Sydney, May 11, 2022 – Georgia Griggs of Lenswood (SA) and Savannah Coddington of Dubbo (NSW) have been
awarded a scholarship for the 2022 LEAD Scholarship Program by FMC Australasia, a leading agricultural sciences company. Valued at more than AUD$12,000 each, the two winners will receive a unique and adaptive opportunity to network, learn and share ideas with influential stakeholders in the agriculture industry, in addition to a tailored educational package.
The FMC LEAD scholarship program offers recipients an opportunity to Learn Evolve Apply Develop (LEAD), providing more pathways for women to participate and thrive in agriculture, whilst driving innovation. It targets
aspiring female leaders in Australia or New Zealand who are involved in agriculture and are aged between 18-35.
A sales agronomist at E.E Muir, Georgia Griggs is passionate about sustainability and innovation in the Australian agricultural industry and believes there will be many exciting developments in the future. She began cultivating
her interest in agriculture whilst still in high school and believes that by engaging with students who are in the process of deciding their future, it could open their eyes to a fulfilling career in agriculture.
“I am so honoured to be one of the successful applicants for the FMC LEAD program,” Griggs said. “I want to facilitate real change in this industry and the program provides me with a unique opportunity to do so. I look
forward to building my network and growing my knowledge base to bring my ideas to fruition and find better solutions to the issues we are facing as an industry.”
Savannah Coddington is a HR and Work Health & Safety coordinator at Delta Agribusiness and is immensely passionate about helping the next generation of agriculture professionals build their careers. Coddington is keen
to use the scholarship opportunity to explore ways to support under-resourced and time-constrained farmers with an onboarding program for new employees.
“During the course of the scholarship program, I look forward to connecting with industry leaders who share my passion for talent development, upskilling and knowledge-sharing, with the aim of helping the younger
generations thrive in agriculture,” said Coddington.
Kristina Hermanson, FMC ANZ & ASEAN Managing Director, congratulated Griggs and Coddington on their success.
“Building the capacity, knowledge and skills of Australia’s future workforce is vital to the growth of Australian agriculture and a priority across our rural industries,” Hermanson said. “The 2022 scholarship recipients
certainly stood out for how they communicated their ideas with conviction and clarity, as well as the relevance of addressing this challenge of attracting and retaining talent in the ag industry. It’s something that needs to be
tackled if Australia is to achieve the National Farmers’ Federation’s (NFF) farm gate production target of $100 billion by 2030.”
Both scholarship recipients will enroll in a fully subsidised short course in leadership and management, sustainability or innovation at either the Australian Graduate School of Management, Macquarie Graduate
School of Management, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, or Harvard (online).
In addition to their academic studies Griggs and Coddington will have the opportunity to attend various industry events throughout the course of the 12-month program, including the NFF 2023 National Conference, allowing
them to widen their industry network and gain vital insights across traditional and emerging areas of Australian agriculture. They will also be able to connect with the wider FMC team and diverse industry partners for learning
and local field trip opportunities.
All applicants to the scholarship program will regularly connect with last year’s inaugural FMC’s LEAD alumni and networking group, for monthly sessions which focus on leadership and personal development. These sessions
feature guest speakers and industry experts, as well as serve as a platform to facilitate discussions on innovations and challenges in the agricultural sector.
Applicants to the scholarship program were assessed on their recommendations around topics like talent development, sustainability and innovation. An independent panel of diverse judges who assessed the applicants included Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay, Owner and Principal Consultant at Agtech Ideation Andrea Koch, Macdoch Natural Capital CEO Ashley Silver and Nutrien Ag Solutions Head of Procurement and Proprietary Products Sean Ho.