Laura Bennett

Scholar giving farmers a voice in policy conversations.

Laura Bennett farms alongside her partner and his family in a dryland grain operation in Esperance, WA, and has seen firsthand the growing scale and complexity of modern farming operations, paired with a decline in farmer numbers in the industry.

This experience, together with some landmark decisions made in Western Australia’s parliament that greatly impacted rural communities and farming operations, sparked her interest to undertake a 2024 Nuffield Scholarship to discover ways for farmers to successfully influence the policies that shape their livelihoods.

Supported by CSBP Fertilisers, she is investigating how growers can better engage with policy makers, ensuring that the data and lived experience they have is considered before policies are developed.

“There’s a growing disconnect between farmers and decision makers,” Laura says.

“We’re time-poor, geographically isolated, and often underrepresented in policy conversations, but the policies created can have major consequences for our businesses and communities.”

Through her study, Laura aims to explore successful advocacy models from around the world, examining how farmer voices are elevated in countries with stronger regulatory environments or more united lobbying frameworks. As part of her scholarship, she will travel to South America, the US, Europe and New Zealand, and hopes to learn from progressive farmers, lobby groups and policy makers to uncover successful tools, strategies or systems to bridge the gap between the paddock and parliament.

 “I want to bring back insights that can help Australian farmers navigate growing compliance and regulation, while also helping them better advocate for themselves within the constraints of busy operations.”

Laura is passionate about sharing the findings of her scholarship with other growers, with the goal of building a stronger, more informed and more connected farming voice in Australia. She says the research is of particular interest to her, given her future lies in farming in regional Western Australia. “Our goal is to continue to farm for generations to come, so it’s that personal involvement that drives me to build on the work that's already been done in this area, and to share the findings of my scholarship to help other growers do the same."