Scholarships support learning ecology

Tracy Norman is passionate about sustainability and water conservation. After studying her Ecological Agriculture degree, Tracy decided to create two scholarships.

The Westwood Eco-Agriculture Scholarship and the Westwood Sustainability Scholarship provide $5000 each. They were established to help students reach their potential.

The key criteria for Tracy is that recipients of her scholarships must share her passion for ecology. “I established the scholarships with a couple of things in mind – that they should go to people in need, and that the recipients want to help the environment. For me, it is so much more about enthusiasm for the environment than just straight academic ability.

“I wanted to give students a leg up. Recipients have had to work while doing their course, so it’s about giving them a bit of relief, so they can study without worry. I think there’s a terrible gap in government funding, so unless people are willing to put up their hands and give scholarships, students miss out.

“And I prefer to determine where I can get a tax benefit. Rather than seeing my taxes go wherever the government wants, I want to direct my money into things like education. That’s important to me.”