Sydney whale expert and science communicator Vanessa Pirotta has been named the 2027 Australian of the Year for New South Wales.
Dr Pirotta is a leading voice in marine science and has pioneered techniques in assessing whale health by collecting snot using drones to capture samples from the mammals' blowholes when they come up to breathe.
She also founded the citizen science project Wild Sydney Harbour five years ago, which encourages residents and visitors to report sightings of marine creatures to build a profile of the diverse wildlife in the harbour.
Dr Pirotta is also a champion of women in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics) careers and works closely with the Gamay Rangers, an Indigenous ranger group based in Sydney's Botany Bay, to monitor marine populations.
"I'm just sharing knowledge … I want people to feel empowered."
Dr Pirotta, who grew up on a farm in Murrumbateman near Canberra, said she was inspired to go into marine science by movies like Free Willy and David Attenborough documentaries.
Dr Pirotta will be the state's nominee for the national Australian of the Year award, which will be announced on January 25 next year.
Also nominated for the NSW Australian of the Year award were Newcastle domestic violence campaigner Tabitha Acret, Parkinson's disease campaigner Clyde Campbell and disability advocate Dwayne Fernandes.
Shark bite kits founder wins young Australian accolade
Community Shark Bite Kits founder Danny Schouten has been named the 2027 Young Australian of the Year for NSW.
The value of the kits has come into focus this year, especially after shark attacks at Sydney's Coogee Beach in June and at North Steyne Beach in January.
Leah Stewart, who survived the shark attack in Coogee, was the first person to be saved by using Mr Schouten's kits.
"I'm so glad that kit was there to be used that day," Mr Schouten said.
Mr Schouten said he saw the need for kits at beaches, particularly at the many that are unpatrolled, after witnessing a friend survive an attack because a bystander fashioned a tourniquet out of a dog lead.
The kits, which include tourniquets, compression bandages, gloves and instructions on treating shark bites, are now at more than 350 beaches across Australia.
The full-time teacher who lives in Bonny Hills on the state's Mid North Coast hopes to see the kits at every one of the 20,000 beaches in the country.
"My passion is just giving back and doing something I can do to hopefully save some lives," Mr Schouten said.
Shark activity has prompted the NSW government to expand a year-round shark-monitoring drone program at 97 beaches along the coast.
Veteran pilot doctor honoured
David Cooke, who has dedicated more than six decades to treating patients in remote and regional areas, has been named the 2027 Senior Australian of the Year for NSW.
The 84-year-old combined practising medicine and aviation through the Royal Flying Doctor Service, reaching patients in isolated communities in places including the Northern Territory and North Queensland.
Dr Cooke even learned how to parachute so he could reach hard-to-access locations.
"When I started … I was covering an area about the size of Texas … 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Dr Cooke said.
Dr Cooke has called Port Macquarie home since 1988 and has become one of the most respected practitioners in the region. He continues to practise medicine as a GP in the Mid North Coast town and in South West Rocks.
"People ask why I still practice medicine at 85. I say because I love it," he said.
North Coast youth charity founders recognised
The 2027 Local Hero for NSW award has been given to Jill Ashley and Paul 'Fatty' Ireland, who set up the youth charity Shoretrack.
Shoretrack supports disengaged youth in the Nambucca Valley on the state's north coast through hands-on, trade-based learning.
The charity has helped more than 750 people in its first five years. The founders said 86 per cent of those who completed a Certificate II pathway through Shoretrack remained employed.
"We just got to a stage where we saw all these young people who really needed some help, who really weren't going to progress into work unless there was some positive intervention," Ms Ashley said.
"We got community on board, and that's the secret."
