Leanne Kruss has been involved in agribusiness for 35 years, from her family Merino farm in the northern Mallee region, to study in Sweden, to cattle in far north Queensland.
Leanne’s passion lies with people, and for the past nine years she has led the Far North Queensland Workforce team, building human capacity across the FNQ agricultural industry. She is a Director on the board of the Primary Industry Education Foundation Australia, where she has spearheaded many initiatives to inspire students to enter the agricultural workforce.
Leanne has a keen interest in how rural and regional economies deal with global disruption, economic and demographic shifts, technological and environmental challenges, and how embedding agriculture into the education pathways of schools and communities will help buffer these challenges for future generations.
Staying true to her early Merino roots, Leanne is embarking on a ‘paddock-to-podium’ fibre tech proposition with the help of the Acceleration Grant. Leanne’s fashion rental project – focused on organic and regenerated Australian materials – aims to bridge the gap between producers and corporate. Leanne hopes that investing in natural Australian fibre will weave sustainability into the very fabric of the agricultural industry.