ABC Heywire winners celebrate the strength and diversity of living in regional and rural Australia

Resilience, courage, and the desire to create change feature strongly in the stories from the 2024 ABC Heywire winners, announced today (12 December 2023).  

Hundreds of Australians aged 16 to 22 from regional, rural, and remote areas entered the competition band spoke openly and authentically about life beyond our major cities, through audio recordings, photos, videos and written stories.. 

The stories from this year’s 35 ABC Heywire winners highlight Australia’s rich diversity and provide insight into the lives and communities of young Australians living in the regions.

Special congratulations go out to Sped from Adelong, who is the winner in the Riverina region. Sped tells the story of the Black Summer bushfires and in particular, the Dunns Road fire.

Since its inception 25 years ago, Heywire has become a leading and powerful platform for rural youth, amplifying their voices and putting them at the centre of the conversations that shape their communities.

Farmers, volunteer surf lifesavers, Indigenous youth leaders, medical students, community organisers, LGBTQIA+ allies, advocates, fisherman, and law students , are just a handful of examples of the winners who have worked with the ABC to produce their stories for radio and online. A full list of winners and their stories are available via the ABC Heywire website.