Milbrulong veterinarian Dione Howard has won the 2021 Sydney Royal Easter Show Rural Achiever and is now off to the national titles.

The announcement was made at an event held at the Sydney Olympic Park and capped off a week-long visit to the show for seven Rural Achiever finalists.

“I got to meet a like minded bunch of young people with a passion for agriculture,” Miss Howard said.

“We completed a selection process at the end of 2019 and were to do the program at the 2020 Sydney Royal Easter Show but due its cancellation we ended up pushing through to 2021.”

The RAS Rural Achiever is a state wide leadership program run by the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW to recognise future young leaders aged 20-29 making a significant contribution to their community.

The participants receive a share in the $17,000 prizemoney, networking opportunities, a one-year RAS membership, a personalised mentor program with RAS representatives and professional development sessions.

Dione, 26, works as a veterinarian with Riverina Local Land Services helping land holders to rule out notifiable and exotic diseases, and maintain livestock health.

“My expectations were exceeded as we got to be involved in so many different aspects of the show,” she said.

“We went behind the scenes with entertainment and how the show comes to life. We were involved with stewarding, there were plenty of networking opportunities and were each assigned mentors.”

Dione was mentored by Dr Ellen Downes, a RAS councillor and 2019 NSW/ACT Rural Woman of the Year finalist.

“The mentoring started at the show and we are able to tap into our mentor’s expertise and wisdom skills throughout the next year as we represent each of our areas as rural ambassadors.”

Miss Howard said the Rural Achiever program provided a platform to help bridge the city and country divide.

“I am fortunate enough to have additional avenues to go into schools and share my story as a Young Farming Champion.

“It really stuck out to me how important local shows are and the show movement is to keep people in touch with agriculture.

“For a lot of people, it is their only agricultural touch point where they get to see an animal or touch wool if they are not involved on farms otherwise.”

Miss Howard said it was incredibly exciting time for career opportunities for young people in agriculture.

“There are really good reasons to live and work in rural and regional areas.

“I’d encourage anyone who is even half considering to be a Rural Achiever to apply, or if anyone knows a young person who would fit the bill to encourage them to apply.”

Dione will represent NSW at the national finals, which also include New Zealand, at the 2022 Sydney Royal Easter Show.