Deb Stockton led the panel, which consisted of Lauren Mathers, owner of Bundarra Berkshires free range pig farm and deli, Murray Irrigation Limited executive general manager shareholder relations Gabrielle Cusack, and creative consultant and owner of Sivonne Creative, Sivonne Binks.
They told the audience their stories, triumphs, struggles and thoughts on ‘breaking the bias’.
You can read them here.
Lauren Mathers
Mrs Mathers and her husband Lachlan own Bundarra Berkshires, a free range pig farm on their property in Barham.
The Mathers’ have turned the operation into a healthy farm, a butchery, and a delicatessen, with plans for more expansion down the line.
Mrs Mathers believes in ‘‘enabling women to have that confidence and gumption to move forward with something that they think might be a man-focused area’’.
She spoke about breaking the stereotype that her industry is dominated by men, emphasising the importance of teaching women how to learn those skills she learned from her parents.
‘‘Meat is usually associated with men, and with the side that I work on, with paddock to plate, I do lots of work with meat. And I drive the whole business.
‘‘And a lot of the women that I’ve met in what we do, is very much women focused or a team thing.
‘‘So that assumption that it’s a men focused industry, I find that not to be really correct. The people that I commonly deal with all the time are women.
‘‘In any field, if you are educating your daughters or other women and you’re just saying, ‘if you want to do that, you can do this’, and not emphasising that it’s a woman’s or man’s job; I think you’ve just got to keep that level playing field.
‘‘Like if my son George wants to wear nail polish, go for it buddy!
‘‘I think as a mother, just encouraging your kids to be neutral, and not making a big deal about it, that’s really important from the get go.
‘‘But when other women come to me asking about how to get into what we’re doing, or they’re having trouble doing that, I think being able to communicate what we do and not being closed is really, really important.’’
Mrs Mathers’ next ventures include opening a micro-abattoir with a collective of locals in agribusiness and pig farming.
While having a number of projects on the go can be ‘‘very stressful’’ at times, she said bringing on the right people has ensured her business can grow and she can spend time with her family and loved ones without putting more responsibility solely on her plate.
‘‘I’ve spoken to a lot of women that have that same drive — they go ‘I can’t just be a mother, I have to do something else’. So for me, managing those priorities is really important,’’ she said.
Plus, she joked, there’s something ‘‘very therapeutic’’ about being a butcher and having a knife in your hand.
Gabrielle Cusack
Ms Cusack grew up with 12 siblings in Boorowa, and says the life prescribed for women at the time — ‘‘you could be a teacher, a nurse, or a nun’’ — was not one she found enticing.
Educated in Wagga Wagga, she then attended Orange Agricultural College at tertiary level.
‘‘Following that I decided to work in an accounting firm for a few years, and then I decided to take a leap of faith and I went overseas for about 15 years.
‘‘I came home one day to the farm and I said, ‘I’m going to go to London via America’.’’
She worked for a family in New York before volunteering in Alaska, helping to re-route national park trails.
‘‘I was someone who, at 21, went to New York and had an opportunity to have some amazing experiences in regards to the people that I met and the things that I did and the places I went to.’’
She eventually took off to the United States, before falling into aid work and teaching in the South Pacific Ocean.
Her plan to follow up her adventures in Canada with a biking tour around New Zealand turned into a different venture when a colleague in Alaska asked Ms Cusack to go to the Solomon Islands.
She volunteered there for some time, becoming familiar with the international aid efforts in the islands before being asked to teach, which she did for three years.
Following Timor-Leste’s independence from Indonesian occupation in 1999, Ms Cusack moved to the small island nation to work in a volunteer capacity.
On returning to Australia, she was employed in the local government sector, collaborating with five NSW councils near Canberra to create marketing and tourism campaigns, and helped drive that regions’ growth.
After an incredibly storied life and with many exciting things ahead of her, Ms Cuscak found her way to Deniliquin and her current employer, Murray Irrigation Limited.
She is in a senior role in shareholder relations, and said she has been warmly welcomed.
‘‘And then I was relieved, a bit exhausted, and also quite vulnerable — vulnerable, because being a single person coming into a new community can be a bit daunting.
‘‘But you know, I think I’m the mother of reinvention.’’
Sivonne Binks
Mathoura-based, Sivonne Binks is self-employed and works in Deniliquin.
In 1994, Ms Binks left Deniliquin to attend boarding school.
She moved to London at the age of 23, starting off in the charity sector because she is passionate about using her creativity to help others.
‘‘I enjoy solving problems — I like making things, but what I really like is making things better.
‘‘When I was studying design, I was most inspired by design that helps the environment rather than just making things pretty.’’
She returned to Melbourne and ‘‘built a busy career trajectory’’, but it wasn’t making her as happy as she’d hoped.
‘‘I knew I had creative abilities and I wasn’t using them, and I knew I didn’t want to spend my life working full time to afford a mortgage for a house in Melbourne.
‘‘Marriage and kids have always been things that I’ve never wanted, so I knew whatever life I wanted to make, I had to make for myself and by myself.’’
She says returning to the country, owning property and lowering her cost of living was ‘‘quite a romantic notion’’.
Before she could make it happen, she took an ‘‘all-consuming’’ job with a charity in the city.
Leaving the non-profit sector and the city was a big leap, but Ms Binks eventually returned home to the Southern Riverina.
‘‘I couldn’t keep fighting the feeling that I needed to move back to where there was just more sky.’’
She pursued part-time work with South West Music and South West Arts before obtaining local freelance work and eventually starting her own business.
Today, Ms Binks’ work is unmissable as you drive through towns in Edward River, Murray River and Berrigan Shire councils.
Her designs are prolific and well-loved features, including aiding with the design of the Yarkuwa mural and children’s books which teach Wamba Wamba Perrepa Perrepa culture and language, and the WAAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Australian Air Force) Creek Walk at Tocumwal, commemorating the women of Australia’s service history.
Her work includes websites, logos and branding, promotional materials, marketing, documents and strategic plans, murals, 3D design, interpretive signage and campaign posters.
