GRAZIHER PODCASTS

Melissa Neilsen is a remarkable woman whose journey has taken her from the small Central Queensland town of Biloela to the expansive plains of North Western Queensland. Raised on a hobby farm, she now lives on more than 24,000 hectares with her husband, Stewart, and their three children, and farms Brahman beef cattle.⁠

⁠Melissa is a mother, wife and the driving force behind Rural Women’s Exercise, an online group that focuses on postpartum recovery. She founded the group after experiencing pelvic floor dysfunction following the birth of her third child.⁠

⁠Melissa is also navigating the complex and often overwhelming journey of securing resources, education and support for her second child, who has autism and ADHD.⁠

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

Chanel Bowen is a producer and filmmaker based in Western Australia. The 31-year-old was awarded a Hollywood internship and and has worked on films such as Mystery Road and High Ground, all while living and travelling from her home outside Dunsborough in the south west.

But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for this creative, who acquired a traumatic brain injury after an accident five years ago. In this episode, Chanel talks to host Em Herbert about using her work to advocate for others living with disability.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

Five years ago, Jackie Elliott took the ultimate leap of faith. Despite being in a loving relationship and surrounded by good people, she felt isolated in her community and it was starting to affect her mental health. The 25-year-old had no experience planning events, but she did something very brave: she put herself out there and hosted what has since become a series of events held across Australia.

Rural Women’s Day Ltd is now a registered not-for-profit that  connects country women and fosters collaboration and celebration. Host Em Herbert sat down with Jackie after a Rural Women’s Day event at Kimba in South Australia.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

Heidi Trusler knows all too well the challenges of getting consistent, quality health care in the bush. Instead of relying on someone else to solve the problem, she founded the online service POP. With 64 speech pathologists on staff, Heidi was offering telehealth well before the COVID pandemic and has assisted more than 3000 families.

In this episode, Heidi talks to podcast host Sammie O’Brien about her childhood in remote western Queensland and watching her parents struggle to get assistance for her brother, Jack, who has Down syndrome.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

Did you know that a teaspoon of soil contains more microorganisms than there are people on the planet?

Tegan Nock does. The 33-year-old has made the jump from farmer to founder. Her company, Loam Bio, raised $105 million last year in Series B funding.

Based in Orange, New South Wales, Loam Bio is breaking new ground with world-first technology that uses fungi to trap carbon and improve soil health. The company says its biological seed treatment could turn the world’s croplands into giant carbon sinks – which farmers can monetise and trade.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

Pip Kensit is one of those remarkable women who can draw inspiration from whatever surroundings she finds herself in, be it during her idyllic childhood on a sheep and cattle property in country New South Wales, living with a Masai tribe in Kenya or witnessing traumatic health events in remote Australia. These experiences drive Pip to better the world around her.

A registered nurse with a master’s degree in international public health and health leadership and management, Pip has worked extensively in regional and remote communities and developing countries. She currently works part-time at the Rural Doctors Network and holds leadership roles at various rural health organisations.

In this episode, Pip talks to host Sammie O’Brien about pursuing a degree in medicine and the next generation of rural health professionals.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

To say that Ella Edwards is fiercely passionate about regenerative agriculture is an understatement. She believes that it’s not just a moral imperative, it’s also an economic imperative.

Ella grew up on Bohara, a sheep station on the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales between Goulburn and Yass.
The 31-year-old now works for Sydney-based climate change advisory Pollination and returns to the farm every second weekend, often helping with mustering, lambing or shearing the family’s 8000 superfine merinos.

In this episode, Ella talks to host Em Herbert about what drives her passion and busts some of the common misconceptions around the regenerative concept.

Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.
This episode is proudly sponsored by Stetson.

We celebrate the winners of the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award in this special series of Graziher’s Life on the Land podcast.

Did you know as a nation, we consume a staggering 336 million tins of tuna a year – roughly the same weight as the Sydney Harbour Bridge? And that 99 per cent of the 50,000 tonnes of tinned tuna Aussies eat annually is imported? Less than a third of that is certified as sustainably fished.

In this episode, you’ll meet Kate Lamason, the Queensland winner of the AgriFutures Australia Rural Women’s Award. It’s these statistics that blew her mind and reeled her in to start her business, Little Tuna – to get Aussie tuna on Aussie shelves.

The AgriFutures award shines a spotlight on some of the most inspirational, courageous, innovative and hardworking women in the business, and celebrates all that rural Australia has to offer. This award recognises women having a positive impact in rural industries, businesses and communities and inspires the next generation of female leaders across all aspects of regional, rural and remote Australia.

Hosted by Emily Herbert. Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

We celebrate the winners of the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award in this special series of Graziher’s Life on the Land podcast.

In this episode, you’ll meet Rebecca Keeley, the 2024 New South Wales winner. Rebecca is fiercely passionate about closing the gap for regional and remote children in accessing speech pathology. Studies show that Aussie kids are waiting an average of 20 months for a speech pathology assessment — and it’s a further 20 months before they receive intervention. That means a two-year-old with delayed speech would be nearly six before they see someone face-to-face. The ripple effect of that delayed intervention is seen throughout their formative years and beyond. The cost of these services are prohibitive to many regional and remote families who also need to travel huge distances to access services.

As Rebecca sees it, this is not good enough. The speech pathologist has launched a startup, Yarn, which offers families digital speech pathology programs while they wait to see a specialist in person.

The AgriFutures award shines a spotlight on some of the most inspirational, courageous, innovative and hardworking women in the business, and celebrates all that rural Australia has to offer. This award recognises women having a positive impact in rural industries, businesses and communities and inspires the next generation of female leaders across all aspects of regional, rural and remote Australia.

Hosted by Emily Herbert. Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.

We celebrate the winners of the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award in this special series of Graziher’s Life on the Land podcast.

In this episode, you’ll meet Belle Binder, the 2024 Tasmanian winner. Belle has established the Farm Work Loop, a first-of-its-kind proactive approach to employment.

The AgriFutures award shines a spotlight on some of the most inspirational, courageous, innovative and hardworking women in the business, and celebrates all that rural Australia has to offer. This award recognises women having a positive impact in rural industries, businesses and communities and inspires the next generation of female leaders across all aspects of regional, rural and remote Australia.

Hosted by Sammie O’Brien. Produced by Jayne Cuddihy.