'Powerful': Tassie takes out top Tidy Towns gong
Long admired for its fresh air, wild spaces and pristine waters, the island state has been officially recognised for its sustainability credentials.
The city of Launceston has been named the national winner of Keep Australia Beautiful's Tidy Towns Award.
The honour recognises sustainability efforts in regional and rural Australia, with a focus on waste reduction, environmental innovation and community engagement.
Launceston was announced the winner at a ceremony in Beechworth, Victoria, on Saturday night.
"This award isn't just about one town - it's a celebration of every community working to build a cleaner, kinder future and we're proud to support that mission," Keep Australia Beautiful's chief executive Val Southam said.
"Year after year, the Tidy Towns Awards show the best of regional Australia - not just in sustainability but in spirit.
"These winners show that when locals come together with purpose, real change happens."
Rye on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, Parkes in central western NSW, South Australia's Kingston SE, Ikuntji in the Northern Territory and the Pilbara towns of Port Hedland and South Hedland in Western Australia were the other finalists.
Launceston's Rocherlea Action Project was singled out for its community work, including removing 110 tyres, 1.7 tonnes of waste and three tonnes of scrap metal from the region.
The volunteer group brings residents together for regular clean-up days, barbecue breakfasts and children's activities to foster connection.
More than 4000 volunteers were involved in community environmental, heritage and cultural projects across the six finalist cities and towns.
"Regional towns are stepping up in powerful ways," Ms Southam said.
"They're not just protecting their environments - they're showing what's possible when resilience, purpose and local leadership come together for a better future."
During earlier rounds of Tidy Towns voting, mayor Matthew Garwood hailed the recognition of Launceston's environmental and social initiatives as an "incredible honour".
"This Council is committed to doing whatever we can to help ensure our beautiful region is protected now and into the future," he said.
"I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our dedicated staff who've worked so hard to make these projects what they are and Keep Australia Beautiful for recognising us in this way."
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Sky News AU
an hour ago
- Sky News AU
'I know that my mother always wanted me to visit Australia': HRH Prince Leka II of Albania exclusively opens up about royal duties
My interview with His Royal Highness Crown Prince Leka II of Albania has been over a year in the works. It all began about 18 months ago, when the proclamation of Tasmanian-born Mary Donaldson as Queen of Denmark revived interest in her fairytale meet-cute with Prince Frederik in that Sydney pub all those years ago. Few journalists bothered to mention that decades earlier, another Aussie girl met a Crown Prince in Sydney. Their love story did not end in a proclamation ceremony or fireworks, but decades of exile and upheaval that saw them perpetually moving around the world. The couple had one son, who today serves as the head of the House of Zogu after finally being allowed to return to Albania. On the evening of our Zoom call, I half expect to hear word from the royal household that the call is off and the Crown Prince would need to reschedule or cancel altogether. But five minutes before the scheduled start of our interview, I receive a notification confirming the Crown Prince has already logged on and is in the virtual waiting room. 'I hope that the hour is not inconvenient for you,' he said. The sandy-haired Crown Prince, 43, is speaking from his bright and well-appointed home office inside the royal residence in Tirana. Our interview coincides with high season for tourism in Albania, which is currently one of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in Europe. This year alone, thousands of Aussies will visit Albania as part of their European getaways for the first time, most likely unaware of the Crown Prince's family link to Australia. 'Five years ago before the pandemic, we had three million tourists and I think the Ministry of Culture foresees 11 million tourists this year,' Leka II said. 'Albania is a country which is in a transition. 'We're a country which has beautiful beaches - we share the Ionian sea with Greece - and we have the ancient history of all the empires, from the Romans, the Persians, and the Ottomans, to our own dynasties in history.' The history of the monarchy in Albania is a relatively short but tragic tale of a country caught in the crossroads of ideology - first fascism, then communism. Albania was officially proclaimed a monarchy in 1928, at which time Leka II's grandfather acceded to the throne as Zog I, King of the Albanians. In 1939, Zog I and his wife Queen Geraldine were forced into exile with their newborn son Leka I (Leka II's father) after Italy invaded the country and Benito Mussolini barred the King from returning to Albania. After the war, a communist regime was installed and Albania was largely sealed off to the outside world, leaving the royal family effectively stateless. Decades of harsh communist rule under dictator Enver Hoxha followed before the country transitioned to a democracy in 1991. In 2003, the Albanian Parliament passed a law recognising the royal family and granting them a special status, which enabled the family to come home without restoring them in an official capacity. 'It's the first step in giving certain amounts of recognition and allowing us to play a role within a society while being part of the diplomatic life of the society as well,' Leka II said. Today, the southern European country of about 2.7 million people is enjoying a major economic upswing and is eyeing accession into the EU in the coming years. The country now enjoys relative political stability and a building boom is currently transforming the face of Tirana. Of all the non-reigning monarchies in Europe, the Crown Prince has arguably carved out the most compelling role for a hereditary royal living in a modern republic. He enjoys limited recognition within Albania's present political structure and works as an informal roving ambassador for the country abroad. Just weeks ago, Leka II was made an honorary ambassador to the State of Louisiana by Republican Governor Jeff Landry. In 2016, the Albanian government even gave permission for the royal family to use the former Royal Palace – now the president's official residence - for Leka II's wedding to actress Elia Zaharia. The guest list featured a Madame Tussaud's-worthy selection of reigning and non-reigning royals from across Europe, including Queen Sofia of Spain and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. The royal couple divorced last year but continue to co-parent their daughter Princess Geraldine – the presumed heir to the Albanian throne. In recent years, some of the other royal properties have been returned to the family, including the impressive Royal Villa of Durrës in Albania's second largest city. The former summer residence sits atop a hill overlooking the Adriatic Sea but has fallen into ruin after decades of neglect and earthquakes in the area. Restoring the crumbling residences is an 'incredible challenge' for Leka II. So much so that he recently opted to sell the Royal Villa to a businessman who can properly fund the restoration. 'The new owner is a very, very successful businessman, and he's taking up the incredible challenge to rehabilitate, to rebuild the villa, which unfortunately due to the earthquakes and due to mismanagement and being destroyed, really needs that TLC,' he said. While Leka II credits his father Leka I for instilling in him a drive to serve the country, he was equally influenced by his 'very loving' mother Princess Susan. Leka II says he is 'very proud' of his Australian heritage and credits his late mother's Aussie roots for instilling in him both 'openness' and an uncanny ability to 'read the room'. Born Susan Barbara Cullen-Ward in Sydney, Leka II's mother came from a good eastern suburbs family before meeting the exiled Crown Prince of Albania at a dinner party in the mid-1970s. The couple wed in a small civil ceremony in Biarritz in 1975 and lived in exile in Spain, Zimbabwe and finally South Africa, where they welcomed Leka II in 1982. 'My mother was a fourth-generation Australian,' he said. 'I believe - and I'm not certain about this so maybe some verification could be made - that she was a descendent of Banjo Paterson.' Leka II says he hopes to visit Australia soon and reconnect with cousins and relatives from the Cullen and Ward families. 'My cousins are all pushing for me to come and visit hopefully next year,' he said. 'I know that my mother always wanted me to visit Australia.' Leka II was largely raised in exile in South Africa with his parents in what one 1980s feature by The Australian Women's Weekly gently described as 'reduced circumstances'. Growing up, nobody at school knew Leka II's true identity and he only got a sense of his royal lineage when interacting with the Albanian diaspora on holidays to Europe. I ask the Crown Prince whether his relatively normal upbringing was a blessing in some ways. After all, Prince Harry's memoir Spare was a pretty damning account about the pitfalls of growing up as a royal Prince in the media's glare. 'I had a very normal youth as a child, but at the same time, meeting the diaspora I felt the pressures of position,' he said. 'When we finally came back to Albania in 2002, I was really pushed into the deep end.' Sadly, Susan died in 2004 at age 63 from cancer, just two years after the royal family finally returned to Albania. His father Leka I died in 2012 and both are buried in the Mausoleum of the Albanian Royal Family. As Crown Prince, Leka II can be commended for restoring the royal family to prominence in the country through tireless work promoting Albania abroad. It is plausible that this goodwill could lead to a more official role for the family in the future. But Leka II says he is making great effort to ensure his daughter Geraldine, 4, does not grow up fretting over the future of the House of Zogu. 'She's fluent both in English and Albanian and she's a chatterbox in all senses,' he said. 'But it's important that she is given the best education and time will define her role, you can't force someone to become a monarch.'
Herald Sun
3 days ago
- Herald Sun
Queen Mary stung by wasp during public event in Denmark
Don't miss out on the headlines from Royals. Followed categories will be added to My News. Queen Mary was stung by a wasp during a royal walkabout in the town square of Gråsten, Denmark, while greeting locals alongside husband King Frederik. Also joining the couple was two of their children, Princess Isabella, 18 and Prince Vincent, 14. The Royal Family was there to officially kick off their summer holiday at Gråsten Palace in southern Jutland. The Tasmanian-born Queen, 53, smiled as she spoke with onlookers and well-wishers, accepting a bouquet of colourful flowers in the process. King Frederik, 57, delivered a short speech, confirming their two other children not in attendance - Crown Prince Christian, 19, and Princess Josephine, 14 - would be joining the family later as well. While the Royal Family stood on stage, the Queen suddenly flinched and touched her leg in clear distress. Both her children and husband rushed over to see what was wrong as she rubbed at her leg. According to Sky News, the Queen asked her family to continue greeting locals while she was quietly escorted into a nearby hotel by security. 'Princess Isabella and Prince Vincent delivered the goods together with King Frederik, and shortly afterwards, Mary came out again from Hotel Det Gamle Rådhus,' Danish media outlet Billed Bladet. 'The queen certainly did not seem to be badly affected by the encounter with the stinging wasp, and she, together with the king, Isabella and Vincent, made sure to greet the many citizens who had gathered in the square.' After footage of Queen Mary being stung started circulating on social media, many commenters quickly praised gracefully how she reacted. 'Queen Mary is just so cool .. no fuss at all! Love her!' wrote one commenter. 'The kids are so polite and lovely shaking hands with everyone and smiling. And poor Mary I hope she's okay!' wrote another. 'She came out after she was bitten by a wasp… so graceful.. love the Royal Family.. they are the best in the world,' was another comment. 'She's an Aussie, of course she's not only beautiful she's tough,' observed another. Queen Mary seemed to recover quickly from being stung and rejoined her family outside. From there, the Royals made their way to Gråsten Palace, where they will spend the next few weeks. Originally published as Queen Mary's shock moment during public event
Sky News AU
4 days ago
- Sky News AU
Tasmanian-born Queen Mary of Denmark rushed inside during official public appearance after shock 'encounter'
Tasmanian-born Queen Mary of Denmark was caught off guard during a royal walkabout on Monday, after she was stung by a wasp in front of a crowd of onlookers in the town square of Gråsten, Denmark. The Queen, 53, had been greeting locals alongside her husband, King Frederik X, 57, and their children Princess Isabella, 18, and Prince Vincent, 14, as they officially kicked off the Danish royal family's summer holiday at Gråsten Palace in southern Jutland. King Frederik confirmed in a short speech that their eldest son, Crown Prince Christian, 19, and Vincent's twin sister, Princess Josephine, would later join the family at the palace. Wearing a paisley-print dress by Me+Em, Queen Mary was all smiles as she accepted flowers and chatted with well-wishers in the afternoon sun, until the mood shifted during a formal moment on stage. Onlookers caught footage of the Queen suddenly flinching and grabbing her leg in pain, clearly distressed. Her children quickly gathered around her, while King Frederik rushed to her side. Mary could be seen pointing to the sky and rubbing her leg as the situation unfolded. According to Danish media outlet Billed Bladet, the Queen asked her family to continue greeting locals while she was quietly escorted into the nearby Hotel Det Gamle Rådhus by security. "Princess Isabella and Prince Vincent delivered the goods together with King Frederik, and shortly afterwards, Mary came out again from Hotel Det Gamle Rådhus," the outlet reported (as translated by "The queen certainly did not seem to be badly affected by the encounter with the stinging wasp, and she, together with the king, Isabella and Vincent, made sure to greet the many citizens who had gathered in the square." Footage of the moment quickly gained traction on social media, with one user captioning the clip: "Sadly Queen Mary was stung by a wasp (she dealt with it like the champion she is) I wish her a speedy recovery." Comments poured in online, with many praising Mary's poise and her children's supportive response. "The kids are so polite and lovely shaking hands with everyone and smiling. And poor Mary I hope she's okay!" one royal fan wrote. "They are the sweetest children. And Mary came out again even after she was bitten by a wasp… so graceful.. love the Royal family.. they are the best in the world," another added. "Queen Mary is just so cool .. no fuss at all! Love her!' said a third, while someone else commented: 'She is one tough Aussie our Mary!' After recovering from the sting, Queen Mary rejoined her family as they made their way to Gråsten Palace, where the royals will spend the coming weeks. The Baroque-style palace carries sentimental value for the Danish royal family. It was gifted to King Frederik's grandfather, King Frederik IX, upon his marriage to Ingrid of Sweden, and has remained a beloved summer retreat ever since.
