IN BRIEF BUILDING CAPABILITY Did you know… The future is MLA supports PhD students who are researching topics with practical MLA is paving the way to a more productive value for Australia’s beef, sheep and red meat and livestock industry by goat industries? supporting postgraduate students who It’s one way MLA bridges the gap between education are researching topics which add value. and agriculture. Meet two young guns who have used MLA scholarships Here’s some more information about MLA’s and grants to grow their research and return this knowledge Postgraduate Study Awards. to the industry. Anna Reboldi Recipient of the MLA award at the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment’s 2020 Science and Innovation Awards Who is eligible? What do recipients Anna Reboldi (pictured) is a All Australian citizens receive? researcher at the Australian and permanent residents The award stipend is National University, Canberra. undertaking areas of up to $10,000 a year. She’s passionate about soil study relevant to the conservation and is currently Australian red meat and researching how satellite imagery livestock industry. can be used to map biological soil crusts. I got to where I am today by understanding that food security and What areas of research are eligible? conservation were important to me. The awards focus on improving knowledge about I grew up in Italy and, although I lived in a few different topics related to Australia’s livestock industry. This cities, my dad’s family owned a small piece of land, and this gives students huge scope as to what they choose to is where I started developing a connection to agriculture. study and how they direct their research. When I came to Australia in 2012, I had the opportunity to In 2019 MLA awarded seven scholarships to students follow my interests through study. with topics as varied as remote autonomous detection A day in my lifeis full of coding, analysing literature and of calving and calf loss, immunity transfer in lambs, spending time in the lab gathering data. Once COVID-19 and analysing community perceptions of Q fever. has been contained, I hope to be able to conduct fieldwork on sites across Australia. rs because My research matters to red meat produce it will improve models relating to pasture productivity. What other awards does MLA sponsor? The biocrusts I’m mapping can indicate if land is healthy and well-maintained. MLA supports other industry programs which grow research and knowledge in agriculture and support This research also extends what we know about carbon leadership capability, including: sequestration and nitrogen fixation in rangeland areas. It • Australian Government Department of Agriculture, can contribute to reporting systems so producers can show Water and the Environment – Science and Innovation the sustainability of their farming practices. Awards (agriculture.gov.au/scienceawards) MLA’s support means I can develop my research through • Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarships fieldwork across Australia and collaborate with producers (nuffield.com.au) and researchers at workshops and conferences. It will • AgriFutures Horizon Scholarships for undergraduates also enable me to purchase high-resolution satellite data if (agrifutures.com.au/horizon‑scholarship) COVID-19 restrictions continue and prevent us from carrying out fieldwork. • Australian Rural Leadership Foundation – Australian Rural Leadership Program (rural‑leaders.org.au). ■ My advice for other young people involved in red meat research isto put yourself out there and say yes to new opportunities. Don’t let self-doubt as a researcher hamper Angelica Pickup your belief in achieving in your field. E: apickup@mla.com.au MLA scholarships and awards Anna Reboldi mla.com.au/scholarships E: anna.reboldi@anu.edu.au 8