Barwon
The recognised Traditional Owners of the Barwon region include the Wadawurrung and Eastern Maar Peoples. The region is home to Victoria’s largest regional city Geelong.
Barwon is a blend of coastal, mountain, forest, agricultural and urban landscapes. The Great Ocean Road, You Yangs and Otway Ranges attract domestic and international visitors and the central and western shires are highly productive agricultural areas.
The region supports an agriculture sector of dairy, livestock (sheep, cattle and pigs), horticulture and poultry. Food production such as wineries and food trails is also a major contributor to the regional economy.
The Barwon Drought Resilience Plan was produced collaboratively by a wide range of local residents, groups and organisations. A Drought Resilience Reference Group was established to steer the Plan’s development and included key stakeholders with expertise in agriculture, health, finance, water, governance, community and environment.
Implementing activities in Barwon
Southern Farming Systems is the Phase One Plan Coordinator for the Barwon region, receiving a $380,000 Implementation Grant to coordinate and deliver resilience building activities across the region.
In demonstration of cross-regional collaboration, the Barwon and Great South Coast Plan Coordinators came together to deliver activities across the neighbouring regions. Southern Farming Systems and Food and Fibre Great South Coast each delivered two activities across both regions.
Activities delivered across the Barwon region by Southern Farming Systems:
- Farmer Decision-Making – empowering farmers to make timely, informed decisions during drought by improving awareness of, and access to, decision-making tools, real-time data and expert advice. The activity included a “train-the-trainer” approach to reach more farmers.
- Mental Health Support – enhancing the capacity of local service providers and community leaders to support the mental health and wellbeing of farmers and other rural community members. The activity delivered agriculture sector focused mental health awareness-raising events across south-west Victoria, and upskilled community members so they can support farmers’ resilience prior to and during drought.
Activities delivered across the Barwon region by Food and Fibre Great South Coast:
- Natural Resource Preparedness – increasing the management of natural resources (soil, water and biodiversity) by firstly reviewing and updating spatial information and then documenting best practices that can address issues such as overgrazing, water shortages and ecosystem degradation.
- Water Preparedness – promoting sustainable water management and use by reviewing and updating priorities for regional water infrastructure and other initiatives. The activity also promotes water conservation measures in agricultural settings through educational resources.
