Students across the country have taken part in a poster competition in an attempt to take a stand against bullying - using the power of art to send a powerful message to schools nationwide.
Students from across the country gathered in Government House in Sydney on Friday morning for an annual anti-bullying poster design competition.
Out of the 4000 entrants this year 41 students made the finals.
Now in its sixth year, the competition aims to shed light on the importance of kindness and inclusion among children.
This year's top prize went to 11-year-old Isabella Sinanovski from Lennox Head Public School on the NSW north coast.
"I put a little bit of how I got bullied too. Someone did lend me a hand when I was going through some bullying," Isabella told SBS News.
Isabella channelled her own experiences with cruel playground taunts into her design, calling on classmates to "follow their heart, not the herd".
"Being different is unique and makes you beautiful," she said, adding students shouldn't want to be part of friendship groups that hurt people.
Bullying is an endemic problem in schools across Australia and Governor Margaret Beazley, who presented the prize, warned students there were bullies at every stage of life, and all levels.
The former lawyer, who became the first woman appointed to the NSW Appeals Court, pointed to the enormous financial as well as personal cost of bullying on the state's education system.
"It comes to $2.3 billion for the cost of bullying over 20 years if not handled," Ms Beazley told the gathering.
One in four children in Years 4-9 report being bullied every few weeks.
And those who are bullied are three times more likely to be at risk of depression.
It's an issue that was thrust into the national spotlight last year after the tragic death of 14-year-old Dolly Everett who was relentlessly bullied.
There's now growing awareness in schools and communities calling out such behaviour.
Patricia Occelli is the CEO of a non-profit organisation Interrelate that organised this year's poster competition.
"It's important to educate children but it's also important to educate parents to support their children and to work with schools. And it's important for the teachers and the community to also have a message and a strategy around addressing bullying," she said.
Another finalist in the competition was 10-year-old Sarah Frankcombe from Alice Springs.
She said the advice for her peers is simple.
"If someone's sad, help them and don't just leave them," she said.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has promised two mental health experts at every public high school to help students struggling with stress and bullying.
The $88 million package will fund 350 student support officers and up to 100 additional full-time counsellors or qualified psychologists.
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