Skills and training
Communica tion
Outcomes by 2025
� Suitability skilled staff to the deliver an extension program leading to informed decision making by growers .
� Develop an effective , coordinated , collaborative , transparent approach to communication and extension delivery in the Burdekin .
What is needed to achieve the outcomes
� Scope out a range of interventions and weigh up the options . Some criteria can assist – farm size , modelled water quality , current adoption – but need to bring in expert opinion . Use this to describe a suite of packages that could be done – work out the pros and cons . Prepare a number of scenarios for implementation depending on resource availability .
� Allow for scope to work on a broader range of practices that might be easier to implement , but deliver smaller gains over larger areas – e . g . timing , placement , product selection , irrigation timing , spilling at end of rows , spread .
� Grower engagement in onsite trials . � Development of consistent guidance ( recipe approach ) for implementing practices ( ultimately hope less reliant over time ) – nutrient and water management planning standards . � Follow up to ensure not going back to old practices . � Skill upwards to influence policy .
- True partnership between local level and next level up – NRM group . Need to provide opportunity for input to design . Need leverage of action at higher level .
- Invite advisory groups to meet in Townsville – show them what happens on farm . � Recognise the need for time allocation outside of projects to provide flexibility in delivery and proactive learning . � Enable access to the latest knowledge and technologies – allow time for skill building . E . g . set up formal links to research programs ; or ensure that projects set up an adoption and communication strategy as part of their project . Currently done by attendance at conferences , seminars , industry forums etc .
- Invite technical specialists to present to BCEG as needed . � Identified topics with a team / focus group to share information and implement communication activities . Linking back to coordinators in DAF and SRA . � Establish teams within a component – Farmacist , SRA , BPS – lock into an area to facilitate transparency between them and reach consensus . Work together to achieve consistency . Clear roles , responsibilities . Also feedback to individual organisations .
Reporting
� Demonstrated investment through practice change .
� Benchmarking – pre and post , aswell as ground truthing � What are the minimum requirements for reporting from the funding body – maximise time on ground . � Standardising the reporting system – mostly just AG and QG so shouldn ’ t be that difficult . Clear expectations and requirements . Helps with integration across organisation . � IP agreements to facilitate information sharing ; using de-identified data . � Feeding back information to the growers , and quickly – growers can respond in their practices . � Aggregated data – getting the information out of P2R ; how can it be used further ? Agreement from organisations to provide the data .
Issue with spatial data is that it is easy to identify even if de-identified .
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