Two great north west Queenslanders - Indigenous leader Colin Saltmere and Professor Sabina Knight - have been granted membership of the Order of Australia.
Colin Saltmere received the AM for significant service to the Indigenous communities of north west Queensland.
The 62-year-old Camooweal native is a proud Indjalandji-Dhidhanu man who lives and works on his traditional country with a long career helping develop Indigenous communities' skills and employability.
He formed the Myuma Group 15 years ago after seeing first-hand the problems facing Indigenous people while working at the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and he was co-founder of the Dugalunji Aboriginal Corporation (now part of the Myuma Group) in 1997.
He is a member of many Indigenous committees and was chair of the Mount Isa-Gulf Region, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, 1994-1999.
Mr Saltmere was nominated for Australian of the Year in 2021.
Professor Sabina Knight, the head of the Murtupuni Centre for Remote and Rural Health in Mount Isa received the award for significant service to rural and remote health, nursing and education.
Prof Knight has been director of the James Cook University facility since 2011 and has been responsible for the expansion of the University Department of Rural Health across outback Queensland and Western Cape.
Prof Knight said she has had a very rich and professionally challenging career as a remote area nurse, health advocate and academic and wouldn't have wished it otherwise.
"I love mentoring young and emerging nurse and health leaders - it give me a real kick to see them grow and become influential," Prof Knight said.
"I'm most proud of the organisations and programs I've been part of establishing in the Council of Remote Area Nurse of Australia and then the National; Rural Health Alliance and what they have gone on to achieve, the CARPA Clinical evidence guidelines for remote practitioners since 1989 and of the work we do from here in Mount Isa in building a health workforce in and for outback Australia.
"Remote Australia is a rich tapestry, a place of wonderful people, landscapes and opportunity - it runs deep in my veins. I've also enjoyed bringing all that experience together to contribute to the National COVID 19 Clinical Evidence Taskforce in this extraordinary year we have had."
At the university she has been an academic board member from 2015-2018 and an advisory committee member at the Australian Institute for Tropical Medicine, since 2013.
Prof Knight has had numerous roles in rural health including chairing the Australian Rural Health Education Network 2014-2018, a director and former chair, Australian Rural Health Education Foundation, a member of the Townsville and North West Queensland, Regional Development Australia, since 2013, a former coordinator at the Centre for Remote Health, Alice Springs, a founding member and chair of the National Rural Health Alliance and a board member of North West Medicare Local and Western Queensland PHN.
She has held numerous advisory roles including being a steering committee member of the National COVID-19 Clinical Evidence Taskforce and advisor to Federal Minister for Rural Health Round Table.
She was inaugural vice president and later president of the Council of Remote Area Nurses of Australia as well as holding down numerous nursing roles.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
