Arabic version: فانيسا بيروتا تُسمّى أسترالية العام في نيو ساوث ويلز
According to ABC News, marine scientist and science communicator Vanessa Pirotta has been named the 2027 Australian of the Year for New South Wales at a ceremony on Wednesday night. Dr Pirotta will represent the state at the national awards, which are due to be announced on January 25, 2027.
The Sydney whale expert has pioneered drone-based techniques to assess whale health, collecting samples from whales’ blowholes when the animals surface to breathe. Five years ago, she established the Wild Sydney Harbour citizen science project, which asks residents and visitors to report marine-creature sightings to help build a profile of wildlife in the harbour.
Dr Pirotta also promotes women’s participation in STEAM careers and works with the Gamay Rangers, an Indigenous ranger group in Sydney’s Botany Bay, to monitor marine populations. Raised on a farm in Murrumbateman near Canberra, she said films including Free Willy and David Attenborough documentaries inspired her path into marine science. “We need to understand our blue backyard better,” she said.
Other NSW honours went to Community Shark Bite Kits founder Danny Schouten, named 2027 Young Australian of the Year; pilot doctor David Cooke, named 2027 Senior Australian of the Year; and Shoretrack founders Jill Ashley and Paul “Fatty” Ireland, who received the 2027 Local Hero award. Schouten’s kits, containing tourniquets, compression bandages, gloves and treatment instructions, are installed at more than 350 beaches nationally. Shoretrack supports disengaged young people in the Nambucca Valley through hands-on, trade-based learning and has helped more than 750 people in five years.
