Ita Buttrose has spent more than four decades taking on some of Australia’s biggest health and social issues, and now the media trailblazer has been recognised for a lifetime of making a difference.
The former ABC chair, journalist and health advocate received the Lifetime Achievement Award at My Guardian’s annual Gala Dinner at Crown Sydney, joining rugby league star Jai Arrow and respected aged care advocate Anne Burgess AM among those honoured on the night.
For the 84-year-old Buttrose, the award recognised a remarkable record of public service that has extended well beyond her groundbreaking career in Australian media.
She is a former National President and current Patron of Dementia Australia, an Emeritus Director of Arthritis Australia and Patron of the Macular Disease Foundation.
Buttrose also played an important role in one of Australia’s most confronting public health challenges when she chaired the National Advisory Committee on AIDS during the 1980s, helping drive the country’s HIV/AIDS education program at a time when fear, stigma and misinformation surrounded the disease.
My Guardian CEO and co-founder Jad Haber said her willingness to tackle difficult subjects had helped generations of Australians.
“Ita Buttrose has been a trailblazer for public health education in this country for more than 40 years,” he said.
“From her work with Dementia Australia to her leadership on the National Advisory Committee on AIDS, she has never shied away from the big conversations, and Australians are healthier and better informed because of her.”
Buttrose was one of three Australians recognised at the event, with South Sydney Rabbitohs star Jai Arrow receiving the My Guardian Stand for Change Award from NSW Premier Chris Minns.
Arrow, 30, was recognised for using his public profile to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease and advocate for greater research and understanding following his diagnosis earlier this year.
The rugby league star has played 180 NRL games and represented Queensland in 12 State of Origin matches, but his focus since revealing his diagnosis has increasingly extended beyond football.
“Jai Arrow represents what it means to stand for something bigger than yourself,” Haber said.
“His journey has been incredibly challenging, but he has chosen to use his voice and platform to raise awareness and help change the future for others living with MND.”
Anne Burgess AM, meanwhile, received the Community Champion Award after more than four decades advocating for social justice, aged care and the rights of older Australians.
Burgess is Chair of the Aged Care Council of Elders and Aged Care Transition Taskforce, Chair of South Australia’s Aged Rights Advocacy Service and Deputy Chair of the Older Persons Advocacy Network. She has also served as South Australia’s Acting Commissioner for Equal Opportunity.
“Anne Burgess has dedicated her life to giving older Australians a voice, often on issues that don’t get the attention they deserve,” Haber said.
“Her work across aged care advocacy and equal opportunity has had a real and lasting impact on people who are too often overlooked.”
Now in its 11th year, the My Guardian Gala brings together figures from aged care, disability, health, government, business and community organisations to recognise people working to improve the lives of older Australians, people living with disability and their families.
This year’s event also included a panel of health, medical research and community leaders examining breakthroughs that could shape the future of healthcare.
For Haber, however, the heart of the evening was recognising three Australians whose contributions have come in very different forms – from a lifetime of public advocacy, to decades fighting for the rights of older people, to one young sportsman confronting a devastating diagnosis by trying to make life better for those who come after him.
“Jai, Ita and Anne have each made an extraordinary contribution in very different ways,” he said, “and we are delighted to bring our community together to celebrate them.”
