GLENELG Shire Mayor, Karen Stephens, was presented with the Inspiring Excellence Award at the Women in Wood Fibre event hosted by Australian Bluegum Plantations in Dunkeld, marking the world-wide event.
Cr Stephens, who is also renowned for her leadership role with the Casterton Kelpie Association and as a former local businesswoman, won the award for her tireless work advocating for the sector over many years.
“I am truly honoured to win this award,” she said.
“The food and fibre industries are major contributors to the Glenelg Shire economy and our role as council is to advocate for them when needed to help them and our Shire to thrive – that advocacy is at all levels of government.
“I would also like to thank Australian Bluegum Plantations for organising such an inspiring event today.”
Hosted by Australian Bluegum Plantations (ABP), more than 100 industry members joined by political and agricultural leaders enjoyed a High Tea celebration at the Dunkeld Community Centre, recognising the achievements, resilience and contributions of women across the plantation sector and local community.
ABP Human Resources General Manager, Sheri Tarr said the sector was working hard to promote inclusive practices and policies, creating pathways to support female leadership and career progression.
“Creating gender equality starts by achieving a positive workplace culture, where everyone feels valued and respected,” she said.
“This is a primary objective for ABP and our broader industry which today has 30% of its executive roles filled by women, matched by an ongoing increase in female employees, with a growth rate of 10% per year since 2021.
“It’s important we celebrate this progress whilst recognising there is still more that can be achieved – we must collectively lead and champion this change.
“Creating opportunities for women is not just about fairness, we must liberate the talent within our workforce, challenge the bias and barriers that holds us back, to create a more progressive and productive community where women can live, work and prosper without limits.”
Victorian Agriculture Minister, Ros Spence said the forestry industry was an important part of Victoria’s economy and the increasing number of women in the sector, was encouraging.
“Plantation timber plays a vital role in supplying critical building materials for the housing and construction sector in Victoria and delivers a world class supply of wood chips for the pulp and paper industry,” she said.
“It’s encouraging to see more women taking up roles in this essential industry, especially in leadership roles.”
ABC journalist and regional podcaster, Kirsten Diprose, hosted the festivities, which were headlined by Commonwealth Game and Paralympic table tennis medallist, Hamilton’s Melissa Tapper, who shared the story behind her meteoric rise from able-bodied to para-table tennis champion.
Casterton artefacts to feature
LOCAL artists are invited to submit expressions of interest in contributing to a newly-announced project showcasing women and children and hosted at Portland’s History House.
Casterton-born Clarice Beckett, Vida Goldstein, Agnes Goodsir, Bridget Ledwith and Mary Mackillop are all women who contributed significantly to Australia’s history and all have a strong connection to Glenelg Shire.
Some of that history and that of many other women, is captured in the Glenelg Shire Cultural Collection.
And now the exhibition in the equally-historic History House will be redeveloped to tell the stories of women and children from this region.
Joining Cultural Collection items in the new exhibition, will be relevant items from collections across the district, including from the Casterton and District Historical Society, which has agreed to lend several artefacts from its collection relating to the theme.
Glenelg Shire Council is also commissioning an artwork inspired by the stories of pioneering women which will be acquired into the Cultural Collection.
Collections Management Coordinator, Agostina Hawkins said the aim of the new exhibition was to attract more visitors, particularly from within the shire.
“History House currently attracts about 750 visitors a year, mostly from outside the Shire,” she said.
“We believe this new exhibition will be a hit, and we’re also going to include a schools’ program along with the redevelopment so more local students will have a chance to learn about local history.
“We are also looking for an artist who can connect our visitors to the stories from the shire and to the objects in the collection through a new piece of art.
“We would like the artist to create an artwork which is inspired by the stories of pioneer women.
“The artwork is intended to be the result of the artist’s own ideas, research and learning, together with their personal response to objects and artworks currently in the collection and/or stories of significant women from the shire.
“We would like the artwork to explore hidden stories, the overlooked stories of women and their lives and, through this, engage new audiences as well as responding to heritage and stories through a contemporary artwork.
“We will endeavour to support the artist in whatever way they can – access to the collection, research and reaching out to local history groups, for example. If there are any specific installation needs, these should be included in the budget.
“The artwork will be acquired into the Glenelg Shire Cultural Collection and can be any medium – clay, fabric, paper, paint, digital etc.”
Any interested artist should submit an expression of interest, including their CV, images and examples of any previous work and a short (500-word maximum) brief highlighting their experience, creative practice and motivation for applying via email to ahawkins@glenelg.vic.gov.au.
A brief for potential artists is available at https://www.glenelg.vic.gov.au/Discover-Our-Shire/Arts-and-Culture/Cultural-Collection.
Submissions close Friday, 14 March 2025, and it is expected the successful artist will be selected by 28 March; submissions with a budget of up to $10,000 (including GST) will be considered.
