"There is an empty dam, which is all doom and gloom, yet there is one little sunflower growing out the bottom of it. "A lot of the photographers like to look on the positive side and not so much at the carcasses and ugly stuff." Cr Chandler said 2013-15 were the worst three years in the past 120 years for Barcaldine Downs due to the drought and some areas in the region had not had cattle on them for five years. The photography project, titled Our Strength During The Drought, has been run in collaboration with University of Southern Queensland PhD candidate Anne Smith, researching the impact of images in building resilience, wellbeing and capacity during crisis events. A glimmer of hope on barren land. Credit:Aaron Skinner - Our Strength During The Drought

Ms Smith said she had not visited the Barcaldine region since 2014, when she ran a similar project to boost the community's case for extra drought funding from the federal government. "This story is not finished yet, this time it's more powerful and this allows the community to express how they’re feeling," she said. "The pictures show their thoughts on the drought and how they’re progressing. "The photographers said that taking the pictures makes them feel relaxed, even if the images they're taking are not so fantastic, it puts things into perspective for them. "No one puts anything on there that is terribly shocking, but rather beautiful. There is one picture of a wedding, with the couple covering their faces with an Akubra - despite the drought, life goes on."

Ms Smith said she hoped the project drew attention to Barcaldine and the images, stories and voices of this community would help to lobby for more government support. Cr Chandler said the region needed three batches of 100 millimetres of rain for a couple of consecutive years to break the drought. The Barcaldine mayor thanked the nation for donating generously to the recent drought appeal and also thanked those who had made donations to the community in previous years. The images are uploaded to the project's Facebook page - 'Our Strength During The Drought'. Credit:Facebook - Our Strength During The Drought The Queensland government announced a review of the Drought Program on Sunday, to improve resilience and better-prepare for future droughts.

Minister for Agricultural Industry Development Mark Furner said an independent expert panel would conduct the review. “Even the most resilient and well-prepared producer and their community can struggle in a crippling and prolonged long drought such as this one," he said. “Since the current drought started to impact in 2013, the Queensland government has allocated over $670 million in assistance. “We have always supported our farmers and I assure embattled rural families that our current Drought Assistance Package will continue for the duration of this drought. “However, with drought foremost in people’s minds, right now is the best time to work with industry and the community to review government, industry and community actions through this drought and to consider and recommend improvements for coping in future.

Mr Furner said Ruth Wade and Charles Burke had been appointed to run the review to identify potential improvements for future droughts in line with national drought policy. “Ms Wade and Mr Burke have a strong industry background and understanding of the pressures of drought visits on rural communities, being former chief executive officers of the Queensland Farmers Federation and AgForce Queensland respectively,” he said. “The panel will hold forums in six regional centres and will seek written submissions through the drought program review website throughout September and October 2018. Details on how to make submissions will be online from mid-September." The expert panel will report their recommendations to the state government in early 2019. There are some images part of the project which do show the harshness of the drought. Credit:Facebook - Our Strength During The Drought

Prime Minister Scott Morrison will also visit drought-affected Queensland early next week. LNP leader Deb Frecklington said her state opposition had been calling on more action from Premier Palaszczuk. “[Drought-affected communities] are up against it with the regulations and legislation in place because of the Palaszczuk government and it’s good to see that the federal government have been providing huge amounts of money toward drought support," she said. "I think it’s a credit to the new Prime Minister that he is heading straight up to the droughted communities as one of his first jobs as Prime Minister. "I welcome any assistance for our drought-affected dramas, the LNP have been very concerned that there are drought-affected farmers that haven’t been receiving the drought-assistance that they require.