(Transcript from World News Australia Radio)
READ THE FULL LIST OF RECIPIENTS HERE
Former politicians, sportspeople and community workers are among the more than 570 people awarded an Order of Australia.
A strong advocate for multiculturalism throughout his 20 years in federal parliament, former Liberal MP Petro Georgiou has been made an Officer in the General Division of the Order of Australia.
Mr Georgiou retired from politics three years ago and is now a research fellow at the University of Melbourne.
Along with a group of fellow Liberal MPs, he pushed successfully for the Howard Government to release children from immigration detention.
On the Labor side of politics, former Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) President and backbencher Jennie George has also been made an Officer in the General Division for her contribution to industrial relations and politics.
This year's Queens Birthday Honours List includes a number of pioneers in their chosen careers.
When Colin Dillon became a police officer in Queensland in the 1960s, he was one of the first Indigenous Australians in the force in that state.
After a successful career which led him to the position of inspector, he became the first police officer to volunteer information on corruption in the Queensland police force during the Fitzgerald inquiry in the 1980s.
Mr Dillon has now been honoured as a Member of the Order of Australia in the General Division.
He says he wants to use the award to campaign on issues that concern him, including the over-representation of Indigenous Australians in prisons.
Mr Dillon believes all levels of government need to start consulting more with the Indigenous community to try and come up with effective ways of tackling problems.
Another pioneer recognised in the Honours List is Adelaide lawyer Claudia Cream.
Ms Cream became the first Asian-born solicitor or barrister to be admitted to the South Australian Supreme Court in the early 1980s.
Since that time, she has provided legal advice to migrants and refugees, in some cases for free, and also worked for a number of multicultural organisations in South Australia.
Ms Cream says she feels honoured to receive an Order of Australia Medal for her service to the Chinese Community.
She says she is pleased to see how the legal profession has become a lot more culturally diverse in Australia compared with when she began her practice in Adelaide.
"Now it's different because there are quite a lot of Asians studying law. I think the problem back in those days was a language barrier. But don't forget some of the Asians now, they were born here and it's much easier for them to speak English fluently."
A number of other recipients have also been honoured for their work with migrants and refugees.
The President of the Somali Australian Development Organisation, Abdirahahman Mohamud migrated, to Brisbane 15 years ago.
Experiencing some of the dilemmas faced by refugees first-hand, he set up an organisation to provide migrant resettlement services and to raise funds to help Somalis still living overseas in refugee camps.
Mr Mohamud has been honoured for his community work with a Medal of the Order of Australia.
He says he wants to use the award to lobby the Australian government to accept more Somali refugees.
"There are over two million Somalis internally displaced people inside Somalia and I will use this opportunity to meet politicians and everyone I believe can assist. Australia is the best friend that Somalis have in the Western world and I hope Australians can do more."
Alongside community workers like Mr Mohamud, the Honours List also includes a number of prominent sportspeople.
2011 Tour De France winner Cadel Evans has been made a Member of the Order of Australia, as has world motorcycling champion Casey Stoner.
A sporting official from Melbourne has also been recognised in the Honours List for his contribution to the Maccabiah Games, seen by many as the Jewish Olympics.
Harry Procel has been involved in the Maccabi Movement for over 40 years and will be leading the Australian delegation to this year's Games, which get underway next month in Israel.
He has been recognised for his work with an Order of Australia Medal.
Mr Procel says he is proud to see the way the Maccabi Games has grown to cover nine thousand athletes from 70 different countries and he wants to use his award to promote it further around the globe.
"One of the things that the Maccabi World Union Movement has been doing is looking for lost communities - small, Jewish communities around the world in places like Cuba, Palau and some of the very small communities and encouraging them to come to the Maccabi Games. Personally and through Macabbi Australia, we've worked with countries like Hong Kong over recent times and it's really wonderful to see some of the smaller communities getting involved in the Games."
Prominent academic and law practitioner, Professor James Crawford, is the recipient of the highest honour, the Companion of the Order of Australia award.
Professor Crawford has become universally known as one of the word's most distinguished international lawyers.
