We are excited to announce Matt Montemurro from Marine Mammal Foundation as your 2023 Westfield Local Hero for Southland!

Westfield is proud to award a community grant of $20K to help Matt and Marine Mammal Foundation to continue to grow their impact in the local community

The 2023 Westfield Local Heroes program will award 126 grants across Australia and New Zealand – totalling $1.26 million to support local communities.

For further information or to discover the Westfield Local Heroes at other Westfield centres, visit the Westfield Local Heroes website.

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Your 2023 Westfield Southland Local Hero is:

Matt Montemurro

Marine Mammal Foundation

Humble. Fun. Passionate.

Passionate Matt Montemurro is achieving positive change with his innovative approach to teaching children and their families that what they do on land can determine the future of animals in the sea.

Matt is the Director of Education and Outreach at the Marine Mammal Foundation, where he develops, delivers and oversees programs for schools and communities across Victoria.

Through his work with the Marine Mammal Foundation Matt sees the devastating impact local litter has on marine mammals. He is convinced that direct community engagement and education are crucial to saving the oceans for future generations.

Two of Matt’s standout initiatives are the Marine Champions youth engagement program and the award-winning Marine Litter Project. These inspire long-term change by connecting people to marine environments and educating them about the hidden negative impacts of marine litter.

Through Matt’s hard work and perseverance, Life Saving Victoria has included his fun and relatable Marine Litter Project as a fixture of the Nippers program. Since 2016, Matt has delivered more than 60 activities at lifesaving clubs, engaging over 7,000 enthusiastic nippers and their families.

Matt feels humbled and thankful to be nominated as a Westfield Local Hero. “I know that together we can all contribute to the health and sustainability of our environment for future generations.”

The Marine Mammal Foundation will use its funds for 20 Marine Litter Project Community Workshops and online activities.

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We'd like to thank and acknowledge our finalists who will receive a $5K grant for the organisation they represent...

Benjamin Michelson from FoodFilled

Benjamin Michelson is the driving force behind FoodFilled, which helps feed 15,000 people a month. Benj has spent thousands of unpaid hours working on the program, which provides tonnes of rescued food to charities that support people in need across Melbourne. These include youths in crisis, asylum seekers, the homeless, the elderly and more.

Heather Baird from A Better Life for Foster Kids

Heather Baird works tirelessly to support thousands of local foster and kinship carers and the children they look after. Heather is the founder of A Better Life for Foster Kids, which gives children all the clothing and personal items required for their first week of care and has an advocacy line to support their carers.

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If you need support, please phone Lifeline: 13 11 14

Recognising all our 2023 nominees

View all of the Westfield Southland nominees and their organisations.