A QUT business student has been offered an opportunity of a graduate's lifetime with an invitation to attend the World Trade Organisation in Geneva, Switzerland this month.
Aprile Wenke, 20, was selected with five other Australian students to join the non-profit Global Voices delegation to discuss the latest developments in world trade at a public forum.
She said the event offered the chance to share her ideas on simplifying the certification of organic produce across trade borders.
"Organic is no longer a buzzword used to represent a niche market," she said.
"The industry captured my interest because it has incredible growth potential and Australia has the largest portion of organic agricultural land in the world.
"But the trade of organic produce is extremely complex with multiple accreditations a significant barrier to trade."
Organic farming was one of Australia's best performing industries for the past five years, according to industry market leader, IBISWorld.
It estimated organic farming would grow at an expected rate of 8.4 per cent a year to 2019.
In August, Ms Wenke attended a briefing session with other delegates in Canberra where she met Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek.
She will graduate at the end of this semester with a Bachelor of Business, majoring in Marketing.
She was a recipient of the Business School's Corporate Partners in Excellence Scholarship and a founder member of the QUT branch of Enactus, a worldwide student organisation designed to help build local social enterprises.
She has accepted a marketing role in Unilever's Future Leaders Program and starts in February next year in Sydney.
"It will allow me to apply the international business knowledge learnt during my degree to a real world forum where you're discussing trade packages worth billions of dollars," she said.
She grew up on the Sunshine Coast, attended St Andrews Anglican College and is a long time patrolling member of Noosa Heads Surf Lifesaving Club.
The Global Voices mission is to provide opportunities for young Australians to engage with international policy at home and abroad.
Ms Wenke will be live tweeting @aprilejane from the WTO forum in Geneva from the September 27 - October 5.
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Media contacts:
Debra Nowland, QUT media officer (Tue/Wed/Thur), 07 3138 1150 or media@qut.edu.au or Rose Trapnell, QUT media team leader, 07 3138 2361 or 0407 585 901.
