We start this update with congratulations to 2025 Nuffield Scholar, Tom Polkinghorne who NRCT is proud to sponsor as Tom studies how livestock producers, under increasing pressure to be productive and efficient, can rise to this challenge while achieving environmental outcomes.
“I believe productive and efficient farms and farming systems which incorporate environmental outcomes can optimise profitability, lower carbon emission intensity and underpin social licence,” Tom said.
“There are increasing opportunities for livestock producers to improve environmental outcomes, whether that be through planting trees, managing soil health and ground cover, controlling pests and weeds and regenerating natural assets.”
Tom plans to travel to Europe, New Zealand, the USA and within Australia.
“Through this scholarship, I hope to make an important contribution to the livestock industry’s capacity to cope with an increasingly variable climate and increasing pressure to offset or inset emissions from ruminant animals,” Tom said.
Nuffield scholar Tom Polkinghorne (L) & NRCT Board Member Hugh Stewart (R) who represented the Trust at the Nuffield Award Dinner in Launceston earlier this month.
Proud to be a VicBioCon25 Sponsor - submit your abstract!
The Victorian Biodiversity Conference (VicBioCon) is an annual scientific conference focused on highlighting biodiversity-related research and management projects based in Victoria. VicBioCon will be held in February at Monash University next year.
NRCT is proud to again be a sponsor of this important event. We encourage all of our stakeholders and partner organisations to consider presenting on their work and projects at Vic BioCon25. Abstract submissions close on October 31st.
Bunanyung Landscape Alliance Restoration Guide: upcoming launch
The NRCT-funded Bunanyung Landscape Alliance Restoration Guide is now completed and will be launched on Sunday 13th October. The Guide will feature the best restoration practices for local properties. The Guide will be used to implement the Victorian Government $701k Green Links Program grant awarded to the Alliance earlier this year. This grant is for the restoration of an area of 80.5 hectares along 9.8 kilometres of waterways of the Yarrowee River and its tributaries.
Details of the launch below:
Where? The Ross Creek Hall, Sebastopol-Smythesdale Road, Ross Creek
When? Sunday October 13th at 2pm.
Agenda: Official launch is 2pm to 2:45pm with an NRCT and restoration project overview, case studies and materials presented. Light refreshments provided followed by a field visit at 3.15pm to the nearby case study site restored this year.
The Bunanyung Landscape Alliance seeks to build capacity across the community to increase enthusiasm to achieve landscape-scale ecological restoration in order to arrest the decline of, and ultimately augment, biodiversity across the Moorabool, Leigh and Woady Yaloak catchments.
Register for upcoming Seeding Victoria seed collection workshops
In a previous newsletter, we gave an update on the multi-year grant we awarded last year to Seeding Victoria for the project, ‘Greening the Environment, One Seed at a Time’. We are happy to continue to support this worthwhile project, along with Cassinia Environmental, who are the delivery partners for the Victorian Government’s BushBank program. The program aims to upskill community members in seed collection thanks to the knowledgeable Seeding Victoria facilitators.
Consider registering for the next series of seed collection workshops if you are based in central or western Victoria at the link below. The workshops cost $30 per person, are limited in number, and will be held at the following locations and dates:
- Stawell – Saturday, October 26th
- Creswick – Friday, November 8th
- Castlemaine – Saturday, November 9th
Seeding Victoria has given the following outline of what the workshop will cover:
- The nuts and bolts to seed collecting: You will learn species identification, what permits you need to obtain for collecting seed, OH&S, collection techniques, extraction and storage.
- Field Trip: You will have a look at the OH&S components of seed collecting, observing what’s flowering and what will be ready to collect in the coming months.
- There will be an opportunity to order seed collecting equipment on the day.
- Learn about how the NRCT Seed Bank Revolving Fund works and how to obtain a discount for seed collecting equipment.
- Introduction to the BushBank Program: How to get involved in collecting seed for the $30M Government program and access funding to undertake biodiversity planting on your property.
WELA 2024 National Leadership Program Course scholarship update
At the NRCT Board meeting in September, we heard from Remy Shergill who undertook the WELA Women in Environmental Leadership 2024 course, one of two women supported by NRCT with 50 per cent scholarships. Remy spoke about her leadership ambitions and scholarship experience to date.
Remy says “Thank you to the NRCT for the opportunity to participate in the WELA leadership program! With this scholarship, I am looking forward to developing an inclusive, collaborative leadership style that is authentic to me and in line with the more just and sustainable world we are striving for. I aim to use these skills to the benefit of local communities whom I engage to participate in nature- and climate-friendly programs.”
We are also proud to share an update from fellow NRCT scholarship recipient Hari Bahuguna.
Hari says “The NRCT Scholarship is an incredible honor. This generous support empowers me to participate in the prestigious National Leadership Program by WELA. As a young professional with a deep passion for sustainable development, this scholarship perfectly aligns with my career aspirations. It fuels my commitment to professional growth in this crucial field.
NRCL’s dedication to community engagement, urban sustainability, and revegetation deeply resonates with my own values. This program offers an invaluable opportunity to leverage my interdisciplinary skills to create change in the society and the chance to collaborate with women and gender diverse environmental change makers from across Australia would be an immense privilege. Together, we can explore innovative solutions to create a lasting positive impact on Victoria’s precious natural landscapes and global climate movement.”
We look forward to continuing to work with WELA to empower women’s environmental leadership with development programs to build skills, confidence and networks. WELA starts its recruitment process in late October for its 2025 programs.
