When local Department of Primary Industries (DPI) employee Tamara Prentice learned she had been nominated for the 2023 Dr Helen Proudfoot Women in Planning Award earlier this year, she thought she would attend the ceremony to relax and have a few beers.

But when her name was announced as the proud recipient, she said gobsmacked was the only word she could think of to describe her reaction.

Widely renowned and respected for her tremendous work ethic, precision, and efficiency, Ms Prentice has been working with the DPI since 2019, and is currently based at the Grafton Primary Industries Institute (GPII) at Trenayr, where her role as Manager of Agricultural Land Use Planning sees her lead a team of 10 land use planners across NSW to help ensure intergenerational access to landscapes that support food and fibre production are made possible by providing strategic and statutory planning advice and policies.

In receiving the award which recognises her outstanding contributions which have enhanced and improved agricultural planning policies and provided greater outcomes and approach to her profession, along with the development of additional resources to support councils across the state, Ms Prentice remains dedicated in her commitment to ensuring agricultural land maintains a pivotal role in the increasingly competitive rural landscape, and is motivated by her love of the natural environment.

“I honestly did not expect to receive the award, and I still remember the shock and surprise of hearing my name being called out,” she said.

“My team nominated me, which was a little sneaky of them, and I was nominated alongside some quite good candidates who were predominantly Sydney based, so when I went to the ceremony on March 28, I didn’t have an acceptance speech prepared.

“I thought I was there to enjoy an evening out and have a beer.

“I feel so humble, so proud, and shocked (still) to receive the award, and it has really inspired and motivated me to continue to do the work I love, and to also continue to further improve planning policies and strategies to support the agricultural sector.”

Ms Prentice indicated she is also keen to explore other avenues to help close the gap in education between industry representatives and the decisions they make which impact agriculture.

Other upcoming projects she is working on includes monitoring the loss of agricultural land, and ensuring the recommended decisions and strategies implemented are being processed accordingly in areas where agricultural land is being converted to other uses such as urban purposes or mining, and the correct and necessary strategic and statutory planning advice and policies are properly utilised.

This article appeared in the Clarence Valley Independent, 31 May 2023.