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Victorian farmer, tech entrepreneur and Grown Not Flown cofounder Nikki Davey has gained the 2023 AgriFutures Rural Girls’s Award for her work making a digital platform and app that connects flower farmers and shoppers all over the world.
The award recognises the essential function ladies play in rural and regional companies, industries and communities.
Primarily based at Glenmore within the Rowsley Valley close to Bacchus Marsh, certainly one of Victoria’s largest meals bowls, the self-described ‘everlasting hobbyist’ was motivated by her personal expertise as a brand new flower farmer, to resolve the frequent issues and ache factors skilled by growers by expertise.
Grown Not Flown began out as a ardour challenge throughout Covid, then morphed into a web-based platform and app connecting flower farmers and shoppers, globally. It now has greater than 1,100 flower farms listed on its international map, and customers in over 30 completely different international locations.
The award is supported by Westpac Agribusiness, and Davey has gained a $20,000 Westpac grant on prime of the $15,000 she gained because the state winner within the nationwide finals.
“This can be a big honour and I’m immensely grateful to AgriFutures and Westpac for believing in my imaginative and prescient to advertise and lift consciousness round flower miles, gradual flowers and supporting native farmers. We’ve so many thrilling plans and this Award will likely be an absolute sport changer for us and what we are able to obtain within the subsequent 12 months,” she mentioned.
“We will make investments this cash into additional creating the platform to achieve new audiences. We additionally need to educate and encourage shoppers to have fun the provenance of flowers, the identical approach we do with meals, and lift consciousness round flower miles, gradual flowers and advantages of supporting native companies.”
AgriFutures Australia managing director John Harvey praised Davey for creating a world digital platform that helps rural and regional communities.
“By means of the innovation of Grown Not Flown, Nikki has delivered an thrilling new mannequin to attach shoppers, enhance native economies and encourage sustainable buying selections,” he mentioned.
“Her entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to reworking the minimize flower trade is extremely commendable and a real embodiment of the Award’s key goals”, he mentioned.
Michelle Leonard from NSW was named nationwide runner up title for her work in creating and founding regional choir, Moorambilla Voices, and obtained a further $15,000 from Westpac.
The opposite finalists have been:
The founding father of Bush Devine, Ali Paulett (Clare Valley, SA);
The founding father of Huds and Toke, Emma Gibbons (Coolum, QLD);
The facilitator and founding father of Main Rein, Melissa Duniam (Sisters Creek, TAS);
Counsellor and founding father of Grief Join, Michelle Moriarty (Bunbury, WA);
Sustainability advocate and co-founder of NTEX, Eileen Breen (Girraween, NT).
Purposes for the 2024 AgriFutures Rural Girls’s Award open as we speak, September 13, and shut on Wednesday, October 25 (and Friday, 26 January, 2024 for NT candidates). For extra particulars see the AgriFutures web site.
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