This marks the first of many posts to come for 2013. For those of you who are unaware, I was fortunate enough to be granted a 2013 Nuffield Scholarship - perhaps New Zealand's most prestigious agricultural award. For me, this will involve four formal aspects for the year.
I must take this opportunity to thank my family for supporting me on this "crusade". This is very much a team effort - with many people picking up the slack for me at home!
The first engagement for me as a Nuffield Scholar is to attend the Advanced Business Management Course. This is run by the Worshipful Company of Farmers at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester, England.
The three week course will cover:
- Business Development
- Time Management
- Case Studies
- Personal Development
- Media Management
- Presentations from policy makers and business leaders.
I look forward to meeting the other 17 attendees and learning about them and their businesses.
What a great way to start what is to be a very busy and exciting year.
I am very grateful for the assistance I have received to help attend this "extra course" in my Nuffield year and whose support I value very much from:
- ASB
- Foundation For Arable Research
- Ravensdown
- The Worshipful Company of Farmers
The second part of my journey will kick off with the Contemporary Scholars Conference in Toronto, in early March. After spending a week with the international 2013 Nuffield Scholars we'll venture off on field trips (including a hockey game and curling - I believe) and presentations from industry leaders.
The third part to the year is the Global Focus Tour and involves travelling with nine other Scholars. Together we will embark on a journey through Australia, Philippines, China, North America, Canada, France, Ireland, and England.
During this final aspect of the year I will delve more heavily into my study topic - "The Synergies between Arable and Dairy" with a focus on nutrients and effluent. I intend to spend time both in the US and Europe, initially looking into farming systems and research that may be useful in New Zealand to enable us to become more productive while remaining economically, environmentally and socially sustainable - easier said than done perhaps?
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