Agricultural Bureau rewards rural excellence
Tuesday 29 June 2010
The Spirit of Excellence in Agriculture Awards for 2010 have opened, with young South Australians again in the spotlight.
The annual Peter Olsen Fellowship and the Rural Youth Bursary feature in this year’s Agricultural Bureau awards which celebrate the achievements and potential of SA’s farming communities.
“We encourage all communities and farming families to look at their young talent and nominate people for these awards,” said Neville Ferme, who chairs the Bureau’s governing body, the Advisory Board of Agriculture.
“They can help aspiring young people in our rural communities to travel and learn more about developments and innovation in their fields of work.”
Mr Ferme said the awards are part of the organisation’s commitment to the future of agriculture and farming in the state.
The $8,000 Peter Olsen Fellowship, awarded every year to a young farmer aged between 18 and 35, was named in honour of Eyre Peninsula farming identity and Agricultural Bureau member Peter Olsen who died 10 years ago in an aviation accident.
Last year’s winner, Jason Schulz, used the fellowship to undertake a North American breeding research tour. A member of the Coonalpyn-Tintinara Ag Bureau, Jason said the award had helped to establish his Black Limousin stud in the Upper South East.
This year’s winner will be announced at the 2010 awards night at the Royal Coach Motor Inn at Kent Town on Wednesday 13 October. Applications close 13 September.
The $5,000 Rural Youth Bursary, awarded for the first time last year to South East educator Abbey McKenna, is being offered to young people working in rural areas - not only those involved in primary production - aged from 18 to 30 years.
Abbey McKenna, 25, an Educational Case Manager at the Independent Learning Centre at Naracoorte, is visiting schools, orphanages and community development organisations in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to bring new skills back to her own community.
The bursary was funded through the residual funds allocated to the Ag Bureau when the SA Rural Youth Movement wound up in 2008. Applications close 13 September.
The Agricultural Bureau of SA is also offering up to $1,000 for young people to attend the SA Rural Leadership Program or leadership training of the applicant’s choice under the Rural Leadership Training Bursary. Applications close 13 September 2010.
The Services to Primary Production Award – last year won by Coomandook agricultural science teacher Philip Roberts – acknowledges the contribution of an outstanding long-running member of a farming community.
Ag Bureau members are invited to make nominations for the Services to Primary Production Award by the close of business on Friday, 17 September 2010.
The Spirit of Excellence in Agriculture awards are supported by the Advisory Board of Agriculture, the governing body of more than 70 agricultural bureau across South Australia, Primary Industries and Resources SA, financial services group RSM Bird Cameron and the Stock Journal.
Guidelines, application forms and further information or by phoning 1800 652 258 or (08) 8226 0351.
