We're coming back! And we're looking at the BIG issues facing Australian rural women. From healthcare, baby loss to climate change... this Season of Ducks is going even bigger than before.

We also introduce out Season 7 Sponsor, Ashley Molloy, the founder of  ByCC Fine Jewellery... and announce an exciting giveaway!

This is a Rural Podcasting Co. production. Interested in podcasting? We can help!

Like this pod? You should also check out Two Smart Blondes. 

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Do you have a goal or dream that you want to pursue, but stop yourself because you feel it’s too selfish or you don’t have enough time? 

Sometimes we women formulate the idea that we need to be of service to others…  in order to be loved. And it’s not our fault. This idea can come from messages coming from society, or perhaps from the homes we grew up in.

The good news is that we can learn how to reprogramme these unhelpful ways of thinking and get ourselves motivated to pursue what we want, or stop the ‘busyness’ to actually understand what makes us happy.

Hear from two experts, who work with women every day, using positive psychology to help them break through their own mental barriers… (while chipping away at the societal ones!)

Jodie Fleming - Clinical and Health Psychologist, Warrnambool, VIC

Karen Foster - Business and Leadership Development consultant and Mayor of the Moyne Shire, Port Fairy, VIC.

Jodie and Karen are part of Rural Women LEAD - a personal and professional development series, running from May - July 2025 across south west Victoria.  Book tickets here.

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Agriculture isn’t just the act of growing crops or tending to the animals, as the dictionary likes to define it. And it's how outsiders can see it too. A bloke with his sheep and cows.  

Rather, agriculture is a complex system, that impacts and is impacted by a variety of things from government regulation, people, climate change, business, politics etc. And it's also integrated with family systems too (including, women and children!).

Therefore stepping into the space of advocacy on an issue in agriculture, can often feel difficult. I am delighted to bring on Catherine Marriott OAM onto the Ducks on the Pond podcast, as part of a collaboration with Australian Rural Leadership Foundation.

Catherine (or "Maz") is a systems thinker and beef industry advocate, who has often has to explain to regulators and politicians what shutting down or changing one part of the system will mean to other parts of the system... and beyond.

This has given Maz a unique insight into how to make changes in the Ag sector successfully. She talks about her experiences with live export and her recent efforts in the ESG space. 

You’ll also hear  from Claire Delahunty in this episode, another rural woman (and host of Rural Leadership Unearthed), as our host. With Kirsten Diprose, this time as a guest!

THANK YOU to our episode sponsor: Aspen Lou - Rural Interior Design Specialist (She has a special promotion for Ducks listeners too!)

This is a Rural Podcasting Co. production

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Tea tree oil and nanotechnology for fly strike and foot-rot resistant sheep…. These are just some of the exciting innovations happening in agriculture. But how do lift an entire sector or industry? 

It’s not always easy in farming when most of us work alone or with family.

But in this episode, you'll hear about the benefits of taking part in extension programs,  learning from research trials, and even just forming local groups to learn from your neighbours.

Emily King is the National Extension Manager for Australian Wool Innovation. She's based in Dubbo and in her role, delivers a range of programs to help growers improve their production and trial the latest in research. In this episode, Emily discusses some of the latest innovations for wool production and sheep as well as some of the most successful extension programs that are still being delivered today. 

So if you’re keen to improve farming practices and production not just on your farm, but for your whole community or industry, this episode is for you!

This is the third and final episode in our  Knowledge is Power series that we're making in collaboration with Rural Industries Skill Training (RIST). Make sure you listen to the other two episodes: “Building a farm business from scratch” - feat. Dr Lexi Leonard and “Managing the Family Farm” - feat. Rachael McGrath.

More about RIST: 

We are a leading independent provider of Training & Education for the Agricultural Sector.Located in the heart of Victoria's Western District, RIST are your Local Agricultural College with a National Reach. TOID4198

This podcast is produced by the Rural Podcasting Co.

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Owning a home these days is hard enough, so what about building your own farm from scratch? 

Dr Lexie Leonard is a vet, an animal health trainer and a farmer who is building her own farming business alongside her husband and their young children in Balmoral, Victoria. Originally from the suburbs of Melbourne, Lexie would never have predicted she would grow up to be a farmer.

And it has been a steep learning curve at times. In part two of this collaboration series with RIST, Lexie shares her story of how she gained the skills and knowledge to run a farm and grow the business. She talks about the importance of goal setting and prioritising time to help you achieve your big dreams.

The road to farm ownership may not be easy, but it is possible.

Thank you to our episode sponsor: Rural Industries Skill Training (RIST)

More about RIST: 

We are a leading independent provider of Training & Education for the Agricultural Sector.Located in the heart of Victoria's Western District, RIST are your Local Agricultural College with a National Reach. TOID4198

This podcast is produced by the Rural Podcasting Co.

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Women have a powerful voice in agriculture, but would you call it equal to men? 

In Australia, there are more than 88, 000 women working in agriculture across multiple industries.  The numbers are growing, but women  only make  makes up one third of the overall ag workforce. There are also fewer women in positions of seniority, while research shows daughters only inherit the farm about 10 percent of the time. 

It's a complex problem, but a key leveller is undoubtedly education and knowledge. So in this 3 part-series, sponsored by RIST, we meet three women who have gained knowledge and power to make big things happen in their fields - from farm ownership, to becoming recognised leaders and change agents in agriculture.

In this episode, we meet Rachael McGrath, winner of the 2024 Young Dairy Leader Award. At 30 years old, Rachael is managing her family's dairy farm at Orford, in south-west Victoria. She's a lover of genetics, with her own Jersey and Swiss Brown stud. 

But it's actually quite amazing that Rachel has such a passion for farming... because growing up, it wasn't easy. Her family came close to losing their entire livelihood, after a tragic quad bike accident in which a man who worked on the farm was killed and another employee was seriously injured. A farm fatality is every farmer's worst nightmare. And yet here's Rachel, now building her own dream of running a farm.

Thank you to our episode sponsor: Rural Industries Skill Training (RIST)

More about RIST: 

We are a leading independent provider of Training & Education for the Agricultural Sector.Located in the heart of Victoria's Western District, RIST are your Local Agricultural College with a National Reach. TOID4198

This podcast is produced by the Rural Podcasting Co.

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New podcast alert!  If you're into film, TV, pop culture, the media, and what it actually means for us, then you'll love Two Smart Blondes.  Kirsten Diprose (who you know from Ducks on the Pond!) is hosting with film-maker Leila McDougall. Each week they also bring on a special guest, who has insight into the media/film world.

The first episode has just dropped and we get the inside goss on the AACTA awards, how the new Bridget Jones movie will translate to a modern audience and chat about the new Netflix series, Apple Cider Vinegar. Is it glorifying scammers?

This is just  a taste of our first episode of Two Smart Blondes, which we release basically unedited.... and that's going to become clear  right away.

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Chances are, when you were growing up, the idea of becoming a professional female footballer or even a female footy umpire for men’s games… was simply impossible. 

But NOW, it is. And that’s awesome.  However  it’s throwing up a few issues; such as how can women achieve pay parity with the men? How can we ensure women are safe playing the game (acknowledging that women’s bodies are different to men’s bodies)?

In this episode we meet two passionate pioneers of women’s footy. Yes, we cover both AFL and NRL (whatever ‘footy’ means to you!):

• Tara McGrath-West  - NRLW player - a ‘workhorse’ middle forward for the St George Illawarra Dragons. Originally from Harden, NSW
• Bec Malseed - one of the only female umpires for AFL Victoria men's games (she umpires for women too!), based in Hamilton, VIC.

These women don’t shy away from the hard questions around getting their professions the recognition and remuneration they deserve.

EPISODE SPONSOR: Squadron Energy -  Australian owned renewable energy company that develops, operates and owns energy assets for local communities.  Squadron Energy is also the Major Partner of the Dragons’ NRL and NRLW teams. 

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If you’ve spent a decade or more building a professional career - the idea of starting a business might seem out of reach. But you have plenty of skills already, in fact you are probably REALLY good at a couple of things… that people will actually pay you for. 

In this episode, hear from two rural women who talk about how you can use your established skills, networks and passion to start a business. All you need to do is plug the gaps in your knowledge. (And work pretty bloody hard).

*Rebecca Saunders - serial entrepreneur, business coach and founder of the Champagne Lounge, Mudgee NSW

*Paige Cross - founder and owner of Cross Country Management, former agribusiness manager for NAB, Greater Adelaide region, SA.

We discuss whether you need to identify a problem first to have a business, how to tap into your established network and how to find mentors. Also, how do you know when to spend money to make money?

EPISODE SPONSOR: The Hamilton Hamper - we are delighted to have such a wonderful brand sponsoring us for this episode!

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If you can’t get your partner to book a holiday with you… would you just go without them? That’s just one of the tips and tricks we discuss in this episode on how to convince your partner to go on a holiday… because we all know what farmers can be like.

 We also look at the research behind the benefits of taking a break and the psychological barriers around taking time away from the farm that our partner (or even ourselves) might have.  And we get some practical advice about how to discuss this issue with your partner, how to get the farm and household ready to leave and clever ways to save for a trip.

 This episode, from 2023, is one of our most popular so we are replaying it for you over the holidays!

It features:

Chantal Corish –  Psychologist and PhD Candidate, based in Goondiwindi, QLD

Carmen Quade – Director of AgriFocused,  a business skills consultancy, based in Tallimba, NSW

By the end of this episode, we want you to find the answer to break through whatever holiday barrier you have... to get that get away booked!

** This episode is sponsored by Alison Hamilton, farm office coach and creator of the Functioning Farm Office.

This episode was originally released in April 2023.

If you would like to sponsor an episode, email us: ducksonthepond.podcast@gmail.com 

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When it comes to WHAT you wear, do you ever feel damned if you do care, but also damned if you don’t?

Clothing is not trivial, it’s actually an expression of self. This episode is not about needing to look like a supermodel or spend ridiculous amounts of money on clothes (gosh, there’s enough pressure on us as women to do that already!). Rather, it’s about how looking and feeling good has value - whether you’re a busy mum, struggling with changes to your body or just wanting to look good at work, including if you’re on a farm or worksite.

Our next guests aren’t here to tell you ‘how to look good,’ for them it’s more about how you feel and dressing to express your inner self.

Hear from:

*Marion Sauders - creator of ‘Maz Life Styles,’ an over 50s fashion influencer with 150+ Instagram followers, from Carinda NSW

* Olivia Thwaites - founder of Green Hip Workwear, Geelong VIC

Both guests noticed a need not being met, when it comes to women’s fashion. Marion’s kids helped set her up on Instagram ten years ago and she wondered, why doesn’t anyone look like me? So she started her own fashion account for people just like her.  Now  it’s enjoyed by thousands of women all over the world.

Olivia is a horticulturalist who was tired of having to wear uncomfortable men’s clothes to work. She couldn’t find anything decent for women, so she started designing and making it herself. Now you can find Green Hip workwear in stockists all over the country… and she’s just signed an exciting contract with Bunnings.

EPISODE SPONSOR: Gro Events Group - hear from founder Dimity Smith, at the end of this episode. Thank you for your support!

If you liked this episode you might also like:

• Is your farmwear or work tools sexist? - Chelsea Christensen and Liz Bresinger
• How to build a brand with a bigger purpose - Sallie Jones and Elizabeth Hermann
• Getting your next big idea off the ground - Angie Armstrong and Natalie Egleton

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