Rural Women’s Award | AgriFutures Australia

We need rural leaders with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions about the future of their enterprises and industries. We also know the unique challenges faced by rural women and how important grants for women are. That’s why we created the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award – Australia’s leading award empowering and celebrating the inclusive and courageous leadership of women involved in Australia’s rural and emerging industries, businesses and communities, now and into the future.

About the Award

Over the past 21 years, the Award has gained a significant profile, and is recognised as a program of influence among parliamentarians, industry, media and Award alumni. Each state and territory Winner receives a $15,000 Westpac grant for their project, business or program, access to professional development opportunities and alumni networks.

AgriFutures Australia is committed to the future growth and advancement of the Award as a means of identifying, celebrating and empowering women. The Rural Women’s Award is one of many AgriFutures Australia initiatives ensuring our rural industries prosper now, and into the future.

The Application Process

Online applications for the 2025 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award are now open.

Before you apply

We encourage applicants to familiarise themselves with the terms and conditions before applying. Click here to read the full document.

Within the application, all selection criteria must be addressed and contact details of two referees must be supplied. Referees will only be contacted if your application makes it to the final round – face-to-face state/territory interviews.

State/Territory Coordinator and State/Territory Rural Women’s Alumni State Chairs contact information is provided below and on the online application form – we encourage you to contact your either your state/territory coordinator or chair before you submit your application. They will be able to guide you through the application process and provide feedback on your project, business or program to ensure it is relevant and meets the criteria.

How to apply

Applications for the 2025 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award are accepted via the K2 platform.

Click here to launch the K2 application portal.
If you have an account, you will see green text saying ‘email exists’ and can enter your contact details then click next to start your application.
If you don’t have an account, you will be sent a one-time pin number via email. Enter the pin number, create your password and then complete your contact information. Once completed, click next to start your application. Please check your spam folder if you have not received the email with the code.
Enter your email address and log in.
Complete and submit your application, or save a draft application.

To save a draft, please click on ‘save draft’ at the bottom of the page. This will send a link to your email address, so you can log in and continue the application process when ready.

Late applications

Applications close on Wednesday, 9 October 2024, at 12pm AEDT (NT applications close Friday, 24 January 2025). Applications will not be accepted via K2 after this point. Please allow sufficient time to complete your application.

If for some reason you are not able to meet the deadline, you will need to advise the AgriFutures Australia contact below of your circumstances, and they can advise you of your options.

Need more help?

Please refer to the detailed Rural Women’s Award K2 User Guide.

If you have further questions about the K2 application process, reach out to .

Frequently Asked Questions

Am I eligible?

Applicants are required to have an existing project, business or program which is already live/up and running.
The existing project, business or program needs to fit into at least one of the following categories: Community, Collaboration or Commercial.
The existing project, business or program must align to a minimum of two of the values of the Award:
- Empathetic
- Authentic
- Cooperative
- Confident
- Courageous
- Grit
- Resourceful
- Pragmatic
- Clarity of Purpose
- Inclusive
- Innovative.
Applicants must identify as female.
Applicants must be over the age of 18.
Applicants need to be Australian citizens or permanent residents.
Location is no barrier. If you are creating impact, innovating and making a difference and/or contributing to enhancing the prosperity of rural industries* and regional Australia, then we want to hear from you.
Applicants must not be a Related Party of AgriFutures Australia (i.e., not an employee of AgriFutures Australia, or a member of the key management personnel of major sponsors and government agency partners, nor a close family member of the above.
Applicants must not be a previous national or state/territory winner of either:
- the former ABC Radio Rural Woman of the Year
- RIRDC Rural Women’s Award, or
- AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.**
No formal qualifications are required.

If you know someone who should apply for the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award, please email their name, contact details, and project area to

If you feel your project, business or program is not mature enough for the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award, check out the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Acceleration Grant.

*When we refer to “rural industries” we mean agriculture, forestry and fisheries.

*When we refer to “rural” this encapsulates rural, regional and remote Australia.

**Previous state/territory finalists are encouraged to re-apply.

What is included in the prizing?

A $15,000 Westpac grant is awarded to each state/territory winner, providing the financial resources to support a project, business or program that will benefit rural industries, businesses and/or communities.

The grant can be used for formal training in leadership and business management; overseas study tours; establishing business plans or pilot programs; developing educational or promotional campaigns; networking at forums and conferences to grow your knowledge of industries and markets; developing training programs; testing information technology initiatives; developing or testing a new business concept or innovation; and publishing books.

The grant cannot be used for buying capital equipment (without the explicit approval from AgriFutures Australia) or further tertiary education such as a Diploma, Masters or Doctorate degree.

All state/territory winners will participate in a separate National Selection Panel interview. The National Winner will be awarded an additional $20,000 Westpac grant and National Runner Up, an additional $15,000. These additional funds can be used for the above-mentioned activities, plus may also be used to assist in meeting national commitments such as speaking engagements as the National Winner or Runner Up.

Winners will also have the opportunity to complete a professional development training course, and will attend a three-day workshop with all other state/territory winners, to focus on further professional development skills and refinement of their winning project, business or program.

Click here to see further benefits of the Award

What is the timeline for applications and announcements?

July 2024
2024 state/territory winners participate in a three-day workshop and National Selection Panel interviews

Tuesday, 20 August 2024
2024 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Gala Dinner and National Announcement

Wednesday, 21 August 2024
2025 applications open

Wednesday, 9 October 2024
2025 applications close at 5pm AEDT.
(Note: NT Applications close 24 January 2025 at 5pm AEDT)

December 2024 – March 2025
2025 phone, and face-to-face interviews take place with the state/territory Selection Panel

March 2025 – May 2025
2025 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award state/territory winners announced

What are the application questions?

In the application form, you will be asked to answer the following questions:

Your personal pitch, in one paragraph describe who you are, what you stand for, what is important to you and what drives you on a daily basis to influence positive change in rural and regional Australia?
Explain your existing project, business or program.
Select the categories your existing project, business or program fits into (you can select more than one).
Community: An existing project, business or program which is based in and delivers value to a community.
Collaboration: An existing project, business or program which involves multiple people working together to achieve a shared vision.
Commercial: An existing project, business or program which is able to be commercialised.
Explain how your existing project, business or program aligns to the categories you selected.
Explain who benefits from your existing project, business or program and the impact it is currently having.
Explain the impact your existing project, business or program aims to have over the next 12 months.
What are your leadership skills and experience to date?
What leadership and development opportunities are you interested in pursuing to equip yourself with the skills you need to create greater impact with your existing project, business or program?
What would you spend the $15,000 Westpac Grant on if successful?

2024 National Finalists

Rebecca Keeley

2024 NSW/ACT Winner

Rebecca Keeley is a dedicated allied health professional with a Master of Business Administration (Distinction) from the University of Oxford and a Bachelor of Speech Pathology from Flinders University. With hands-on experience from remote First Nations communities in the Northern Territory to farming communities on the Hay Plains, Rebecca is deeply committed to improving allied health services for children and families in rural areas.

Her passion drove her to found Yarn, an innovative digital health platform addressing geographical barriers, service delivery challenges, and speech pathology waitlists nationwide. Yarn aims to empower clinicians and patients through evidence-based, gamified programs, providing parents with tools to support their child’s communication while awaiting services. Rebecca envisions Yarn as a catalyst for revitalising equitable healthcare systems across rural and remote Australia.

Tanya Egerton

2024 Northern Territory Winner and National Winner

Tanya Egerton is dedicated to empowering the entrepreneurial aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across remote Australia. Through her role as founder and CEO of Circulanation, Tanya has spearheaded the development of the Remote Opshop Project.

The Remote Opshop Project supports the establishment of a network of community-owned and led opshops in remote First Nations communities, providing access to affordable essential items and small business training while generating independent funding that supports culturally focused projects.

Funding support from Westpac will enable the development of a First Nations Leadership Council, responsible for conveying community needs, establishing a decision-making framework, and creating an impact measurement framework aligned with anticipated social, cultural, economic, and environmental outcomes for First Nations peoples in remote Australia.

Kate Lamason

2024 Queensland State Winner

Kate Lamason is the co-founder and director of Little Tuna, the Cairns-based company manufacturing Australia’s first 100% Australian caught, owned and made preserved tuna.

Kate, alongside her fisher husband Rowan, was shocked to learn 99 percent of the more than 50,000 tonnes of tuna consumed by Australians each year was imported, so she decided to launch Little Tuna and change the game for tuna lovers right around the world.

Together, they spent years researching the market and developing recipes to spearhead Australia’s first canned tuna company since offshore canning, producing an award-winning product and boosting the profile of the local tuna industry.

Kate will use her grant from Westpac to continue championing the Australian tuna industry, educating consumers on local fishers’ produce and their world-leading, robust and sustainable methods of fishing.

Nikki Atkinson

2024 South Australia State Winner

Nikki Atkinson is founder and designer of Horrocks Vale Collections; a sustainable Merino wool wedding dress and special occasions wear brand.

Living on the family property in the Flinders Ranges, her passion is to showcase fine Merino wool in an innovative way, revolutionising the wedding industry and making it more sustainable using an environmentally friendly and versatile fibre and taking it on the journey from Australian farms to couture fashion.

Married to a Merino producer, Nikki understands what it takes to develop extra-fine Merino fibre and flock – it can take generations to create a world-class, premium product. Thanks to the South Australian AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Westpac grant, Nikki will continue to champion the fine merino wool industry in the world of wedding dresses.

Belle Binder

2024 Tasmania State Winner

Belle Binder is a passionate advocate for the value and importance of agriculture. Driven by her love for farming and commitment to making a difference for both farms and workers, Belle has developed a first-of-its-kind proactive approach to address worker productivity and experience by blending travel activities, collegiality, and continuity of work across diverse farms.

Promoting productive, tested workers for farmers and coordinated travel experiences and providing friendly farm environments for workers, the Farm Work Loop ensures seamless operations, transitions between farms, and consistent quality of productive workers for farmers.

Thanks to the Tasmanian AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Westpac grant, Belle will be able to make the agricultural industry more accessible by establishing and promoting the Farm Work Loop more widely.

Grace Larson

2024 Victoria State Winner and National Runner Up

Grace Larson, a paediatric critical care nurse with more than 17 years’ experience, has teamed up with her sister to address the unfair health disadvantages faced by rural children through The Sisterhood Project.

The mission is simple: to change the health outcomes for bush kids.

The Sisterhood Project delivers life-saving skills to parents and caregivers across rural Australia, including free infant and child first aid, CPR, and how to identify preventable illness to help decrease the need for rural children to seek specialised services in urban areas.

Thanks to the Victorian AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Westpac grant, Grace can continue to save more children’s lives through education, and importantly, breaking down barriers to that education.

Mandy Walker

2024 Western Australia State Winner

Mandy Walker is a dedicated advocate for family businesses in regional areas. Alongside her husband, she co-manages Walkers Diesel Services in Wongan Hills, specialising in heavy-duty diesel repairs and maintenance across the agricultural, earthmoving, transport, and mining sectors. Their business also encompasses engineering services, manufacturing chaser bins, and offering machining, fabrication, and repair solutions.

Mandy’s focus lies in developing a collaborative business model for Wheatbelt engineering enterprises to integrate into the defence industry’s supply chain. She aims to buffer regional businesses against the seasonal fluctuations of agriculture and enhance their participation in the lucrative defence industry supply chain.

With a vision for regional prosperity, Mandy will use her Westpac grant to help ensure that local businesses seize opportunities in the sovereign capability agenda, fostering long-term economic diversity and resilience within their communities.

AgriFutures Rural Women's Alumni State Chairs

Applications for the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Alumni State Chair open on Monday, 16 September 2024 at 9:00am AEST. This is an exciting opportunity for Rural Women’s Award alumni in four states—South Australia, Queensland, Northern Territory, and Western Australia—to step up and make an impact.

Find out more via the Alumni Hub