Each year on Australia Day, the Governor-General of Australia recognises the outstanding service and contributions of Australians. While some recipients are well known, the majority are unsung heroes whose work strengthens Australian society and contributes to the common good.
This year, 680 Australians were recognised in the Order of Australia Honours List. Notably, only 27 per cent of recipients were women. The Council for the Order of Australia has publicly acknowledged this gender imbalance. However, what has received far less attention is the lack of cultural diversity within the list.
This document analyses the cultural composition of recipients in the Order of Australia Honours List.
Australia’s population is one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse in the world. The Australian Census captures this diversity through several measures, including country of birth, ancestry, parents’ country of birth, languages spoken at home, and religious affiliation.
Using analysis of data from the 2021 Australian Census, it is estimated that 45.5 per cent of Australia’s population is from non–Anglo-Celtic backgrounds. Within this group, 23 per cent of Australians speak a language other than English at home.
Using a separate the people of colour measure, it is estimated that 29.5 per cent of Australians are people of colour.
Given the significant proportion of Australians from culturally diverse backgrounds, it would be reasonable to expect the honours system to reflect this diversity. However, as demonstrated in this analysis, this is not the case.