The health, wealth and well-being of current and future generations is dependent on sustainably managing natural resources over the long term. The Natural Resources Commission (the Commission) provides independent evidence-based advice to the New South Wales Government to achieve these outcomes.

Barker Old Boys Football Club (BOB's), now Old Barker Football Club, was founded in 1991. The club's formation was driven by Jeremy Hook, the former Barker School Captain of 1988, who rallied a number of alumni to leave the local teams they had been playing for and join together under the BOB's banner. The club started as a single team in the bottom division of the Northern Suburbs Football Association (NSFA) and over a period of 5 years had grown to a 4 team club with over 70 members, playing in the top division (Premier League) of the NSFA and winning two premierships within those first 5 years. Today the club fields 4 teams with two in the Premier League, one in Men's All Age Division 4, and a long-awaited reestablishment of the Over 35's Division 3 team. OBFC competes in the NSFA competition. Reflecting the strength of the world game at Barker and the inspirational leadership of Craig Harris in the 1980's - the player base spans over 20 years with players from multiple years well represented across the club.

The health, wealth and well-being of current and future generations is dependent on sustainably managing natural resources over the long term. The Natural Resources Commission (the Commission) provides independent evidence-based advice to the New South Wales Government to achieve these outcomes.The Commission aims to be of service to the people of NSW through providing independent, evidence based advice and thought leadership to Government to secure triple bottom line outcomes in natural resource management.

The Old Barker Association (OBA) is the oldest of Barker's support groups, and celebrated its Centenary in 2008. Founded as the Old Boys' Union in 1908, it became the Old Barker Association in 1976 with the first girls from the introduction of co-education in 1975 graduated.Its members currently number almost 15,000 past students of the School. The OBA provides significant support to the School, ranging from major capital projects such as The Marks Pavilion, and the OBA Outdoor Stage, through to careers advice on careers evenings to clubs for former students including:OBA Theatre GroupBOBs Rugby ClubBarker Old Girls' HockeyBOBs Football ClubBarker Old Boys' Cricket ClubBarker Athletics ClubOBA Big BandOBA ChoirOver 70s ClubThe OBA funds sporting tours for students, and has provided players' uniform items, as well as awarding medals to student sportsmen and women who contribute the most to their team each season. The OBA also supports a scholarship for descendants of past students.

Key Responsibilities - Policy development, research, implementation and actioning in the fields of rural education, rural health, rural communities and Western NSW under the banner of the Association’s Rural Affairs Committee and the Western Division Council. - Organisation and implementation of the Association’s annual Tertiary Scholarship Program. - Organisation and facilitation of the Association chaired ‘Rural Mental Health Network’. - Establishment and continued development of key relationships with Government and Non-Government personnel.Key Achievements - The major progression of a long term education policy, ‘Sustainable Food and Fibre Policy’. Development of a number of documents and contribution to a strategy that outlined the concept of the policy, the aim of which is to teach children about where food and fibre comes from. The project is currently ongoing, major steps forward were achieved and messages of sustainable food and fibre production have been placed in the draft National Curriculum developed by the Australian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, and the concept has been warmly welcomed by key State MPs. - The development of a discussion paper outlining key rural workforce statistics leading to the focus away from a policy calling for increased nursing numbers in rural areas and towards a policy calling for increased rural general practitioner numbers in the same areas. - The reinvigoration of the Rural Mental Health Network (RMHN) resulting in renewed passion and interest by the members of that network and the increase in members on the Network. Rural Mental Health is a key issue not only for the members of the Association but also much of rural NSW. The planning of a major event with the Network scheduled to take place in Mental Health Month, October 2012 that was to involve key politicians and celebrities to raise awareness about rural mental health issues.

Key Responsibilities - Comprehensive research for the Economic Services Section in a number of policy areas including but not limited to, water, air, electronic waste management, natural resource management and environmental sustainability. - Collection, input and analysis of data relating to the above mentioned areas, and the development of reports on both electronic waste management and national park visitation patterns across NSW. Key Achievements - Extensive research, data collection and analysis of international electronic waste management systems and the development of a report into ways in which an Australian electronic waste management program could work. The national scheme was due to commence in late 2011 and aims to achieve an 80% recycling rate by 2021. - Development of a report into NSW National Park visitation patterns. The aim of the report was to identify why, where and how tourist’s spent their vacations across national park areas in NSW and how an increase in tourism numbers could be achieved. Work on this was still ongoing at the conclusion of the one year temporary full time contract.