rural women’s day 2019

BY DOROTHY HENDERSON, WESTERN AUSTRALIA-BASED MEDIA STRINGER

Accidentally sitting beside my computer is a book that is perfectly poised to inspire thoughts about Rural Women on a day that has been dedicated to them. The brightly coloured cover of “Cattlemen in Pearls” sings to me with its outback red and blue sky cover…and the pages between tell ballads of the lives of women who work with cattle.

Nearby, on the table that is dominated by notebooks filled with thoughts yet to be transformed in to meaningful stories, there is a stack of magazines that serve as a catalyst for more thoughts.

Within the pages of most of them, I will find women in rural settings: standing in front of a mob of sheep, or on horses, or with children in tow walking across decidedly regional landscapes. A catalogue of clothes for rural people lays open, with pictures of women in pretty shirts leaning against cattle yard rails, their hats clean and free from the traces of manure, sweat and dirt that will eventually accumulate on their felt brims.

I can’t help but feel that these images, though I love them, are in themselves a cliché.

A while ago, in May 2017, I was asked to do a story about a farmer near where I live. This farmer was a woman who describes herself as a managing director of a farming enterprise, and one who is well entrenched in the grain marketing, food production and promotion of farming in our state. That I was asked by the rural publication that I was working to do a story on her and her role in agriculture was not surprising.

At the time, I wrote “The ascendency of Munglinup farmer Michelle Barrett to chairwoman of the CBH Grower Advisory Council hardly comes as a surprise to anyone familiar with her record of community service and passion for farming.”

But when I was asked to do the story, I was specifically instructed to get a “pic” to go with it that showed Michelle getting her “hands dirty.” Issued with the best of intentions, the request to ensure that the visual image to accompany the words written reinforced the notion that unless soil is under your finger nails, and manure splatters your hat, you are not a farmer.

The awkward thing was that at the time, Michelle was involved with the early stage of a project that is now bearing fruit: The Invisible Farmer Project.

Before me sits the words I wrote in May 2017:

“This project is believed to be the largest-ever study of Australian women on the land.

“The Australian Research Council-funded project is to be rolled out over three years (2017-2019) and involves a nation-wide partnership between rural communities, academics, government and cultural organisations.

“Globally, over half of the farmers are female yet they are still not recognised for their efforts,” Ms Barrett said. “I hear people say things like ‘I just do the bookwork’: if they weren’t doing those jobs, their businesses wouldn’t run.”

So, knowing of Michelle’s role in this project, here was I, about to ask her to put herself in a position that showed that she was a “real” farmer.

Her reaction was as I expected it to be: a laugh, followed up by an alternative plan.

I did feel a bit silly dragging an office chair into our own front paddock, peppered with cow pats as the perennial pasture had just been grazed hard.

However, when Michelle turned up at the designated time for our planned “photo-shoot”, with her laptop as a prop, it seemed more appropriate than snapping an image of her leaning on cattle yards with a clean hat, or in front of a mob of sheep, or even in the farm office…she wore many hats then, she wears just as many now, and just because those hats are not encrusted with dried sweat and cow manure, she is no less of a rural woman.

THE STORY I WROTE IN 2017-

GAC chairwoman grows the future. Dorothy Henderson, The West Australian, Thursday, 11 May 2017 8:46AM

The ascendency of Munglinup farmer Michelle Barrett to chairwoman of the CBH Grower Advisory Council hardly comes as a surprise to anyone familiar with her record of community service and passion for farming.

Ms Barrett, husband Kieran and daughters Emma, 13, and Eadie, 10, farm 4700ha on Ned’s Corner, near Munglinup, 107km west of Esperance.

Cattle are run on the property and this year’s planned cropping program consists of 4110ha of wheat and canola.

The farm work is carried out alongside commitments that are part and parcel of being a parent and a member of a community, including roles with the local community group, tennis club, St John Ambulance and the South East Premium Wheat Association.

She said her role with SEPWA was as a member of the Esperance Farm Office Management group, which co-ordinates forums for growers to develop their capacity in this area and share information and tips. But that is not enough to satisfy Ms Barrett’s desire to inspire others to fulfil their potential, and she has taken on some voluntary tasks that she feels are important to ensure the wellbeing of others in the industry — particularly women.

This quest led to her involvement with the RRR Women’s Network Reference Group in 2012, a position she recently relinquished but one she savoured during her tenure.

“During that time, I had the privilege of working with some amazing women from across the State, who all share a passion for their communities and regions and a desire to advocate on their behalf,” she said.

As a graduate in communications from Murdoch University, it seems only natural that her skills in connecting people have led her to involvement in off-farm aspects of the industry. Her continued role on the CBH Grower Advisory Council is another commitment which achieves the goal of encouraging women to look at increasing their involvement in more visual aspects of the industry.

So too is her involvement with The Invisible Farmer Project. This project is believed to be the largest-ever study of Australian women on the land.

The Australian Research Council-funded project is to be rolled out over three years (2017-2019) and involves a nation-wide partnership between rural communities, academics, government and cultural organisations.

“Globally, over half of the farmers are female yet they are still not recognised for their efforts,” Ms Barrett said. “I hear people say things like ‘I just do the bookwork’: if they weren’t doing those jobs, their businesses wouldn’t run.”

Ms Barrett is also combining her love of cooking with her desire to strengthen the connections and relationships between food producers and consumers. This aim is being fulfilled via community catering and through her involvement with projects like the Esperance Festival of the Wind’s Taste of Esperance. The Taste of Esperance is a culinary event that involves the tasting of locally produced food and which has become a highlight of the region’s biennial arts festival.

In addition to her desire to see the work of women in agriculture appreciated more, and for people to connect more with the producers of their food, Ms Barrett is also keen to encourage more young people to pursue studies in the field of agriculture.

Filmmakers Gisela Kaufmann and Carsten Orlt of Kaufmann Productions, have released a 15 part web series, Visible Farmer. The series shares the stories of women on the land to raise the profile of the diversity of women and the roles they play within agriculture in Australia.