IFMA Professional Development Fund

Nurturing management skills and personal confidence

In today’s world one of the biggest challenges we face in Agriculture is succession and how we help people to develop their skill sets and confidence so they can take on the new challenges.

IFMA is based on sharing the many similarities of agricultural management and solutions from around the world. Regardless of nationality or operational scale, there is tremendous opportunity to develop management skills and personal confidence in this environment.

With this in mind we have established the ‘IFMA Professional Development Fund’ that will make grants to individuals so that they can attend, experience, learn and make contributions to the IFMA Congresses around the world.

There are 5 main geographical areas that have historically been strong supporters of IFMA. We have therefore appointed 5 interim trustees from IFMA Council to represent Africa, Australasia, Europe, North America, and South America. Additionally, the IFMA Honorary Secretary will act as fund administrator.

Collectively they have agreed the award criteria and application process that will be used for the IFMA 24 awards. Trustees will formally be appointed at the next AGM in Saskatoon.

Applications to apply for a grant to attend the next IFMA Congress that is being held in Saskatoon in Canada between the 7^th and 13^th July 2024 are now open.

Applications are now open with a closing date of the 15^th February 2024 and the recipients of awards will be informed in March 2024

APPLICATION FORM IFMA24 CONGRESS TESTIMONIALS

‘IFMA Professional Development Fund’ has been launched by an injection of funds to act as seed corn from its existing resources to get things up and running and so enable awards to be made for IFMA 24. If you would like to make a donation or know of an individual or organisation who may be interested please email richard@ifma.network

Testimonials following IFMA Next Generation involvement in the 2022 Congress

As I reflect on my first tour with IFMA it’s evident that I have gained so much from attending the Next Gen Workshop and subsequent Farm Management Congress. Both conventions were well organised and delivered countless outcomes of immense value which I will carry forward into my final year of studies and far beyond. Having exposure to such a depth of knowledge and experience while gaining insight to agriculture all over the world is an opportunity that I’d struggle to come by without IFMA.

It became increasingly apparent throughout the week that the younger generation attending the conference were particularly reliant on sponsorship to join the Congress and access to funding will remain a key driver in their decision as to whether they can attend IFMA24. I am hugely appreciative of the generous sponsorship by IFMA that contributed significantly towards the cost of my trip, as well for all of the endeavours in organising IFMA23. I look forward to staying connected with the wealth of farm business management contacts I have gained as the countdown to Saskatchewan 2024 begins.

TC (UK)

Overall, my takeaway was that farmers and people are not so different in other parts of the world. From presentations, conversations, the pre-conference, and tours I could relate a lot of what I heard to my Extension work in Alabama and South Carolina. Cultures and laws can differ but when it comes down to working with farmers and advocating or helping them the work appears to be very similar. This is also encouraging because it allowed me access to a network that I had not experienced before and I now feel I have even greater resources at my disposal. I knew some of the attendees, mainly from the United States, but the good majority I did not. Being able to interface with them and share meaningful time and experiences would not have been possible were it not for IFMA and the opportunity to attend. Thank you again for the bursary for the conference, it was a very memorable experience and I want to use it to continue to grow as an advocate for agriculture.

KB (USA)

In summary, it was a really great time to meet new people, different realities, and other perspectives on similar issues. It as an honour to be part of this great event and I hope I´m able to participate other IFMA conferences along the years.

GT (Brazil)

My best tip was from an American farmer Jay Smith. His words have really rang true with me and I hope others can experience the same as I did. “Being a farmer is fun, but Ag travel is the most important part of farming”. This is so true; I have been completely overwhelmed with information and data to try and digest with our business, but I have never been more motivated to come home and share all my experiences to help inspire the current generation of farmers to see how they farm around the world.

RD (Tasmania)