Alice Jordan-Baird (Gorton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My community of Gorton is full of young people building their futures. In my first term I've started a tradition to recognise the leadership and achievements of some of these incredible young people, awarding students who have made a positive difference in their school and beyond. It's my great pleasure to congratulate the winners of the 2025 Alice Jordan-Baird Gorton Young Leader Awards: Carla Tarquinio, Aranha Yohann, Baraka Ngugi, Emma Taylor, Jacob Crnogorac, Emilia Garcia Sanchez, Prisha Redhu, Mila Zammit, Xander Ridsdale, Liam Bebbington, Nerasha Pathirana, Chloe Osongco, Cindy Tran, Ammar Syed, Tariq Sing. Aishnoor Kaur, Guntaj Hanjrah, Juoiwyn Benmar Reyes, Jessie Marie Poasa, Tristian Duong, Lauren Oh, Evelyn Le Rogers, April Torreon. Noelle Liang, Aruth Nissanka, Justine McCoy, Jessica Dang, Jacob Suite, Kawthar El Hawli and Dahlia Tabone. Congratulations all! We are so proud of you.

Young people offer unique insights into how the policies we make here in this chamber impact them back at home, and that's why it's so important to listen. I had the opportunity to do just that with some incredible and passionate students in my electorate at the Overnewton Leadership Summit, which brought together 75 student leaders from schools across Melbourne's north-west. We talked about everything from leadership to the importance of social media in bridging the communication gap between politicians and young people. Thank you to the wonderful team at Overnewton and the staff from neighbouring schools for creating wonderful opportunities like these for our young people to grow. I'd also like to give a special shout-out to Etienne from Overnewton College, as well as Minh from Caroline Chisholm Catholic College and Hiwan from Gilson College, who represented their schools this week in parliament at the 31st National Schools Constitutional Convention.

Singing 'Five Little Ducks' and learning how to count to five in Vietnamese, I spent this year's National Playgroup Week with the Australian Vietnamese Women's Association's playgroup in Delahey. Run by incredible volunteers, the Delahey playgroup is ensuring that culture and language are being passed onto the new generation, highlighting the importance of investing in our youngest community members. And our government is doing just that, with a billion-dollar commitment to establish the Building Early Education Fund, increasing the supply of high-quality early childhood education and care places in Australia.

I had the pleasure of seeing this investment in action in my electorate when the Minister for Education, the Minister for Early Childhood Education, Victorian Minister Lizzie Blandthorn and I opened Early Learning Victoria Garrong in Kings Park. A shout-out to the truly dedicated early learning team there. Last week I also dropped off Easter hampers at nine ELCs across our community, because the work of early childhood educators in shaping the minds of the next generation doesn't go unnoticed.