Unearthed: The people changing Australian agriculture

Sunshine on the horizon

Unearthed: The people changing Australian agriculture

Summary

Young university students Paris Weller and Eilish King are exploring unique career paths in agriculture, supported by the AgriFutures Horizons Scholarship. Weller, who has a traditional agricultural background, is now matched with the Marine Bioproducts CRC, where her passion for the ocean aligns with her studies. She shares her experiences diving and learning about marine ecosystems, highlighting the scholarship's role in connecting her with industry leaders and opportunities.

King, who grew up in suburban Sydney, discovered her love for agriculture later in high school and is now pursuing veterinary science. She emphasizes the importance of hands-on experience and networking, which the scholarship has provided. Both scholars express how the program has boosted their confidence and opened doors to various agricultural sectors, from livestock management to marine research. Their stories illustrate the diverse opportunities within agriculture and the value of mentorship and professional development.

Show Notes

Agriculture comes in many forms and the next generation is open to grabbing the opportunities on offer, whether they are in the paddock, the laboratory or even under the sea. In this episode we meet two AgriFutures Horizons Scholars who have taken the agricultural path less travelled and grown in confidence along the way.

More from Unearthed: The people changing Australian agriculture

Oct 11, 2026

When a milking shed becomes a classroom, eyes light up, brains are activated and lifelong memories are made. Narelle Zanker's 'have a crack' attitude dramatically altered her career path from promising young teacher to the title of AgriFutures 2026 Rural Woman of the Year. Her business Dairy Adventures combines her love of education and agriculture in a farm tour experience that has attracted more than 2000 visitors since opening less than two years ago, and in doing so she is blazing a new trail for bridging the city-country divide.

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Kelly Shotton is a pilot, an electrician and a marathon runner. She designed an app to monitor livestock watering points on remote stations and won the NT Rural Woman of the Year award. Now she's the AgriFutures National Rural Women's Award Runner Up. Her former boss Anna Cochrane says Kelly is one of the most determined people she’s ever met, and regardless of the challenges and struggles, she always achieves her goals.

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Meet the Australian farmers boldly going where no farmer has gone before, applying technology that can manage a crop down to individual plant level, and using a staff of hyper-cybernetic robots to manage their operations.

Aug 30, 2026

In a crowded era of agtech innovation and hype, what sets the Rice Dashboard apart from the pack? The decision support platform has been adopted by 95% of Australia's rice growers - an incredible success considering that 90% of agtech start ups don't survive. So what did the developer's of the Rice Dashboard do right? It started with a whole of industry approach connecting everyone from growers to researchers.

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Big capital meets big questions for Australian agriculture: Institutional investment in Australian farmland is increasingly becoming a defining force for agriculture. Capital unlocks innovation and scale, but what are the trade-offs? In this episode of Unearthed, we hear from Liam Lenaghan of GO.FARM and Jaclyn Hope from LAWD, both panel guests at evokeAG earlier this year, where they discussed the pros and cons of institutional investment in Australian agriculture.

See all episodes →