New round of applications now open | Additional places available for Drought Resilience Leaders Mentoring Program

• Are you involved in farming and looking for some trusted advice around your career, farming and personal resilience goals?
• Are you interested in supporting the next generation of rural and regional leaders by sharing your experience and knowledge as a mentor?
• Be part of a national network of mentees and mentors working together to respond to the impact of drought and our changing climate.
• Round 3 applications are now open for Drought Resilience Leaders Mentoring Program. Applications close 19 April 2022. Apply today via https://rural-leaders.org.au/drought-resilience-leaders-mentor-program

More than 400 people have already signed up to become a mentor or mentee as part of the Drought Resilience Leaders Mentoring Program, which is an initiative of the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and designed to strengthen the future of regional communities through capacity building and collaboration. 

Now, the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation (ARLF) is offering another opportunity for farmers, people in agriculture and with industry experience to join the program and connect others, share advice, and tackle common challenges together.

As Industry Leadership Manager at Sheep Producers Australia, mentor Melissa Neal has been matched with mentee Meg Kennett – a Marcus Oldham student and farm hand from Walcha, NSW. Together, Melissa and Meg will work over six sessions to test new thinking and approaches to managing the challenges of drought. 

“When I found out about the drought resilience mentoring program, I was extremely excited as I not only had the potential to find a mentor but one that also had a passion for rural Australia and drought resilience,” Meg said, “I hope to be able to develop networks and be a part of collaborative conversations focused on drought resilient strategies throughout the mentoring sessions and alumni opportunities.”

Melissa says she’s been “so lucky to have had great mentors over the years”, who provided her with opportunities, new perspectives, and different ways of seeing the world. 

“At the end of the day people drive agriculture and rural communities and the more we can have great relationships with great people, the better,” Melissa said, “All you need to be a great mentor is to have an interest in people and be willing to share stories and experience that you have had along the way - encouraging a mentee to be their best is a fabulous opportunity that you don’t get every day.”

“You can have confidence the program will match you with the right person for your interests and skill sets,” she added.

Round 3 applications are now open and the ARLF is encouraging anyone who is interested to apply for this national mentoring program. 

Commenting on the program roll-out to date, ARLF Manager, Mentoring Kristy Frahm said “Feedback we have received from the program participants who are getting underway with their mentoring sessions has been really encouraging.”

“The Mentoring Learning Sessions which have been held so far have seen a fantastic response from participants. Two of these monthly conversation-style webinars have been hosted by Program Coach Maree McPherson with special guests, The Unbreakable Farmer Warren Davies and Australian Resilience Centre Director Paul Ryan. Topics relating to personal resilience and resilient leadership were discussed and we were absolutely thrilled to see the level of interest and discussion during these sessions.”

“It’s wonderful to know networks in the agriculture sector are growing through this program as people connect from all corners of Australia and from a broad range of agricultural industries and regions.”

____________________________________________

What is the Drought Resilience Leaders Mentoring Program?

• The Drought Resilience Leaders Mentoring Program brings together farmers and people with a close connection to the agriculture sector to share trusted advice and provide support to help tackle challenges and maximise opportunities associated with climate science, wellbeing, business and agricultural practice.
• The program pairs farmers, as well as people working in agriculture and the rural sector, with mentors. They will work through a series of six virtual mentoring sessions, to address topics and issues related to their specific goals and needs.
• The program is fully funded as part of the Government’s Future Drought Fund initiative and is as simple as a ‘virtual chat’ to share knowledge, work towards goals, help solve problems and seek support and advice. There is no charge to participate and involves six “mentoring” sessions.
• At the end of the six sessions, participants will become part of ARLF’s national alumni network providing ongoing access to resources and networks.
• The program is designed to share knowledge and build drought and climate resilience in rural communities throughout Australia.
• Apply here https://rural-leaders.org.au/drought-resilience-leaders-mentor-program

Interested in learning more about drought resilience?
The ARLF is hosting a 'lunch and learn' webinar series which will explore what it takes to make Australian rural communities’ drought and climate change resilient and ready to take on the future. The next webinar will be held on 24 February 2022. Join online to hear panel discussions with producers and industry professionals and learn from real-life case studies from across the country. Free of charge, the webinar series is open to all. Register your interest here.

About Drought Resilience Leaders Development Program
The Australian Government established the Future Drought Fund to provide a sustainable source of funding to help Australian farmers and communities prepare for and respond to the impacts of drought. As one of its foundation programs, the Future Drought Fund has invested $11 million in the Drought Resilience Leaders Development Program. Led by the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation (ARLF) in collaboration with consortium of partners, the Program gives farmers and regional communities the opportunity to develop the skills, knowledge, mindset and networks to lead their communities into the future in 12 focus regions across Australia. In parallel, ARLF is running a national mentoring program to foster knowledge sharing and build future drought resilience. To find out more visit: https://rural-leaders.org.au/our-programs/drought-resilience-leaders/

Media Contact
For any interview requests with Matt Linnegar or queries related to the program, please contact Sonia Morris (Seftons) at sonia.morris@seftons.com.au or on 0421 672 162.