[Re]Generation Fellow: Oscar Gordon

Young Australian farmer Oscar Gordon has packed a lot of living into his 23 years!  

A 5th generation farmer, Oscar grew up on ‘Birkenburn’, his family family near Bungendore NSW. From an early age, he’s been immersed in farming that also cares for nature.

Since completing a Diploma of Regenerative Agriculture at Southern Cross University, Oscar has worked on regenerative farms in the South Highlands. He’s been a ringer on a station in the Gulf. And he’s set to start his next regenerative journey this March.

Last year, Oscar travelled to Zimbabwe to visit the African Centre for Holistic Management. Its founder, Allan Savory is a pioneer of regenerative agriculture and a personal hero to Oscar.

The founder of Holistic Management and the Savory Institute, Allan has made it his life’s work to understand what causes rapid degradation of land and wildlife. The Institute spans two sites, in Colorado and Zimbabwe and a supporting Foundation based in Denmark. It’s trained over 22,000 people in its methods, transformed 29 million hectares and spawned an international network of 50 global “hubs”. Allan Savory’s TED Talk has named one of the most fascinating of all time. 

The REGENERATE Conference

Soon after his visit to South Africa, Oscar travelled to the US on a scholarship from the Macdoch Foundation to participate in the annual REGENERATE Conference hosted by Quivira Coalition. 

REGENERATE is a 3-day gathering of farmers, educators, First Nations stewards and other land managers united by an interest in regenerative approaches. It’s held in a regenerative agriculture hot spot each year – this time in Denver, Colorado.  

Designed to support the next generation of regenerative agricultural producers and land stewards, it appoints 10-15 young people as “Fellows”. The Fellows (all under 40) come from a broad cross section of the industry ranging from horticulture to livestock to industry advocacy. They have a big focus on diversity and inclusion and are fast becoming an impressive alumni. 

Oscar was the second Australian to join as a Fellow, funded by Macdoch Foundation. In 2023, Guy Ritani, a Takatāpui Māori food systems specialist, systems designer and permaculture teacher based on Bundjalung Country, was the first. 

Diversity and Unity

The day Oscar arrived at REGENERATE was also the day of the US Election. What struck him immediately on arriving at the conference, was that despite the differences in how people voted, those who were gathering there were united by their passion for regenerative farming.  

Perhaps part of this can be attributed to the incredible diversity of the conference line-up and participants.

First Nations Knowledge 

“Something that was really interesting  was hearing about Native American peoples and their historical farming approaches with bison which are now being brought back into landscapes.  

“There was a whole cultural richness around this being highlighted and celebrated, which was pretty special.” 

The blend of First Nations and traditional farming knowledge is of particular interest for Oscar, whose family has been working with the Koori Country Cultural Fire Aboriginal Corporation (KCCFAC) for the past few years. 

“After the big bushfires of 2019 Mum invited Den Barber – who set up KCCFAC – to come do some burning on our place because we have a huge mountain and deep bush that hasn’t burned for 40 years. And our house is on the bottom edge. 

“What started as a risk mitigation plan – just protecting our assets – led to forming a really great relationship with the group. My family now pairs up with them running workshops for the public about cultural burning on the farm. It’s turned into this amazing, beautiful thing.” 

 The sharing of traditional practices is deeply embedded in Oscar’s interest in holistic farming. 

“Getting involved in the cultural burning answered a whole set of questions I had in my head about how the Australian landscape functions. It’s really opened my eyes. I loved it so much, and Den really welcomed me into their group and taught me. A few years ago they made me an official member which I’m so proud of!” 

Global Networking (and a Bucket List meeting!) 

Meeting people and absorbing new knowledge is part of Oscar’s DNA. It’s no surprise that his curiosity is continuing to open doors for him. 

While in the US Oscar was invited by Australian podcaster Anthony James (“The Regen Narration”) to dinner with a visiting team from the Savory Institute – including founder Allan Savory. It was an incredible coincidence!

“He’s 89!” says Oscar. “And he’s sharp as a whip. It was super special meeting him because just two weeks earlier I’d been at his farm in Zimbabwe. He was really amazed at that too! It was an absolute bucket list moment for me – he’s such a personal hero.” 

“Getting to make these kinds of connections was one of the absolute highlights of my US trip. Meeting people, hearing about what they’re doing and then going to see them actually putting it into practice and being invited into their homes – it was so wonderful.”  

At the REGENERATE conference Oscar also met a couple from Boulder Mountain Guest Ranch, who have been doing work with beavers creating in-stream structures. Having worked in partnership with the Mulloon Institute back on farm in NSW, the connections to his family fam were strong. Like Birkenburn, they’ve also been diversifying their farm operations to include accommodation and workshops. The couple invited him to visit. 

Seizing the opportunity, Oscar hired a car as soon as the conference finished and drove over the Rocky Mountains to see their work on site.