You're invited to join us here on the evening of Tuesday October 27 to watch live as the recipients of Victoria's 2021 Australian of the Year Awards are announced.
The awards presentation is scheduled to begin at 6.30pm AEDT and run for about an hour.
The virtual ceremony will be hosted by Richelle Hunt and Warwick Long, presenters of ABC Radio Melbourne's The Conversation Hour, and streamed live on this website and the other Victorian news sites of publisher ACM, official media partner of the 2021 Australian of the Year Awards (see below for a list of the websites hosting the live stream).
The 17 Victorians in the running to be named the state's Local Hero, Young Australian of the Year, Senior Australian or Australian of the Year for 2021 include a 92 year old breaking new ground in the study of dementia, two mums helping parents of kids with disabilities and a neurologist whose invention translates thought to action for paralysed patients.
Star AFLW player and professional boxer Tayla Harris is nominated for the Young Australian of the Year Award.
Harris, Carlton's leading goal-kicker in the AFLW in 2019, made headlines nationally last year when she took a courageous public stand against the sexualised abuse of social media trolls after an action photo of her kicking a goal was posted online.
Now an advocate for respectful relationships, Harris is an ambassador for family violence prevention group Our Watch and recently co-authored a book about her experience, More Than a Kick, which offers advice to young people on how to navigate social media and deal with online bullying.
The award recipients in each category will then join other state and territory winners as finalists in the annual national Australian of the Year Awards announcement on January 25, 2021.
In a message to her state's nominees, Governor of Victoria Linda Dessau said "their diverse achievements provide us with a beacon of optimism and inspiration" in what had been a particularly challenging year.
"Each year, the Victorian Australian of the Year Awards showcase some of the outstanding Victorians who contribute to the life of our community," she said.
"On behalf of all Victorians, I congratulate and thank each one of our nominees for all that they have done, and I wish each one of them every success in their ongoing endeavours."
The Victorian nominees are ...
Australian of the Year - sponsored by Australia Post
Steven Bevington - Founder/Managing Director of Community Housing Limited
Amanda Hose and Kate Jones - Hosts of Too Peas In A Podcast
Associate Professor Thomas Oxley - Neuro-interventional surgeon and neurologist
Donna Stolzenberg - Founder/CEO of the National Homeless Collective
Senior Australian of the Year - sponsored by the Department of Health
Bich Cam Nguyen - Founder/CEO/Honorary Secretary of the Australian Vietnamese Women's Association
Lorna Prendergast - Dementia advocate
Geoffrey Sussman OAM - Wound management expert
Rodney Syme AM - Campaigner for voluntary assisted dying
Young Australian of the Year
Nathaniel Diong - Entrepreneur and founder of Future Minds Network
Tayla Harris - Footballer, boxer and respectful relationships ambassador
Keeley Johnson - Founder of Keeley's Cause
Dylan Langley - Out-of-home care reform advocate
Victoria Local Hero - sponsored by the Department of Home Affairs
Tenille Bull - Founder of bushfire relief fund It's My Shout
Matthew Charles-Jones - Founder of Totally Renewable Yackandandah
Nathan Rogers - CEO of The Bushfire Foundation
Dr Kirby White - Founder of Gowns for Doctors
You can read more about each of the nominees and their efforts and achievements here.
Tuesday's live-stream of the awards ceremony will be visible on the following local news websites across Victoria:
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thecourier.com.au
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bendigoadvertiser.com.au
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bordermail.com.au
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standard.net.au
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mailtimes.com.au
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stawelltimes.com.au
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araratadvertiser.com.au
