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and metropolitan Australia so that those in the cities have an

understanding of the agriculture industry and a good percep-

tion about the role it plays in Australian society.

Organizations like Australian Women in Agriculture, the

Queensland Regional, Rural and Remote Women’s Network

and the Country Women’s Association have helped foster a

culture where the role of women and the contribution they

make to Australian agriculture is widely understood, accepted

and appreciated by the industry. These organizations also help

develop and support women in a meaningful way. This is not

to say that it has always been an easy journey, but the perse-

verance of organizations like these has helped find solutions

to any issues or barriers faced by women in agriculture.

These organizations also serve a secondary purpose which

helps women living in these areas to grow their professional

and social networks, helping to reduce social isolation. The

Country Women’s Association and its members often volun-

teer at community events, fundraise, and work on local

projects aimed at making their community a better place for

all of its residence to live in.

As part of the attitudinal survey the FFN membership

was asked if they believe they live in a vibrant regional or

rural community. The majority (65 per cent) indicated that

they did, while also noting that building vibrant commu-

nities does not happen by itself, it takes the work of the

community to remain active, put on events and be welcom-

ing to newcomers.

“We have a busy little community that is very welcoming

to newcomers, especially since we have a large international/

backpacker/grey nomad workforce who comes through twice

a year to help harvest fruit. We are pretty lucky to have a lot

of hard working community members,” said an FFN New

South Wales member.

Another member of FFN New South Wales said: “Walgett

is the strongest community I have ever lived in – everyone

gives 110 per cent, is willing to help out and very vocal on

farming issues and just generally gets things done. They have

a very strong art group, rugby committee, sports, and a very

strong agricultural community. It’s incredible what you can

get involved in here and where it will take you.”

There are of course other regional and rural towns which

are not vibrant and where people suffer from social isolation.

In this regard FFN and its members believe that the Federal

Government has a support role to play in the provision of better

services to regional and rural Australia. That includes better

infrastructure, greater access to health and education services,

and support for existing community clubs and initiatives.

The strength and determination of regional and rural

communities is demonstrated best whenever they are faced

with uncertain times including long periods of drought.

Without consistent rainfall these communities literally dry

up. The consequences of this are often devastating to many

farmers and their businesses and when entire towns are

facing these issues, living in agricultural parts of Australia

can be extremely difficult. However, by residents using their

networks and looking out for one another, many of these

affected communities have been able to survive and ultimately

prosper in the tough times and get through it together.

Australia is fortunate enough to be in a financial position to

offer drought assistance packages to affected farmers. In recent

Image: Future Farmers Network

Government, industry and farmers need to work on solution-based approaches to some of the current issues faced by family farms

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