A Women in Crop Science Conversation with Josie Clarke

Our Women in Crop Science community interview series kicks off 2023 with the inspirational Josie Clarke. I was keen to include Josie in our conversation series when I leant about her initiative Ability Agriculture during her recent research exchange to CIMMYT. She has developed and launched this alongside her day job as a PhD student in crop improvement at The University of Sydney, Australia. Ability Agriculture is a pioneering initiative to achieve greater awareness and inclusion for disabled people. 

The initiative is opening the conversation and giving a voice to highlight that agriculture can be an accessible career option for disabled people. Josie’s vision is that this will showcase the diversity of roles and career pathways available in agriculture that are accessible, as well as allowing the sector to build a more diverse and flexible work force for the future. This will ultimately support and promote the growth and sustainability of rural communities. Josie also hopes that sharing stories will bring greater transparency for accessible development programs and will inspire young people with disabilities into careers in agriculture.