The winners this year are:

  • Grace McQuilten – to work to develop Social Studio, a social enterprise dedicated to creating employment and educational pathways for refugee youth who have dropped out of education or are unemployed.

  • Ellen Sandell – to work for the Australian Youth Climate Coalition to tackle political apathy and rally young Australians to take action against climate change.

  • Jade McKenzie – to work with the Warwick Foundation, Australia’s only charitable organisation focused on helping young adults with cancer.

  • Kristina Karasulas – to work with a community charity called Gunawirra to improve pre-school support and services for indigenous families with children under the age of five.

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  • Mort Shearer – to work for Men’s Shed, a charity that assists men with depression by giving them a refuge to talk in a relaxed environment and utilise their skills by crafting items.

Now in its seventh year, the World of Difference program has helped 19 graduates and financed 47,000 hours of charity work.

Seven-time World Surfing Champion and World of Difference ambassador Layne Beachley says that the program is unique in that it is a direct investment in sending much-needed brain power, hearts and hands out to work in the not-for-profit sector.