Introducing our Champions

Country to Canberra welcomes three new amazing champions, Dr Anika Molesworth, Elizabeth Brennan and Natalie Sommerville to the C2C team.

These three women are already passionate leaders across Australia, inspiring positive change and shaping the future of communities.
Our champions will be such a support to all our programs enabling them to reach many more young, rural women and non-binary people!

Elizabeth is smiling, she has shoulder length wavy brown hair

— Elizabeth Brennan

Elizabeth, or Liz, has facilitated many community and agricultural development programs and fresh produce marketing strategies in the WA Wheatbelt region, across Australia and Papua New Guinea. She is the co-founder of agdots, a small consultancy seeking to create a big impact in the WA regions and agricultural industry.

Elizabeth loves regional WA and has a number of leadership positions including Commissioner for the Agricultural Produce Commission, Non-Executive Director with ASX-listed Wide Open Agriculture, Board Director for the RRR Network. A mentor and chronic volunteer, Elizabeth is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) and Fellow with the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation (FARLF). 

Q & A with Liz

Natalie Sommerville —

Nat Sommerville, lives and works on Ngadjuri Country in South Australia’s Mid North. She is a farmer, grazier, business owner, mother, mentor and a proud Torres Strait Islander woman. 

Nat manages their farming business Windjara Ag with her husband Dane and 2 children. They have been farming for over 15 years and have developed a strong relationship with the local traditional owners. 

Driven by her passion of sustainable agriculture, the environment and social justice, Nat’s focus is on influencing positive change in rural Australia and seeing greater innovation, inclusion of gender and age, and respect for diverse backgrounds. She is passionate about sharing her farming, cultural and social knowledge and experiences to improve outcomes for both current and future generations.

When Nat is not farming she is mentoring Aboriginal students in local schools and assisting educators to deliver respectful First Nations histories, perspectives and cultural content in lesson plans. 

During her spare time Nat volunteers her time on many community and industry boards at local, state and national levels include Australian Women in Agriculture, SA Ag Excellence Alliance, Landcare Association of SA, and the local NAIDOC committee just to name a few.

Q & A with Nat
Natalie is smiling she has chin length brown hair
Anika is smiling, she has shoulder length brouwn hair and she is wearing a wide brim hat and has red dirt around her

— Dr. Anika Molesworth

Living through a ten-year drought on her family’s farm sparked Anika’s interest in climate change. From her experience with drought Annika wondered, “How are we going to feed a rapidly growing global population well, in a climate challenged world?”

Anika is passionate about resilient rural communities and healthy ecosystems, and is committed to helping create a sustainable food system. Annika has a PhD in agricultural science and ecosystems, she speaks and writes on farming systems of the future, and strives to help create a world where everyone is food secure.

Raising awareness of climate change impacts on farms, and most importantly, the action that can be taken to reduce emissions and adapt to changing conditions has taken Anika around the world to every continent (including Antarctica), meeting with farmers, scientists, global leaders and royalty.

In 2015, Anika was named Young Farmer of the Year, and went on to be awarded the 2017 Young Australian of the Year NSW Finalist, and 2017 NSW Young Achiever Award for Environment and Sustainability. In 2018, Anika was awarded the Green Globe Awards Young Sustainability Champion, the NSW/ACT Regional Achievement and Community Award for Agricultural Innovation, and the 350.org Heroes of a Low-Carbon Economy Youth Champion. In 2019, she was recognised as a Future Shaper by InStyle and Audi, and a Women of Influence by the Australian Financial Review. In 2020, Anika’s past high school awarded her the Emily Hensley Award for self-discipline, integrity, compassion and contribution to the wider community.

Anika also founded Climate Wise Agriculture in 2014, runs educational workshops, speaks at small and large events, and brings heartfelt warmth, authenticity and optimism to complex global challenges

Anika is a farmer, a scientist and a storyteller of a better future

Q & A with Anika