Taking out the preschool competition as well as the overall art competition, Ainslee said her artwork was about showing people the simple things they can do to help.

"It is about saving the world. I can help save the turtles by picking up rubbish and putting it in the bin," Ainslee said.

The Showcase, at the Port Macquarie Racecourse on March 1-2, was a celebration of the regions push towards a more sustainable future bringing together local environmental leaders and community groups.

It was also a chance for school students to collaborate and share the sustainable projects they have been working on at school.

The other part to the Showcase was the art competition where students from preschool to high school were able to submit art 

Gardening Australia's Costa Georgiadis was on hand to judge the art and said they works were of high calibre. 

He said he loved all the messages weaved through the art work but that it was Ainslee's simple message "I can help" that touched him the most.

Shannon Larkin from the Hastings Sustainability Showcase committee said she was delighted to award Ainslee as the winner.

"We had 197 entries into the art competition across all the categories and Costa told us he found it very hard to judge all the art," Ms Larkin said.

"In the end though it was Ainslee's simple but effective message that stole his heart."

The winners in the other categories were Scarlett Mainwaring, k-2, Isabella Williams, years 3-6 and Kirstin MacGillivray years 7-12.

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