Wild dolphins, marine conservation and an inspiring 17-year-old volunteer

A South West teenager spends one day helping visitors learn about Bunbury’s wild dolphins, the next playing piano for aged care residents, then patrolling the beach or leading a school service project. That’s 17-year-old Dalyellup local Isabella Chalker.

A nominee for WA Young Volunteer of the Year, Isabella is one of hundreds of young people giving back to their communities every day.

Isabella first was inspired to volunteer because she wanted to share her skills and passions with others.

“I’ve always felt that if you have a skill or a bit of spare time, the most meaningful thing you can do is share it with others. So, I started saying yes to things. Surf patrol on Sundays at Dalyellup, volunteering at the Dolphin Discovery Centre, helping out at the Bunbury Eisteddfod, and getting involved with the Zonta Club. Each one led to the next, and the best part about volunteering and getting involved is the people you meet. I’ve met so many inspiring people from all different walks of life through my volunteering and it has really changed my perspective of the world and opened my eyes.”

With so many volunteering commitments, from aged care to environmental education and youth advocacy, how do you manage your time and maintain focus on each role?

I think the key is that I enjoy doing it all, and I’m so passionate about it. When you care about something, finding the time feels different because you truly want to be there and you are just enjoying connection with others and being involved. Whether its Sunday patrols at the surf club, weekly visits to Bethanie, Z Club, Youth Parliament, or the Dolphin Discovery Centre, each one gives me something so different, and they really balance and ground me, and make me who I am. Volunteering allows me to engage with my community, and I get to be involved and meet so many new people.

How do you see your volunteering influencing the lives of the residents, fellow students, or other members of the community?

I think the impact shows up most in small, real moments rather than big outcomes. At Bethanie, it’s in the way residents engage, sharing their stories and listen to the music. It creates a space where people feel seen and connected, which can really change the tone of their day.

Within Z Club, I’ve seen a shift from interest to action. So many people want to help, and you can see their perspective change when their effort has a real outcome. Our Birthing Kit Project Day was extremely successful, and we put together 100 kits in an hour session, and knowing those would go to women without access to proper medical care made the impact feel very real. It showed people that what they do can directly help someone else.

Whether I’m on the beach with the surf club and Dolphin Discovery Centre or advocating through the Bunbury Youth Advisory Council and Youth Parliament, my goal is the same: being there for others. I’m just focused on showing up and making a real difference in the community.

More broadly, I think it helps normalise being involved in your community. It shows that giving your time is not something distant or difficult, it is something you can do in a very real and immediate way, and that it actually matters.

What would you say to other young people who want to make a difference in their communities but aren’t sure where to start?

It sounds cliché because we hear it all the time, but just giving things a go.

Start with whatever you already have and share what you’re passionate about. You don’t need to have it all figured out.

I play and love piano, so I went to an aged care home to share music with the residents. I live near the beach, so I signed up for the surf club. I and my friends cared making a difference in our community and gender equality, was so I started a club at my school. None of those starting points were complicated, they just required giving things a go, and trying new things out. And then one thing leads to another.

I never planned to be involved in as many things as I am now, it just grew from saying yes and falling in love with what I’m doing. I believe the best thing you can do is just start somewhere and let it grow from there, because there is never a more perfect time than right now.