My name is Amy Munro and I am a third year Veterinary Science Student at Charles Sturt University in Wagga Wagga. I was born and bred on our family property at Cumnock (NSW). As a child I was in the cattle yards, mustering on horseback and helping out around the farm. This early exposure to farm life granted me an intrinsic passion for agriculture while my interactions with our local veterinarians inspired me to pursue a career as a vet.

When I was at school, we grew beef cattle on our farm to supply meat to our family owned butcher shop in Orange. I am the oldest of four siblings and am lucky to have loving and dedicated parents who always valued my education. I studied agriculture in High School and became involved in showing cattle. I then became thoroughly involved in youth Committees such as the Angus Youth and Shorthorn Youth, which allowed me to network with industry and further grow as an individual.

 

I was a very diligent school student and constantly strived to achieve for the purpose of being eligible for entry into vet school upon completing my High School Certificate. My hard work paid off and I was also awarded two tertiary scholarships, including the Horizon Scholarship in recognition of my achievements and passion in my pursuit for a career in the agriculture industry.

Since finishing high school, my interest in agripolitics has grown as I see a great need for honest representation of the real issues facing Australian Agriculture. My involvement with the Horizon Program has granted me many opportunities to network with inspiring people in our industry while opening my eyes to the plethora of opportunities for technological innovation in agriculture. As a Horizon Scholar, I was asked to present at the 2015 Australian Women in Agriculture (AWiA) Conference in Alice Springs, where I met many wonderful ladies doing great things for our industry.

I was so inspired by this experience that I have now been involved with AWiA for two years as a member and as a young person wanting to instigate positive change in Australian Agriculture.

Meeting so many passionate women working in our industry further developed my interest in governance and politics. Food security is one of my key issues of interest. It is a topic that needs to be thoroughly addressed to ensure food security for the Australian people as well as the supply of quality food to our neighbours. With the world population set to reach 9.3 billion by 2050, Australian Agriculture needs to be at the forefront of embracing innovations which will increase agricultural yields into the future while ensuring sustainability of food production.

I have had a very busy start to 2017 as I was working with the Department of Primary Industries in Orange developing policies and procedures for the Biosecurity Act 2015.

I was also honoured to be invited to work in Parliament House in February with the MP for Canberra Gai Brodtmann, who is a mentor of mine. Working alongside Gai allowed me insight into the structure of Parliament as well as being able to observe debates from within the House of Representatives.

While my journey thus far may seem like an easy one, let me assure you I have not gotten thus far without a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Life on the land is hard. I have had many people doubt me and try to put me down. But I have met many inspiring and supportive people who have allowed me to grow into the person I am today.

And you may ask me; why do you do what you do?

All I want is to be able to contribute to the best of my ability to the viability and progression of Australian Agriculture into the future. This is important to me because it is the industry in which I grew up, the industry which feeds and clothes the Australian people and the industry in which so many inspiring people work.

As a vet, I can help ensure the viability of Australian Agriculture at the grass roots level- by working in rural communities and assisting producers in enhancing their productivity. As a voice for Australian Agriculture on a political platform, the possibilities are endless.

Agriculture is my home, and my mentors and industry friends are my family. I look to the future with a sense of optimism and confidence in that together, we can progress Australian Agriculture into the future.