Sissy Austin has been nominated a Local Hero as part of the Courage to Care exhibition at M.A.D.E, which runs until March 31. Her story involves courage of a more subtle variety than some of the more harrowing examples told at the exhibition, which was originally started by Jewish service organisation B’nai B’rith.

But it is a story worth telling, according Courage to Care Victoria chairman Tony Weldon.

“The essential message through the program is each person can make a difference to other people’s lives. The other thing is to say you can’t just be a bystander when injustice occurs. Our key message is for people to be up-standers and to stand up for people rather than be a bystander.

“In each community we try to find someone in their community who is not willing to be a bystander,” he said. “Sissy is an incredible young women. Her speech was very powerful on Sunday about what she believes in and fighting for the rights of her people. She is not a bystander, she is an up-stander.”

The Courage to Care exhibition was started 23 years ago by B’nai B’rith in Melbourne, in association with the Holocaust Centre and the Jewish Museum of Australia. In 2000, Courage to Care added an education program to the exhibition. Since then about 80,000 students have taken part in that program, which is intended to show them the potential consequences of prejudice and discrimination.

Ms Austin is an education officer at Loreto College, and is studying a degree in social work at Deakin University. The 20-year-old founded the Namarilly Bagarook Dance Group with friend Amber Lovett, and was one of two indigenous ambassadors and representatives of the Centre for Indigenous Education and Research to World Youth Day in Rio, and is on a number of committees advocating for Koori youth.