Our people

Angus is a third generation grazier, running Noonbah Station near Longreach in outback Queensland with his wife Karen. An expert in water management, he is former Chairman of the Lake Eyre Basin Community Advisory Committee and a former member of the  Great Artesian Basin Coordinating Committee, a government advisory body.  He is also a self taught naturalist fascinated by the flora and fauna of the Australian arid zone. In 2004 Angus was awarded an honorary masters of science degree by the University of Central Queensland.

Growing up in Western NSW, Lucinda now runs a large multi-property cattle genetics enterprise with her husband in the Murray Valley, east of Albury. Lucinda’s leadership on climate change adaption in the grazing industry was recognised by the National Climate Change and Research facility, being named the 2012 Climate Adaption Champion. To accompany this, Lucinda is also the Director or Chair of multiple Organisations and Councils, including the Commissioner of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.

Josh is a young farmer and climate advocate, with a passion for his aboriginal and agricultural heritage. Josh has been recognised for this agricultural and climate change advocacy, being selected for and receiving many awards throughout 2015. These include selection in the Pro Bono Australia’s Impact 25 most influential people in the not for profit sector, leading the NSW young farmers climate change motion at the NSW Farmers Annual Conference, and attending Paris for the COP21 and the Conference of Youth.

Peter is a third-generation farmer in south east NSW, growing crops such as canola and wheat, as well as running sheep for wool. Peter is also a member of the Climate Kelpie – a central location for farmers after practical information and tools with which to manage climate change risk and impacts. Peter has an extensive knowledge and first hand experience with the strategies farmers can use to manage and adapt to climate change.

Originally from the UK, Liz is the joint owner of Wildwood and the Cape Trib Exotic Fruit Farm in the QLD heritage listed Daintree rainforest. The orchard has 800 trees and 50 different species of rare exotic fruit, including mangosteens, soursop and rollinia. With Cape Tribulation being the largest community in Australia to live off the grid, Liz is passionate about addressing climate change by harvesting rainwater, using solar power and educating her guests on how to take a carbon neutral holiday. 

Drawn by a love of cows and the land, Marian Macdonald interrupted a public relations career in the city to become a dairy farmer. In her well-known Milk Maid Marian blog, she writes about the roller-coaster ride of life on the farm with two young children, as she and husband Wayne not only chart their course through fire, flood and drought but innovate to cope with the changing climate.

John is a retired fruit grower from Bunbartha, north of Shepparton in Victoria. He was a director of major Australian fruit processing company SPC Ltd for 13 years. Other past directorships have included Goulburn Murray Water and the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority. John was also the founding Chair of the Environmental Farmers Network. Over the past decade, John has also been an adamant spokesperson on climate change, presenting widely with the Climate Reality Project.

Anika is the Australian Young Farmer of the Year and a 2015 Crawford Scholar. Her family runs a dorper sheep station near Broken Hill and she is passionate about sustainable farming practices. Anika is currently completing her PhD in international agricultural development, focusing on improving soil fertility in water constrained environments.

Sid is a fifth-generation cattleman who is passionate about sharing his vision for a climate-safe farming future. Sid and his family have pioneered new sustainable research practices to cope with climate change in their area. They have also assisted with revealing how best to apply climate science and forecasting to agricultural planning, risk management and climate change relevant policy. Sid has won several awards for his tireless work in communicating climate issues through his well known talk, "Climate Change in a Nutshell" and work with leading climate scientists.  

The Prell family have owned a sheep and cattle grazing property in Crookwell for over a century. Charlie Prell is passionate about farming and has expanded this passion to include wind farms. A committed member of the Crookwell community, Charlie has also been championing wind farms and the potential benefits they can bring to regional communities for many years. He strongly endorses moves towards a benefit sharing planning and development model for wind farms. As well as managing his farm, Charlie is also currently working part-time as the NSW Regional Organiser for the for the Australian Wind Alliance.

Gavin is a seasoned fresh produce grower and industry leader with over 30 years’ experience in Australian horticulture.  Gavin is passionate about farming pineapples, strawberries and mangoes responsibly as climate change predictions forecast rising temperatures and extreme rainfall.  Piñata Farms is renowned for innovation and commitment to quality as a result of farming adaptations.

At its peak Lynne Strong’s award winning family farming operation proudly provided the milk for 50,000 Australian breakfasts every day. Lynne has won some of agriculture’s most prestigious awards including the inaugural Bob Hawke Landcare Award, the National Landcare Primary Producer Award, as well as being both a Eureka Prize and Banksia Award finalist. Lynne has a vision for agriculture as the strong, prosperous and vibrant building block underpinning the health and happiness of Australia’s landscape and people. Under the banner of Picture You in Agriculture, Lynne has brought together a team of experts to help young people develop the innovative ideas, tools and relationships they need to create the next exciting chapter in the future of Australia’s agri-sector.

Jon is a seedstock and commercial beef producer from Cowra, in Central NSW. He breeds composite cattle and is passionate about improving efficiency and productivity within the beef industry. In recognising the contribution of the beef industry to overall emissions, Jon wants to support and encourage the industry to adapt their practices to ensure both the industry and the environment have a viable future.

Robert has been growing sugar cane in Northern NSW for over 50 years, and is passionate about developing practices on his farm to address climate variability in a changing climate. Robert has been recognised for his admirable environmental work, receiving the 16th McKell Medal in 2006, and being selected as the Australian Carbon Farmer of the Year in 2014.  

Dr Robin Gunning is a world authority on insecticide resistance, recently retiring from Principal Research Scientist with the NSW Department of Primary Industries. Robin’s work has resulted in major advances, with international patents and awards including the Churchill Fellowship. Concerned about rural community disbelief in climate change and the effects on agriculture, Robin joined the Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project, giving presentations to raise the profile of climate issues in her area and with politicians.

Anna Rose comes from a family with a long farming history in the Hunter Valley, Liverpool Plains and North-West Slopes of NSW. Anna previously co-founded the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, a movement of over 120,000 young people and then ran Earth Hour with WWF-Australia. Anna is author of Madlands: A Journey to Change the Mind of a Climate Sceptic, and co-starred in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s documentary I Can Change Your Mind on Climate Change. Anna previously convened the Vice-Chancellor’s course in Leadership & Influence at the Australian National University. She is a former Churchill Fellow and a recipient of the Sierra Club’s Earthcare award for her services to international environmental protection. She was the Australian Geographic Society’s Conservationist of the Year 2015 and was a finalist in the Australian of the Year Awards (A.C.T.) the same year. She is an advisory board member of the Australian Geographic Society, and a Director of the Aussie Farmers Foundation and the University of Queensland’s Global Change Institute. She is a former Director of Solar Citizens and Green Music Australia. Anna is a Visiting Fellow at the ANU Climate Change Centre and an Associate of Melbourne University Sustainable Society Institute. 

Matthew has experience running his mixed farm of wool, beef and cropping in the beautiful Derwent Valley. After recently selling his family farm, Matthew has moved to the Huon Valley, Franklin, where he is starting up a consultancy business. Mr Pitt is the former chairman of Landcare Tasmania, worked on the board of the National Resource Management South, and is also the co-convenor of Climate Tasmania. Matthew is a very passionate man when it comes to doing more to combat climate change and promote sustainable agriculture for the future. 

Sarah Sulman is a young farmer from Breeza, producing sheep on the beautiful Liverpool Plains. Sarah has been heavily involved in the Liverpool Plains Youth, including leading local opposition to the Shenua Mine. An inspirational young woman, Sarah almost single handedly runs the family farm after the death of her grandfather and is emerging as a rising champion for rural Australia. Sarah’s passion for agriculture and her dedication to sustainability has earned her considerable respect from the conservative agricultural community.

Oscar is a sixth generation grain and beef farmer from Moree in northern New South Wales. Before returning to the family farm, Oscar worked in policy and stakeholder management roles for peak industry councils, state farmer organisations and industry research and marketing organisations. Oscar and his wife Susannah and their three children operate a 2,700 ha cropping business and a beef cattle operation in conjunction with his parents. Since returning to the farm, Oscar has been a member of NSW Farmers Association Conservation and Resource Management (CRM) committee and native vegetation taskforce, and in 2017 he was a member of Grain Grower’s Australian Grain Farmers Leadership Program. Oscar knows that climate change is a major and immediate threat to his farming operations both in the short term and over the course of generations to come. Oscar has a passion for practical and real world policies within a strategic long-term vision for Australian agriculture, especially market based incentives for landholders instead of regulatory focused approaches. He believes that government systems to incentivise and remunerate landholder practice for climate change amelioration and adaptation must be widespread, long term and non-tokenistic.

Jim farms on the Liverpool Plains in NSW. His interests and studies are inspired by understanding and mitigating risks to the maintenance of the natural resources and landscape systems supporting his business, local environment and community. Jim is a member of the CSIRO Land and Water Flagship Advisory Committee. He has GCs in Environmental Science, Management and Planning of Natural Hazards and is studying for his Masters. Jim is a past member of the Federal Independent Expert Scientific Committee for Coal Seam Gas and Large Scale Coal Mining. Jim has a long history in natural resource management (water reform, research and development, resilience, and cumulative impacts), and was the inaugural Chairman of the Namoi Catchment Management Authority. Jim is a Governor Member of Farmers for Climate Action. Last year he led the charge for renewable energy as the originator of an open letter in The Land which was signed by over 2,000 farmers.