Danielle Di Carlo, 18, of Narre Warren, is a Girl Guide and volunteer with the Berwick Seniors Meals Program. She's also a peer mediator at her school, StMargaret's in Berwick. She fund-raised for the Aus-Thai Mission Awareness Tour and, from December 2007 to January 2009, volunteered in Chiang Mai, Thailand, for the McKean Leprosy Hospital and Agape Orphanage.

"It was a real eye-opener, and also heartbreaking," she says of the experience."We went for four weeks and volunteered for everything we could."

This year Danielle will start year 12, but hopes to return to Thailand to continue working with the orphans.

Matthew Greenwood, of Junction Village, is the year 10 leader at his school, which he represented at the 2008 Framing the Future Leadership Conference.

He also mentored younger children at his former primary school.

"I went for several years to my former music teacher's classes and volunteered to help teach students piano and to read music," he says.

Matthew also attended a Framing the Future conference at Melbourne Grammar School and studied with Dr Michael Hewitt-Gleeson, who founded the School of Thinking with Edward de Bono in 1979.

This year he plans to use his thinking to do well at year 11.

"I hope to go onto university to study in the maths, science and physics fields."

Ahmed Ibrahim, of Endeavour Hills, supports and mentors many students at his school and acts as a role model for other refugee students.

He is a Casey youth ambassador and has volunteered in leadership roles at a number of events.

The award-winners will be announced tonight. For results, visit www.berwickjournal.com.au