Country girl Caitlin makes it count

She said writing about the topic for the Country to Canberra Essay Competition - which asked the question 'If you were Prime Minister for a day, what would you do to help achieve gender equality? Think locally and nationally!' - she discovered the extent of gender discrimination in agriculture.

"This is where I differ from a lot of females," Caitlin said.

"I have been a rouseabout since I was 10 and always wanted to work in a shearing shed, something which has had the support of my parents and everyone else around me.

"I've shown I'm willing to put in the hard yards to earn respect."

It was Caitlin's father who planted the idea for her to enter the competition.

"I thought this is the perfect chance for me to be able to have a say where it really matters," she said.

"I have always been very opinionated and stand by my beliefs.

"By entering Country to Canberra I would be able to rub shoulders with those who lead this country and discuss topics with them in the hope I could become a voice for rural Australia."

Caitlin believes rural Australia is overlooked by government, and wants to use her leadership skills to change this.

She is not lacking in ambition and working towards her dream of being a wool classer.

"Next year I will be doing a full-time traineeship with a shearing contractor in the southern Flinders Ranges and obtain a Certificate IV in wool classing," Caitlin said.

"I have a Certificate I in Rural Operations with a shearing and wool handling focus, recently completed a Certificate II in Wool Handling and have nearly finished a Certificate I in Automotive Pathways."

Becoming a wool classer has been a dream since she was 10, when she first saw the Australian Shearing and Wool Handling team in action at a fundraiser for a trip to Norway.

"I really want to be a wool classer but I never want to not have a job because I have focused on one area," Caitlin said.

"So I would like to be a 'jack of all trades' and I am a straight-A student so I can be in an office or I can be out in the yard."

Caitlin has gained valuable animal handling skills showing led steers.

"I have been heavily involved in the school's led steers program and shown stud cattle for the past three years," she said.

"I love it - it is so much fun and gives me a chance to dress up."

Caitlin's parents own a hobby farm and she has lived on the land her whole life, although it is difficult for her to narrow down her favourite thing about country life.

"Maybe it is the fact I'm not living in the city where you can't see the stars at night," she said.

"Maybe it is the wide open spaces or maybe it is the people I get to meet - the true-blue Aussie characters."

Caitlin has never been to Canberra before and thinks she might feel out of place in the city but is looking forward to being a voice for SA's farmers in the December 1 trip.