Grow NTMagazine -NT Farmers - December 2021

+ Grow NT
Education Development
Officer.
Mariah Maughan
Hi everyone, my name is Mariah
Maughan, and I am the new Education
Development Officer for NT Farmers
based in Darwin.
At the start of 2020 I moved to Kununurra
where I worked for DPIRD as a Biosecurity
Officer. Here I spent a significant
amount of time around the horticultural
industries. As I approached the end
of 2021, I was interested in continuing
to assist the agricultural industry however
through an industry Organisation,
which led me to NT Farmers.
2021
I grew up in a small town in the southwest
of Western Australia called Harvey.
After finishing high school, I got a
job on a cropping and cattle station in
the Kimberley, 234km east of Broome.
50 51
These first two years, working on the
station really shaped me as a person
and my work ethic. I learnt to work hard
and to not let what I thought I could
and couldn’t do limit what I could actually
achieve. Living and working with a
small group of people, I learnt the value
of good working relationships and
how integral they are in achieving outcomes.
I also developed a high level
of respect for the producers. It takes
a balance of physical skill, knowledge
and people skills in order to run a station/
farm well.
While on the station I completed a certificate
II in Agriculture which got me
thinking about what qualifications may
help me in my career in Agriculture. In
2017 completed a Bachelor of Science
with a double major in Animal Science
and Animal health whilst still getting a
solid month of mustering in my midyear
breaks!
Upon graduating I was accepted in a
position with the Department of Primary
Industries and Regional Development
(DPIRD) as a Development
officer based out of Broome. During
this role I was fortunate enough to
work with producers from all over the
Kimberley and Pilbara regions (over
2300km from NE to SW) Our project
provided several services, one being a
grant program that allowed pastoralists
to trial new technologies. Where I
saw the most value was providing an
outlet to share the knowledge and trial
findings from the producers with other
producers through workshops, articles
and case studies.
After high school I found it difficult to
see how and where I would fit into the
Agricultural industry, and I feel providing
Agricultural education in schools
can help change this. NT Farmers
through the Educating Kids About
Agriculture program helps bring Agriculture
back into the classroom and
students onto farms. Through this
role I get to teach students where their
food and fibre come from and provide
teachers with the resources to do the
same. I also get to show students the
vast opportunities a career in Agriculture
contains and some of the ways
you might get there. I look forward to
visiting schools and getting students
onto farms in the new year and to
share what Agriculture has given me,
with them.
NT FARMERS GROW NT MAGAZINE.