GROW People Hub
We’re GROWing an amazing program of talks and discussions for a full day of learning at the People Hub
🌱 introductory level: no assumed knowledge
🌱🌱 advanced level: a deep dive straight into the nitty gritty
9.30am: Gates open & morning tea
10.30am: Carbon Cowboys’ Peter Byck and Allen Williams in conversation with GROW live from the US 🌱
Join US documentary filmmaker Professor Peter Byck (director of the Carbon Cowboys and Roots So Deep films) and Carbon Cowboys’ lead scientist Dr Allen Williams for an inspiring start to the GROW day.
Peter travelled to Kyneton to be the keynote speaker for the inaugural GROW in February 2025 and we’re still working together in 2026. Peter and Allen will update us on the latest results they’re seeing in their peer-reviewed research on adaptive multi-paddock grazing, check in on the GROW Paddock and open the session up to questions from us all at GROW.
11.30am: It all starts here: The importance of context in farm planning 🌱
No two farms – and no two families – are the same. Without context, it’s easy to adopt practices that work elsewhere but fail on your own land. In this discussion, we explore how defining context first helps farmers make aligned decisions that balance ecology, economics and lifestyle, building resilience and long-term profitability.
With Brenna Fletcher, Holistic Management educator for northern Victoria and southern NSW
& Silas Blough, Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV) Monitor with Holistic Management Co-Op
12 noon: Deep listening to nature (on in the GROW Lounge) 🌱
How do we begin listening to nature? Andrew Skeoch uses sound recordings and spectrograms to introduce ways of identifying species by sound, and discusses why particular species use the specific sounds that they do. Sound tells us what is happening, allowing us to hear the underlying processes that inform the living world. Communication within ecosystems tell of how nature has evolved over half a billion years to sustain life. Andrew proposes that we consider these principles in the context of our social and governance systems, and utilise sound as a measure of environmental wellbeing.
With Andrew Skeoch, author, environmental educator and wildlife sound recordist
12.30pm: Challenges for net zero: local and international insights 🌱🌱
With Julie Ingram, Professor Of Innovation For Sustainable Agriculture, University of Gloucestershire (UK)
& Ruth Nettle, Professorial Fellow, School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences, University of Melbourne
1.30pm: Book talk: Living with Wildlife 🌱
A practical and wildlife-friendly guide for successfully living alongside our wild neighbours.
With Tanya Loos, field naturalist and nature writer
2pm: For nature and profit: Can farming be both? 🌱🌱
Can farmers protect and enhance native vegetation while keeping their businesses productive and profitable? Jo Bear shares insights from her own experience balancing biodiversity and farm productivity and asks the GROW community to help explore her burning question: Is it possible to farm for nature and profit?
With Dr Jo Bear, sheep & environmental farmer, Bear & Twigg, Loddon Vale
2.30pm: Doing the right thing can’t just be a hobby: the economics of regenerative farming 🌱
We explore how farmers can navigate market opportunities to get a fair deal for regen produce.
With Laura Grubb, H.W. Greenham & Sons
& Stuart Grainger, farmer and food & agribusiness exec
3.30pm: Succession planning: making sure the good work doesn’t get undone 🌱
How do we design a future for farms that preserves natural capital as well as the enterprise? A group discussion drawing from the knowledge and experience in the room about how to protect landscapes and relationships through succession.
With Courtney Young, farmer & soil health educator, Woodstock Flour & Soils for Life
& Kristy Stewart, farmer & soil health educator, Yan Yan Gurt West & Soils for Life
4.30pm: Landcare IS for everyone!
It’s 50 years since a group of farmers around St Arnaud decided they needed to work together to tackle their shared environmental problems. As we celebrate this big Landcare birthday, we explore how the national organisation’s grassroots roots mean it really is for everyone – no matter where you live and whether you’re a landholder or just want to care for the land around you.
with Ammie Jackson, Upper Deep Creek Landcare Facilitator & other regional facilitators
5.00pm: Rooted in Story: Writing place and environment for all ages 🌱
with Gisela Ervin-Ward, author of True South, a novel for readers aged 9-13, set in central Victoria
& Andrew Kelly, author of Prayer for a River (with Uncle Glenn Loughrey), The Accidental Penguin Hotel and other nature-themed children’s books