Rural and Environment

Women in the Rural Economy: Part 11

March 8, 2019 by admin No Comments | Category Agriculture, Farming, food and drink, Uncategorized

As we continue to celebrate International Women’s Day, LANTRA Scotland’s Director Dr Liz Barron-Majerik blogs on her career and experience of Scotland’s Rural Economy.

A ‘princess-ballerina-firefighter-scientist’. That’s what my five-year-old wants to be when she grows up. When I was her age, I wanted to be “Long Distance Clara” from Pigeon Street, probably because she got to drive a lorry and wear trousers.

Instead, I ended up studying plant science and have both a PhD and an MBE, neither of which I particularly expected, nor which were expected of me when I was at school. In fact, I probably couldn’t even have told you what the letters stood for back then.

When I look at my daughter, dressing up in a tutu and safety specs, the current focus on exposing our young people to career education from as early as Primary School seems almost bizarre. Can you really choose a job or be informed about career choices when you can barely understand what the terms mean? Or what the job might be like if you get it?

But then I look at pictures of me as a young child. Well, my mother thinks they are me, though she had five kids and as each of us were subjected to the same haircut, no-one is really sure. Even at that very young age, I used to love just dialling random phone numbers to see who I would get. A granny in Lancashire, a shop in London – I just loved talking to new people! Forming networks. Making connections. Finding links.

Which is essentially my job now. Looking at relationships between the land based and aquaculture sectors, and the associated jobs and training. Making sure everything connects and getting to talk to really interesting people in the process. But I only got here after doing lots of other types of jobs first (though oddly, never in a call centre).

So, to answer my own question, I think the answer is yes. Our daughters perhaps can’t know what they want to do for the rest of their lives when they are at school. What they can find out though, is what they enjoy, what they never want to do again, and what they turn out to be bloody good at. And of course, you only find that out when you try. Whether that be through work experience, apprenticeships or study. And the best time to do that, is before you commit to a four year degree.

If we can encourage all our young people, male or female, not to worry about finding the one job they are going to do for the rest of their lives, but instead get them to keep on doing what they enjoy and working hard, they will eventually find a job they love. Even if it turns out to be a princess-ballerina-firefighter-scientist.

Tags: International Women's Day, LANTRA, LANTRA Scotland, rural economy, Scotland, Women

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