Competitions

My First Speech Competition 2023

Your first speech is a great way to speak about issues you are passionate about. You could enter as an individual or get your whole school involved!

Imagine yourself as a newly elected Member of the House of Representatives. Your task is to write a 90 second speech about issues you are passionate about then record yourself presenting the speech on video.

Australian students enrolled in years 10 to 12 are invited to enter the ‘My First Speech’ competition.

You can enter as a school or as an individual.

A winner from each year, 10, 11 and 12, will be invited to Canberra to deliver their speeches live and undertake a program of meetings at Parliament House.

Entries close at 5pm AEST on Friday 11 August 2023.

Find out more and enter here.

BIOTech Futures Challenge 2023

BIOTech Futures is on the hunt for bright high school students with fresh ideas from around the globe. If you have an idea that solves a problem, we want to hear about it.

The Challenge gives students in years 9-12 the opportunity to develop solutions to current real-world challenges. They will be encouraged to use an innovative approach in designing and developing their solution and will be guided throughout their project by mentors with experience in the field such as academics, researchers, and university students.

By participating in this program, students will gain valuable first-hand experience in scientific research, be inspired to tackle real-world problems and have the opportunity to form lasting bonds with world-class researchers. The Challenge also gives students the opportunity to present their work to academics, biotech industry representatives, and their peers.

Students will work individually or in teams of up to 5 and either pick a project or come up with an idea of their own to pursue.

Registrations are open now and close 1 September.

Find out more and enter here.

The ABC Heywire Competition 2024

Open to people aged 16-22, living in regional or rural Australia. Heywire encourages young people to tell stories about their life outside the major cities in text, photo, video or audio format.

Each year, every ABC regional station selects a winning Heywire Competition entry to represent their part of Australia. You can submit your story in text, video, photo or audio format.

Winners will get the chance to work with ABC staff to produce their story to be featured on on the ABC across Australia and internationally. Competition winners also score an all-expenses-paid trip to the Heywire Summit, designed to ensure their voices are heard in Canberra and around the nation.

The 2024 competition is open now and closes on 1 September 2023.

Find out more, get some inspiration and submit your entry here: https://www.abc.net.au/heywire/competition/