Community Networks and Capacity Building

Community Networks and Capacity Building (CNCB), a component of Australia’s Farming Future, ceased 30 June 2012. It aimed to build the leadership and representative capacity of target groups to strengthen community resilience and the productivity of primary industries.

These groups included: 

• women
• young people
• Indigenous Australians and
• people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

With increased access to tools and resources, these groups can improve their leadership and management skills, increase participation in industry and more effectively contribute to government and industry decision making.

Through CNCB the Australian Government supported a number of initiatives that help to achieve these goals.

Women

The Recognising Women Farmers grants offered support for projects that build leadership and representative capacity of women in primary industries — to strengthen primary industry productivity and build rural, regional and remote community resilience to a changing climate.

Young People

The Next Gen Farmers grants offered support for projects to improve the leadership and representative capacity of young people entering or involved in primary industries, particularly in the context of the challenges and opportunities in these industries as a result of a changing climate.

As a sponsor of the ABC's Heywire competition the government supports young people in rural and regional Australia to create and share their stories, ideas and opinions.

The Australian Government’s youth website is the new central hub for youth related information. You can find information there on the Australian Youth Forum, an exciting initiative helping young people engage in discussion with the Australian Government about issues affecting them.

If you are a young person entering or involved in primary industries there are a number of websites which you can access for information about issues that may affect you. The young people in primary industries can help you find out about existing networks to meet other young people living and working in rural Australia.

Indigenous

The government supported various activities that aimed to improve the leadership and representative capacity of Indigenous Australians in primary industries.

People from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds

Community Networks and Capacity Building also supported from people from culturally or linguistically diverse backgrounds involved in agriculture, fisheries and forestry.

The support included the sponsorship of a person from a CALD background to participate in the Australian Rural leadership program and funding for the NSW Women in Agriculture project which provides participants with the knowledge to make best practice management decisions and implement practical techniques to increase their resilience to climate change.