South East Queensland welcomes Ambassadors and Great Australian Bites events this Australia Day

South East Queensland residents will get a flavour of Australia this week, with the region combining generous helpings of its best food, music and activities as part of a family-friendly Australia Day events program.

An annual highlight of the program is the popular food and music event, Great Australian Bites – this year held at South Bank and Ipswich.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said Australia Day was a time for Queenslanders to come together to reflect, respect and celebrate on Australia’s national day.

“Australia Day is an opportunity to reflect on what it means to be Australian, to celebrate our great lifestyle and to acknowledge our history,” the Premier said.

“Communities large and small are the foundation of our multicultural country, and I encourage all Queenslanders, far and wide, to come together to celebrate on our national day.

“We are all so lucky to live in Queensland, and my Government is proud to continue its work to promote our State’s wonderful diversity.”

This year, the Australia Day Ambassador Program is connecting Queensland communities with 48 proud, high-achieving Queenslanders who’ll participate in council-run events and activities across the state.

Riverside Green at South Bank Parklands will come alive this Australia Day with pop-up stalls serving up delicious food from popular vendors, while home-grown performers hit the stage for a dynamic program of music and family-friendly fun to keep everyone entertained.

Meanwhile, the Nicholas Street Precinct in Ipswich will play host to its own Great Australian Bites as part of a new Palaszczuk Government partnership with Ipswich City Council.

The event will be a family-friendly day, featuring food trucks, artisan market stalls and even the opportunity to design your own pavlova while the kids enjoy the zero-depth water play zone. 

Australia Day Ambassadors attending events in South East Queensland this month include:

• Ronnie Benbow – Founder and Director of the Carers Foundation.
• Daniel Hoyland OAM – surf life saving and Australian Air Force Cadets advocate and radio broadcaster.
• John Lazarou – co-founder of The Coffee Club and philanthropist.
• Dr Dinesh Palipana OAM – 2021 Queensland Australian of the Year, author and disability advocate.
• Leigh Skinner – Commonwealth Games para-athlete and para-sport advocate.
• Prof. Peter Timms – Professor of Microbiology at the University of the Sunshine Coast and world-leading expert on chlamydial disease in koalas.
• Taj Pabari – one of Australia’s youngest and most successful social entrepreneurs.

Dr Dinesh Palipana OAM said it was a privilege to give back to the country he loves through the Australia Day Ambassador Program.

“My family came to Australia from a country that was going through so much, including a war,” Dr Palipana said.

“Australia, welcomed us, and since then it has given me an education, healthcare, strength through a spinal cord injury, and most importantly, mateship that I will carry through my whole life.

“Australia has a great deal of natural beauty and tangible things that we can touch, see, and feel – but most importantly, it’s a country built on philosophies like a 'fair go'.

“This is what the ambassador program means to me. It is an opportunity to give back to the country that has given me so much, by being a voice for its philosophies.”

The Australia Day Ambassador Program and Australia Day program of events are proudly supported by the Palaszczuk Government in partnership with the Australian Government through the National Australia Day Council.

South East Queensland councils participating in the Australia Day program of events include: Lockyer Valley Regional Council, Moreton Bay Regional Council, Redland City Council, Somerset Regional Council, Southern Downs Regional Council and Sunshine Coast Regional Council.

For more information about Australia Day celebrations in Queensland and the Australia Day Ambassador Program, including ambassador biographies, please visit: qld.gov.au/australiaday.

ENDS