Media Panel: Shaping the Narrative of Agriculture and Energy Transition
Wednesday 12/02/2025, 14:20-15:20, Main Room (Roma-Terrace), Level 1, Grand Chancellor Hotel, Brisbane
As Australia moves towards decarbonisation, regional communities—many reliant on mining and traditional industries—face significant change. How can the media help bridge the gap between policy and public perception, ensuring a smoother transition for agriculture and energy sectors? What challenges will need to be overcome? This panel brings together award-winning rural journalists Cathie Schnitzerling, Kallee Buchanan, and Mark Phelps, alongside Professor John Rolfe, a leading expert in Regional Development and Resource Economics. Together, they will explore the media’s role in informing, engaging, and persuading diverse audiences, from policymakers to people on the ground.
The discussion will unpack how different regions—whether agricultural areas, mining towns, the Great Barrier Reef tourism industry, or areas with strong First Nations connections—experience the transition in unique ways. What narratives resonate most with regional communities? How can media help counter misinformation, highlight opportunities, and foster understanding in places where economic shifts create uncertainty? With Queensland at the heart of Australia’s energy and agricultural sectors, this session will examine the media’s power in shaping public discourse, influencing decision-makers, and ultimately helping communities navigate the path to a more sustainable future.
The discussion will unpack how different regions—whether agricultural areas, mining towns, the Great Barrier Reef tourism industry, or areas with strong First Nations connections—experience the transition in unique ways. What narratives resonate most with regional communities? How can media help counter misinformation, highlight opportunities, and foster understanding in places where economic shifts create uncertainty? With Queensland at the heart of Australia’s energy and agricultural sectors, this session will examine the media’s power in shaping public discourse, influencing decision-makers, and ultimately helping communities navigate the path to a more sustainable future.
Panellists
CAthie SCHNITZERLING
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Born and raised in outback Queensland, Cathie was ABC TV Landline's first presenter in 1991, fronting and reporting on the program for four years. She returned as the executive producer in 2019 after four years as the regional editor for Queensland. Cathie was the first female director of news for the Ten Network in Brisbane and Sydney. She's worked as a reporter, presenter and producer on television and radio, including the Queensland Country Hour. She presents regularly on ABC Radio Brisbane. An award-winning writer and producer, Cathie was recognised for her leadership and mentoring skills with a Queensland Clarion award for her Contribution to Journalism in 2014. She has tertiary qualifications in leadership coaching and mentoring and has attended the Women’s Leadership Forum at Harvard Business School. |
Kallee Buchanan
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Kallee has worked as a journalist, presenter and producer at the ABC since 2009. In 2017 she won the radio and digital categories at the Queensland Rural Media Awards, and was named the Rural Journalist of the Year. She went on to win both the Australian and the International Star Prize for Digital Media. She has since won multiple awards for her rural and emergency broadcasting, and in 2021 was the first Australian to receive the IFAJ-Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism. She is currently the presenter of the Queensland Country Hour, Australia's longest running radio program.
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Mark Phelps
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Mark is a long serving journalist and former editor of Queensland Country Life. His reports appear nationally across the Australian Community Media publications. His passion for agriculture has taken to all parts of Australia and many overseas locations during the past 30 years. Starting as a cadet journalist, he went to serve as the editor of QCL for some 12 years ensuring a reader driven focus and helping to pioneer the growth of digital technologies. He also worked as the communications manager at the United Graziers Association during the 1990s. |
John Rolfe
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Professor John Rolfe is a distinguished resource economist at Central Queensland University, specialising in regional development, environmental, and agricultural economics. With extensive practical and policy experience in agricultural and environmental issues in northern Australia, he has operated a cattle property in Central Queensland for several decades. Since 1989, Professor Rolfe has held numerous academic and management roles at the university, contributing significantly to research in non-market valuation and economic impact assessments in rural areas. Professor Rolfe is also a past President of AARES (2019) and a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. |
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