Nominate a local legend for an Australia Day Award
Date published: 22 September 2025
Nominations are now open for the city’s 2026 Australia Day Awards, with locals invited to nominate a quiet achiever, humble hero or otherwise outstanding citizen who makes Townsville a better place to live, work and play.
The awards, celebrated each year on 26 January, recognise Townsville’s unsung heroes and pays tribute to those in the community who work tirelessly to support and inspire others.
Townsville Acting Mayor Ann-Maree Greaney said the awards were the perfect opportunity to recognise those residents who go above and beyond in our community.
“We are asking for people to look to their family, friends, neighbours or colleagues and recognise the positive contribution they make to the community and help celebrate that,” she said.
“While the people who are nominated often don’t do what they do for any type of recognition, it is still rewarding for them to see their efforts are appreciated and noticed.
“We all have busy lives and often those quiet achievers and their efforts can go unnoticed, however Australia Day represents the perfect opportunity for our community to give recognition to those who make our city what it is.
“I always look forward to honouring these outstanding citizens and their achievements each year.”
Townsville’s current Citizen of the Year, Edmund “Ted” Mildren, said he was humbled and surprised to have received the honour in 2025.
As a founding member of the RAAF Association Townsville Branch in 1990, Mr Mildren was recognised for his tireless work making a difference to, and advocating for, local members of the Air Force and their families.
Mr Mildren encouraged Townsville locals to be proactive and consider nominating anyone in the community whose contributions they value.
“Receiving an Australia Day Award is a tremendous honour and it’s something I will treasure because I never expected it – it means a heck of a lot,” he said.
“Personally I have been considering who I will nominate for this year’s Awards and I would encourage others to do the same.
“There’s a lot of good people out there doing a lot of good things and I don’t think we recognise them enough, so this is a good occasion to do just that.”
The 2026 Australia Day Awards categories are:
- Citizen of the Year
- Young Citizen of the Year
- Arts and Culture Award
- Community Volunteer Award
- Senior Sports Award
- Junior Sports Award
- Environmental Excellence and Sustainability Award
Nominations are open now and close on Monday, 10 November.
Visit our Australia Day Awards webpage for more information or to submit a nomination.
