leader in agriculture.

Josh has helped us a lot in just one session to think about the format of the platform and what will work best for our target market and also be achievable for Steph and me to maintain throughout busy work and personal lives. We are looking forward to the next session where we are going to refine our elevator pitch, our ‘why’ and have a look at a few different strategies to approach the project,ā€ Tayla says.

Emily, who specialises in talking about peri-urban agriculture sought Joshā€™s help to prepare a school presentation.

ā€œJosh supported me by first helping identify what the goals of the presentation were for both me, the students and their teachers while also going over some key ways to get students engaged. As my session was for an hour before lunch to upper high school students, there was potential for this to be a tough crowd. We then ran through ways to improve what I had already created and it proved to be highly successful ,ā€ Emily says.

The workshop with Josh found immediate results for Emily who presented at the Centre of Excellence in Agricultural Educationā€™s Ag Week virtual conference, facilitated by school principal Kris Beazley.

ā€œEmily was excellent for the city kids, reinforcing you don’t have to be a country kid coming off a sheep station to have a role in agriculture. She also had some great interactive activities throughout her presentation and provided thought-provoking answers to student questions,ā€ Kris says.

For Josh, one of the highlights of working with YFC as part of iHub is their willingness to share.

ā€œThe iHub identifies that YFC have a desire to go above and beyond, to share everything they are learning and to create projects that are sustainable beyond themselves. One of the things Iā€™ve noticed about everyone who has got involved is that theyā€™ve consulted lots of people ā€“ theyā€™ve got their boss on board, theyā€™ve had employers offer funding ā€“ theyā€™re really good at bringing people together. I donā€™t see a single project here that is an individual glory project. These are things that the YFC are using their leadership skills to set up knowing there is going to be future generations of YFC eager to apply these skills. There is a beautiful synergy between their ideas and their insights, what agriculture needs right now, and setting up future YFCs for success,ā€ he says.

So, with big ideas being generated and workshopped with Josh to go to the next stage what opportunities are there for others to get involved?

ā€œThese projects are like rockets on the ground about to take off and I would encourage others to get on board. If you are a young person in ag, get in contact with these YFC. If you can offer experience, financial resources or even emails of encouragement, contact these YFC. These are ideas are by young ag leaders for ag leaders,ā€ Josh concludes.

#AGDayAU #YouthinAg #CentreofExcellence #YouthVoices #iHub

 

by Lynne Strong

Young Farming Champions Muster November 2021

Headline Act

One of the founding aims of Action4Agriculture is to take agriculture to students who would not normally be exposed to it. This vision has been driven by our Young Farming Champions (YFC), our teachers and our partners ā€“ a collaboration of leaders with a common vision.

This collaboration was highlighted during October and November.

Cortevaā€™s Elizabeth Hernandez showcased Dr Anika Molesworth and Francesca Earp on the global stage in conjunction with COP26 in Glasgow through Ā WOMAG and GrowHer activities.

 

Anika also represented youth in agriculture speaking on the panel at the Young Leaders in Climate forum.Ā Presented by British High Commissioner to Australia HEĀ Vicki TreadellĀ and Italian Ambassador to AustraliaĀ Francesca Tardioli, this was an opportunity for youth to inspire world-saving climate ambition. Panellists discussed the power of lived activism, the importance of youth and gender in the climate movement, and the future of diverse climate leadership.

Another YFC hitting the international stage was Tegan Nock, founding partner of carbon start-up Loam Bio, which this month attracted investment from Silicon Valley and Canadian billionaires to the tune of $40 million.

Also doing amazing work are our wonderful teachers such as Scott Graham who teaches agriculture at Sydneyā€™s Barker College. On November 3 Scott won the prestigious 2021 Prime Ministerā€™s Science Prize for Secondary Schools.

The leadership journey starts with small steps, none more important than the work our YFC do on a daily basis in the field.

 

In The Field

One of the most important aspects of being a YFC is the ability to communicate what we do in agriculture on an everyday basis and this month our YFC in the field have been doing just that.

Showing us how to do it is Cowra graingrower Marlee Langfield with her seasonal crop report for AEGIC. You can watch it here. Marlee and partner Andrew Gallagher were also featured in the Manildra Groupā€™s industry magazine The Cultivator, in fields of gold.

Also proudly spruiking their careers in agriculture were Emma Ayliffe and Sharna Holman who featured in Cotton R&Dā€™ Spotlight magazine, and Dylan Male whose work with Indigenous farming practices was highlighted in the Bendigo Times.

With cotton and grains covered, it was woolā€™s turn to shine when district wool manager Emma Turner co-coordinated a training program for industry on the lifetime management of ewes. The program will continue over another five field days in the following twelve months.

 

Out of the Field

Of course, promotion of agriculture does not finish with the day job and our YFC are active in spreading their good news stories further afield.

In conjunction with her book promotion Anika Molesworth has been seen in multiple media outlets this month. She created a Q&A column for The Australian, spoke with audiences in Copenhagen and Amsterdam (at 2am in the morning) in celebration of the release of the film A Positive Alternative (catch the four part series here)

and was a panelist at the Corteva Global Food Security & Sustainability Summit. Thereā€™s no slowing this girl down.

Anika also spoke to Tim Collings on his Better World Leaders podcastĀ 

This is a conversation that in some ways I was not expecting, but in other ways I sense I have long been waiting for. I was spell-bound throughout the dialogue with Anika Molesworth, as she shows through her experience, knowledge and actions how we can all influence change, be courageous and do things differently to address climate change and preserve our food systems now and for the future.

 

Emma Ayliffe is using her title of Young Australian Farmer of the Year to promote agriculture and this month was featured on the UNE website, Sam Wan, the outgoing WoolProducerā€™s Youth Ambassador, welcomed the 2022 cohort and Dione Howard continued her Rural Achiever duties.

ā€œI was super excited to participate in a local show event on the weekend of 23/24 October. Although the show was delayed due to recent restrictions, I had an awesome time at Ganmain interviewing their nominee for Showgirl, the state competition being known as Sydney Royal Ag Shows NSW Young Woman of the Year from 2022. It was great to represent the Rural Achievers from this year and celebrate young people doing exciting things in their community.ā€

Taking her agricultural message to the realm of education this month was Jo Newton who facilitated the final Engaging with Industry session for the Industry Mentoring Network in STEM (IMNIS) webinar series; with over 90 people attending online. One of her key takeaways was:

ā€œNot much beats getting actual experience. Volunteering and internships while studying are a great way to build your networks and skillsā€.

Jo will be joined by YFC Danila Marini and Emily May in November to connect with school students as part of the COE Virtual Ag Conference in conjunction with National Ag Day.

 

Prime Cuts

As we mentioned in Headline Act all the work the YFC do in promotion of agriculture leads to leadership opportunities and this month we are thrilled to announce Meg Rice has been selected for the AgriFutures AICD Foundations of Directorship course, while YFC Rebecca George and Jasmine Green and AWI Cultivate – Growing Young Leaders Scholarship finalist Jamie Pepper have been selected as Angus Australia 2021 GenAngus Future Leaders Program recipients. Congratulations

And speaking of the Australian Wool Innovation Cultivate Growing Young Leaders scholarship finalists you can catch their stories hereĀ 

 

Alana Black continues to thrive in her new role in Scotland and has been selected as a trustee for the Royal Highland Education Trust which delivers world-leading learning opportunities for Scotlandā€™s young people about, in and through the Scottish agricultural environment and the countryside, and, in particular, bringing young people out on farm.

 

Lifetime Achievements

Congratulations to Becca again this month for graduating with a Bachelor of Agriculture/ Bachelor of Business majoring in International Business. Well done.

And Dan Fox is doing his bit to ensure the future of agriculture by breeding his own team. Congratulations to Dan and Rachel on the birth of Hugh Anthony Fox on September 30.

#YouthinAg #YoungFarmingChampions #Muster #YouthVoices

by Lynne Strong

Meet Miranda McGufficke who sees powerful potential in young people in wool

There are a few things I love in this world; my family, my ambitions, and sheep without a doubt I love my sheep. After returning home from a shortened gap year in England, I shed a tear when I came home and saw a sheep. I have so much passion and admiration for these animals and their capacity to grow nature’s most environmentally sustainable fibre.

 

I know I have my Dad, my role model, to owe for this immense passion and strong interest. Particularly in breeding and comparing genetics and in learning how to operate a successful profitable business. I remember growing up we were always asked ā€˜Would we like to come and help?ā€™ not ā€˜You are coming to help!ā€™. I believe this choice helped determine my passion as it was my decision, and I did it because I wanted to be there not because I had to.

 

My gap year in 2020 saw me work alongside my Dad. I involved myself into every aspect of our business from rousabouting to genetic data collection and analysis. The things I was able to learn from my Dad and other progressive industry leaders is irreplaceable. I want everyone to have this opportunity as well.

I was fortunate to continue my gap year at home helping my family’s commercially owned and operated merino seedstock business. I spent every day working alongside my dad who is aĀ  driven and progressive producer. I took initiative into immersing myself more into our family business in the form of marketing and promotion. I initiated the creation of social media pages, collating the ram sale catalogues and introducing the Greendale newsletter- I saw an opportunity, and I took it and thatā€™s what I want others to be inspired to do ā€“ to take an opportunity, educate themselves and believe they have the potential to have influence and impact.

Working alongside my parents has been the biggest reward for my blossoming interest and career aspirations. Pictured here is my Mum, Michelle and my Dad, Alan.The importance of being family owned and operated is paramount to our progression.

 

Dad has taught me most of what I know today, not only about farming, sheep production and business and also about life. He has given me the to create opportunities and to look holistically at everything.Ā I have just started my tertiary studies and I believe the values and lessons my father has taught me has already benefited my studies. I have clear career aspirations which allowed me to direct my focus onto things that will benefit my progression. Yet I have found the education system and the industry to not be equipped in educating youth in areas such as genetic evaluation and comparison for profitable and sustainable economic performance.

 

This is why I believe education is crucial. More needs to be done in enhancing peopleā€™s understanding and knowledge about the benefit of data analysis and ASBVā€™s as well as how to use these genetic tools and systems. The potential of genetic selection in allowing more profitable and sustainable breeding decisions is unparalleled in comparison to relying on subjective opinion.

“Choose a job you love and you will never have to work in your lifeā€ ā€“ ConfuciusĀ 

 

In order to be fully understood, direct focus and applicable demonstrations need to be conducted and continually revisited ā€“ genetics always vary and progression and change should be the goal.

Ideas of initiating mentorship programs with interested youth and progressive, data focused producers or creating ongoing education programs that teach the whole industry should be the focus of the industry.

There is an apprehension to change. Changes in normality, changes in the process and unpredictability of the outcome. Change is inevitable and the issue I aim to addressĀ is the lack of adoption towards these changes. As an industry the key to success is progression. I have ambition to initiate change and promote the importance of adopting new systems into businesses ā€“ I want to focus on the youth that will help bring and incorporate this development and boost the productivity and profitability of our industry.

 

ā€˜We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power towards good endsā€™

-Mary McLeod Bethune.

#womeninwool #youthinag #YouthVoicesinAction

 

 

 

by Lynne Strong

Meet Savannah Boutsikakis who is looking forward to inspiring others to join her in a career in agriculture

Containing ourĀ showcase of the stories of the Australian Wool Innovation Cultivate Growing Young Leaders Scholarship finalists

Meet Savannah Boutsikakis………

I am from a 4th generation sheep property in Southern NSW. Throughout high school university was never on the cards for me, until my eyes where opened to early entry by my Year 12 Primary Industries class teacher

Without discussing it with anyone I went off on my own and before I knew it I had applied to University of New England (UNE) in northern NSW. One afternoon I got the unexpected email regarding my early entry offer I had gotten in to UNE, and rest of the week saw another two offers come in.

So having made it this far, I made the decision, I thought why not give the uni degree ago, its Agriculture after all how hard can it be. The stumbling block was I didn’t want to move to the other end of the state. My mum had previously seen an ad in the local paper about the Country University Centre opening in Goulburn with a phone call and a week later I was then the first registered student at the CUC. The CUC is established as a study hub to help and support rural and regional students through their university degree.

As 2018 began so did the chapter of university, studying full time online whilst working two bar jobs saw organisation and motivation in full swing. The intensive schools came, friendships that last a life time were instilled. Everything was going well until the dreaded email came I was failing first year chemistry, in tears I rang the CUC and by the time I was home I had not one but three chemistry tutors.

The CUC became more than just fast internet, it became my uni, support and back stop. Flash forward 3 year and I have just graduated a Bachelor of Agriculture the most challenging but exciting and biggest learning curve I ever did embark on. Itā€™s an honour to be the first registered student to start and finish their degree with the support of the CUC Goulburn.

Since this I was then offered a job in the Moree region sowing the winter crops, not really knowing what I was in for and having no experience with cropping I grabbed the opportunity to go.

 

The week before I left I was with my family talking about the new exciting experience of going to sow the winter crops. My cousin then commented ā€˜So you just walk along and put the seeds in the groundā€™ now I knew I didnā€™t really know what I was in for exactlyĀ  but knew it was big tractor with a big planter, so I explained the process to them. This comment really hit home for me, I knew there was a knowledge gap of modern farming practices but I didnā€™t realise how close to home it really was. My cousin has completed uni, lived and studied overseas, absolutely kicking goals, and yet her comment showed there were people in my family that knew very little about farming today

Agriculture today is an exciting web of careers that feed and clothe and provide people with renewable energy. I am excited to be part of it and I am looking forward to inspiring others to join me

by Lynne Strong

Meet Kate McBride finding her passion and mentors in agriculture

Containing our showcase of the stories of the Australian Wool Innovation Cultivate Growing Young Leaders Scholarship finalists

Meet Kate McBride ——-

As a fifth-generation wool grower I suppose thereā€™s no surprise Iā€™ve ended up in the agriculture industry and I am thrilled to be debunking the stereotypical farmer image.

Kate McBride – Healthy River AmbassadorĀ 

I am a farmer, I am female and I am under 30. I am also a board member, a healthy river ambassador, a university student working towards a masters and a researcher at The Australia Institute, one of the countryā€™s leading think tanks.Ā  Iā€™m also regularly speak at events and schools and a perk of my career is the work I get to do in the world of politics, working with politicians from all backgrounds on issues that matter to rural Australians.

Appearance on Q&A in 2019, alongside David Littleproud the Federal Minister for AgricultureĀ  Ā 

It wasnā€™t long ago I was a shy girl that couldnā€™t string two sentences together in front of a camera, let alone on National TV. So, whatā€™s changed and how can others do it? For me it came down to two things;

  1. Finding my passion and
  2. Learning from mentors.

I found my passion and my call to action happened when I witnessed the complete collapse of the Darling-Baaka river, a place Iā€™d grown up along side and loved. I knew something was wrong, but I wasnā€™t sure why or how I could help. Initially my upskilling involved a lot of learning about the river system, networking with experts and training in skills like media.

Standing in the dry Darling-Baaka river- My call to action

 

The second important element for me was the mentors I sought out and learnt from. I have benefitted from incredible mentors over the years that have helped shape me into someone that not only has a voice, but helps other find their own. For me, having one mentor that I could go to for everything didn’t fit, instead I have an army of people I go to for both personal and professional advice. One thing that has been installed in me is the fact that having a voice and platform is a privilege, and with that comes a responsibility. Not just a responsibility to work on a variety of issues, but a responsibility to help young people whose position I was in not too long ago. To me leadership isnā€™t about being heard, its about supporting others to grow with you and drawing out the best in them.

Sitting in the Senate Chamber at Parliament House

 

The variety in work our industry offers is unrivalled in my opinion. From sheep yards to think tanks, board rooms to parliament house, Agriculture offers it all.

Not only are we seeing more women enter the industry but equally as importantly, weā€™re witnessing generational change. Our industry has significant challenges and opportunities ahead and we need to be working together, people young and old, experienced and newbies to not just survive but thrive into the future.

I am looking forward to inspiring other young people, supporting them to find their voice and seeing just how far a career in agriculture can take them !

#WomeninWool #YouthinAg #YouthVoicesinAction #GrowingYoungLeaders

 

by Lynne Strong

Meet Jamie Pepper who was born to farm

Continuing the stories of our Australian Wool Innovation Cultivate Growing Young Leaders FinalistsĀ 

Meet Jamie Pepper

My love for farming was instilled in me at a young age. Growing up on a family farm, spending my weekends and school holidays helping out on the farm made me realise this was the industry I wanted to dedicate my working career to.

After my formal schooling was completed, I gained some valuable work experience (and studied) so I could bring new skills, new perspectives and commitment to do the best I can back to my family farm.

 

Farming is much more than a job or career for me. It is my life. The deep relationship I have with the land and the animals is something I feel deeply .

 

In a post-pandemic world, the future of agriculture is very bright and exciting. With stable commodity prices, positive cash flows and equity farmers, including myself, are able to reinvest back into our businesses.

 

With Australiaā€™s climate variability, environmental sustainability and the way I manage the land is important to me. The unreliability of rainfall means managing water sources to ensure clean and fresh water for the livestock all year round. Fencing off dams and creeks helps to achieve this (the added benefit is helping the fish and water birdlife). Fencing off bare patches/land-slips and planting trees is another activity I do, in which to look after the land for future generations.

Growing my confidence and leadership ability will help me to make informed decisions to capitalise in this exciting industry. Whilst there are foreseeable issues which directly affect the way I farm (mostly around climate variability), I am very much looking forward to what the future brings. I am particularly interested in exploring breeding opportunities for my livestock, making smarter decisions on my farm and being a proud ambassador for the industry that I love.

I have always been a big believer that change doesnā€™t just happen, we need to make it happen. With the benefit of completing the Growing Young Leaders Program I hope I can be in a position in the future to be part of decision-making processes which affect our industry. I want to make farming the best it possibly can be, I look forward to being a part of the leadership of this industry

by Lynne Strong

Meet Florance McGufficke on a mission to improve communication between consumers and wool producers

Continuing our meet the finalists series in the Australian Wool Innovation – Cultivate Growing Young Leaders Scholarship

Meet Florance McGufficke……

I have always had a connection to the land, growing up on a sheep and wool enterprise in Cooma, southern NSW. I never went to day-care, I went to ā€˜daddy day-careā€™ spending my time out in the paddock with dad (mostly eating sheep poo). When I was in primary school if we were shearing at home I would go straight to the shed after school, uniform and all.

Involving myself in sheep husbandry activities, data analysing and genetic data collection with the goal to continually improve our sheep to meet consumer demands and deliver a superior quality merino wool product. I was fortunate to attend boarding school and spend 12-months in the UK for my gap year.

I have just completed a double degree of a Bachelor of Agriculture and Business at UNE

Ā Success comes from hard work and dedication, that is what my dad Alan taught meĀ 

 

During my tertiary education I networked with a variety of people and held leadership positions, my most recent being the Senior Resident Advisor (SRA) at St Alberts College.

In the last 5 years I have appreciated the value in breeding highly productive and profitable sheep and the benefits of using top genetics to create a superior product. Throughout my studies my attention was drawn to the need to increase sustainability in agriculture and to take a more market-oriented approach in the supply chain. I have a passion for wool focusing on this incredible fibre I believe my roles in leadership have equipped me with the skills to engage consumers in conversations about the sustainability of this superior fibre.

Consumers today are becoming more aware of their carbon footprint and their impacts on the environment. They have increasing concerns about their purchases, questioning the sustainability of apparel fibres and demanding transparency and traceability of products. In regard to the wool industry, the future of fashion is heavily dependent on sustainable fibres. Wool is the solution to the future of sustainable fashion. The characteristics of the wool fibre make it highly sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Transparency is key to a create a cohesive pipeline and meet consumer demand- some bales of wool during our last shearing

 

I believe wool’s superior qualities need to be promoted to highlight the environmental benefits.

Fast fashion has resulted in an increased turn-over rate of clothing compared to 15 years ago due to the constant shift in fashion trends, with clothing collections doubling from 2-5 per year and lifestyle choices influencing consumer demand. With the consequences building as a result of fast fashion I believe we need to educate people about the impacts their purchasing habits have on the environment, as well as about the alternative choices they can make. The perfect world would see every household be able to own woollen underwear or t-shirt so they understand and appreciate the natural qualities of wool and the benefits this fibre has for their personal health, as well as the longevity of the environment. Creating clothing only of natural fibres, and reducing man-made fibres would reduce the level of micro-plastics in our oceans and pollution on land.

We have been using ASBVā€™s and measuring performance for over 14 years and from my experience and background in data collection and analysis continuous improvement is key to delivering a consistently superior quality merino wool Ā 

 

I aspire to be a leading advocate for increasing the level of transparency and traceability in the wool industry.

I believe a market-oriented approach is the key to improving market responsiveness and building a reputation for wool as a superior and sustainable fibre. I want to increase cohesion along the supply chain and ensureĀ  consistent communication channels between the producer and the consumer

I believe transparency is the key to engaging all stakeholders to ensure wool is successfully produced, promoted and consumed.

I know the benefits of this luxurious fibre, and have a desire to be a leading advocate for the future of the wool industry.

 

by Lynne Strong

Meet Katie Barnett – a young woman excited about a future in wool

The Australia Wool Innovation Cultivate- Growing Young Leaders scholarship invites young people in the Australian wool industry to nominate to learn how to become confident ambassadors and trusted voices.

The program identifies and supports youngĀ agriculturalĀ professionals and equips them with the skills to:

  • Connect and collaborate with the next generation of consumers and multiply their impact
  • Advocate for, and drive change in, the Australian agricultural sector.

They then become the face of our in-school programs and role models for who you can be in agriculture.

It gives us great pleasure to share with you the stories of our 2021 finalists

Ā Meet Katie BarnettĀ 

My name is Katie Barnett. I am 21 years old and from Kempsey, on the Mid North Coast of NSW. In 2019, I ventured to Armidale, NSW to complete a double degree, a Bachelor of Agriculture/Bachelor of Business at the University of New England. I am currently in my fourth and final year. I sit on multiple committees such as ASC of NSW Next Generation, Kempsey Show Society and UNEā€™s RSUS. In addition, I work on two properties, Kyabra Station and Taylors Run part-time and am just about to start another job at Precision Pastures. I have a small share in a mob of cross-bred ewes and have an enormous interest in women and youth in Agriculture, community involvement and the sustainability and resilience of the Australian sheep and wool industry.

 

 

How did I get here? I didnā€™t grow up on a property and I didnā€™t have family close by with a property for me to go to. I come from a rural town and went to a mainstream Public School.

Attending the Kempsey Anzac Day March with my fellow Kempsey High School Captain Dion Thompson-Stewart

Iā€™ve always had a passion and ambition to become involved in Agriculture, so I took every opportunity that came my way. It doesnā€™t matter what your background is, your age or even your gender. If you try hard and keep persevering, youā€™ll achieve your goals. If I can make it so, can you!

Me and my kelpie Liz

I have been involved in many areas of the Agriculture Industry. I have worked with dairy cattle, pigs, beef cattle on smaller scale and beef cattle on a larger scale (cattle station in QLD) and harvested crops to name just a few.Ā  The sheep and wool industries are my favourite.

Its vaccination time on the farm

I love the diversity, the endless opportunities, the innovation, the technology, and the science.

I am proud to be part of an industry where sheep turn grass, water and sunshine into wool – a natural fibre that will last for years and years in your wardrobe, needs less washing, is fire resistant, breathable, recyclable and biodegrable and does not contribute to microplastic pollution

I am particularly interested in supporting producers to continue to deliver sustainable, ethically produced wool.

  • Understanding what are our buyers looking for?
  • What are the main challenges we face as an industry?
  • How do we remain competitive in a world where we compete with many other products such as synthetic fibres?

When we have healthy soils and pastures we can optimise the animal health and welfare outcome for sheep as well as increase the amount and quality of wool they produce. Animals in farming systems can reduce the need for input such as fertilisers and by implementing rotational grazing techniques ensures that grass is trimmed regularly, allowing it to regrow, store more carbon in its roots and support biodiversity in and above the soil.

Trees are an integral part of the farming system, providing shade for livestock, capturing carbon and shelter for native animalsĀ 

I believe that I have a great future ahead of me in the sheep and wool Industry and I encourage everyone to have a go. You never know what lies ahead.