Information sessions to deliver insight on agricultural Churchill Fellowships

The non-academic program offers everyday Australians opportunities to travel overseas and investigate a topic they are passionate.

As Churchill fellows, the recipients will receive an average of $28,000 each and Trust support to explore international best practice and innovations in a field of their choosing.

The Trust is running two dedicated virtual information sessions for potential applicants involved in primary industries and food production.

After pausing last year because of COVID-19, the Churchill Trust plans to select around 100 people from diverse walks of life to undertake projects in 2023.

A series of virtual information sessions based around particular themes will be held during February and March to help inspire ideas and guide people through the application process.

RELATED READING

The series will kick off on February 1, when former ABC Landline reporter Prue Adams will host a session for people involved in any aspect of agriculture and food production, including growers and producers, value-adding enterprises, advisers and scientists.

A second session with a particular focus on horticulture and viticulture will be held on February 21.

Each session will feature existing Churchill Fellows sharing their experiences, as well as live question and answers to provide valuable advice on preparing an application.

The session on February 21 will feature wine industry consultant and 2017 ASVO Australian Winemaker of the Year, Mike Hayes, from Queensland, and Tasmanian orchardist Sally Dakis.

Mr Hayes completed his fellowship in 2013, visiting 50 wine regions in Europe looking for alternative varieties to tackle climate change. His research led him to create the Vineyard of the Future project.

A rural journalist for 30 years, Ms Dakis operates a cherry and peony farm in the Coal River Valley.

She travelled to Singapore, the United States and Europe to explore value adding and marketing of niche and bulk cherry products in the food processing industry.

Aside from general fellowships, specific national and state-based sponsored fellowships are being offered this year in a range of fields.

They include the new Saskia Beer Churchill Fellowship to investigate artisanal food production and small-scale farming, and the Hort Innovation Australia Churchill Fellowship to cultivate new ideas in horticulture.

Applications can be made online from February 1 2022, closing April 28 2022.

Trust chief executive officer Adam Davey said the organisation had received a 10 per cent increase in applications during its last round in 2020 despite the emerging pandemic, and the Trust was hopeful of an equally strong response this year.

"People who apply will not travel until next year, and we will work with them to navigate travel requirements," he said.

No specific qualifications are required to receive a Churchill Fellowship, and Fellowships are not used to undertake formal academic study.

Instead, recipients spend four to eight weeks visiting, observing and working alongside leaders in their sector.

The precise topic of focus is completely up to the applicant, who designs his or her own itinerary, however, applicants are expected to have worked through the issue thoroughly in Australia, exhausting locally available knowledge.

Importantly, they must also demonstrate potential benefits to their sector or community, and be willing to share the findings on their return.

"Fellows may travel for as little as a month but the experience can change the rest of their lives," Mr Davey said.

"They return with valuable networks, greater confidence and the motivation to achieve what they never thought possible.

"As a result, the combined impact on Australian communities since the first Fellowships were awarded in 1965 has been extraordinary."

Mr Davey encouraged anyone with project idea to register for a virtual information session, even if they weren't certain travel would be possible next year.

Sign up here to Good Fruit and Vegetables weekly newsletter for all the latest horticulture news each Thursday...