In 2003, the Gardiner Foundation took a bold step by funding its first major community development project, Sustainable Farm Families™, created by Western District Health Service in Hamilton. Led by Professor Susan Brumby, the program changed the way farmers talked about health and wellbeing across Victoria.
“We’re enormously proud of what we achieved, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the Gardiner Foundation,” Susan said. “Their support allowed us to pilot the program, refine it, and take it right across the dairy industry.”
Over four years, Sustainable Farm Families™ reached hundreds of dairy families, building awareness around physical and mental health at a time when these conversations were rare. The program’s success led to $2.9 million in Victorian Government funding, expanding its reach to farming communities statewide.
“Gardiner’s early investment allowed us to be innovative,” Alison said. “It let us explore ideas that traditional funding might not have supported, and that made all the difference.”
Although the original project has since concluded, its legacy continues through the National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH), which Susan and Alison now lead. In 2024, the Centre received new funding from Gardiner to pilot a peer-led mental health model called Back on Track, a program designed to support farmers through connection, mentoring, and community care.
“Back on Track is about training trusted local farmers to provide practical, farmer-focused support for low mood and depression,” Alison explained. “It’s a way to make mental health care more accessible and culturally appropriate.”
Developed with researchers and clinicians from Deakin University, Western District Health Service, La Trobe University, and the University of South Australia, Back on Track represents the next evolution of Gardiner’s long-standing commitment to farmer wellbeing.
“Gardiner took a risk on us 20 years ago,” Susan said. “That small seed grew into a national centre still delivering projects today. We’re grateful they continue to believe in our work and in the health of farming communities.”
Watch Susan and Alison’s story to see how Gardiner’s early investment in farmer health continues to grow new ways of supporting wellbeing in rural Victoria.