A Syrian dissident who escaped civil war and a Ukrainian teacher have been recognised as advocates for asylum seekers and refugees.
The pair were given humanitarian awards at an event hosted by the Refugee Council of Australia and NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors.
NSW Governor Margaret Beazley presented the awards on Wednesday night, with recipients across education, business, sport and the regions.
Odarka Brecko, 71, principal of St Andrew's Ukrainian School in western Sydney, has been a passionate promoter of the Slavic language for 50 years but her award took on more significance after the Russian invasion.
"I am very proud of this recognition because I see it as a recognition for the Ukrainian community and country," she told AAP.
"It's not always a tragedy that has put us on the map for the world - it's something positive.
"I feel it (the award) is not just for me but it represents everybody (in Ukraine)."
Ms Brecko's parents came to Australia as refugees in the 1950s and were placed in detention camps.
The camps became sites of a linguistic renaissance where her parents taught children to hold onto their culture and language.
The tradition has come full circle as Ukrainians cling to their language while defending their country.
"Our culture is being destroyed in front of our eyes," Ms Brecko said.
"But I feel like we're doing our role here in Australia in helping rebuild our nation."
Mahmoud Murad was highly commended for his work with disabled asylum seekers and refugees.
For him, the awards night was a far cry from living under years of constant aerial bombardment in Syria.
Having a disability did not stand in the way of Mr Murad becoming a dissident activist against Bashar al-Assad's regime.
With his background as an offset printer, Mr Murad circulated a newspaper documenting the daily losses in Homs, a rebel stronghold pummelled by al-Assad's forces.
That underground activity put him in the crosshairs of the government and he fled to Lebanon before arriving in Australia on a humanitarian visa in 2014.
Mr Murad suffers severe muscular atrophy, which affects how he walks, but that has not stopped him looking after others in his community.
"There is a lot of stigma through media representations about refugees coming to Australia who are not doing anything and living off Centrelink but that's just not true," he told AAP.
Mr Murad has an information hub for Arabic-speaking refugees to navigate the disability sector and negotiate employment barriers and works as a research assistant with several universities.
