David Marsh had been farming on an industrial scale around Boorowa for over thirty years before a sense of unease made him reevaluate his relationship with the land.
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"I used to be an industrial farmer, you know the sort of who would try and squeeze as much produce out of the land," David said.
"It was a very economic relationship with the landscape.
However I became quite uneasy about profiteering and when I hit my 50s, I started looking for a different way to farm.
- David Marsh
The different way of which David spoke lay within sustainable agricultural practice and land management - a foreign concept to traditional farming families.
"I think all farmers want to take care of the land but we're just farmers, we're not trained in ecological concepts," he said.
"We're trained to extract produce and try and make a profit. That's just our conventional training as agriculturalists."
In pursuit of a better way to farm, David completed a Graduate Diploma and Masters of Sustainable Agriculture in Sydney where he was introduced to holistic land management.
David has since reconsidered the manner in which he treats not only his farming, but his life.
It's not just about looking at the economics of agriculture anymore
- David Marsh
"It's also about looking at the social aspects; how to live based on your values, what you need to produce to live like that, and how you can strengthen the natural landscape."
"I found that I was too busy to think before whereas what I'm doing now means I can run this farm on a very little amount of time per week."
It’s a whirlwind journey from industrial farmer to keystone speaker on holistic farm management and David will share his story next Wednesday, 11 October, with a presentation entitled “Changing Landscapes begins with Changing Ourselves”.
Contact Cootamundra U3A for further information.
