Are you up for a challenge?

If you want to travel the world, see what’s possible for your farm and industry, bring back new ideas and create lasting change in your field, apply now for a Churchill Fellowship or a Nuffield Scholarship.

Churchill Fellowships

Each year, Australians from every sector, industry and community are invited to take a bold step with a Churchill Fellowship to explore a question, challenge a system, investigate global best practice and bring practical solutions home.

You don’t need qualifications, a title or a specific profession to apply for a Fellowship. What you do need is a project or idea that could strengthen your field, your community, or Australia more broadly. You also need to be an Australian citizen or permanent resident aged 18+.

What the Churchill Trust looks for in a Fellow

• Curiosity: a drive to learn and explore new ideas.
• Commitment: sustained effort and follow-through.
• Capability: the ability to make use of the opportunity.
• Generosity: willingness to share knowledge and create impact.

If this sounds like you and you have a project to share, then this just might be your year to apply.

Fellowships fund expenses for four to eight weeks of international travel, and applicants design their own itinerary to learn directly from leaders delivering best practice overseas.

All Fellows are required to publish a report and actively engage in disseminating their findings within their industry when they return.

Aside from general Fellowships, specific sponsored opportunities are also available this year, including the Saskia Beer Churchill Fellowship which supports passionate food lovers like Saskia – be they farmers, growers, producers, cooks, chefs, or entrepreneurs – to pursue innovative, artisanal, sustainable, regenerative and community-focused approaches to food production or farming.

Applications for the 2026 round close on 30 April 2026, for travel within twelve months from 1 November 2026.

For more details, watch the Agriculture, Horticulture and Food information session on the Churchill Trust YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/qWsw5gnwvys.

Apply now at www.churchilltrust.com.au.

Nuffield Scholarships

Applications are open for the 2027 Nuffield Scholarships, offering Australian primary producers the opportunity to gain global insight and strengthen their leadership capability.

The program supports farmers to investigate a topic relevant to their business, community or industry while connecting with leading producers and agribusinesses around the world. The focus is practical application, global collaboration and long-term impact.

Nuffield Scholars return with broadened perspective, enhanced networks and the confidence to influence outcomes within their industries.

Apple grower Iain MacLennan from St Albans in Orange, NSW, can certainly testify to that. APAL spoke to him about his experience as a 2025 Nuffield Scholar.

How was your experience of the Nuffield Scholarship?

“Nuffield has been such a great experience – it was everything I thought the program would be and so much more. It’s been a huge highlight reel. The Global Focus Program (GFP) I did had 12 scholars from seven countries on it and we visited seven countries in five weeks. The places and rooms that we were invited into as scholars just to discuss and understand agriculture is hard to fathom. And

“People in farming and agriculture across the world share similar values around producing food and being proud of their produce. For me, becoming aware of this common value has made the world feel so much smaller and information is far easier to access. The people were the best part of the experience – the friendships I’ve gained are so unique and I’ll be forever grateful for that.

“My personal travels for my study topic have been incredible, too. I now have a travel itch and I’m curious to see more parts of the world.”

Would you recommend that people apply for a scholarship and why?

“I’d encourage anyone who is up for a challenge to apply. It was one of the best years of my life; the experience has given me more than I could have imagined. The friendships, the confidence and critical thinking are aspects I’m forever grateful for. The growth I’ve seen in myself and my business wouldn’t have been possible in such a short timeframe without Nuffield and the people within its network who challenge and encourage you to continue growing and learning. It’s certainly been a challenge; there have been difficult and uncomfortable times, but that’s all outweighed by the gains, the growth and highlights of the process.”

What do you wish you had known before applying?

“The Scholarship has been challenging in ways I hadn’t expected it to be. I was slightly naive about the pressure that being away for extended periods puts on all facets of life. It’s tough being away, the program is intensive and so it really can test out your relationships and put your character to the test. The busy schedules, flights and different time zones means it can be hard to talk to those back home. I found I really had to relinquish control and trust the people I left at home to handle the business, but we’re in a better place because of the experience and I now find it easier to step away knowing that others have the capacity to get the job done.”

Any tips for people who are thinking about applying?

“The process of applying isn’t meant to be easy! Be yourself, be curious and don’t worry about feeling like you don’t know enough; that’s why you’re applying. It’s the very start of a journey of discovery, so show that you’re keen to learn and want to provide benefit to your business, industry and yourself.

“Filming a video of yourself is definitely awkward, but it gets easier the more often you do it. For the selection panels, it’s really about getting to know the candidate. They’re trying to decide if you’re the sort of person they would want to sit next to for 12 hours on an overseas trip.”

How did you come up with your study topic?

“My study topic – how carbon accounting can be integrated into orchard management for a sustainable future – started as an area of interest around environmental sustainability. I was hoping to find some economic or environmental gain that could help me and other producers. That was at the start of the process and I’ve quickly realised – between the learnings from my travels, some deep reflection and some of the pressures of the last two seasons – that environmental sustainability is really only one pillar of a sustainable business. My topic is now better aligned with what’s important to my business and hopefully will provide some benefits to others in the industry.”

This year, through Hort Innovation, the apple and pear R&D levy is sponsoring a 2027 Nuffield Scholarship. The bursary allows scholars to cover costs of travel, study and writing a comprehensive research report about their findings.

Some suggested research topics important to the apple and pear industry include:

• sustainable pest and disease management
• climate resilient orchard management
• automation and mechanisation
• enhancing soil health and plant nutrition
• market development and export strategies
• consumer trends and demand stimulation
• renewable energy in orchards.

Applications close on 8 May 2026 and shortlisted applicants will be interviewed during June and July. Successful recipients will be announced at the Nuffield Australia National Conference in Darwin from 8–10 September 2026.

Find out more information and apply at www.nuffield.com.au.

Acknowledgement

The Nuffield Scholarships (MT22003) project is funded by Hort Innovation, using the apple and pear, avocado, onion, and raspberry and blackberry research and development levies and contributions from the Australian Government.

This article was first published in the Autumn 2026 edition of AFG.