An Industry leader and farmer has taken out the 2019 SA AgriFutures Rural Women's Award after her project idea to form a 'value-based' connection between the agriculture industry and its city cousins, was recognised as an avenue to help propel the industry into the future.
Palmer-based farmer and AgCommunicators co-director Deanna Lush, won the prestigious award ahead of other finalists Natalie Sommerville, Andrews, Michelle Verco, Clare, and Di Thornton, Pinnaroo.
It was awarded by Primary Industries and Regional Development Minister Tim Whetstone at Urrbrae house.
The award will allow Ms Lush to bring her project to life with a $10,000 bursary from Westpac.
She will also receive professional development opportunities and join an Alumni network.
Ms Lush's vision was to create a network of 'trust in ag' champions across rural Australia who will become leaders in building trust and, will change the discussions in agriculture sectors about the importance of engagement.
Ms Lush had already approach Grain Producers SA and Livestock SA about jumping on-board with her project.
"The platform for the project is undecided but what I found out while I was in Canada and the United States, is they were teaching the industry how to make values-based connections," she said.
"There was some research that found shared values were three to five times more important to building trust than sharing facts or demonstrating technical expertise.
"As an industry that is huge because as an industry we do not often talk about what we value, we talk about how the science says we can do this, so to talk about our values and the things that are important to us is a bit of a mind shift for the industry."
Mr Whetstone said he was pleased award Ms Lush with the award.
"All of the finalists are passionate about ensuring the vital role of primary producers is understood, valued and trusted by the SA community," he said.
"It is fantastic to have finalists from a cross section of agricultural communities and I have no doubt they will continue to play an important role in their local regions inspiring other women to get involved and make a difference."
Ms Lush will represent SA at the National Gala Dinner in Canberra in September.