LOCAL students from the Young Leaders Program, an initiative of the Glenelg and Southern Grampians Local Learning and Employment Network (GSG LLEN), enjoyed the benefits of an on-site experience, spending the day in the field with Australian Bluegum Plantations (ABP).

 The Young Leaders, students from Hamilton secondary schools Monivae, Good Shepherd, Baimbridge, and The Hamilton & Alexandra Colleges, attended a harvest site in Macarthur to witness firsthand everything the plantation industry had to offer.

The Young Leaders gained an understanding of just how expansive and diverse the forestry sector of agriculture was and heard from ABP staff and forest haulage and harvest contractors, C3.

Operations were paused to allow students to observe the whole process in action, from planting, to harvest and enabled them to gain hands-on experience with the massive machinery that was used.

The Young Leaders received presentations from several professionals within the organisations and were granted an insight into the array of potential careers on offer within the industry.

The group then headed to the ABP’s Portland Chip Terminal at the Port of Portland, to see where the harvest was transported to and the process involved in preparing the product for export.

At this point the students discovered, once again, that there was so much more involved in the process and logistics.

ABP Harvest Manager, Wayne Millard said ABP was one of the largest, fully-integrated plantation managers and woodchip exporters in the world.

“We thoroughly enjoy showcasing the industry to students and what career choices there are within forestry,” he said.

“To be able to give them a firsthand experience from growing bluegums through to harvest, chipping, then export, really exposes them to all facets of our industry that we are proud to be a part of.”

The Young Leaders Program officially started in 2021 and was based on the highly successful Future Leaders Program founded by Portland Aluminium in 2005, to showcase the many different industries in the community.

It aims to bring youth back into the community after their tertiary studies and create a workforce of inspiring leaders.

The Young Leaders Program is reliant on sponsorship and in-kind support to be able to deliver these opportunities to young people, who are future leaders of our communities.

Major sponsors this year included, ABP, South West TAFE, Coleraine and Dunkeld Community Banks and Wannon Water.

The students were transported by the generous support of Monivae College, driven by business manager, Jim Bailey.

Financially supported by the Department of Education and Training, the role of GSG LLEN is to broker sustainable strategic partnerships between key stakeholders to improve education, training, and employment outcomes for young people in the region.