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Ben Wilson: Anyone who has an interest in agriculture or the environment, I think would make a huge contribution to the department. I really think that our role is about progressing agriculture and protecting our environment as it is now.

Giulia Angelini: I'm someone that loves flexibility, and my work is basically self-organised. So I get to travel. I get to organise my own schedule and the way I deal with what I need to do, and that really matches my personality as well.

Sonia Fiorito: I can use my expertise, and, I guess, knowing that I can bring my authentic self to work as well really helps.

Neal Hughes: A lot of the research that we do has a real impact, and it's very applied and it's actively used by the department.

Rozie Whitby: For me, I do like a lot of variety in my work, and that's certainly the main reason I've stayed in the department so long, because it can give you so many options, so many different things to do. That's one of the main things I love about it.

Transcript:

My name's Ben Wilson. I'm the Principal Director here at the Post-Entry Quarantine Facility, which is our only facility in Australia, and so it's a really big job sort of managing, you know, all of the commodities, the property, the people, the clients.

All of the high-risk animals and plants come through here, so we still have, like, approved arrangements around the country where, you know, some of the animals for labs, for example, will go directly to the universities, but we pretty much deal with all of the cats and dogs, horses, chickens, plants, and then we take in llamas and bees as well.

When someone asks what you do, you talk about what you do, that's really then the connection that you can make, and, you know, generally, people might know that race horses come in, for example, for Melbourne Cup and things like that, and so there's another connection there, but mostly, it's around the cats and dogs.

So I think anyone who has an interest in agriculture or the environment, and, in particular, in either progressing or protecting those industries, I think would make a huge contribution to the department. I really think that our role is about progressing agriculture and protecting our environment as it is now.

What I've learned since coming here is probably more of the aspect of actually giving back to the public, and the service that we provide, I've found that has been so valuable, and that's really what drives me now, is that connection to what I'm doing that makes it different for the next generation.

Transcript:

My name is Giulia. I originally came from Italy, moved to Australia, and I am an Auditor with the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

My days are very varied due to the nature of my job. So as an auditor, I basically regulate entities, and I check that they comply with the regulation that the department has for us. So entities will enter in agreements with the department, and we auditors check that they comply with the terms of the agreement.

It is important because it allow us to have that engagement to make sure that we do not introduce pests and diseases into the country. We protect our export market to other countries, and we also protect the people of Australia.

Working with DAFF fits with who I am. I am a person that is passionate about biodiversity, and I also like problem solving a lot, and this job allows me to both protect Australia and its biodiversity and help others solving issues and explore the gaps and recommend solutions.

I'm someone that loves to travel, and I'm someone that loves flexibility, and my work is basically self-organised. So I get to travel. I get to organise my own schedule and the way I deal with what I need to do, and that really matches my personality as well.

Transcript:

I’m Neal Hughes. I'm a Senior Economist in ABARES, which is the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences in the Department of Agriculture.

It is a unique thing about ABARES that you can be at that somewhat senior level in the organisation and you are managing teams of staff, but you're still very much doing interesting work. It's not all admin and drudgery. You get to do the fun stuff as well.

So I have a number of major projects that we're involved in at the moment. One of those has been developing a drought monitoring system for the Australian Government. So we have a small team in ABARES and a larger group of people that we work with also in the CSIRO. A lot of hands-on research. So even for someone who's reasonably senior at ABARES still very much hands-on with the research, doing a lot of data analysis, coding and report writing, dealing with collaborators at universities, CSIRO.

A lot of the research that we do has a real impact, and it is very applied and it's actively used by the department.

Transcript:

My name is Rozie Whitby, and I'm the Director of Internal Audit. And that position is also the Chief Internal Auditor for the department.

I've been in the department 26 years. And within that time, I've probably had four different careers in the department. Brought up two kids as well, and have really undergone a really huge variety of work.

So I've worked at seaports, I've worked at the airport, I've worked at mail center, I've worked in cargo as a quarantine inspector.

Just the amount of diversity in the department, a department this size has got so many different areas. And in internal audit, I'm learning about a lot of these different areas that I didn't already know about.

For me, I do like a lot of variety in my work, and that's certainly the main reason I've stayed in the department so long because it can give you so many options, so many different things to do. That's one of the main things I love about it.

It's a really good fit for me. I guess I'd always had an interest in science and biology at the start when I started working in the department. It's always been something I believe in.

You know, our department is so important to the country. And unless you work in the department, a lot of people don't realise the amount of work we do to support domestically, to support our international trade.

So for me, it's something I utterly believe in and I really enjoy contributing to it, whether it's in biosecurity or whether it's doing enabling services and helping others in the department get what they need to be able to do their part.

Transcript:

My name is Sonia Fiorito. I'm the Assistant Director of the Plant Innovation Centre at the National Post Entry Quarantine Facility in Mickleham.

I manage a small research and innovation team here at PEQ. We focus on treatment-based and diagnostic-based projects to improve the department's overall diagnostic capabilities.

We also engage very largely with the student and tertiary education, so we have a student engagement program. We've also got a PhD student that we've got on board. We're looking to engage and onboard additional PhD students, hopefully, some honour students as well in the future.

Best parts about working in the department here at PEQ is the wonderful team that I manage and people that I work with. Just their optimism and their positive attitude towards their work and towards biosecurity and protecting Australia against pests and pathogens. Also, knowing that the work we do is applicable and has an operational outcome at the end of it is really rewarding to me.

I can use my expertise, and, I guess, knowing that I can bring my authentic self to work as well really helps.

Transcript:

My name is Stephanie, I'm from Cairns and I'm a senior entomologist with the Northern Australian Quarantine Strategy, the biosecurity team.

So I joined the department about five years ago. I had started off with a passion for the environment and wildlife and animals, specifically insects. So coming through university and a few job opportunities along the way, I took an opportunity to join the biosecurity team with the department and I've been working on insects ever since.

Day to day work is quite diverse from heading out in the field to doing diagnostics in the lab. And our bread and butter is getting out and about and looking for insect pests. So pests that aren't supposed to be in Australia, but ones that Australia is the greatest risk of an incursion. So we're all about early detection and trying to keep Australia safe.

I think that everyone who lives in Australia has a part to play in protecting Australia and biosecurity does that. The north is unique because we're at the forefront of biosecurity risks.

So I feel really passionate about being able to be in this space, being on the front line and being in a position to protect the North, to protect the country.

Transcript:

I'm Tegan Fitzwater. I'm a vet in the Department of Agriculture, and I work in the Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy team.

I help lead and manage a team of veterinarians that work in Northern Australia and our team conducts surveillance for exotic pests and diseases that may enter into northern Australia via unregulated pathways.

The department fits in my lifestyle because it allows me to have flexible work arrangements, so get to work from home and that allows me to also work from different locations as well, so Cairns, Broome and Darwin.

So I think anyone could join the department and should consider joining and veterinarians who are looking for a change, particularly out of clinical work and for anyone that's wanting to come and see what sort of different job opportunities there are and career progression opportunities as well.

The work we do is important because we are helping increase Australia's biosecurity system and making sure we are free from pests and diseases.

Transcript:

So my name's Tiffany. I'm a director in the department. I work in the Sustainability Climate and Strategy area and specifically in Climate Policy where I look after strategic time-bound projects and oversee a small team looking to use future thinking to improve how we do policy in the department.

An average day for me can be quite varied. I manage what I call a geographically dispersed team. So, have staff based across the country and we start the day with a check-in which I find incredibly valuable. We've embraced new ways of working, so work using agile methodologies and check in on what our big priorities for the day are. Any blockers and I guess, how to progress them.

The best things about working in the department for me are the content that I get to work on, the people I work with, and also the flexibility to manage my time and energy to suit kind of outcomes.

The content that we work on is diverse, complex, challenging, and at times, I guess, exciting.

The flexibility the department offers as well in terms of either part-time hours or access to working from home or access to offices, is valuable as well.

People are interested in these grand challenges facing our generation and our world. You'll always find a home somewhere in agriculture because it touches many of those big challenges.