Ag Ex brings grower group leaders together to advance SA Ag
South Australia’s grower group leaders recently gathered for the inaugural EO Forum2023, held at the Marion Hotel. A great opportunity for the 19 groups to participate in a facilitated workshop co designed to address key topics as identified by the EO’s.
The full-day agenda featured an overview of the National Grower Group Collective, a project led by Ag Ex and funded by the Department for Agriculture and Water Resources. A steering committee comprising of a number of representatives from WA, SA, and the eastern states collaborated over a number of workshops to further develop a comprehensive national extension strategy.
“The project scope directly addressed building the capacity and skills of individuals who service the extension needs of the grower group network across Australia”, said project leader Mark Stanley.
Newly appointed Climate Smart Facilitator, Emma McInerney introduced the group to recent climate focussed projects led by Ag Ex, inviting interest to participate in a joint funding application for the Carbon Farming Outreach program.
Emma describes the program as “an ideal space for Ag Ex to operate in with the view to support groups to subsequently contribute to practice change”.
Rachel Kelly, Drought and Resilience Manager for PIRSA, presented on the Carbon Farming Pilot program. Rachel joined Pene Keynes, Livestock SA to discuss the AgriSilience farm business management programs recently rolled out in regional SA, outlining plans for future opportunities.
The SA Drought Hub in conjunction with the SA Department for Environment and Water generously supported the day, also taking the opportunity to seek feedback from the EOs on what has and hasn’t worked well and to identify future priorities for Hub activities.
The forum culminated with some professional development, focussing on building the EO’s skills within the social media environment. Heidi Wright from Wright Social delivered a fantastic training session on how to best employ social media, providing attendees with practical tips, tricks, and dos and don'ts.
The EO Forum will continue to be held biennially in conjunction with a number of scheduled online professional development sessions.
The Ag Excellence Forum and Awards will be back in 2024 to further build on its 15-year legacy of providing a valued collection point for grower groups, government, and industry to share experiences, develop new ideas, enrich connections and contribute to the evolving conversations.