Lexie Paul

Lexie Paul was educated at Wivenhoe School. She married in 1955 and had two sons.

Lexie’s dedication to environmental protection, in particular the protection of the Little (Fairy) Penguin colonies, is well known along the North-West Coast. Lexie has been an active Coastcare volunteer since 1989. She has been instrumental in raising community awareness regarding the need to protect Little Penguins and their habitat on the edge of the Bass Highway. She has been a volunteer penguin guide at Lillico for more than 10 years and has supervised Green Corps projects that fenced sensitive habitat areas at Penguin and Wynyard.

As coordinator of the Cooee to Camdale Coastcare, Lexie has spent the past year propagating native coastal species, removing weeds at Cooee Point and revegetating the area with 2,200 native coastal species. She has supervised the Work for the Dole teams that operated two days a week on the coastal reserve. This project provided additional protection for the penguin colony through the establishment of synthetic nesting burrows and regular monitoring of the penguins. For five years, Lexie has used the glasshouses at Burnie Multicap day centre to propagate plants and to make penguin igloos, with assistance from the centre’s clients.

For the past 10 years, Lexie has conducted school holiday programs with children to teach them how to plant, make rock burrows and identify rock pool species. She also assists with the delivery of Somerset Primary School’s environmental science program, providing advice on weeding and planting.

Lexie has made a significant contribution as a volunteer in the tourism sector, acting as a guide at Cradle Mountain from 1997 until 2003. Lexie is a member of the Burnie Field Naturalists Club and represents the Club on the Carers of Cradle committee. She has been a member of the North West Walking Club for 15 years and received the Golden Boot Award in 1998 for her contribution to the club.

Lexie’s efforts have been recognised through the Tasmanian Award for Environmental Excellence and the Burnie City Council’s Unsung Heroes Award in 2002. In 2003, she was named as Best Work for the Dole Supervisor as part of the Prime Minister’s National Awards. This award recognised her contribution to protecting coastal regions and commended her personal involvement with each of the participants.