2023-2024 Scholarship recipients announced

Friday 18 Aug 2023

 
Timber Queensland is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2023-24 Growth Scholarship Awards Program. Timber Queensland’s Strategic Relations Manager Clarissa Brandt said entries increased by 50% from the inaugural 2022-2023 program and the calibre of entries was impressive.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to receive one of these Awards, and it was definitely a difficult task for our hardworking judging committees,” said Clarissa Brandt. “Applicants are early to mid-career professionals and skilled workers who have given thought about their future career paths and developed learning project ideas that will benefit their individual growth and contribute to the development of Queensland’s forest and timber industry,” she said.

“The recipients represent a variety of sectors within our industry supply chain forestry, harvesting, processing and building. Based on the experience of the inaugural award recipients, they will gain valuable skills, knowledge and connections as they implement their learning projects.”

The recipients of the 2023 – 2024 Awards are:

$10,000 Kennedy’s Timber Award
Katie Fowden
Learning Project “Canadian Exemplar First Nations Forestry Partnerships”

$5000 AKD Award
John Said
Learning Project “Mechanisation of the Pruning Regime”

$5000 HQPlantations Award
Nicola Morris
Learning Project “Designing a Healthy Home – Researching Building Biology & Passivhaus Principles”

$2500 DTM Timber Award
Daniel Schweitzer
Learning Project “Certificate IV in Work Health & Safety”

Recipient of the Kennedy’s Timber Award Katie Fowden, Strategic Relations Manager at Hyne Timber, said “the aim of my study tour is to examine Canadian processes to establish First Nations sustainable forestry partnerships, which are significantly more advanced than Australia’s. I will investigate how long Canada took to establish these partnerships, the financial modelling, lessons learned and where such partnerships failed and why,” said Katie Fowden.

AKD Award recipient John Said will travel to Germany to explore various new options for mechanized pruning that are being implemented internationally.“My learning project will allow me to gauge the effectiveness of this technology and determine if it is economically viable to implement as a works program. I will gain experience working with engineers, forest growers and plywood and veneer manufactures,” said John Said.

“Pruning is vital to the Araucaria cunninghammii estate, there is great value in clear knot free timber. Specifically Araucaria cunninghammii, but great value can also be added to the sawn timber of exotic plantation pine species of Australia. By working alongside industry developments in autonomous and mechanical pruning I will be on the forefront of best practice for our forest. These learnings can be applied across Australia forest industry allowing me to further my network and contacts,” he said.

Clarissa Brandt says Timber Queensland appreciates the time and effort put into the applications. “We have encouraged all candidates to take consolation from the wise words of one applicant who has said although they were unsuccessful there was reward in taking the time in considering their career and where they want to be in five years. Taking time out of our busy work and personal lives to find direction is to be valued and will undoubtedly provide rewards in some other way,’ she said.

Reports from recipients of the 2022-2023 Growth Scholarship Program are available here

Source: Timber Queensland

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