About the Award

Jeanette Long

South Australia

With over 20 years in leadership, facilitation and extension training, Jeanette Long champions regional and rural talent development. Her facilitation expertise serves both farmers and agricultural professionals, highlighted by her work with the Red Meat Profit Partnership in NZ QDAF, Dairy Australia, Sugar Research Australia, the National Grower Group Collective and recently as the Master Facilitator for the NB2 Program sponsored by MLA.

Jeanette’s academic accolades include advanced degrees in Business Administration and Agriculture, and is a certified facilitator, coach, and trainer. She’s also been honoured with the SA Rural Woman of the Year (2004), the Centenary Medal (2003) and the SA Young Achiever Award for Regional Development (1996). She farms at Undalya and on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia with her husband, Bill, and son, Will. As the Chair of the Alumni for the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award, Jeanette is dedicated to supporting and elevating past award recipients.

Jane Milburn OAM

Queensland

Social entrepreneur Jane Milburn was an early voice on our clothing story and sustainable ways of dressing. Jane’s Slow Clothing book and philosophy builds on her earlier career in agricultural science, journalism and communications before establishing Textile Beat in 2013 as a leadership response to textile waste.

In an era dominated by passive consumption of cheap and synthetic fashion, Jane presents a compelling case for why we need to change the way we dress to live lightly on Earth. She believes regenerating our agency in the wardrobe by gaining skills and knowledge can help drive systemic change and create financial, health and wellbeing benefits. Jane is an Australian Rural Leadership Foundation fellow, a 2010 Queensland Rural Women’s Award finalist and a trained permaculture teacher.

Jane won a Churchill Fellowship in 2019 and was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for service to fashion sustainability in 2022. She leads conversations about ethical, mindful and creative ways of dressing by sharing slow clothing philosophy at talks and workshops to inspire a more sustainable clothing culture.

Maree Gooch

Western Australia

Maree is an engaging, successful entrepreneur and management consultants with more than three decades of experience spanning almost 25 years as hands-on farmer, 10 years in hospitality and catering, and a number of roles in SME’s, NFP’s and government.

Her strengths are in Business Strategy, Business Transformation, Governance and Financial Management. Maree gives much of her time generously for philanthropic pursuits, especially regional and rural initiatives. She sits on a number of boards, in WA and nationally.

Maree co-founded Value Creators in December 2018. Value Creators offer a new way to create value, by creating unique environments and the essential link for people to develop their strengths and capabilities, translating to successful and sustainable business transformation. Value Creators develops and deliver programs, often with mentoring built into the delivery, by working across 3 pillars – helping people in business flourish and grow which improves business output, efficiencies and culture, which in turn flows to industry and is a wrap-around to and for the community.

Donna Digby

Northern Territory

Donna Digby is passionate about showcasing the best of remote and Northern Australia. Her connection to the NT spans 25 years and she has lived and worked in most regions of the NT. She values authenticity, inclusion, collaboration and creating a positive impact.

Donna embodies a people-centred, place-based and purpose-driven approach. For the past two decades, Donna has worked with local people in Victoria and the NT to inform, shape and achieve their futures through the lens of regional economic and community development.

She is an inclusive and community focused leader that believes we can achieve richer outcomes for our communities when we create spaces and opportunities to draw on the ideas, experiences and expertise from within our community, as well learning from other communities in Australia.

Donna is driven to support NT leaders to reach their leadership potential by drawing on their lived experience, creating pathways for leadership development, connecting and building networks, mentoring and attracting investment to facilitate this.

Cressida Cains

New South Wales / Australian Capital Territory

Cressida is dedicated to challenging the status quo of Australian farming and fostering innovative approaches to agriculture. As an entrepreneur and innovator, she leverages technology and forward-thinking solutions to support Australian farmers. She firmly believes that by creating pathways to further education, upskilling, and vocational training, many workforce challenges in regional, rural, and remote (RRR) areas can be addressed, ultimately driving the productivity of the agricultural sector and strengthening rural communities.

Cressida is a strategic thinker with strong financial acumen and corporate governance expertise, honed through her experience in both commercial enterprises and not-for-profit organizations. Her passion lies in education, particularly in advancing women in small business and inspiring young people to pursue careers in agriculture.

In 2011, Cressida co-founded Pecora Dairy, an innovative cheesery that has received numerous awards for excellence in research and innovation. Notably, Pecora Dairy was the first in Australia to obtain a license for producing raw milk cheese. Over her 15 years in the dairy industry, Cressida has been a staunch advocate for small dairy farmers. In 2021, she founded Dairy Cocoon, an online platform designed to help dairy farmers explore opportunities for moving up the value chain.

Cressida is deeply engaged in her local community and contributes her expertise to various committees and industry advisory groups. In recognition of her contributions to agriculture and rural communities, she was honored with the 2020 NSW/ACT Rural Women’s Award and was named the National Runner-Up.

Kelly Barnes

Victoria

Kelly is a passionate rural wellbeing and dynamic disability advocate with a deep love of animals — especially her loyal working dogs. Originally from her family farm in the south of England, Kelly has worked across farming and shearing teams in the UK, New Zealand, and Australia before settling in Western Victoria in 2011.
Kelly transitioned into agribusiness roles, including rural merchandise, and completed further education in Agricultural Health and Medicine and Healthy and Sustainable Agricultural Communities which ignited her passion for supporting health and wellbeing in rural communities.

As the 2020 Victorian Rural Women’s Award winner Kelly drew on the unique ability of working dogs to spark conversations and encourage social connection in rural Australia.

Now a qualified Health and Wellness Coach, she is committed to promoting a strengths-based approach to rural wellbeing and her work continues to be inspired and informed by the humble working dog effortlessly creating a pathway to so many meaningful conversations and learnings.
Kelly is excited and privileged to take on the role as state chair to support, connect and elevate rural women across Victoria – and perhaps share a dog selfie or two along the way!

Sally Murfet

Tasmania

I am a highly experienced people and culture consultant with a deep understanding of the Australian farming and agribusiness sectors. With over 25 years of on-farm and industry experience, I have a unique perspective on what drives success in agricultural businesses, from the field to the boardroom.

I am passionate about making a difference in the agricultural industry and empowering individuals to thrive. Through my agricultural consultancy, Inspire AG, I am dedicated to supporting Australian farmers, agribusinesses, industry bodies, and government organisations in building stronger and more profitable businesses through their people.

I am thrilled to have been appointed as the Tasmanian Chair of the Rural Women’s Award Alumni. As a past state finalist of the award, I have personally experienced the growth and opportunities it provides. In this role, I am committed to supporting past and future Alumni members in creating connections and opportunities that enable their individual success and positive impact in agriculture.