Using low cost, low-bandwidth Internet conferencing to support farmer group operations and learning

  • Published: 27 Nov 2007

  • Author(s): McGregor, Jill, Group, Liebe

Share this content
  • twitter
  • facebook
  • email

The Liebe Group is a farming grower group based in remote Western Australia covering three shires – approximately one million hectares of agricultural land. Travel time and costs for farmers to meet with researchers and other growers is often a barrier to information uptake. The wide adoption of an Internet program, such as MS NetMeeting™, into a rural community enables farmers to access current research which can be shared with colleagues without leaving home, and means growers will spend less time away from their farming businesses.
This project aimed to increase the use of the technology within the district by introducing a number of local farmers to the benefits of MS NetMeetings™. The growers were set up with software and hardware and were given training and support during the course of this research. This resulted in the Liebe Group Finance Committee using NetMeeting to support its regular meetings instead of having to travel several hours to meet in person at the Liebe Group headquarters near Dalwalinew. Using NetMeeting allowed the group to meet via the Internet, sharing spreadsheets and the Liebe groups finance software in real-time, while using a regular conference phone call for voice.
The Liebe group staff reported confidence in conducting future regular NetMeetings and the research will facilitate other Liebe group operations to progressively benefit through use of Internet conferencing.

Related resources

Community Adaptability Tool - Securing the wealth and wellbeing of rural communities

This project developed a methodology, the Community Adaptability Tool (CAT), for enabling communities to assess their socio-economic sustainability in the face of many change processes....

The Community Adaptability Tool (CAT) -A guide to using the CAT to secure the wealth and wellbeing of rural communities

Rural communities are increasingly faced with the need to adapt in the face of change, but they often do not have access to the specific...

Improving Integration of Agriculture and Conservation through Biosphere Reserves

This report provides a range of strategies to improve integration between agriculture and conservation in a biosphere reserve. The research gathered information from international case...

The Recent Victorian Drought and its Impact -Without precedent?

In line with many parts of eastern Australia, Western Victoria has been suffering from a prolonged dry spell that has had economic, social and environmental...

Rural Land in Australia: A framework for the measurement and analysis of nationwide patterns of ownership change, aggregation and fragmentation

This report presents the first ever comprehensive national study of rural land ownership in Australia. Changing patterns of rural land ownership provide important evidence on...

Rural Land in Tasmania: Spacial Patterns of Ownership Change: Aggregation and Fragmentation

This report provides detailed data on rural land ownership change in Tasmania over the period 2004-08. It is intended to complement the nation-wide analysis of...

Rural Land in Queensland: Spacial Patterns of Ownership Change: Aggregation and Fragmentation

This report provides detailed data on rural land ownership change in Queensland over the period 2004-08. It is intended to complement the nation-wide analysis of...

Rural Land in Western Australia Spacial Patterns of Ownership Change: Aggregation and Fragmentation

This report provides detailed data on rural land ownership change in Western Australia over the period 2004-08. It is intended to complement the nation-wide analysis...

Rural Land in South Australia: Spacial Patterns of Ownership Change: Aggregation and Fragmentation

This report provides detailed data on rural land ownership change in South Australia over the period 2004-08. It is intended to complement the nation-wide analysis...

Rural Land in Victoria: Spacial Patterns of Ownership Change: Aggregation and Fragmentation

This report provides detailed data on rural land ownership change in Victoria over the period 2004-08. It is intended to complement the nation-wide analysis of...

See all Publications & Resources