Annalise Varker is the winner of the inaugural Horrie Poussard Prize for ‘My story of working on Country,’ published in Issue 85, 2022 of the Victorian Landcare and Catchment Management magazine. 

Annalise’s personal account of her time as an Indigenous School Based Trainee placed with the North Central CMA was praised by the judges for its honesty, humour and insight. The story demonstrates the importance of involving young people in natural resource management, how Landcare can serve as a meaningful and positive outlet, and provide pathways to training, employment, and personal growth.

Annalise addresses larger environmental issues such as global warming, land degradation and pollution in her story. She advocates for small, achievable changes that contribute to the healing of Country and sees many opportunities for young people to get involved with Landcare.

The Horrie Poussard Prize was established in 2023 to commemorate the late Horrie Poussard’s contribution to the Victorian Landcare movement. Horrie was Victoria’s first Landcare executive officer. He formed training groups, created incentive grants and educational materials and oversaw the formation of the first 50 groups in Victoria.

Horrie maintained a close interest in Landcare for the rest of his life and was committed to telling the Landcare story.

Highly Commended

Kaye Rodden

Kaye Rodden’s story, ‘A nature-based solution to landscape repair in the Barrabool Hills’, was published in Issue 83, 2022. Kaye begins her story in 1990 when her family purchased a degraded farm on the western outskirts of Geelong. Battles with serrated tussock, rabbits and a devastating drought that destroyed much of their revegetation challenged the Rodden’s attempts to heal the land. Kaye’s personal reflections on the journey to creating a thriving ecosystem are compelling. The judges praised Kaye’s story for demonstrating the power of community collaboration in addressing environmental challenges.