Victoria’s 2019 Rural Women’s Finalists Announced

Three Victorian rural and regional women will take centre stage for the coveted 2019 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award to be announced in March in recognition of their inspirational ideas to support Australia’s rural and regional communities.

The award inspires and supports Australian women to use and develop their skills to benefit their industries and communities, including Victoria’s $14 billion agriculture sector.

This year’s finalists include;

• Carly Jordan, from south west Victoria, who wants to continue developing a migrant resettlement model that assists regional towns to boost their populations and economies.
• Claire Moore, from Kyneton, who wants to breed a genetically diverse range of queen bees that are healthy and adaptable in a variety of climates to address declining bee colony numbers.
• Odette Suitor, from Sunbury, who wants to continue developing a grains storage concept to improve the efficiency of grain harvest by taking the concept to industry.

The Victorian winner will be announced at an upcoming ceremony and will receive a bursary of $10,000 to implement her project. The national winner will be announced at an award ceremony in Canberra held on 11 September 2019.

In addition to the Victorian AgriFutures^TM Rural Women’s Award, the Andrews Labor Government is supporting Victorian women in agriculture with the revitalised Rural Women’s Network, working with rural women’s groups and individuals to encourage women to have a more active voice in government and community decision-making.

For more information about the award please visit http://agriculture.vic.gov.au/agriculture/food-and-fibre-industries/rural-womens-award.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Agriculture Jaclyn Symes

“Victorian rural women are at the forefront of innovation and I congratulate our three finalists who I know will do our state proud.”

“The Andrews Labor Government is focused on the positive future of women in rural communities and we’re getting on with driving growth in agriculture, creating jobs and supporting the health and wellbeing of our overall regional and rural communities.”

“We’re proud to support the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award, which is Australia’s leading Award acknowledging and supporting the essential role women play in rural and regional industries, businesses and communities.”