Recycling innovator named NSW Australian of the Year

University of NSW recycling expert Professor Veena Sahajwalla was named NSW Australian of the Year at a ceremony on Monday night.

Sahajwalla founded the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) Centre and is a pioneering researcher in transforming waste items into valuable materials.

The scientist and engineer invented Green Steel, also known as Polymer Injection Technology, in 2003. It replaces a portion of coke in electric arc furnace steelmaking with polymers from materials such as used tyres, which are transformed at high temperatures, and is currently used under licence by companies including MolyCop.

Green Steel continues to evolve and use more and different waste sources, with MolyCop awarded a $750,000 grant through the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre last month to further its development in collaboration with UNSW.

Sahajwalla also founded an e-waste microfactory in 2018 and a plastics microfactory — both at UNSW — the following year.

Three other winners at the NSW Australian of the Year Awards were named: 

• Abla Kadous, president of the Islamic Women’s Welfare Association (NSW Senior Australian of the Year);
• Dr Daniel Nour from Royal North Shore Hospital and founder of the Street Side Medics service (NSW Young Australian of the Year); and
• Shanna Whan, founder and chief executive of charity Sober in the Country (NSW Local Hero.)

NSW premier Dominic Perrottet said that the winners “embody the Australian spirit and, despite life’s challenges, they have led the way in founding social, environmental and life-saving initiatives.”

Each are now finalists in the Australian of the Year awards, which will be held on January 25 next year.

This year has also seen Sahajwalla in the finals of the Eureka Awards and featured as a subject in the ABC’s Australian Story program. 

Picture: UNSW

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