When she first began working in a remote Aboriginal community in 2006, Laura Egan was astonished at the lack of opportunities for young people to learn, work and contribute. Exposed to the idea of enterprise as a tool for development after a stint in India, Laura established Enterprise Learning Projects in 2010. Starting with a pop-up milkshake stand, Laura was inspired by the community’s appetite for learning and creativity, and has since helped a number of micro-businesses gain momentum. She teaches skills that can be applied to employment, leadership and entrepreneurship, while building confidence, teamwork skills and a stronger sense of purpose. Maintaining a deep connection to the people of the Katherine region, Laura has helped kick-start an impressive array of projects including bush soap and bush tea, a colouring book and community calendar, greeting cards and family portraits. Often living in isolated locations, Laura has shared her skills and energy with many people without asking for reward in return.

Living in a community with one of the world’s worst suicide rates, Gayili Marika decided enough was enough.

A respected elder of the Yolngu people of North East Arnhem Land, Gayili has spent a decade creating life-changing programs to stop suicide and has reduced the rate of suicide in her community to zero. Forging nationwide recognition for her work, Gayili has established strong partnerships to form a suicide prevention group that remains on 24/7 alert. To standing ovations, Gayili has presented at suicide prevention summits. She’s helped stage performance plays for school students to tackle the tough issues, organised celebrations with bush food and dance, and was the master of ceremonies at a conference held in the Yolngu language. Her work has progressed to domestic violence counselling, and she now runs a safe house. A trained health worker and artist, Gayili has drawn on deep reserves of strength and determination to ensure there are no more losses to suicide on her watch.

For the past four years, Tejinder Pal Singh has dedicated the last Sunday of each month to feeding poor and needy locals of northern Darwin. After a gruelling 12-hour shift driving a taxi, Tejinder spends five hours cooking up a storm in his kitchen, preparing 80 kilograms of vegetarian curry and rice which he then serves as a free lunch.

After arriving from the Punjab region with his family in 2006, Tejinder endured a racist tirade of abuse while transporting a passenger which inspired the humble man to break down the negative prejudice associated with turbans. Funding the feast each month from his own pocket, Tejinder attributes his generosity to his deep Sikh faith. His work has inspired three other groups to take up the cause to distribute free food to the homeless on Sundays. And the hungry and thirsty come flocking when they see Tejinder’s van, emblazoned with the sign “free Indian food for hungry and needy people.”

Determined to end intergenerational disadvantage, Jane Vadiveloo is working towards a future where First Nations children enjoy respect and agency over their lives. With a master’s degree in forensic psychology, Jane has spent 20 years working with First Nations people. Together with the Arrernte people, she founded Akeyulerre to support traditional healing practice, cultural knowledge and identity. After working with town camps in Alice Springs she founded Children’s Ground, a 25-year, intergenerational approach that tackles social, cultural, structural and economic factors underlying extreme poverty and inequity.

In Kakadu (and starting in Alice Springs), the community has mobilised; a generation of children formerly not engaged in early childhood and education are regularly attending school and learning in their own language and English. Jane says her nomination for Australia’s Local Hero is a community nomination, as together they are building a system that responds to the impact of colonisation and creates conditions for children and families to enjoy and exercise their cultural life within a globalised world.