Alberta Agriculture Minister Tara Sawyer reflects on her path into agricultural leadership and why a simple invitation can make a difference.
Long before Tara Sawyer put her name forward for a single agricultural board, she knew the people around the table.
She’d attended the conferences, followed the discussions, and built friendships across the industry. She understood the decisions being made and what they meant for her family’s farm. When she eventually stepped forward, people were enthusiastic.
But in all those years, nobody had called to ask whether she might be interested.
That distinction stayed with her.
During an informal discussion at Sarah Weigum’s family farm near Three Hills, Sawyer, now Alberta’s minister of agriculture and irrigation, returned to the importance of looking beyond the person who usually gets the invitation. The woman attending the meeting alongside her husband may have her own ambitions, her own expertise and plenty to contribute. Someone needs to ask.
Hosted by Weigum, president of the Alberta-British Columbia Seed Growers (ABCSG), whose family operates Alect Seeds, the gathering included several women serving on the association’s board and working across the seed sector.
Their experience stretched from seed production and livestock to research, laboratory testing, and plant health. Some were raising young children. Others had adult children returning to help on the farm. Several had spent decades in the industry.
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