He's responsible for some of the nation's most significant environmental campaigns, but Jon Dee says one of the best parts of his job is planting trees with Aussie kids.
Mr Dee, the co-founder of environmental group Planet Ark, is behind National Tree Day, which led to the planting of millions of trees across the nation.
'Getting hands dirty'
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The initiative does more than just help the environment, he says.
"When you get a little Aussie kid to plant a tree, the fantastic thing is they get connected to the environment, they get their hands dirty," Mr Dee told AAP.
"And as that child grows, their tree grows with them and it's amazing seeing that connection grow between that child and the environment as the tree grows."
Mr Dee is the NSW candidate for the 2010 Australian of the Year, honouring his dedication to educating people about practical ways they can protect the environment.
The 45-year-old, who founded Planet Ark in 1991 with tennis great Pat Cash, successfully pushed for the three-year phasing out of incandescent light globes in Australia.
Plastic bag ban initiative
He is also behind countless other campaigns, including several recycling programs and lobbying for a ban on plastic bags.
Mr Dee is passionate about promoting the need for Australians to make small personal changes in their daily lives, like switching to green power, using water-saving devices and recycling.
"It's amazing how much difference it can make when we make small changes at the individual level," he says.
"Because when everybody does them, it adds up to a very significant result."
He recently launched a campaign challenging all elected representatives to take personal action on climate change and reduce their own carbon emissions by 10 per cent.
Mr Dee - who drives a Prius, lives in a house run by 100 per cent green power, has a large rainwater tank, composts and eats organic - says he is disappointed by politicians who do nothing but talk about the issue.
MPs 'need to reduce emissions'
"I want to make sure that the politicians don't just talk about climate change ... we now need to see out politicians walking the talk on climate change and reducing their personal emissions."
He says he's frustrated by Environment Minster Peter Garrett's inaction on banning plastic bags and that Australia lags behind European countries on making significant progress.
But he keeps faith in his country.
"Fortunately, being Australian, we are dynamic, we call it as it is and we do have the ability to get off our bums and do something."
