The award showcases the enthusiasm, commitment and resilience of Cowra's younger generation and provides a platform for recognising the outstanding contribution youth make to the community.

Nominees for the Cowra Youth Peace Award are judged on four criteria:

Chairperson of the Australian Chapter of the World Peace Bell Association, Ian Brown said he has been delighted with the response for nominations.

"We've received nine quality nominations for the Cowra Youth Peace Award this year," he said.

"The energy and commitment shown by these young people to give back to their community through helping others is just brilliant.

"Peace is a way of living, and these young people are fine role models for their peers and the broader community, embracing the ideals of peace in how they live their lives every day.

"I'd like to congratulate each of them on their efforts."

The Award winner will be announced at the Rotary World Peace Day Dinner to be held on September 23, and you can meet this year's nominees below:

Mikelli consistently embodies, through her actions and consideration, an effort to assist others.

A Year 11 student at Cowra High School, Mikelli is often seen stepping in to lend a hand when things get busy, whether it is in the school canteen, supporting her peers with school work or leading by example as the Vice-President of the Student Leadership Council (SLC).

Mikelli is actively involved in promoting peace and collaboration in the community through pursuits such as the 2020 Lions Youth of the Year and Cowra Festival of International Understanding Youth Ambassador Program.

She is currently fundraising for the World's Greatest Shave and will be shaving off her hair in October of this year.

Mikelli is also an outstanding sportswoman, often receiving Best and Fairest awards, and more notably, the 2019 Western Region Academy of Sport Chairman's Award for Overall Excellence in AFL.

Mikelli has an un-wavering calm and positive demeanour that has benefited her ability to cope with the range of challenges that she has faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, including disruptions to her schooling, social isolation and limitations imposed to her sporting commitments.

This outlook is underpinned by Mikelli's ability to recognise the bigger picture and her convictions about doing what is best for all.

In addition, she acknowledges the fortunate position that she holds as an Australian and recognises that the impacts faced by us are small in comparison to what others are going through.

Cowra High School's SLC Coordinator, Amy Mugridge, noted "Mikelli is an outstanding role model for others and carries herself with respect in all aspects of her life".

"Mikelli uses all opportunities provided to her to build positive relationships, promoting peace and community involvement."

Destiny is a 16-year-old young lady with a passion for dance and for helping others, whether in the dance studio or through her role as a member of the Cowra Youth Council.

As a long-time student of the Cowra Ballet School, Destiny holds the respect of her dance teachers and fellow students, bringing an unrivalled determination and commitment to her dance practice.

Through her involvement in the Senior Torsion Youth Choreographic Ensemble, Destiny has made an enormous contribution at the Cowra Ballet School, sharing the art of dance, assisting with choreography, and representing the performing arts at various local community and regional events.

Destiny is an outstanding role model for the younger students of Cowra Ballet School, with several years of experience as an assistant teacher.

Her students are always pleased to see her, and she enjoys spending time with students of all ages while in the foyer at the studio.

Destiny's recent teaching responsibilities include choreographing solos for students who performed at the Orange Eisteddfod.

Destiny is an optimistic young person who always searches for the silver lining in unfortunate circumstances.

During lockdowns, she has been unstoppable as a student, dancer and teacher.

She has taken the initiative to further improve her skills with deep focus and intention, when she could have quite easily given up and pushed it aside to the 'too hard basket'.

In coping with the inevitable disappointments of cancelled performances, Destiny is always there to lift the spirits of her fellow performers, and help them look for the positive spin.

Cowra Ballet School Principal, Hayley Barker, endorsed Destiny's attributes.

"Destiny is an incredibly independent and successful young woman who leads by example and shows her students what hard work and optimism can bring," she said.

"I can't think of anyone more deserving of a Youth Peace Award than Destiny Pepper."

Emily Beath-Pearce is 17-years-old and comes from Gooloogong.

Emily has been involved with the Pony Club and soccer over the years and she is also an active student at St Raphael's Catholic School.

Earlier this year, Emily jumped at the chance to represent the Rotary Club in the Cowra Festival of International Understanding Youth Ambassador Program.

She represented both the club and herself very well, taking the concept to heart and actively participating at every step while attending school and holding down three part time jobs.

The trip to Canberra and her speaking engagements were excellent opportunities that she took full advantage of and learned from.

She organised a trivia night to raise funds for her chosen charity, The Black Dog Institute, raising an incredible $7000.

Emily's choice of an organisation supporting mental health is one that demonstrates her commitment and understanding of issues impacting regional areas and that was reflected by the community's support of her fundraising.

The activities also served to increase local community awareness around mental health and suicide prevention.

Emily is always polite and respectful in her interactions with others and is known for putting others before herself.

For someone so young to take on the responsibility of organising such a successful fundraising event is inspirational for other young people in our local community.

Rotary Club President, Ian Docker, recently commended Emily on her efforts.

"It's encouraging to see young people like Emily embracing the concepts of the Festival and reaching out and helping others and becoming true citizens of the world," he said.

"If peace is about helping your fellow human beings I think that Emily's actions speak louder than words and I commend her for the Youth Peace Award."

Anna is a respected student of St Raphael's Catholic School Year 12 cohort.

Earlier this year, Anna coordinated an awareness campaign and fundraiser to support the 'Do it for Dolly' charity.

This event ran over several days and included awareness-raising and education initiatives on mental health and fundraising activities.

The impact of Anna's efforts has sparked follow-up mental health initiatives within her school community.

Anna's 'Do it for Dolly' campaign galvanised support of the whole Year 12 cohort at St Raphael's School with every classmate helping in some way with the event.

Anna's initiative was also supported by staff and the school's Parents and Friends Association, both of which are working to continue the spread of this vital information within our community.

Anna's comprehensive information campaign was tailored to fit across the Kindergarten to Year 12 environment.

For example, infants were taught about being nice to each other, juniors about online safety and cyber bullying and seniors about the prevention of youth suicide.

Whilst the messages being shared obviously assist young people to develop their resilience, the actual fundraising day was designed to be a lot of fun.

After more than a year of COVID-19 impacts, it was really nice for the school community to just have a bit of fun, whilst raising much needed financial support for the charity.

It was a perfect combination of serious and fun that many needed during the pandemic.

Stassi has been an active member of Cowra Youth Council for five years, serving two of those as the elected Chairperson.

Stassi is inclusive and welcoming and holds the respect of her peers.

She ensures everyone can have their say about issues and ideas, listens carefully and gives positive feedback.

Stassi conducts herself with dignity, propriety, positivity and respect for others, with this respect reciprocated by the young people, community organisations, and local and State government representatives she works with.

Among other initiatives, Stassi introduced the current practice of acknowledging the Wiradjuri people at the start of each Youth Council meeting.

In 2019 she initiated an anti-bullying campaign called Project Upstander, which encouraged young people to become 'upstanders' rather than bystanders when witnessing bullying.

In 2020 she championed the concept of a Study Hub to provide a space for young people to study together, breaking down isolation and improving access to IT services.

Stassi is now a Board member with the Cowra Country Universities Centre committee established to further this initiative.

A recipient of the Cowra Australia Day Young Citizen of the Year Award in 2020, Stassi continues to contribute to many community organisations including committee roles with the Cowra Breakout Association, Civic Centre Reference Group and Cowra Business Chamber.

She has also recently been selected as one of 12 members of the NSW Youth Advisory Council from a pool of 585 applicants.

Stassi is passionate about mental health support and increasing education and employment opportunities for rural youth, addressing domestic violence, youth homelessness and suicide.

Her work with Central West Libraries and Cowra Tourism complements her passion for the Cowra community and she continues to be proactive in supporting young people to deal with the impacts of the COVID pandemic through devising online and contactless youth activities to keep young people connected and engaged.

Put simply, Zeeden is a very special soul.

This compliment offered by his employer, the Cowra Information and Neighbourhood Centre (CINC), shows how valued Zeedan is as a member of their staff.

He is credited with an incredibly gentle and empathetic nature and wisdom beyond his years.

Zeeden started his journey with CINC as a Year 10 work experience student through Cowra High School.

From day one, everyone at CINC knew that Zeedan had something to offer.

When they advertised a Traineeship at the end of 2020, they were pleasantly surprised when Zeeden applied.

As the team at CINC recalls, "There was no way we were not grabbing this boy".

School is not necessarily the path for everyone and Zeedan took the opportunity to join the committed CINC team as a Community Services Trainee.

In this role, Zeeden has worked on many community initiatives including the Youth Week Obstacool event and contactless outreach projects designed to reduce isolation and maintain connections with vulnerable members of the community.

Zeeden is loved by everyone he comes into contact with.

He has such a special gift for working with others and CINC certainly hopes Zeeden continues his career in community services.

Tess joined the team at CINC as a volunteer as she wanted to give back to her community.

Tess would do whatever was asked of her and was always willing to do extra volunteering.

She showed a true passion for wanting to help and give back to her community.

In March this year, Tess was offered a traineeship in community services with CINC.

Tess has absolutely grown in all areas of her own life. She goes above and beyond each day, regardless of the task she is set.

She works with all areas of our community and treats everyone she meets with respect.

Tess has excelled in both the practical and academic aspects of her Community Services traineeship.

She is to be congratulated on her commitment - through hard work and dedication she is nearly a year ahead of where she needs to be in her coursework.

CINC Manager, Fran Stead, is full of praise for her young charge and didn't hesitate to recommend her for the Cowra Youth Peace Award.

"We're so proud of Tess," she said.

Cameron has established himself as a young man that is at all times willing to help others.

He proved this at school by offering to be part of peer support at St Raphael's Catholic School.

He is also a willing volunteer for the Cowra Show Society and is always quick to put his hand up to help with the Society's various activities.

These include the Big Bush BBQ at the Royal Easter Show in Sydney in 2021, the Ian Armstrong Memorial Service held in February 2021, the Peter McDonald Funeral Service held in August 2021 and the ADF Vaccination clinics in Cowra.

Cameron is always willing to assist others in achieving their goals as well as assisting those that have additional needs.

As a dedicated first grade soccer player, he continuously operates under a team coaching ethic.

Cameron not only has established himself as a role model at school, but in his work with the Society as well as his dedication to his sport.

Cameron is currently working with the Cowra Show Society in the development of youth programs and has been instrumental in the development of the society's data bases.

During the pandemic, Cameron has completed a course required by the Agricultural Societies Council of NSW Ltd as a COVID Marshall so that he can assist with COVID compliance.

When speaking with his peers he has recognised that in some instances lockdown was getting them 'down'.

In response, he instigated a walking/chat time with 'his mate' to ensure that his mental health was okay.

Cameron is a person who wants to continually improve himself and volunteering is part of this ethos.

He is a young man that is always willing to help others and the community in which he belongs.

Ethan has at all times shown an ability to lead, to be a team member and to assist those that require additional instruction.

In his volunteering with the Cowra Show Society, he assisted the society at the Big Bush BBQ at the Sydney Royal Easter in 2021.

This enabled the Show Society charity to raise funds through the volunteers' efforts.

Ethan has also volunteered at other major events for the society such as the Memorial Service for Ian Armstrong OAM, and Mr Peter McDonald, both respected persons from the Cowra community.

Ethan's work ethic has meant that his peers look up to him at times for assistance and his ability to mentor those younger than himself has established him as a role model at St Raphael's Catholic School in Cowra.

It is especially pleasing that during these times of Zoom schooling, he has maintained his attendance and continued to work on his school based apprenticeship.

Although COVID has interrupted his studies and his ability to assist the Cowra Show Society, he has maintained his communication with his peers and has assisted them in maintaining their day to day life.