As part of her quest to make a positive impact on the ag sector, the Katherine agronomist has been named as one of 10 shortlisted for the FMC LEAD Program scholarship.

The inaugural program offers recipients a fully subsidised place to study at either the Australian Graduate School of Management, Macquarie Graduate School of Management, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology or Harvard (online).

"I come from a fairly humble background of pig farming, shearing, ringing and bull/buffalo catching, so to be selected among the top 10 young aspiring leading females in the country for agriculture and agribusiness as part of an opportunity this great is a huge honour," Olivia said.

"Opportunities for leadership and management training can be a rarity in the bush, therefore this is highly valued.

"This type of leadership training would not only help me to thrive, but also equip me with the skills to be able to make a real difference in the Northern Agricultural Industry."

As part of their application, entrants were required to submit an essay, and Olivia chose innovation as her theme where she posed the question; 'how do we as a country become more sustainable, stronger, more resilient, more capable?'.

"The Australian Agricultural industry is only as strong as its community support, so I wrote my essay on the importance of uniting our local farmers who grow our fruit, vege and fibre in their back paddocks with the local families who buy and wear our produce," she said.

"Agriculture is the industry that is at the heart of the world, it feeds and clothes us. If we have a united vision we can sustainably grow, improve and develop.

"Our local Katherine community grows some of the highest quality watermelons, mangoes and fibre in Australia, we have a lot of opportunity to be able to help feed and clothe not only Australia but other continents too."

A daughter of a farmer, Olivia has always had a passion for farming which led her to become an agronomist at EE Muir and Sons.

It is her dream to make a difference in the industry on both a local and national level.

"In the agricultural industry, there is a great opportunity to grow, impact and make a huge difference in both business and the community. I love that being an agronomist provides me with a daily opportunity to make a difference," she said.

"Our community, our consumers and our farmers all want to be able to grow high quality food sustainably and I am blessed enough to be in a position to help make that happen."

In addition to the study opportunity provided by the FMC LEAD Program scholarship, the recipients will join FMC at the National Farmers Federation 2021 National Conference in September to network with current sector stakeholders.

They will also present their LEAD program submission ideas at FMC's 2021 National Ag Day lunch and connect with the FMC team and diverse industry partners for learning and local field trip opportunities.

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