Drought Resilience Information and Knowledge Sharing (DRINKS)

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Lead organisation: Victoria Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (Vic Hub) and the South Australian Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (SA Drought Hub)

Hub members and partners involved: Cam Nicholson (Nicon Rural Services) and Belinda Cay (AgCommunicators)

Node: Loxton, Minnipa, Orroroo, Port Augusta, Roseworthy, Struan

Focus area: Community resilience and wellbeing, Crop and pasture management, Farm planning and decision making, Livestock and fodder management, Soil and land management, Water security and management

Project Category: Hub Projects

Project summary:

Developed by the Victoria Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (Vic Hub) and Cam Nicholson, of SFS-Vic Hub SW Node and Nicon Rural Services, the Drought Resilience Information and Knowledge Sharing (or DRINKS) program is designed to help producers identify actions to take before, during, and after drought.

Learn more here.

Project description:

Drought-resilient farming doesn’t happen by accident. It happens when farmers make informed, strategic decisions, early and often, supported by timely, relevant information from experts. But what are these decisions, what information do you need and when should they be made so you minimise the impact of drought and recover more quickly?

The Drought Resilience Information and Knowledge Sharing (DRINKS) project is based on the model implemented by the Victorian Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub.

Through DRINKS, the SA Drought Hub seeks to capture experiences from farmers from different farming systems, in different seasons, and use that knowledge to build the capacity of all farmers and stakeholders. The aim is to develop enterprise-specific ‘base maps’ for key industries and regions in SA, that identify and describe the critical considerations farmers and advisers should focus on to build drought resilience. These considerations are based on the season and the stage in the climate cycle (good times, uncertain period, drought, and recovery).

The SA Drought Hub will be implementing six DRINKS workshops across SA and we invite producers and advisers to participate. These workshops will build ‘base maps’ for primary production enterprises such as livestock, grains, horticulture, viticulture and dairy.

By the end of the workshop you will have a plan identifying the main decisions and actions to focus on depending on seasonal conditions.

Key achievements and results:

The first two DRINKS workshops were held in June 2025. One workshop was held in Port Augusta on June 17, comprising of 13 participants (9 of which were producers/pastoralists), and a second workshop was held in Penola on June 26 with 14 participants, 10 of which were growers. The workshops were facilitated by Belinda Cay of Ag Communicators, Cam Nicholson of Nicon Rural Services, and Tamara Zerk of the SA Drought Hub.

Read the recent SA Drought Hub media release here.

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