Each state and territory has selected its finalist for the 2023 Young Australian of the Year Award.
Their passions range from the environment and soccer to music, Indigenous health and philanthropy.
And on January 25 one of them will become the 2023 Young Australian of the Year.
Making recycling simple
The lack of simple information about recycling did not make sense to Lottie Dalziel.
Instead of complaining about it, the New South Wales Young Australian of the Year set out to fix it.
"[I thought] why don't I just create a platform that can inspire and educate people on how to live sustainably?" she said.
In 2018 she founded Banish, a website for Australians to get the tools they need to reduce their waste and ecological footprint.
Ms Dalziel understands how hard it can be for consumers wanting to do their bit for the environment.
Using the communication skills she learnt as a journalist, Ms Dalziel spends her days sifting through information about recycling and uploading it to her website.
"[So] the everyday person can just get the Spark Notes and be able to go, 'Yes, OK, I can recycle this or I can't recycle it'."
But the sustainability champion did not want to stop there.
Ms Dalziel also runs the Banish Recycling and Disposable Program, where people can send their hard-to-recycle items.
"We can actually sort them and then send them on to the right Australian recyclers who can process them," she said.
The entrepreneur said living more sustainably did not require innovation.
"It's just going back to what we used to do and those practices that were so kind of common and habitual back in the day," she said.
"We've gotten out of that [and] into this convenience culture."
Ms Dalziel said being named New South Wales' Young Australian of the Year was "completely overwhelming".
"Being in the room … with all of the other amazing nominees, it was very exciting."
Connecting through music
Growing up in Canberra, Kofi Owusu-Ansah felt as though he had to shrink into a box to fit in.
The Ghanaian-Australian singer, better known by his stage name Genesis Owusu, said he had never had a black role model growing up, and often felt like an outsider.
Then Owusu-Ansah found his voice through music.
"I was able to put in words all of the things that I had been experiencing," he said.
The 24-year-old now celebrates uniqueness.
"The power of your individuality can end up strengthening the whole community," he said.
"I kind of unknowingly gave a voice to a lot of other people who were going through the exact same things that I was."
The ARIA Award winner's music became a catalyst for conversations about issues including racism and depression.
"I was getting messages from around the world about how the music had gotten them through dark times, whether it just be a bad day, a break-up, or ideations of suicide," Owusu-Ansah said.
"Those kinds of moments were a potent reminder that what I'm doing is bigger than myself."
The Australian Capital Territory Young Australian of the Year says he appreciates the voices of people from all walks of life.
"It creates a whole society where we are so enriched by so many other different perspectives," he said.
"Everyone feels like they can truly be themselves."
Empowering First Nations people
Queensland Young Australian of the Year Talei Elu feels a duty to help her community in a big picture way.
According to the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), there are more than 30,000 Indigenous people who are not enrolled to vote in Queensland.
Ms Elu knew this needed to change.
She has been working with the AEC to enrol more Indigenous people and educate them about the importance of voting.
"There's a lot of issues affecting us," she said.
"It's important that we understand how the political system works, so it can benefit us."
The now-30-year-old says inadequate telecommunications are a problem in remote communities.
"It's a real barrier for us," she said.
Ms Elu aims to bridge the gap in understanding what happens in places like Brisbane and Canberra for remote communities, and how that can impact them.
"We've done a lot of work," she said.
"I feel like we've set a lot of the foundations to be able to become much more politically savvy in the future."
Ms Elu's efforts to empower First Nations people politically has resulted in her being named Queensland Young Australian of the Year.
"I felt just so honoured to be there," she said. "Hearing my name called was just surreal."
Running for change
Meriem Daoui is no stranger to hardship, growing up with health conditions, mental illness and financial struggles.
"I have gone through lots of things throughout my life," she said.
"I'm a woman of colour. Growing up we did have a lot of disadvantages."
As she was coming home from school one day she had her hijab torn from her head by another child.
"I remember just feeling like I wanted the earth to crack open and I wanted to just hide," she said
"A lot of people would bully me and call me a terrorist."
Instead of letting the bullying destroy her, Ms Daoui has used it to create positive change for her community.
Ms Daoui ran her first marathon at 16, raising more than $5,000 for displaced Syrians affected by their country's civil war.
Now 23, she continues to use marathons to raise awareness and money for causes she cares about.
"Running has helped me a lot," she said.
"It gives me time for me and it also allows me to connect with other people."
The registered nurse says being named Tasmanian Young Australian of the Year is "really, really special".
"I'm only a small per cent of a contribution to this community," she said.
"But I hope that small per cent is doing something, and I want to continue to pursue that for the rest of my life."
Kicking goals
South Australia's Young Australian of the Year, Awer Mabil, kicks just as many goals off the field as he does on it.
The Socceroo player dedicates his time to promoting better health, education and gender equality for refugees through his not-for-profit organisation Barefoot to Boots.
His dedication to the cause stems from his own experience growing up in a Kenyan refugee camp before coming to Australia at the age of 10.
It was in these confines Mr Mabil started playing soccer with other refugees.
Their choice of ball was a rolled-up sock, which was often kicked around in bare feet.
Now Mr Mabil's Barefoot to Boots provides sporting equipment and education to refugees so they do not have to experience the same difficulties he did.
A year after he achieved his dream of playing for the Socceroos, his sister died in a car accident.
Mr Mabil says now he feels "unbreakable".
Remembering his sister and knowing he is a role model to others drives him to keep doing his best.
The professional soccer player wants to use his platform to show others they are not alone with their mental health struggles and they can speak up.
Improving Aboriginal healthcare
Darcy McGauley-Bartlett has turned his adversity into advocacy.
The proud Gunaikurnai man makes it his mission to promote better prison health care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
"[It's about] making sure our prisoners' voices are heard and really pushing out my vision of community are community regardless — inside or out — and we need to make sure we support them," he said.
Growing up in a kinship placement with his grandmother, the 24-year-old said he had had a difficult start to life, with some members of his family in and out of the justice system.
He says the system failed his family.
"As a kid, you're pigeonholed into a box of 'you'll never get anywhere, you'll never do anything with your life'," he said.
"It's time to actually do something."
Now, as senior manager of Aboriginal Health within Corrections Victoria, Mr McGauley-Bartlett educates young people about their options for employment and education.
"It's around making sure you're working with systems and reminding them, it's nothing about us without us."
Mr McGauley-Bartlett has also created a system to help better manage the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with chronic health conditions in prison.
"[It's] a lot of the work with our stakeholders and community around what an ideal model would look like in prison, around health care," he said.
"It's about Aboriginal health being in Aboriginal hands."
The Victorian Young Australian of the Year said winning his award did not feel real.
"It's never been about me, it's always been about community," he said.
He says everybody can make a difference.
"We have a voice, let us use it."
'I love competing'
When Nagmeldin (Peter) Bol was growing up in Thornlie, WA, he was chasing buses.
Now he is chasing medals at the Olympics and athletic world championships.
"I love competing," he said.
The professional runner, originally from Sudan, moved to Australia when he was eight.
At the age of 16 he was persuaded to try athletics by his coach, and now he is a two-time Olympian breaking Australian records.
Mr Bol shot to prominence when he became the first Australian runner in 53 years to make it into the 800 metres final in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
He says he is not running for the fame.
"[Medals don't] essentially mean that much," he said.
"It's more of a journey and an experience you're going to have."
In his work as a coach, mentor and keynote speaker, Mr Bol urges young runners to "keep the fun element there".
"Running does get pretty hard," he said.
"If you truly enjoy it, you'll find ways to be resilient later on."
Now that he has been named West Australian Young Australian of the Year, he "embrace[s] all the love" from the award but says he will continue to work hard at the sport he loves.
"You don't get faster by the attention," he said. "You gain by the work you're doing by being yourself."
On Friday, Peter Bol was provisionally suspended by Athletics Australia after failing an out-of-competition drug test. He has declared his innocence in a statement posted to his Twitter account.
Finding a voice
Northern Territory Young Australian of the Year Jahdai Vigona is "a big mental health advocate" for young Indigenous people.
The proud Tiwi Islands man spends his time delivering mental health programs for First Nations students, attending government forums and speaking at events.
"I've just been very passionate about working in that space," he said.
"I like to share my voice and be heard."
Mr Vigona wants to encourage young people, particularly Aboriginal men, to take control of their health and to be involved in decision making.
Currently the chair of the 2022 Northern Territory Youth Round Table, the 21-year-old is also working to ensure young Territorians have opportunities and a voice.
"We do a lot of advocating youth voices to government," he said.
"Meeting with ministers and departments to talk a bit about some of the issues that young people face in the Territory."
Growing up in a local community as a young Indigenous male opened Mr Vigona's eyes to social issues in his environment.
He wants to help make a change and show others what is possible for them.
"I feel like I'm giving back to community," he said.
"I'm also helping my people with those social disadvantages and trying to create more equal opportunities."
Mr Virgona was "very overwhelmed" when announced as the Northern Territory Young Australian of the Year.
"I was very proud to be recognised on a platform like that," he said.
"It's great, but it's not about the awards, it's about the service."
