Lindsay Blinco will never forget training those goats – it took months, countless hours spent after school teaching them to pull that little custom-made cart.

Lindsay’s classmate was in a wheelchair, which is why Mr Smith had made the cart in the first place – he wanted everyone to be able to go on the four-day hike planned as part of the Year 10 camp.

Lindsay Blinco and his high school classmates trained a couple of goats to pull their classmate in a wheelchair along behind them so everyone could be included at their Year 10 camp.

“What really stuck out to me about Mr Smith was his willingness to make everyone feel included,” Lindsay recalls, years later.  

“It really pulled us together a lot as a class too – we trained a lot after school. We even trained during sport class every Wednesday.  

“In the end, we must’ve ended up doing about 50-60km with these goats towing him in the cart.”  

It’s experiences such as this that haven’t just seeped their way into Lindsay’s consciousness – they’ve woven their way into the very fabric of his being.  

Now an outdoor educator himself, Lindsay strives for inclusiveness and equality in everything he does. It’s one of the reasons he’s been named Outdoor Education Australia’s Emerging Practitioner of the year – a prestigious recognition for anyone, let alone someone who hasn’t even finished their combined Outdoor Studies and Education degree yet.  

“Yeah, it’s an unreal feeling,” Lindsay beams. “I feel very humbled and very lucky to have a lot of people in my life that have encouraged me to become the practitioner I am today.”  

Outdoor Environmental Studies lecturer Brendon Munge said for Lindsay to be recognised with this national prize was a significant achievement.  

“This prize is only only awarded once every two years, so this a significant achievement not only for Lindsay but for UniSC,” Brendon says. There’s nothing else that even ranks near this in the profession.”  

What Lindsay particularly loves about working in outdoor education is the human connection – the way students who aren’t necessarily academically smart in a classroom setting can shine as leaders when outdoors.  

“They’re not bound by the same confinements of a classroom,” Lindsay says. “People make different choices in an outdoor setting – they express themselves differently. 

“It’s pretty incredible to watch someone come out of their shell and step up as a leader when given a bit of responsibility.” 

Lindsay was brought up on a farm in a little place called Crows Nest, a town just north of Toowoomba in Southern Queensland. Despite being raised by parents who were both teachers, he’s adamant that’s not what inspired him to pursue the path he’s followed.  

“I still haven’t decided what I want to do when I finish my degree,” Lindsay says. “I love what I do in outdoor education but I’m starting to really like the idea of teaching as well.  

“If I could find a balance of both that would be that would be awesome.”