How is this New Economy? Agriculture in Australia is increasingly large, monocultural and wasteful. Getting young, independent farmers on the land is the only way we can begin to reverse this trend, so it is exciting to see the growth of organisations like Young Farmers Connect.
Young Farmers Connect (YFC) is a collaborative group that works to ensure collective success for new, young and aspiring farmers and empowers people to connect: with the land, their food and each other.
In April, Young Farmers Connect (YFC) re-launched as a national not-for-profit organisation to incorporate the activity of a growing number of active regional chapters that exist throughout Australia.
We are comprised of groups hailing from the Northern NSW, South East QLD, Mid Coast NSW, Greater Melbourne, Western Australia, Sydney and Tasmania and facilitate networking events, workshops, field days and information sharing. YFC is a community for farmers by farmers that provides a national framework for peer support and a network that facilitates opportunities, land sharing, collaboration, education, mentorship & industry support throughout Australia.
We understand the barriers and challenges for new farmers and advocate for resources & supportive pathways to mobilise young farmers into the agricultural sector, revitalise our rural communities and transform the way we produce, supply and consume nutritious clean food.
The average age of an Australian farmer is now nearly 60; vast amounts of our soils have been degraded by industrial agriculture; and a changing climate threatens the quality and the security of our food and health. We are committed to being stewards of the land, soil and sea and creating sustainable food systems for all.
By empowering a community of regenerative and ecological farmers we can create dynamic, nourishing, vibrant and engaging careers in agriculture. We are an alliance that believes in a bright and prosperous future for our next generation farmers.
YFC will now seek to ensure the growth and support of new regional chapters and will continue to develop a portfolio of resources, to gather and distribute opportunities to our members and amplify the messages and activities of our allied projects and strategic partners.
Most importantly we will celebrate the stories, indulge in the successes and bear the burdens of failures together. We hope to share the lessons learnt to foster a culture of collaboration, to mitigate risk and nurture new innovation and successful enterprise.
We encourage young farmers to get involved with their local group, links on our website - www.youngfarmersconnect.com.au or to get in contact to get help to start a local chapter in your area.
Young farmers network gathering at Future Feeders
How to engage:
Young Farmers and Supporters: please join our network. Memberships and contributions can be made through our Chuffed page. Our campaign offers membership and supporter contributions at a range of tiers and the finance raised will be invested directly into facilitating activities resources and support for our growing young farmers movement.
Strategic Partners and Sponsors: Young Farmers Connect will seek to align with organisations from around Australia who play a role in supporting new, aspiring and young farmers into the industry and onto the land. Our aim is to coordinate communications and networks to develop capacity and drive activity through our partnerships and corporate sponsors.
Industry and Government Partnerships: Young Farmers Connect seeks to coordinate its activities and build relationships with local, state and national government initiatives to provide a support platform for new and young farmers. We will seek to engage with these agencies to enable grass roots connections and communications platforms to advocate for resources and support for new and young farmers.
For all enquiries please contact gday@youngfarmersconnect.com.au
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