Liam McNally
A Fraser Rise man has been nominated for the Saward Dawson Community Service and Social Impact Award as a part of the 2022 Victorian 7NEWS Young Achiever Awards.
At age 26, Michael Lim has already worked for almost ten years improving social and economic outcomes in Melbourne’s west.
Mr Lim said that although he didn’t get into social impact work for accolades, recognition from the community still feels “fantastic”.
“It feels really humbling and it feels really great to have the work that I’ve been doing across Melbourne’s west for the better part of a decade recognised,” he said.
Mr Lim’s journey into community development work can be traced back to his own school years in Brimbank.
He grew up in a migrant family in a low-socioeconomic area, and in year nine was considered “at risk” of not finishing school.
An alternative-learning program reinvigorated his education, and eventually led to him becoming a Brimbank Youth Ambassador.
He said a quote from Western Chances Chair Terry Bracks guides his work, “Young people in Melbourne’s west don’t lack talent, they lack opportunity.”
Mr Lim has gone on to become the chief executive of Community Health Advancement and Student Engagement (CHASE), has provided advice to ministers in his role in the Western Metropolitan Partnership as the Chair of the Jobs and Skills Working Group, and the Tarneit and Melton Revitalisation Boards.
Mr Lim is now the Founder and Managing Director of Beyond Value, a social enterprise consultancy that helps organisations maximise their social impact projects in Melbourne’s west.
Finalists for the Young Achiever Awards will be presented and winners announced at an Awards Gala Presentation Dinner on Friday, April 28.
