Esteemed Queensland conservationist and farmer, Stephen Burgess, won the coveted Bob Hawke Landcare Award at the 2016 National Landcare Awards in Melbourne last night.
Stephen Burgess was given the honour ahead of finalists Gwendolyn Adams from Tasmania and Glenn Morris from New South Wales, and was awarded $50,000 to further develop his knowledge and skills in Landcare and sustainable land management practices.
The award acknowledges a person who has demonstrated a remarkable commitment to caring for the land; champions better land management practices; and gives their time to share knowledge with others so that they too can prosper.
Unfortunately, Stephen was unable to personally accept his award following recent open-heart surgery but his long-time friend, Glenda Pickergill, was there on his behalf.
“He’s the most brilliant man, with knowledge and sharing and caring for his community,” Glenda said. “I think it will be so special for him to be honoured for all the volunteer work that he’s done. It’s a wonderful thing at this stage in his life to be recognised for this. I think awards like this encourage, share, educate, and motivate others to follow in his footsteps.”
Stephen has run Wurraglen Nature Refuge in Dagun, southern Queensland for nearly 20 years, developing the property which combines sustainable market farming and light grazing.
His love of bushwalking around the country instilled a strong commitment to caring for the land and encourages others to share these values. Stephen is a long-time member of Gympie and District Landcare and a former high school teacher, where he ran a weekly Landcare awareness project with his students.
Currently a part-time project officer at the Mary River Catchment Resource Centre and coordinator of the community Waterwatch program, Stephen has previously worked in Western Australia with the Department of Agriculture, where he developed a program called “NPDecide” which was widely adopted throughout the WA Wheatbelt.
The program improves the efficiency of fertiliser use, reduces leaching losses, and introduces explicit consideration of soil organic nitrogen pools into fertilizer decisions.
According to the judges, Stephen’s broad range of experience, his work to improve sustainable agriculture practices and his keenness to share his knowledge with others, demonstrate every aspect of the Landcare ethic.
