Summer's love of lake preservation runs deep

When 19-year-old Shell Cove resident Summer Brooks got the chance to help tackle environmental challenges at Lake Illawarra, she turned her passion for marine life into a fun, hands-on plan to tackle litter.

"I grew up down here – this is actually the spot where I learned to snorkel when I was maybe two or three," Summer says.

"But come down in the middle of January and you can't walk because everyone coming down with their families, and the unfortunate thing is that a lot of the tourists here don't grow up near the ocean.

"They don't understand what there is to protect ... so there's no care factor. They don't dispose of their rubbish; it just gets left on the ground." 

Summer’s lifelong passion led her to become a volunteer in surf lifesaving and with marine mammal rescue organisation ORRCA. Now studying marine science at the University of Wollongong, Summer is channeling her love for local waters into creative environmental solutions through the inaugural Marine Estate Champions Program.

"One of our professors sent out a communication letting us know that it was happening," Summer says. 

"Since it’s in my local area... I figured it’d be a great thing to be a part of. Throughout the program, [we] spent quite a few weeks learning about the lake and what issues it faces, workshopping our ideas to help protect the lake."

Summer says that one of the most rewarding aspects of the initiative was the diverse group of people involved.

"There were retirees there, there were uni students there... people who have finished their careers, people starting their careers," she says.

"Getting to hear everyone's perspectives on the issues that the lake faces was so valuable. Getting to talk with all those wonderful people and hear different stories about the lake, hear about what it was like years ago and how it's changed... was really incredible."

Inspired by these discussions, Summer put together a proposal for novelty bins designed to capture attention and encourage proper waste disposal, particularly among children and visiting families.

"My idea was novelty bins for Windang," she says. 

"Bins in the shapes of local wildlife – for instance, seals, sharks, whales – something like that. Something to get people engaged, especially kids, and to really get them interested in proper waste disposal. It's something that's really boring and a really mundane task, but I want to sort of get people to understand what there really is to protect around here."

Summer was part of this year's Marine Estate Champions pilot for residents of Shellharbour and Wollongong. The 2026 program wrapped up on May 21 with a graduation ceremony where she received the judges' award for her project  "Novelty bins for Windang – creating on-site behaviour change". 

Summer says that protecting Lake Illawarra is about preserving an invaluable natural resource and a complex, interconnected ecosystem.

"The lake is an extremely special place. It's the meeting ground between the freshwater and the saltwater," she says. 

"It has an insanely complex ecosystem that no one knows about. You look at the surface and all you see is water, but there's so much going on beneath it that we have no clue about."

Summer has created digital drawings and artist impressions to bring her novelty bin designs to life. She is in talks with Shellharbour and Wollongong councils to discuss potential details and implementation for the project.

"Fingers crossed, hopefully we can push this idea further, and maybe someday they will be implemented here." she says.