The New South Wales Australian of the Year Award is given annually on Australia Day. The award "offers an insight into Australian identity, reflecting the nation's evolving relationship with world, the role of sport in Australian culture, the impact of multiculturalism, and the special status of Australia's Indigenous people". [1]
The national level awards, four in total, are chosen exclusively from the state and territory award recipients.
The following is a list of the recipients of the New South Wales Australian of the Year award. [2]
Year of award | Name | Post nominals | Born | Died | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2004 | Steve Waugh | AO | 1965 | Test Cricket Captain | |
2005 | Nicole Kidman | 1967 | Actor & Producer | ||
2006 | The Hon. Michael Kirby | AC , CMG | 1939 | High court judge & human rights advocate | |
2007 | Professor Tim Flannery | 1956 | Scientist, Writer and Thinker | ||
2008 | Stephen Page | 1965 | Pioneering choreographer | ||
2009 | Glenn McGrath | AM | 1970 | Cricketer and fundraiser | |
2010 | John Dee | Environmental campaigner | |||
2011 | Larissa Behrendt | 1969 | Indigenous rights lawyer | ||
2012 | Father Chris Riley | AM | Charity founder | ||
2013 | Ita Buttrose | AO , OBE | 1942 | Media icon | |
2014 | Adam Goodes | 1980 | AFL player and community leader | ||
2015 | Deborra-lee Furness | 1955 | Child advocate and adoption campaigner | ||
2016 | Elizabeth Broderick | Social change innovator | |||
2017 | Deng Adut | Child soldier turned successful Lawyer | |||
2018 | Professor Michelle Simmons | FRS , FAA , FRSN , FTSE | 1967 | Professor in quantum physics | |
2019 | Professor Kurt Fearnley | AO | 1981 | Paralympian | |
2020 | Professor Munjed Al Muderis | 1972 | Orthopaedic surgeon and human-rights advocate | ||
2021 | Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons | AFSM | 1969 | Ex-NSW Fire Commissioner, leader of Resilience NSW |
Canberra Grammar School is a co-educational, independent, day and boarding school located in Red Hill, a suburb of Canberra, the capital of Australia.
Roseville College is a private Anglican day school for girls, located in the suburb of Roseville on the North Shore of Sydney, Australia.
Lambton High School is a government-funded co-educational comprehensive secondary day school, located in the suburb of Lambton in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.
Blakehurst High School is a Government-funded co-educational comprehensive and specialist secondary day school with speciality in languages, located in Blakehurst, a southern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Matthew England is an Australian physical oceanographer and climate scientist. As of 2024 he is Scientia Professor at the Centre for Marine Science & Innovation at the University of New South Wales, Sydney.
The Ampersand Network was a not-for-profit organisation, committed to improving the appeal and accessibility of volunteering for young people in Australia.
Michael Colin Turtur is a former track cyclist and Olympic gold medallist in the 4000m Team Pursuit at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, with team members Dean Woods, Kevin Nichols and Michael Grenda, coached by Charlie Walsh.
The Australian College of Educators (ACE) is an Australian national professional association for educators. Membership is open to all professional educators working in the early childhood, school, and tertiary education sectors, as well as to education researchers and managers. The college advocates for its members in seeking improvements in the status of the education profession.
Michael Zavros is an Australian artist.
Marita Cheng is the founder of Robogals. She was named the 2012 Young Australian of the Year. She is the founder and current CEO of Aubot, a start-up robotics company. She co-founded Aipoly, an app to assist blind people to recognise objects using their mobile phones. She was named as one of the World's Top 50 women in Technology by Forbes in 2018 and was recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2016. On 9 June 2019, Cheng was appointed a member of the Order of Australia for significant service to science and technology, particularly to robotics.
Tanya Mary Monro is an Australian physicist known for her work in photonics. She has been Australia's Chief Defence Scientist since 8 March 2019. Prior to that she was the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research and Innovation (DVCR&I) at the University of South Australia. She was awarded the ARC Georgina Sweet Australian Laureate Fellowship in 2013. She was the inaugural director of the Institute for Photonics & Advanced Sensing (IPAS). Monro has remained an adjunct professor of physics at the University of Adelaide following her departure from the institution. In 2020 she was awarded the title of Emeritus Professor at the University of South Australia.
Elizabeth Broderick is an Australian lawyer, who was the Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner for over eight years from 2007 to 2015 and has been a United Nations special rapporteur for Discrimination against Women and Girls since 2017. She is a former partner and head of legal technology at Ashurst Australia, a global commercial law firm.
Lynda Dent Beazley is a neuroscientist and educator based in Perth, Western Australia. She is currently an Honorary Distinguished Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies at the University of Western Australia, and the Sir Walter Murdoch Distinguished Professor of Science at Murdoch University. Among other awards, she has been named an Officer of the Order of Australia for her contributions to medical science a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering and Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.
Holly Ransom is a public speaker, author and content curator. She is the founder of Emergent, her public speaking company, where she engages and presents to organizations on disruptive strategy. She is also a director of Port Adelaide Football Club and a trustee of The Prince's Charities Australia.
Richard Anthony Scolyer is an Australian pathologist. He is a senior staff specialist in tissue pathology and diagnostic oncology at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, co-medical director at the Melanoma Institute Australia, and Conjoint professor at the University of Sydney. He was joint 2024 Australian of the Year with Georgina Long.
Phillip Bruce Thompson is an Australian politician. His party is the Liberal National Party of Queensland and he sits with the Liberal Party in federal parliament.
Elizabeth Joy New is an Australian chemist and Professor of the School of Chemistry, University of Sydney. She won the 2018 Australian Museum 3M Eureka Prize.
Suzanne Mary Packer AO is an Australian paediatrician and advocate for the rights of children. She was granted Officer of the Order of Australia in 2021 for "distinguished service to children through roles in health, welfare and protection initiatives" and previously a member of the Order of Australia in 1999 for "services to child welfare, paediatrics and the public". As of 2021 she is a clinical senior lecturer at ANU Medical School, Australian National University.