A pilot, an Ahuwhenua Dairy Farming Award finalist and farming leader have been announced as NZ Young Farmers 2016 Excellence Award winners

Posted by Nadine Porter on 16 December 2016 | Comments

A pilot, young Maori leader and an environmental farming leader have been named as NZ Young Farmers prestigious 2016 Excellence Award winners.

The new award recognises the outstanding young leaders among our midst and are open to Young Farmer members.

Hamilton based flying instructor for CTC Aviation, 27-yaer-old Hannah Cameron has a long history of over-achieving and is currently working towards her dream of flying jumbo jets for Air New Zealand.

She is responsible for the training and tutorage of Kiwi and international commercial jet pilots.

The former Te Kawahata dairy farming lass has flown through pilot exams and aims to be flying turbo-props (Air New Zealand's smaller planes) within five years.

Females are a minority as pilots in the airline industry with only four per cent operating in the global environment, but Hannah aims to be one of the very few to make it to the top.

The current Waikato/Bay of Plenty Regional Chairperson for NZ Young Farmers, Hannah has led from the front and the region is thriving because of her inclusive leadership style.

Current Tasman Regional vice chairperson, 26-year-old Ash-Leigh Campbell has also shown her leadership potential after she was named a finalist in the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Dairy Farmer of the Year awards.

A herd manager at just 21-years-old, Ash-Leigh has also run a dry-stock farm in Canterbury before completing a Diploma in Agriculture. She was also a Whenua Kura Maori Scholarship winner which enabled her to reconnect with her Maori roots and to develop her leadership skills.

Recently she has begun a fixed term contract as a Sustainability Co-ordinator for Ngai Tahu Farming, but in between she commits a lot of time to Young Farmers where she hopes to build bridges between cultures.

Wyndham sheep, beef and dairy farmer Dean Rabbidge was also named as an Excellence Award winner. The 31-year-old is the 2016 winner of the Zanda McDonald Award (a prestigious award that recognises diligence across the New Zealand and Australian primary sectors).

Dean has also been recognised for his outstanding work in showing leadership on environmental issues among his peers.

He has also twice been a Grand Finalist of the FMG Young Farmer of the Year, representing Otago/Southland and is the current Contest Chairperson and a NZ Young Farmers board member.

NZ Young Farmers CEO Terry Copeland said the three were 'outstanding' in their fields and showcased the wide variety of talents required in the primary sector today.

"We are extremely proud of the role our organisation continues to play in developing the primary industry's next leaders. Hannah, Ash-Leigh and Dean are examples of the diversity of skills, culture and talent we aim to develop and we are delighted they are our first recipients of the Excellence Awards."

 

About the NZ Young Farmers Excellence Awards:

2016 is the first year the Excellence Awards have been given out.

They are a prestigious acknowledgment of outstanding endeavour, leadership and commitment and recognise the future leaders of our Primary Industry.

Winners are showcased in the organisation's magazine and among industry sectors and are awarded trophies to acknowledge their tremendous achievement.

For more information, please contact Nadine Porter, Communications Manager on 021 2140703 or email nadine.porter@youngfarmers.co.nz