Territory women have until 27 January 2019 to nominate for the 2019 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.

The Rural Women’s Award recognises the essential role women play in rural industries, businesses and communities.

It provides a platform to inspire Australian women to use their skills to benefit their industries and communities and is an amazing opportunity to further leadership development, make a tangible difference and inspire others.

2018 Rural Women’s Award Northern Territory winner and national finalist Linda Blackwood encouraged women with ideas that could make a difference in rural communities to consider applying for the 2019 Rural Women’s Award.

“It’s not as hard as you might think to apply, and the benefits for you personally and your community could be huge,” Linda said.

“The award has given me the motivation to keep my idea moving. It’s also allowed me to connect with a network of like-minded women who want to do something positive for their communities.”

Linda’s project is developing a station site access accreditation program. The program will help Top End cattle stations and the contractors servicing them ensure their insurance paperwork is current and easily accessible.

“From a contractor point of you, you’re often supplying the same information over and over and there’s a lot of duplication of information,” she said.

“Having a centralised compliance system will mean contractors can lodge their paperwork once and stations can easily access it to check if they are compliant.

“It will reduce risk for sites and contractors, and reduce administrative load for both parties.”

Previous winners’ and finalists’ projects have included:

• workshops and networking platforms to increase the connectivity and resilience of rural and regional Territory women

• a project around local water stewardship to foster sustainable water use across the Darwin region

• raising interstate awareness about agricultural opportunities in the NT

• wellness programs on Elcho Island focused on improving the health and wellbeing of Yolngu people.

The 2019 Rural Women’s Award Territory winner will receive a $10,000 bursary for innovative projects, and access to professional development opportunities and the alumni network.

The award also links recipients with a positive and powerful alumni network of like-minded women across the country who are passionate about rural industries and rural Australia.

The award is open to all women involved in rural industries, rural and regional businesses and communities.

Northern Territory applicants have until 10.30pm Australian Central Time on 27 January 2019 to nominate for the award.

More information on the awards and how to submit an application is available on the Department of Primary Industry and Resources website – http://www.dpir.nt.gov.au.

The Rural Women’s Award is proudly supported by the Northern Territory Government and coordinated in the Northern Territory by the Department of Primary Industry and Resources.