24 February 2009

Jane Milburn awarded Rural Press Ltd scholarship

The Rural Press Limited open scholarship for Course 16 in the prestigious Australian Rural Leadership Program has been awarded to Queensland media consultant Jane Milburn.

Jane is currently AgForce media manager and has wide-ranging journalism experience which includes being Rural Press Club of Queensland president from 2006-2008 and now secretary of the Australian Council of Agricultural Journalists.

“It is an honour to have Rural Press Ltd as my sponsor during this 18-month program to enhance leadership, business, strategic planning and inter-personal skills,” Jane said.

“One of my goals is to see agriculture recognised as the productive, progressive and professional sector that it is.

“Rural Press does a great job of presenting farming as vibrant and highly relevant, and the challenge is to translate that into the metropolitan media where the rural sector is often poorly understood or portrayed in negative ways.

“Creating a fresh image of agriculture, as the source of our food, is important because this in turn helps influence public opinion, government policy and ultimately the viability of farming in an increasingly urbanised world,” Jane said.

Jane holds a Bachelor of Agricultural Science from The University of Queensland and her other roles include media advocacy for the banana, citrus and sheep industries as well as the successful pro-fluoridation campaign for the Australian Dental Association in Queensland.

Jane has worked in print, television and radio, and in 2007 was a finalist in the 2007 Queensland Media Awards Excellence in Rural Reporting category and in 2005 media award winner in the Queensland Primary Industries Achievement Awards.

Contact Jane Milburn on 0408 787 964