The Goodness Awards!

Continuing its success in 2013, the annual Goodness Sustainability and Innovation Festival held its “Goodness Awards” night on Friday 16 August.

The Goodness Awards showcase and celebrate individuals and organisations in the Mid West who have made significant contributions to our community.

150 people attended the event to hear guest speakers Derek Councillor, Sue Middleton (Australian Rural Woman of the Year 2010), Professor Tony Wong, Hugh Adamson from CoDesign Studios and Senator Scott Ludlam, who all spoke on the topic of Goodness as it related to leadership, science, urban design and politics.

The awards received 53 nominations across nine categories from across the Midwest, judged on the quality of their idea, level of innovation in the execution and the social or environmental impact of their organisation, project or venture.

Award winners in each category included:

• Rangeway Primary School won the Innovation Award sponsored by Regional Development Australia Midwest Gascoyne

• Drummond Cove Progress Association won the Leadership Award

• Stan Maley won the Judge’s Choice Award sponsored by Bendigo Bank – Geraldton Community Bank Branch

• Yamatji Brother’s Dance Group won the Culture Award sponsored by the WA Museum Geraldton

• NACC’s Beach Monitoring Smartphone App won the Digital Award sponsored by Node1 Internet

• Rigter’s IGA energy efficiency project won the Clean Energy Award sponsored by West Coast Sustainability and Footprint Free

• Jenna Brooker won the NRM Award sponsored by the Northern Agricultural Catchments Council

• Dan Clarke won the Education Award sponsored by Geraldton Regional Community Education Centre

• Abrolhos Islands Photovoice and Seeing Change project team won the Science Award sponsored by Inspiring Australia

Pictured are, from left; Greg Finlayand and Leonie Noble of Abrolhos Islands Photovoice and Seeing Change project team, Gavin Hirschhausen of Drummond Cove Progress Association, Hayden Hebiton of Rigters Supa IGA, Charles Mallard of Yamatji Brothers Dance Group, Stan Maley, Dan Clarke, Rangeway Primary School principal Jacqui Quartermaine, Mic Payne of Northern Agricultural Catchments Council and Shelley Spriggs on behalf of Jenna Brooker. Photo: Jane Kennedy.  

The 15-day long Goodness festival continues this week with a lunchtime talk on collaborative land management, sidewalk astronomy session and major exhibition on Saturday the 24th of August at the Queen Elizabeth Centre. Details of all events are available at www.goodness.org.au