Ms Amanda McKenzie video

Voice-over: "Amanda McKenzie has established herself as a leader and expert in climate change awareness and youth community participation."

Amanda McKenzie: "Monash was where I first really started studying the climate change issue in reference to politics and law so I did my honours project on emissions trading and how it related to the global carbon market so that’s really put me in good stead for the work that I have done in the years after that."

Voice-over: "In 2006 Ms McKenzie co-founded the Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC) after reading Tim Flannery’s book The Weather Makers. The AYCC is now the largest youth-run organisation in Australia, with 50,000 members."

Amanda McKenzie: "I think what I really love the most about working with the AYCC is the passionate people I work with. I work with these amazing young people from all around the country that mainly do it on a volunteer basis and just put their absolute heart and soul into it and do it for not only themselves but for the other young people and everyone around the world as well as their children and potential grand children."

Voice-over: "As part of her role as co-director of the AYCC, Ms McKenzie has led Australian youth delegations to the United Nations’ Climate Conferences in Poznan and Copenhagen. But it was a conference in Bali that was her most memorable."

Amanda McKenzie: "At the end of that a women called Claire, who was a young women from Kirabus, stood up and thanked us all for the work we’d been doing. And she told us about how her homeland was only two metres above the sea and her fears about what that would mean for her community, her culture and potentially if they were evacuated down the track. And that moment was really humbling for me but also made me think that this is definitely the work I should be doing."

Voice-over: "Ms McKenzie’s goal is to see the AYCC become the largest youth climate change organisation in the world. She believes they can support many more young people to begin similar initiatives."

Amanda McKenzie: "The mission of the AYCC is to mobilise our generation to solve the climate crisis. So our goal is to keep mobilising more and more young people both in Australia but also connecting them with other young people around the world. Personally I think I will be working on climate change for a long time to come."

Voice-over: "Her advice to other young Monash graduates?"

Amanda McKenzie: "There’ll never be a better time to follow your dreams so grab that passion and run with it."

Voice-over: "Monash University commends Ms Amanda McKenzie for being an outstanding role model and youth leader for action on climate change."

Description: Ms Amanda McKenzie (LLB(Hons) 2008) Distinguished Young Alumni Award 2010

Video ends.