SOUTH AUSTRALIA
7NEWS Young Achiever Awards - SA
2026 Finalists
Read more about each of the Finalists below;
Aceit Transport Solutions Sports in the Community Award
Aidan Barry of Marion is the co-founder of the Adelaide Inclusive Cricket League, established in 2022, the only all-disabilities cricket competition of its kind in Australia. Recognising that no cricket pathway existed for people living with disabilities, Aidan lobbied politicians, the South Australian Cricket Association, and disability groups to bring the SACA-endorsed league to life. Born with a complete lack of upper limbs, four open-heart surgeries, and multiple complex medical conditions, Aidan's determination is extraordinary — he completed his SACE across two years despite repeated hospitalisations and holds a Bachelor of Teaching from the University of Adelaide. His league creates social connection, community belonging, and sporting opportunity for players who had none.
Daniel Chudleigh is the founder of GameReady Performance, a high-performance sports facility that has become one of South Australia's most inclusive community sporting hubs. Drawing on experience with the Adelaide Crows, Cycling Australia, and multiple professional travelling teams, Daniel built a space where junior athletes, grassroots clubs, semi-professional players, and emerging coaches all train under one roof. He has hosted NBA trainers, supported Adelaide 36ers, Adelaide United, Port Adelaide FC, and the Thunderbirds, and mentored over 30 young coaches and businesses into the sports industry. GameReady's internship programs and free youth sessions remove financial and social barriers to sport, with one mentee progressing to a head coaching role with a SANFL team.
Hugo Taheny of Yorke Peninsula known as Hugo Rockstar, is a world champion para-athlete and disability advocate who has set world records and won gold medals at the Virtus Global Games in shot put, discus, and javelin. A Health Ambassador for Down Syndrome Australia, Hugo presents annually to hundreds of medical students, lobbies government ministers on disability inclusion, and volunteers as a Little Athletics SA Para Athlete Ambassador every Saturday morning. He has contributed to the Royal Adelaide Hospital's Disability Access and Inclusion Plan, the NDIS Supported Decision Making Reference Group, and the World Down Syndrome Congress. Winner of the inaugural SA Life Young Inspiring Leader Award, Hugo is paving the way for future generations of athletes with disability.
Kaitlin Purcell is a pioneering advocate for women's football and Indigenous inclusion who has spent a decade connecting regional and remote communities to sport. Establishing the second women's league under the Great Southern Football League, she was named 2018 Female Coach of South Australia by North Adelaide Football Club. An ambassador for Around the Camp Fire, which promotes reconciliation through sport, Kaitlin has coached junior girls' football in the Far North Football League and served as a sports trainer for the Australian Combined Emergency Services and Australian Police Football Association. Commended by the Order of Australia Association at 16 and recognised at the 2021 Inspiring South Australian Women's Awards, Kaitlin breaks down barriers for young women and First Nations communities through football.
Adelaide University STEM Award
Caitlin McDonald of Glenunga is the lead researcher behind Smart PCR, the world's first system capable of dynamically adjusting DNA amplification conditions in real time using a biologically inspired machine learning algorithm. Developed at Flinders University, Smart PCR addresses a critical gap in forensic science — up to 75% of routine casework samples fail with traditional PCR. By integrating qPCR and endpoint PCR in a single vessel and optimising cycle-by-cycle, Caitlin's system transforms decades-old rigid laboratory processes into adaptive, AI-guided workflows. Her research has produced seven peer-reviewed publications across top forensic science journals, with expert recognition that manually optimising these parameters was previously considered close to impossible.
Edward Robinson of Blair Athol is the founder and CEO of Robinson Aerospace Systems, which he established at age 18 after becoming frustrated with textbook-based STEM education. His invention, RASCube — an educational satellite kit that replicates real CubeSat technology — is now supplied across 16 countries, with over 1500 kits delivered to more than 20,000 high school students. A key milestone was the orbital launch of RASCube-1 aboard a SpaceX rocket, carrying student experiments from seven countries. Named Emerging Industries winner in SA's 40 Under 40 Awards and ranked 25th on the AFR Fast Starters list, his company employs 15 people and manufactures 300 kits weekly in Adelaide.
Jiarna Zerella of Thebarton is a PhD in Medicine graduate whose research discovered and defined a new genetic syndrome — ERG deficiency — now incorporated into routine clinical screening at SA Pathology and international hospitals including in the USA and centres in the Netherlands. Starting from a single Adelaide family with undiagnosed blood cancers spanning generations, Jiarna spent four years designing bespoke functional assays across human genomics, molecular biology, structural modelling, and in vivo mouse systems to prove ERG as a novel hereditary blood cancer gene. Awarded the Dean's Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence and the 2025 Doctoral Medal, she is a first author in the high-impact journal, Blood. She balanced this all while playing semi-professional football in the SANFLW including serving as captain.
Natansh Modi of Pooraka is an Adelaide University lecturer and 2026 Fulbright Postdoctoral Scholar at Yale whose work spans clinical trial transparency, AI safety and pharmacology. His first-author study in the Annals of Internal Medicine, selected as an Editor’s Choice, was the first to show that large language models can be covertly manipulated to produce dangerous medical misinformation. His broader AI work has informed policy discussions at the WHO, the White House and the US Department of Health and Human Services. He led the curation and harmonisation of a standardised patient-level clinical trial database spanning 100 trials and 100,000 patients across 13 industry partners and has published 34 peer-reviewed papers.
Carclew Creative Achievement Award
Abbey Murdoch of Bowden is a visual artist and community arts facilitator whose practice centres accessibility, housing justice, and creative expression for marginalised communities in Adelaide's northern suburbs. Delivering programs through the Playford Women's Shed, Carclew's Pom Pom Program in Davoren Park, and weekly sessions at Brompton Primary School, Abbey uses art as a tool for emotional regulation, self-expression, and community connection. She mentors artists living with disability, advocates for the ethical payment of lived-experience contributors, and is developing a major film work exploring the stigma faced by public housing residents for a solo exhibition at FELTspace Gallery and a large-scale piece for Illuminate Adelaide 2026. A public housing resident herself, Abbey's practice is grounded in care, collective authorship, and amplifying overlooked voices.
Charlee Watt is a cabaret artist, vocalist, writer, and emerging producer from Port Lincoln, building one of regional South Australia’s most ambitious young creative practices. A recipient of the 2024 Adelaide Critics Circle Emerging Artist Award, the 2025 Matt Tarrant “One to Watch” Award, and the 2026 Adelaide Fringe Tour Ready NZ Award, Charlee creates bold, large-scale music productions while mentoring regional young artists. Her 2026 shows She Rocks and Rolling The Stones saw teenage performers take to the stage during Adelaide Fringe and SALT Festivals. Charlee has toured original work nationally, completed touring producer training, and is a current Carclew Fellow re-developing work for national arts markets.
Emmarita Brown of Morphettville is a Warlpiri contemporary artist and founder of Yankirri Arts who uses her creative practice as a vehicle for healing, cultural connection, and community empowerment. Raised in the child protection system from nine months old and a survivor of domestic violence, Emmarita channelled lived experience into art and advocacy — and now delivers workshops for youth, families, and communities, creating safe spaces for creative expression. She is a co-designer for Adelaide's Tram Grade Separation Project (2024–2027), painted the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People's brand Voice of Empowerment in 2025, and developed a painting for the Guardian for Children and Young People. She spoke at Youth Arts Meets Parliament at Parliament House in 2024 and integrates art into peer support work with women and families at KWY.
Hayley Frazer of Tea Tree Gully is a young author and illustrator whose deeply personal storytelling has resonated in schools, libraries, and communities across South Australia. Her latest book, “The Magical Tram”, weaves her grandfather's memories as a tram conductor and a real dog who rode the bus loop. into a magical adventure about time and connection. Her earlier work Something a Little Different appears on the Premier's Reading Challenge in SA and Victoria, and was shortlisted for Speech Pathology Australia's Book of the Year. Living with dyslexia and dysgraphia, Hayley transforms her own challenges into a powerful message for children who feel different, delivering school visits and workshops across the state. Winner of the City of Tea Tree Gully Creative Community Award 2023, she was also recognised with the Emerging Leader — Inspiring Women Award 2025.
Credit Union SA Education Award
Brittany Neeb of Adelaide is the Head of Creative Industries at Kildare College, appointed at just 25 years old, overseeing Art, Design, Media, Photography, Digital Publishing, Jewellery and Metal, and Timber Construction. Winner of the 2024 Minister's Arts Early Career Educator Award, Brittany has driven a 737% increase in Creative Industries subject selections at the college from 2024 to 2025. She established an Artist in Residence program, curated the school's largest-ever Year 12 exhibition with 75 works, runs an annual Creative Industries Week attracting over 120 students, and created a real-client Digital Publishing project with the Catholic Women's League SA. A SACE Subject Renewal Consultant in Visual Arts and Design, she is completing a Master of Educational Leadership while championing pathways for young women in creative and trade-based fields.
Manvi Gandhi of Blair Athol is an Academic Lecturer at Adelaide University's School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences and the youngest Academic Program Manager for Health Sciences at Eynesbury College who began her journey as an international student in 2018. With over seven years of higher education experience, Manvi teaches pharmacy, biomedical, and environmental sciences while chairing the Academic Integrity Committee and leading the integration of generative AI into ethical, student-centred learning. Currently completing a PhD investigating how students engage with large language models in education, she has been recognised with the Teaching Excellence Award 2024, the 7 News Young Achiever People's Choice Award 2025, and the Outstanding Alumni Award from Study Adelaide. She also champions STEM pathways for young women through STEM Sisters and mentors students from diverse backgrounds.
Mwangaza Milunga of Munno Para West is the Program Manager at Mentoring, Coaching & Counselling (MCC), where she leads the design and delivery of culturally responsive, curriculum-aligned programs for African diaspora and CALD young people across SA. She has led the redesign of the government-funded Village Program, now delivered across more than 10 schools—strengthening student wellbeing, engagement, and community connection. She co-developed evidence-informed anti-racism frameworks, and is creator of the Sauti app, an initiative aimed at removing language barriers. Also Co-Founder of the Sister Tribe Women’s Empowerment Initiative and volunteer with Australian Refugee Association. Recognised as 2026 Young Citizen of the Year and named among the Young Women to Watch in International Affairs. Her work reflects a strong commitment to advancing inclusive education and shaping policy outcomes across areas including foreign policy, national security, defence, and trade, with a focus on culturally informed and community-led approaches.
Suriya Down of Campbelltown is the Director of Music and the Arts at Aberfoyle Park High School, and a music educator whose commitment to equitable access has transformed programs at schools she has led. Beginning her career in rural South Australia at Balaklava High School, Suriya Down revitalised the Arts program which saw the reintroduction of Stage 2 Drama and Stage 2 Music and 83% of students attaining a B grade or higher and increasing ensemble participation by 145%. She has completed all three levels of the Australian Kodály Certificate (Secondary). She serves as President of Kodály South Australia and Convenor of the 2026 National Kodály Conference, contributing to music education at both state and national levels. Recognised with Early Career Teacher of the Year from Educators SA, the Early Career Award for Excellence in Kodály-Inspired Music Education, and the Minister's Arts Award for Public Secondary Education.
Department of Human Services Aboriginal Achievement Award
Emmarita Brown is a Warlpiri contemporary artist, founder of Yankirri Arts, and peer support worker whose creative practice and lived experience are transforming lives in her community. Raised in the child protection system and a survivor of domestic violence, Emmarita used art as a pathway to healing and now delivers cultural workshops for youth and supports women and families through KWY who have experienced hardship and domestic violence. Co-designer of Adelaide's Tram Grade Separation Project artworks, she painted the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People's brand Voice of Empowerment in 2025, presented at Youth Arts Meets Parliament at Parliament House, and is preparing her first solo SALA exhibition. Emmarita's message is clear: our stories hold us, and everyone deserves to be seen and heard.
Jayden Thyer is a proud Ngarrindjeri woman and fifth-year Doctor of Medicine student who is making history as the first Aboriginal person to serve as Vice President (Internal) of the Australian Medical Students' Association. Previously the 2025 First Nations Chair of AMSA and First Nations Officer for the Adelaide Medical Students' Society, Jayden has shaped national policy on cultural safety and facilitated international knowledge-sharing at WIPCE conferences in Hawaii and Auckland. She has delivered cultural safety training to the Modbury Hospital Palliative Care Unit and developed workshops for AMSA described by participants as the best in four years of medical school. Defying a careers counsellor who once told her she lacked the ‘calibre’ to become a doctor, Jayden overcame early academic setbacks and lives with ADHD. She now shares her story at the SA Aboriginal STEM Congress and Reconciliation SA panels to inspire the next generation of First Nations doctors.
Jazmin Bingham is a proud Gomeroi woman and climate justice advocate whose grassroots activism, policy leadership, and community mentorship have made her one of South Australia's most committed young First Nations voices. A Youth Advisor to the Department of Climate Change, Energy and Water through the Office for Youth, member of the Youth Minister's Advisory Council, and past participant in the South Australian Student Representative Council, Jazmin advocates for First Nations perspectives in national climate conversations and has lobbied directly in Canberra. She volunteers with SEED and the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, mentors young mob through workshops to strengthen cultural identity and confidence, and at age 14, authored a children's book on the endangered red-tailed black cockatoo to raise awareness of its cultural and ecological significance.
Kahlia Gibson is a Kokatha woman with close cultural ties to Narungga and Kaurna whose extraordinary personal journey — born while her mother was incarcerated, raised under Guardianship of the Minister and moved between 30+ placements while in care, and exposed to four generations of family incarceration — has become the foundation of a career dedicated to breaking those cycles for others. As Team Leader of Aboriginal Offender Management and Rehabilitation at the Department for Correctional Services, Kahlia champions culturally informed rehabilitation pathways for Aboriginal people within the correctional system. Former Chairperson and Director of Kokatha Aboriginal Corporation, member of the South Australian Aboriginal Heritage Committee, and a First Nations Voice to Parliament elected member, she pursued university study without having completed high school, studying a bachelor of psychology, and now raises her own children as a sole parent while building an influential career in corrections, governance, and community advocacy.
Department of Human Services Pride Award
Lou Potter of Croydon is the first transgender President of United Nations Youth South Australia, a KPMG senior consultant, board member of YACSA, and SACOSS Policy Council member who has created inclusive spaces for young people since establishing a Dungeons & Dragons club at Brocas Youth Centre in 2016. As UNYSA President in 2022, she integrated programs with the SA Certificate of Education and created the 2022–2024 Strategic Plan to rebuild from COVID. Lou has contributed to reviews and policy development for the NDIS and national and state health systems. Lou has spoken at Parliament House for a SS4C rally, the 2024 SACOSS State Budget Breakfast, and at Newday Leadership Summits.
Mace James-Veitch of Largs Bay is a bisexual and transgender man whose lived experience of homelessness, chronic illness, trauma-induced psychosis, and domestic violence has become the foundation of wide-ranging advocacy for LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent communities. A member of the LGBTQIA+ Youth Advisory Group for the Telethon Kids Institute for five years, a contributor to the Trans Pathways mental health report, a psychosocial support volunteer with the Red Cross, and a Community Representative for AMPLIFY Housing and Lived Experience Australia, Mace co-designed the @psychosis_understood Instagram account to combat stigma around psychosis. He has participated in consultations with government ministers, spoken on IDAHOBIT and Wear it Purple Day panels at TAFE SA, and advocates openly for the connection between LGBTQIA+ identity, mental health, and chronic illness. Married in April 2025, he and his husband face the world with courage and love.
Mariam Owrang of Fulham is a proud multicultural trans woman of Italian-Iranian heritage whose policy leadership and community advocacy has transformed LGBTQIA+ inclusion in South Australia's public and volunteering sectors. From chairing the SA Rainbow Advocacy Alliance's Community Advisory Group from 2020–2022 — contributing to a more LGBTIQA+ inclusive SA public sector through co-coordinating the Department of Human Services' Rainbow Tick Accreditation Project and co-producing trans awareness content — to co-facilitating Transfemme SA's fortnightly support group averaging 30 attendees, Mariam's impact is far-reaching. A finalist in the 2023 SA Premier's Excellence Awards Emerging Young Talent category and co-winner of the DHS Diversity and Inclusion Award 2025, she now works in the Office for Women's Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence team, working to prevent and respond to DFSV and raise awareness of LGBTQIA+ peoples' experiences of these forms of violence.
Shai Wittles of Aberfoyle Park is a transgender activist, psychology student, and community organiser whose work with Trans Justice Adelaide and Flinders University has driven some of South Australia's most visible trans rights achievements. As 2024 President of the Flinders University Queer Collective and 2025 Queer Officer of the Flinders University Student Association, Shai created a grant program supporting trans and gender diverse students to access gender-affirming services, advocated successfully for chosen names on student ID cards and pronouns on university platforms, and ran peer support groups and campus health education. In February 2025, they helped organise a 700-person trans rights rally — the largest gathering of trans people in South Australia's history — following Queensland's freeze on gender-affirming care for minors. Coming out publicly during a Channel 9 interview that same month, Shai continues to build solidarity between trans activism and other social justice movements.
Konica Minolta Career Achievement Award
Daniella Edward of Lightsview is a cancer researcher and public health advocate who began university at 16, graduated at 20 with a perfect GPA of 7.0, and was named Highest Performing Student across her entire degree cohort. Recipient of the Outstanding Cancer Research Award from Cancer Council, she has published peer-reviewed research on cervical cancer screening in culturally diverse women and presented at the NSW Cancer Summit, the ASMR National Scientific Conference. where she also delivered an additional invited oral presentation on COVID-19 and public trust in biomedical research — and was the youngest presenter at a major SA STEM conference. Across multiple national presentations in a single year, she earned Excellence in Communication recognition. She has directed and produced a mental health awareness film, demonstrating her commitment to translating health knowledge into community impact.
Eloise Hall of Unley is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of TABOO Period Products, a certified social enterprise that sells organic period products and directs 100% of profits to ending period poverty in Australia. What began as an idea at high school has grown into an award-winning, nationally recognised brand with retail, workplace, school, and community partnerships, and a Pad It Forward program that channels customer and corporate support into free products for people at risk in Australia. Eloise has worked in enterprise leadership to systemic change through board roles, including with the Adelaide Economic Development Agency, the South Australian Social Enterprise Council and the Robinson Research Institute. Nine years in, she leads TABOO alongside her role as Social Enterprise Expert in Residence at Flinders New Venture Institute, mentoring emerging founders, particularly women and equity-seeking entrepreneurs, to design ventures that put people and planet first.
Emily Place is the Manager of Justice Services at SYC whose therapeutic, trauma-informed leadership has reshaped how South Australia responds to children and young people in the justice system. As Team Leader, she created The Bridge — an unfunded supported bail accommodation pilot she launched through sheer determination and cross-sector partnership, providing furnished housing for young people aged 15–25 who had been granted bail but had nowhere safe to go. The model reduced reliance on custody as emergency accommodation and created a genuine continuum of care into stable housing. She also developed the Elevate Early Intervention Program supporting young people at risk of entering the criminal justice system. Now overseeing both youth and adult justice programs, Emily led the redevelopment of risk assessment tools through a narrative therapy lens focusing on honouring lived experience while preserving dignity. Alongside this, she has been a Catherine House Ambassador for three years.
Matthew Belperio of Adelaide is the co-founder and CEO of Lift Health Group, a healthcare organisation he built from scratch — co-founding it in February 2023 with $10,000 in personal savings and no external investment, obtaining his pilot licence mid-launch, and flying into regional towns in rain, hail, and high winds to personally map where allied health access gaps were most critical. The aviation-supported model had no clear precedent; Matt worked directly with CASA to navigate the regulatory framework while simultaneously establishing the organisation. Within three months, the team grew from two founders to approximately 20 clinicians. Today Lift Health Group employs more than 35 staff, has delivered services to thousands of Australians across rural and remote communities including the APY Lands and across multiple states. Matt's story is one of problem-solving without a blueprint, sustained by extraordinary personal commitment and genuine care for the communities he serves.
South Australian Skills Commission Outstanding Apprentice Award
Amitie Duval of Adelaide is an electrical apprentice with AJ Baker & Sons through PEER whose first year has already set a remarkable standard. She placed first in Electrical Installation at the 2026 WorldSkills Australia Regional Championships and was named a finalist for First Year Apprentice of the Year at the 2025 PEER Graduation and Awards Night. Trusted by her employer with high-stakes refrigeration switchboard work — expensive systems where errors cannot be afforded — Amitie assists with design layout, component installation, testing, and quality control before dispatch. She also undertakes site wiring of refrigeration systems and cool rooms, works with a pyrotechnics company at major events including LIV Golf and Territory Day in Darwin, and tutors primary and secondary students with learning difficulties in her local community on weeknight evenings.
Cooper Chomel of Adelaide is a fourth-year apprentice chef at the Strathmore Hotel whose journey from unemployment — with no car, no job, and an incomplete SACE — to winning the Maxima Apprentice of the Year in 2025 just towards the end of his third year of training is a story of extraordinary personal determination. Capable of independently running the kitchen for functions while managing dietary requirements, food safety, and quality to a professional standard, Cooper also competed in a Nestlé products culinary competition, earning a silver medal alongside feedback he has since shared with and embedded among his kitchen colleagues. Beyond his career, Cooper stepped up to take full custody of his 14-year-old sister during a period of family instability, supporting her into full-time schooling where she has since earned a school values award — demonstrating the kind of character that defines him.
Cooper Mann of Adelaide is a third-year mechanical fitter apprentice at the Australian Submarine Corporation who has turned a passion for all things maritime and mechanical into a career at the forefront of Australia's defence industry future. Diagnosed with autism, Cooper built the confidence to move from standing back and watching to independently leading jobs and strip-testing old valves, pumps, and gearboxes on his own time. He won ASC's Safety Leader of the Year 2024 after identifying a critical error in safe operation documents for cutting discs and persisting until new safety guidelines were written. Through the AMWU union, he made two trips to Canberra — meeting the Federal Ministers for Industry and Skills — to advocate for better apprentice wages, improved TAFE funding, and housing affordability for tradespeople. He has since applied for the US Embassy's Youth Advisory Council to continue this advocacy.
Jemma Glatz of Adelaide is a third-year painting and decorating apprentice with Adelaide City Council who is preparing to represent Australia at the International WorldSkills Competition in Shanghai in September 2026 — a remarkable achievement for someone still mid-apprenticeship. Having won silver at the Regional WorldSkills competition in her first year of training — losing gold by just 0.25 points to a near-finished apprentice — she was placed on the National waitlist and, when a space opened, won silver again nationally, this time against 16 competitors from across Australia, again missing gold by only 0.25 points. The gold medallist was ineligible for international competition due to age, opening the door for Jemma's selection as an Australian Skillaroo. She will also volunteer as a judge at the 2026 Regional and 2027 National competitions, giving back to a pathway that has transformed her confidence, communication skills, and career.
Sweat Female Tech Entrepreneur Award
Amelia Griffin of Beaumont is the Founder and Clinical Director of My Mind Matters Therapy, a speech pathology and assistive technology practice she built after an aged care resident with Parkinson's disease told her not to waste her time — that her mind didn't matter anymore. Working evenings and weekends alongside full-time clinical practice for eight months, Amelia taught herself assistive technology design and co-developed two apps: an AAC communication app with over 5,000 personally curated images and multilingual vocabulary across Chinese, Indian, Italian, and Greek, and a Cognitive Brain Training app with 500+ animated conversation videos. Launched in 2024, the apps are now used across the lifespan from autism and aphasia to dementia. Her End Communication Inequality campaign has reached Federal Parliament, and she is collaborating with Flinders University on research into assistive technology and language development.
Aria Bradley of Adelaide is a medical science student at Flinders University with a 6.9/7.0 GPA who founded Ecadamie — an education technology platform helping ambitious students build effective learning habits, confidence, and balance through neuroscience and behavioural systems. Built alongside full-time study and research roles in dementia support and metabolic health, Ecadamie has supported over 100 students in improving academic outcomes without burnout, combining structured courses, mentoring, and a student community. She also hosts The Balanced Student Podcast, which has reached tens of thousands of listeners globally. Winner of the 2025 SA Women in Innovation Young Innovator Award and first place in the City of Unley Fish Tank 2025 Entrepreneurship Competition, Aria donates 10% of profits to the Malala Fund to support girls' education globally.
Lauren Bergamin of Linden Park is a Strategy Consultant and co-founder of SwitchBoard — an energy comparison platform that uses Australia's Consumer Data Right framework to automatically identify the best electricity plan for households from over 18,000 plans and automatically switch users. Inspired by her own fears about housing affordability and rising energy costs, over eight different concepts were trialled before landing on SwitchBoard, bringing a public health and research background rather than a traditional tech-focused approach to the problem. The platform has already built a working prototype, secured a Consumer Data Right licence, run a hackathon to accelerate development, and won First Prize at the 2025 University of Adelaide eChallenge. Long-term, the aim is to extend the platform's automated switching capabilities across telecommunications, insurance, and superannuation.
Sanjam Kohli of Adelaide is the co-founder and CEO of Chefadora — a global AI-powered recipe platform with over 100,000 monthly active users, 12,000+ recipes across 100+ cuisines, and the world's first YouTube-style revenue-sharing model for food creators, paying them 55% of ad revenue in an industry where every major platform has historically kept 100%. A radio systems engineer who graduated as one of four women in a class of 100 at the University of Adelaide, Sanjam moved to Australia from India at 17, spent five years at Motorola Solutions on one of the world's largest public safety communication networks, and then co-founded Chefadora with $0 in external funding. She has since won a $50,000 AIML grant to build a voice-enabled AI cooking co-pilot and is rolling out support for 80+ languages — proving that a globally ambitious AI company can be built by an immigrant woman from Adelaide.
University Senior College Create Change Award
Abbey Hardie of Adelaide is a psychology student and sexual violence prevention advocate whose tireless work with What Were You Wearing Australia (WWYW) has achieved tangible systemic and safety outcomes for South Australian women and children. Her advocacy led to a convicted rapist's visa being overturned — preventing his participation in the Adelaide Volleyball Championships — through community mobilisation, petitioning, and direct meetings with the Deputy Premier. She has contributed to WWYW securing sexual assault education and trauma-informed response training for bar staff and bystander intervention. Volunteering 10–15 hours each week alongside study and work, Abbey engages policymakers to push for better survivor-centred frameworks and healing supports. Her ability to translate advocacy into policy change is creating safer communities across South Australia.
Bailee Phillips of Allenby Gardens is a dedicated volunteer who has given eight years and more than 50 camps to Puddle Jumpers, working directly with children in out-of-home care to build confidence, connection, and belonging. Over five years she has helped raise more than $800,000 to sustain the organisation's programs — delivering camps, food relief services, and outreach to the Umoona Indigenous community in Coober Pedy. During COVID-19 she volunteered seven days a week to deliver emergency food relief, ensuring uninterrupted support for families who would otherwise have gone without. She has attended court with young mums, been present at a birth, and provided in-home support to help keep babies safely in their mother's care. Three short films she co-created have amplified the lived experiences of young South Australians to the broader community.
Jack Harrison of Adelaide is a Year 12 student and youth advocate whose 2025 Teen Parliament speech calling for reform of SA’s child protection system went viral with over 10 million social media views and was re-read in the SA Upper House by Connie Bonaros MLC. Drawing on lived experience of abuse and involvement with the child protection system, Jack has since engaged with the Child Protection Minister and Department for Child Protection executives. He spoke to more than 700 leaders — including the Premier and Governor — at a White Ribbon Australia event, and contributed as a youth advisor at the Royal Commission into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence student summit. Jack was named in The Advertiser's Power 1000 and recipient of the City of Onkaparinga Youth Recognition Award for Personal Achievement.
Kellie Finlayson of Lockleys is a keynote speaker, author, and cancer awareness advocate whose work is actively saving lives across Australia. Diagnosed with cancer in 2021 when her daughter was just three months old, Kellie transformed her diagnosis into a powerful platform for change, ensuring no one else faces this journey alone. Her symptom tracker, developed with the Jodi Lee Foundation, is driving earlier detection nationwide. Kellie has delivered her Know Your Normal workshops across South Australia, particularly in regional and rural communities. Through her best selling memoir There Must Be More, extensive fundraising efforts, presentations to medical professionals and more, Kellie continues to lead with resilience, purpose and impact, turning lived experience into life saving change.
Websters Lawyers Achievement in Law Award
Courtney Traeger of Adelaide is an Aboriginal criminal defence lawyer at Carter & Co Lawyers, admitted in 2023, whose practice is defined by a commitment to going well beyond the typical solicitor role. Appearing daily across Magistrates Courts throughout South Australia, Courtney specialises in representing clients with complex needs, disabilities, and mental illness — including proceedings under Part 8A of the Criminal Law Consolidation Act — and has been described by her peers as one of the few lawyers who genuinely go above and beyond for this cohort. She has successfully instructed two District Court trials resulting in acquittals on serious charges, and works closely with the Forensic Mental Health team, Aboriginal support services, and other practitioners to deliver holistic outcomes for her clients. Mentored through the Aboriginal Law Student Program by Her Honour Judge Matteo, and with experience at the DPP and shadowing Marie Shaw KC, Courtney entered law with one purpose: helping people.
Isabella Quek of Adelaide is a lawyer in the Civil Law Division of the Legal Services Commission of South Australia who has helped establish the Commission's new Equal Opportunity legal practice area, providing advice and representation to individuals who have experienced discrimination and sexual harassment — a space where legal representation can be transformative for those facing significant power imbalances. Admitted in 2022, Isabella previously worked with the Accessible Justice Project representing the 'missing middle' pro bono across defamation, tenancy, and consumer matters, co-authored a review of South Australia's Mental Health Act as a Research Assistant with the SA Law Reform Institute, and presented research on climate justice and disaster response at the International Access to Justice Forum in Toronto. A finalist in both the 2024 Premier's Excellence Awards (Emerging Young Talent) and the Law Society's Pro Bono Award, she brings rigorous scholarship and genuine community commitment to everything she does.
Madeleine Perrett of Mount Barker is a PhD candidate, Associate Teacher and admitted solicitor at the Adelaide Law School. Her research examines federalism as a constitutional pathway for Indigenous political empowerment, with a focus on treaty federalism informed by comparative experience in Canada and the United States. Named the Law Foundation of South Australia’s 2025 Fellow, she undertook advanced study in Indigenous governance at the University of Arizona. She was a contributing author to empirical research on pseudolaw and sovereign citizen movements, which received written acknowledgement from the Attorney-General of South Australia and informed a judicial development session for the South Australian judiciary. A co-authored article on sovereign citizens was among the four most-read pieces in Australia in July 2025. Madeleine received the 2025 Adelaide Law School Excellence in Sessional Teaching Award, tutors international students in law, and mentors students from highly disadvantaged backgrounds.
Mussa Nawroazi of Adelaide is a criminal defence solicitor at Caldicott + Isaacs Lawyers whose journey from Afghan refugee to officer of the court is one of the most remarkable stories in the South Australian legal profession. Arriving in Australia in 2011 after his Hazara family fled ethnic and religious persecution in Afghanistan, Mussa completed a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and now practises exclusively in criminal defence, appearing regularly in the Magistrates Court and assisting in District and Supreme Court matters involving serious indictable offending, drug trafficking, and criminal asset confiscation. In migration law, he managed Special Humanitarian Visa matters for vulnerable clients fleeing conflict after the fall of Kabul — including former justices of the Afghan Supreme Court. Awarded a South Australian Australia Day Commendation in 2023 for leadership in culture and languages, he speaks at community events to inspire young people from refugee backgrounds to pursue careers in law.
Check out the Facebook post here!