From the coral reefs of Ningaloo to the waterways of the Torres Strait, Australia’s landscapes, wildlife and deep connections to Country are at the heart of the Wilderness Society’s 2026 Karajia and Environment Awards for Children’s Literature.
Six books have been named winners, including new works by beloved novelist Tim Winton, Torres Strait Islander actor and author Aaron Fa’Aoso, and a host of Australian writers and illustrators.
The Environment Award for Children’s Literature, established in 1994, is the world’s longest-running children’s nature book award. The Karajia Award, launched in 2022, celebrates First Nations authors and illustrators and their stories of Country, culture and connection. Together, the winning books celebrate curiosity, connection and the power of stories to inspire young readers.
Tim Winton and Cindy Lane’s Ningaloo celebrates the region’s extraordinary biodiversity, while Leesa Allinson, Mark Jackson and Heather Potter’s One Koala, One Hundred Trees highlights community action to protect koala habitat. Zana Fraillon’s Song of a Thousand Seas sees the ocean through the eyes of an octopus longing for home.
The Karajia Award winners are three powerful First Nations stories of Country, culture and community. Spirit of the Crocodile by Aaron Fa’Aoso, Michelle Scott Tucker and Lyn White is set in the Torres Strait. Sweet Home: Stories of Country and Family shares the voices of 28 Northern Territory students. Animals on Country by Victor and Sandra Steffensen explores First Peoples’ traditions of caring for animals and Country.
“Books we read as children shape who we become,” said Wilderness Society CEO Dr Kirsty Howey. “A great story can make you notice the world around you, the bird in the backyard, the river down the road, the creatures beneath the surface, and help turn curiosity into connection.
“That connection matters. When children develop a relationship with Country and nature, they grow up wanting to care for it, and caring is where the drive to protect it begins. Today’s children will inherit the consequences of the decisions we make now about our forests, rivers and wildlife. The love they find in these pages can become the courage to stand up for the places they cherish.
“These awards celebrate the storytellers helping a new generation fall in love with the natural world, and giving them every reason to fight for it.”
The 2026 Karajia Award was judged by Gamilaroi/Dunghutti author and journalist Marlee Silva and educator, presenter and Indigenous Literacy Foundation ambassador Shelley Ware. The Environment Award was judged by Australian entertainer John Williamson, climate scientist and science communicator Linden Ashcroft, and writer, educator and scientist Kristin Darell.
More information about all the winning titles, their authors and illustrators, and the awards can be found at https://wilderness.org.au/
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