The Australian’s Australian of the Year award 2020: full list of nominees
Here are some of the outstanding Australians that you saw fit to nominate for The Australian’s Australian of the Year award in 2020.
Natural disaster, sporting triumph, political defiance and heroism have defined our past 12 months. Here are some of the outstanding Australians that you saw fit to nominate for The Australian’s Australian of the Year award in 2020.
The recipient will be announced in The Weekend Australian on Saturday, January 25.
-
NICK MITZEVICH
National Gallery of Australia director
For the past 30 years, National Gallery of Australia director Nick Mitzevich has been committed to prioritising art education and learning new ways to share a national collection that transcends traditional boundaries.
Read Nick’s story here.
-
ANDREW FORREST
Philanthropist, mining mogul
Andrew Forrest has built an empire that underpins a $1.5bn commitment to philanthropic causes. The self-made mining magnate relies on a portfolio of businesses, including oyster farms and the Global Rapid Rugby competition, to promote and support the work most important to him and his wife, Nicola.
Read “Twiggy’s” story here.
-
SCOTT MORRISON
Prime Minister of Australia
Scott Morrison’s “miracle” election win after years of Coalition leadership instability and ugly internal divisions on energy and social policies changed the national political landscape.
Read the PM’s story here.
-
ROD SIMS
Chairman, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
Rod Sims hasn’t been afraid to take on the most powerful corporate players in the interests of consumers. Respected by both sides of politics, Mr Sims was appointed to lead the regulator in 2011 by then treasurer Wayne Swan and then for a further three years by the Coalition government in 2016, and again in 2018, making him the longest-serving ACCC chairman.
Read Mr Sims’ story here.
-
COREY TUTT
Founder, Deadly Science
A research assistant at the University of Sydney’s Matilda Centre, 27-year-old Corey Tutt launched Deadly Science — a program that sends science books to schools in remote communities across Australia and connects indigenous people with mentors to encourage them to take up science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine subjects.
Read Mr Tutt’s story here.
-
ANNIE CRAWFORD
Founder, Can Too Foundation
After losing her father to bowel cancer when he was only 51, Annie Crawford knew she wanted to make a difference by combining her background as a social worker and her passion for running and fitness. Through her foundation, Can Too, Ms Crawford has helped to raise over $22m to support the prevention, treatment and control of cancer.
Read Ms Crawford’s story here.
-
MEG LANNING
Australian women’s cricket captain
Meg Lanning has achieved almost everything cricket has to offer. But the chance for her and her teammates to be role models for the next generation of female cricketers is one of the “best changes” she’s seen in her career.
Read Lanning’s story here.
-
JOHN SWELLER
Psychology professor
They might not know his name but a generation of Australian schoolchildren can thank John Sweller and his theory of cognitive load for sparing them the pain of rote learning. The University of NSW educational psychology professor, who has been nominated as The Australian’s Australian of the Year, has spent decades researching memory and its application to improve education. His work has been critical in educators moving beyond a write-and-read method of rote learning to one that recognises the limits of trying to pour knowledge into students’ minds.
Read Professor Sweller’s story here.
-
DAVID McALLISTER
Australian Ballet artistic director
When David McAllister went to his first ballet lesson as a seven-year-old, he had no idea it would launch an obsession that would span half a century and place him centre stage of the dance he loved. Growing up amid the rough and tumble of 1970s Perth, doing ballet as a boy made him the target of ongoing torment. But the teasing only strengthened his resolve to become one of the greater dancers of his generation.
Read Mr McAllister’s story here.
-
DAVID HARE
Heart disease researcher
For 48 years, University of Melbourne graduate Professor David Hare has been devoted to cardiovascular research and has identified the causes of heart disease, reduced the risk of heart attacks and made waves amid the surgical treatment of heart attack patients, saving countless lives.
Read Professor Hare’s story here.
-
TONI WATSON
Singer/songwriter (Tones and I)
Two years ago, Toni Watson took a big punt: she quit her Melbourne retail job and became a full-time busker. Living out of her van, writing music and performing on the main street of Byron Bay in NSW — to a mixture of applause and abuse — Watson resolved to keep busking until she was 50. The gamble paid off. Now, as Tones and I, she is an international star. Channelling the frustrations of street performing, her second single, Dance Monkey, became the most successful song of 2019, reaching No 1 in more than 30 countries shortly after its release in May.
Read Toni Watson’s story here.
-
TANYA MONRO
Scientist
She is one of the nation’s most decorated scientists and heads up the Australian Defence Force’s research and development division — yet Professor Tanya Monro almost shunned the industry entirely for a career in classical music. The dedicated Chief Defence Scientist — the first woman to hold the influential role — said until her mid-teens, she’d considered science dull and predictable and wanted to focus on playing the cello. It was not until her Year 9 science teacher impressed upon her a passion for physics that a scientific future entered her equation.
Read Professor Monro’s story here.
-
JEFF HORN
Boxer
He has a punishing right hand and is a dominating presence in the ring, but it is Jeff Horn’s stiff upper lip that makes him such a fearsome and uncompromising force. “It’s probably so stiff because I’ve had more than 100 stitches run through it by now,” the 31-year-old fighter laughed with trademark modesty. Behind that disarming smile, the former WBO welterweight champion has always harboured a fierce determination to succeed; to keep getting up irrespective of what is thrown at him or how many times he is knocked down.
Read “The Hornet’s” story here.
-
BRIAN McNAMEE
Businessman
Some businessmen crow about the smallest of achievements; a new glitzy tower, a short-lived run by the share price or the opening of a new factory. Then there are those who are known for their humility and reluctance to be in the spotlight, and who would prefer any attention is paid to their employees and their achievements. Such is the case of Brian McNamee, who took the helm of the sleepy government-owned Commonwealth Serum Laboratories in the 1990s and transformed it from a low-profile creator of vaccines to a public company that is now one of the biggest in Australia with a market capitalisation of $125bn.
Read Mr McNamee’s story here.
-
PHILIP LOWE
Governor, Reserve Bank of Australia
Reserve Bank governors, as a rule, don’t want to be front-page news. Often, however, they have little choice. After all, their interest rate decisions affect millions of mortgage holders. Since being appointed to the top job in August 2016, the softly spoken Philip Lowe has apparently learned to embrace, if not exactly love, the public profile. Through a period of increasing economic uncertainty, here and abroad, Dr Lowe has proved a reassuring voice on the country’s prospects.
Read Dr Lowe’s story here.
-
CHERYL PRAEGER
Mathematician
Professor Cheryl Praeger almost walked away from a career studying mathematics because a school guidance counsellor told her it was too difficult for girls. Luckily, she ignored the advice and instead followed her passion. The University of Western Australia emeritus professor has gone on to become one of our greatest mathematicians, blazing a trail for other women to follow.
Read Professor Praeger’s story here.
-
KEN WYATT
Politician
Ken Wyatt’s most vivid memories of his wheatbelt home are of the kindness and friendship locals gave his big Aboriginal family, the first indigenous people to move into a house inside the Corrigin town limits. The first indigenous person in federal cabinet, as Minister for Indigenous Australians he has taken on the difficult task of establishing an indigenous voice that could reshape the way governments and indigenous people speak to each other.
Read Mr Wyatt’s story here.
-
TIM PAINE
Australian Test cricket captain
After inheriting the captaincy of the Australian Test cricket team in March 2018 — without doubt one of the worst years in the country’s proud cricket history — Tim Paine spent most of the past year righting a sinking ship. But under Paine’s leadership, 2019 was a triumphant year for the Australian team.
Read Paine’s full story here.
-
ASHLEIGH BARTY
World No 1 tennis player
Few Australian success stories can match tennis world No 1 Ash Barty. The 23-year-old has had a phenomenal 12 months, her French Open win in June captivating Australians who had not seen a grand slam singles champion from their country since 2011.
Read Barty’s full story here.