It’s Australia Day and it’s always nice to celebrate what’s great about Australia. Sure, we’re not the perfect nation and we have our flaws but Australia Day is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the things we love.

I work in rural Australia, wear an Akubra and RMW Boots. I ride horses, drive tractors, muster cattle, milk cows and go to church. My parents are Japanese and they’re proud to say their kids are first generation Australian.

I count it as a privilege to be able to call myself Australian.

In Australia, we’re not born into Australian citizenship, in fact, the first time I travelled outside of Australia, I travelled on a Japanese passport. Last year, I had to provide documentation to officially confirm my Australian citizenship.

This Australia Day, 17,863 people have taken the pledge to also call Australia home and I’m excited that we can share this incredible country with these new Australians. I hope that they all find a place in this community to share their skills, knowledge and passions with those around them.

Like many Australians, I often take for granted the country I live in. We have some of the most accessible resources at our fingertips. Clean Water, Education, Health Care, Transport and Employment to name a few. Thousands of people come to Australia each year to work and whist Australians are complaining about the lack of jobs, backpackers are filling Agriculture positions across the nation.

I’ve been traveling around Australia for the last 3 years and I’ve had the opportunity to see and experience the heart of Australia and the Australian people. So often we get so immersed in our lives that we forget about the country and the people around us.

Each year, I meet hundreds of people across Australia many of them backpackers and the overwhelming number of positive feedback I hear about the experiences they have with the Australian people is incredible. What an encouragement that is about who we are and the things we care about!

This year, I want to positively impact the country I call home by supporting the Australia I love. One small way we can do this? Buy Australian made, support  local businesses and support Australian agriculture, one of Australia’s most important industries. Think about it, without food we won’t be doing much!