When Judith Lynette Sise received the letter notifying her of the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM), she was stunned.
“It was a bit of a surprise in lots of ways,” she admits.
“I can think of lots of people who have done probably as much or more than me.
“But it’s also a surprise that’s quite pleasing — to think that somebody has recognised and is aware of what I’m doing.”
For more than two decades, Sise has been an advocate for conservation, the environment, and education.
Her contributions are deeply woven into the natural landscapes of the south-east suburbs, and the minds of young children.
She is the current President and Nursery Coordinator of Friends of Braeside Park, where she has volunteered since 2000.
She is also an active figure in the Greater Dandenong Environmental Group, Gardens for Wildlife, and the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria — just to name a few.
But Judith’s impact stretches far beyond committee meetings and planting days.
For more than 40 years, she inspired generations of children as a primary school teacher, specialising in science from 2013 until her recent retirement.
“To me, I probably did better than [pursuing a career in zoology] because by becoming a teacher, you start to sow little seeds and ideas into children’s heads that hopefully will go through their whole life,” she said.
Her passion for conservation seeded early in life.
Growing up in central Queensland, she spent days cycling into the bush, raising injured joeys, and observing nature up close.
This grew to become a lifelong journey in education and action.
“I always liked science,” she says. “I had a teacher who opened up the whole world to us… from then on I was hooked.”
Despite her accomplishments — including winning the BHP Billiton Science and Engineering Teacher of the Year award in 2014 — Judith remains grounded and humble.
“It’s sort of like a pat on the back to keep on going,” she said.
Though Judith’s advocacy is unwavering and admirable, she can’t help but have frustrations with the current state of affairs.
“The hardest thing about caring for the environment is trying to change people’s perceptions,” she said.
“People have to be willing to accept change and to think differently. What we do has repercussions for not just ourselves but our whole community.
“I guess the biggest thing I would like to see is people thinking that we’re part of nature and biodiversity. We’re not above it.”
For her, terms like ‘loss of biodiversity’ don’t go far enough. “It’s destruction,” she stressed.
“The habitat hasn’t disappeared and hidden itself under the bed. It’s been destroyed.”
Sise says that a large problem is “Australia has a lot of nice people, but we need more good people”.
“They just want me to do it and not them,” she said.
Though she said it with a chuckle, she made her point clear, that to be good, you have to make hard choices sometimes.
“It takes a good person to stand up and say what they believe and ask for change.
“You don’t have to be argumentative and you don’t have to be rude, but it takes a lot of courage to stand up and say what you believe in.”
She finds hope in the younger generation, who she feels are becoming more environmentally conscious.
She also finds positivity in her tangible conservation work at Braeside Park.
“Most of the trees there have been grown in the last 35 to 40 years. We can make a difference.”
The OAM is just another reinforcement for Sise, that what she has done, and continues to do for the community is nothing short of laudable.
“It makes me feel that someone’s seen what I’ve done. They believe in what I’m doing — and they want me to keep going. And I will. Absolutely.”
