| | Master of Ceremonies - Paul Callaghan Paul Callaghan is an Aboriginal man belonging to the land of the Worimi people, now called Port Stephens. Paul has held several senior executive positions in his career including CEO of New England TAFE where he had responsibility for 1,200 staff, 23,000 students and an annual budget of $65million. He has qualifications in surveying, drafting, commerce, training, executive leadership, company boards and executive coaching. He also has a PhD in Creative Practice. His most important learning however, has been through going bush with Elders. Paul is also an author. His book, The Dreaming Path became a best seller in Australia in September, 2022 and received the Australian Book Industry Award for Small Publisher's Adult Book of the Year in 2023. It has also been published in France and Germany and the USA. He has recently written a book on leadership that will be released in 2025.
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| | Dr Brendan Flynn - ED Mental Health Branch, MoH
Dr Brendan Flynn is the Executive Director, Mental Health Branch, NSW Ministry of Health. This role provides advice to relevant Ministers, the NSW Health Secretary, and the Deputy Secretary (Health System Strategy and Planning) on trends and issues in mental health services, in order to inform policy decision making. The Executive Director also leads the regulatory activities of the Mental Health Branch in order to meet statutory and policy requirements. Dr Flynn's professional interests include medical education, health leadership and mental health policy. He is a psychogeriatrician with a particular interest in co-morbid psychiatric disorders in early dementia.
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| | The Hon Rose Jackson MLC - Minister for Mental Health, Housing, Homelessness, Youth, Water and the North Coast Rose Jackson is a Labor Member of the NSW Legislative Council and Minister for Mental Health, Housing, Homelessness, Youth, Water and the North Coast. Rose was elected to the Legislative Council in May 2019 and has been fighting for real action on climate change and tackling homelessness and housing affordability. Rose has also held a variety of roles within the labour and union movement including Assistant Secretary of NSW Labor and as an official for United Voice (formerly LHMU). Rose lives with her family in Rockdale and is passionate about making our society fairer for everyone.
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| | Matthew Trindall - Director Aboriginal Mental Health, NSW Mental Health Branch
Matthew Trindall is the Director Aboriginal Mental Health, NSW Mental Health Branch. Matthew started his career in Aboriginal mental health in 2007 as a mental health trainee with Hunter New England Local Health District in NSW. His previous role was the Director Aboriginal Strategy and Culture at Justice Health and Forensic Mental Health Network. Matthew has a strong emphasis on population health, advocacy, policy reform, governance and accountability.
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| | Natalie Siegel-Brown - Commissioner for Social Policy, Australian Productivity Commission Natalie is Commissioner for Social Policy at the Australian Productivity Commission, a member of the Queensland Independent Truth and Treaty Body, and a specialist advisor to the UN and Fijian Government in child protection and justice. Natalie is also a Board Member of Ageing and Disability Advocacy Australia. Prior to being Commissioner, Natalie was the Queensland Public Guardian. As the government-appointed oversight body for child protection, youth justice, mental health and disability, Natalie was the legislated independent human rights defender for the States most vulnerable children and adults. Her role was the only government appointment in the World with powers to investigate and intervene in elder abuse. Natalie began life as a lawyer, working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in domestic and family violence and crime prevention. Her career includes roles at the former Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission and the Australian Human Rights Commission. Over the last two decades, Natalie's has worked for communities and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations from Cape York to the Kimberley. Natalie spent a number of years as the State Manager of the Queensland Government's family violence portfolio where she was awarded for leadership excellence in family violence prevention. After managing the child protection, sexual violence and mental health portfolios of an Aboriginal Medical Service in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia, she conducted child death reviews, analysing and recommending positive reforms to address systemic child protection and early intervention failures in both Victoria and Western Australia.
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| | Professor Maree Toombs - Associate Dean Indigenous, UNSW
A leading researcher in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, Professor Toombs is a proud Euralayie/Kooma woman from North-Western NSW, and a distinguished researcher with a depth of experience in leadership roles. Working across research, health and education, Professor Toombs has a track record of impactful work, improving the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Professor Toombs is highly recognised for her work, and in 2023 she was awarded the prestigious Australian Mental Health Prize. As a leader in the field of Indigenous health, Professor Toombs was invited to join a 2023 Australian Mission delegation to the United Nations, in New York.
Partnering locally and internationally, Professor Toombs’s expertise in codesign and culturally safe practices is foundational to her global impact. She has developed models of care with over 94 different Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, improving the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
As a former Churchill Fellowship recipient, Professor Toombs worked with Canadian universities on retention rates for Indigenous students, and has developed partnerships with First Nations peoples across Canada. Her research on social and emotional well-being of Indigenous students has also led to significant improvements in the completion rates of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander university students.
In collaboration with the Faculty of Medicine & Health’s Aboriginal Sovereign Strategy Group, Professor Toombs will establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and Wellbeing Unit, that will have Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education, research and community at the forefront to ensure UNSW Medicine and Health create a culturally safe environment.
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| | Rachel Fishlock - CEO Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia
Rachel is a proud descendant of the Yuin Nation and is the Chief Executive Officer of Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia.
Driven by lived experience of systemic neglect as a child carer, Rachel aspires to create systemic change to the Australian mental health system, particularly for children and caring arrangements. She works to achieve the highest attainable standard of social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Rachel has more than a decade of experience in health, including the optometry industry and community-controlled sector. She has worked at the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) and held senior roles at Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia. Rachel holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Social Policy) and Master of Business Management from the University of Wollongong.
Rachel was recognised by Lifeline Canberra as the 2022 Rising Woman of Spirit for her outstanding community spirit and resilience in the face of adversity, continuing to push for reforms to ensure other children do not experience the same systemic neglect she did.
Rachel sits on the Fearless Women Board and the Capital Health Network Board.
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| | Professor Rhonda Wilson
Professor Rhonda Wilson is an internationally recognised mental health nursing scientist with a research focus on digital health interventions. She is Professor of Mental Health Nursing at RMIT University where she leads an innovative digital mental health nursing laboratory. As a Wiradjuri (First Nation) descendent, she is a vigorous advocate and activist for the promotion of cultural safety and decolonisation in our education, research and health institutions. She has published extensively in international journals, books and conferences. She has a track record of leading national and international mental health mixed methods research programs, including using methods suited to priority populations, and First Nations peoples. Professor Wilson has worked in a wide range of clinical registered nursing and academic roles in Australia, Denmark and New Zealand. She leads her profession in Australia as the current President of Australian College of Mental Health Nurses.
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| | Tricia Cummins - Agency for Clinical Innovation
In her role at the NSW Health Agency for Clinical Innovation, Trish oversees the strategic direction for the Healthcare Redesign program, change management, innovation and co-design capability, and consumer partnerships. Trish has over 30 years’ experience in health spanning clinical, education and change management roles and is passionate about building individual and system capability for inclusive, transformational change and making a difference to the experience of those both delivering and receiving care.
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| | Susan Pearce AM - Secretary NSW Health
Susan Pearce AM is Secretary, NSW Health, appointed in March 2022. In this role, Susan is responsible for the management of the NSW health system - with over 120,000 FTE and a budget of over $30 billion - to ensure the provision of world-class, patient-centred care to the people of NSW. Prior to her recent appointment, Susan was Deputy Secretary, Patient Experience and System Performance Division, a position she has held from November 2015. In that role, Susan had responsibility for the oversight of front-end service delivery and system performance and management across NSW Health, and improving patient experience. Susan was also the Controller of the State Health Emergency Operations Centre (SHEOC), responsible for directing and overseeing NSW Health's operational response to the pandemic. From February 2021, Susan led the NSW Health vaccine rollout program, establishing over 40 NSW Health vaccination clinics and more than 100 mobile, outreach and pop-up locations across the state to contribute to the high vaccination rate that have been achieved amongst the people of NSW. Susan began her career as a registered nurse more than 30 years ago in Broken Hill and has continually worked to serve the communities of NSW< including working in a number of Local Health Districts and subsequently as the NSW Chief Nurse. Susan has qualifications in Law and was admitted to the Supreme Court of NSW as a solicitor in September 2019. Susan was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in April 2023.
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| | David Edwards - WellMob, eMHPrac
David Edwards is a Worimi man who works from University of Sydney’s University for Rural Health in Lismore NSW as the Director of the WellMob project, under the national e-Mental Health in Practice project. David has an environmental science and Indigenous health promotion background. David is a member of the Dept of Health's National Digital Mental Health Advisory Group along with other national mental health reference groups to advocate for culturally informed practice for First Nations Australians. David is also a voluntary trainer for the Core of Life pregnancy and child birth education program for young people.
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| | Angela Sheridan - WellMob, eMHPrac
Angela Sheridan is a Wiradjuri woman from central NSW. She has grown up in Lismore, Widjabul Wyabul country in the Bundjalung nation of northern NSW. Angela was involved in the original community and health worker yarning circles with the WellMob project of which informed the community led participatory research and development of the WellMob project into its current form of a website library of resources. Angela is a grass roots community member, and her lived experience has led her to find her passion of Indigenous social and emotional wellbeing. She has previously worked in community-controlled health service on an Asset based Community Development project and as an Aboriginal health/community worker. Now she is a project officer in the WellMob website project team and manages social media content creation.
| | | | Damien House - Cancer Institute of NSW
Damien House is a proud Aboriginal man from Sydney his community is Redfern. Damien began his career as an Aboriginal Health worker working in Gastroenterology, Liver disease. Damien worked with AMS Redfern and created a successful program to educate Redfern community about the harms of Hepatitis C. He has worked with Royal Prince Alfred Sexual Health clinic before moving to the Ministry of Health working on Population health program, Make Healthy Normal. Damien has been working in Aboriginal health for the past 10 years supporting changes in Aboriginal health. Two Men In Your Head was born out of an idea to support Aboriginal men to talk about Mental health issues. Damien grew up in institutions and foster care with that comes a lot of risk which he survived. Damien and Grant met whilst working in Redfern supporting young people. Damien worked with UNSW for 8 years educating medical students on engagement practices with Aboriginal people. Damien is currently doing a Bachelor of Health science with Charles Sturt University, Djirruwang program a focus on Aboriginal Mental health. Damien's most recent role is with the Cancer Institute as the Program Lead Close the Gap, Better Cancer Outcomes for NSW Aboriginal peoples, and communities NSW. He is a changemaker and content creator of Two Men In Your Head on KOORI radio 93.7 FM Live and Deadly that talks about Aboriginal Men's Mental Health.
| | | | Grant Cameron - Cancer Institute of NSW
Grant is a proud Kamilaroi man with family ties to Tamworth and is a very proud father of three children. He began his career as a tradesman working in upholstery and antique restoration, then moved to NCIE in 2014 as the children’s services program coordinator. The following year he was promoted to youth leadership coordinator, responsible for designing programs and workshops. This included a youth camp to Uluru and Kata Tjuṯa in the Northern Territory. From 2016 to 2020 Grant held several positions with Indigenous Digital Excellence, eventually serving as national manager of the $6.5 million partnership with the Telstra Foundation. He successfully delivered a national technology program called FLINT to more than 30 remote and regional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across the country. Grant’s most recent role was with the Australian Rural Leadership Foundation, as manager of leadership programs. A key part of the role was the delivery of leadership and resilience programs in remote, rural and regional Australia. He worked closely with First Nations communities to develop tailored curricula that addressed various issues such as truth telling, gender, inclusion, equality, power and privilege. Grant is a competitive mountain biker who loves coaching his sons’ oz tag and soccer teams. He is a regular broadcaster on Koori Radio, where he discusses men’s mental health.
| | | | Bruce Cohen
My name is Bruce Cohen. I am an Aboriginal Man from the Gumbaynggir, Thungutti and Anaiwan, Nations, Armidale and New England and the Mid North Coast areas.
I have over 30 years’ experience within various Government agencies, such as ithe Aboriginal Legal Service, Department Justice and Attorney General, the NSW Police Force and the Department of Environment & Climate Change Water, Culture & Heritage Division, Hunter and New England Area Health Service Mental Health, Armidale Rural Base Hospital.
I have extensive experience, in Native Title, Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Legislation, NSW Legal Justice System, NSW Health and Mental Health policies and procedures.
Additional Experience:
- Director of the Wanggaan (Southern) Gumbaynggirr Nation Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC
- Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Officer for the Gumbaynggirr Descendant
- I have over 85 registered Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Sites, 2 Aboriginal Place Sites on the NSW AHIMS data base.
- I have been actively involved with 2 successful Native Title Claims that has been passed through the High Court of Australia within the last 5 years.
- The Wanggaan (Southern) Gumbaynggirr Nation Claim.
- The Boney (Southern) Gumbaynggirr Nation Claim. | | | | Tom Booth - Salvation Army
Tom is the Services Manager for The Salvation Army’s AOD Services in Canberra and Wagga Wagga, which incorporates Canberra Recovery Service, a 37 Bed Residential Unit, Canberra Recovery Hub, a Community Day Program, and the new Wagga Wagga Recovery Hub. Tom has worked in the AOD and Community Development Sector for over 20 years, delivering and managing services in the UK, Southeast Asia and Australia.
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| | Cathy Sheridan - Weigelli Centre Aboriginal Corporation AOD and Mental Health Field Worker, Weigelli Centre Aboriginal Corporation Cathy has worked in the AOD sector for over 15 years, and has broad experience across homelessness, domestic violence, mental health and disability supported accommodation. In her current role, she provides outreach to Aboriginal and non-Indigenous men and women across Forbes, Parkes, Peak Hill, Condobolin, Lake Cargelligo and Murrin Bridge. She walks alongside people so they can return to their family or mob, to lead happy and healthy lives. | | | | Tina Taylor - COAD Tina Taylor is a proud Ngiyampaa Wailwan women. Tina is the Program Coordinator for SWSLHD's Drug Health Services Aboriginal Health Multidisciplinary Team which provides a service to Aboriginal consumers, Aboriginal Families and Aboriginal Communities engaging in drug and alcohol use and associated behaviour. The team provides a culturally responsive service, with care navigation and therapeutic interventions delivered within a cultural framework, integrated and collaborative care for clients working in partnership with local ACCHO's. In June Tina will commence her new role at the Centre for Alcohol & Other Drugs as the Senior Engagement Officer to lead the Centre's engagement and collaboration with Aboriginal organisations, consumers, researchers and communities, including Chairing the Aboriginal Strategic Collaboration Group (ASCG). | | | | Bronwyn Milne - CICADA Drug & Alcohol Service
Dr Bronwyn Milne is a Paediatrician and Addiction Medicine Specialist who co-leads the Sydney Children’s Hospital Network CICADA Drug and Alcohol Service alongside Professor Elizabeth Elliott. This service provides a lifespan approach for children who have been impacted by prenatal alcohol or other drugs, are exposed to substance use within the family or have alcohol or other drug use as adolescents. Dr Milne has been instrumental in the development and expansion of this service, including the newly appointed Aboriginal Care Navigator position. Dr Milne is passionate about providing holistic health care to improve the health and wellbeing of children and adolescents, particularly those who have experienced adversity.
| | | | Joshua Toomey - CICADA Drug & Alcohol Service
Joshua Toomey is a proud Wiradjuri man from Dubbo, and Aboriginal Care Navigator with the Care and Intervention for children and adolescents affected by drugs and Alcohol (CICADA). With a background in adult AOD in the community, Josh is driven to challenge barriers by utilising his lived experience to give back to the community, creating opportunities for Indigenous young people and families to access care safely.
| | | | Lauren Jones - CICADA Drug & Alcohol Service
Lauren Jones is a proud Bundjalung woman from Redfern, who is an Aboriginal Care Navigator at Care and Intervention for children and adolescents affected by drugs and Alcohol (CICADA). She received her BA in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of New South Wales in 2023, and is led by her lived experience to empower community by creating safe pathways to access care.
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| | Casey Naden - Orange Aboriginal Medical Service
Casey Naden, is a proud Wiradjuri Women from Orange NSW, her people are from the Gilgandra and Peak Hill area. She has worked in mental health for 13 years and more specific 7 years in Suicide Prevention. She is a strong advocate for the people she works with and passionate about helping close the gap within her culture through improving the lives of those around her and creating sustainable positive change. Casey wants to break down the negative connotation of mental health and suicide and improve the impact it has on rural and remote communities by sharing her knowledge and skills.
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| | Kerry Smith - Mental Health Branch
Kerry is a proud Wiradjuri woman born and raised in Condobolin in Western NSW, she has a wealth of experience in Aboriginal Affairs with over 20 years working in the public sector to improve outcomes for Aboriginal people, working in policy analysis and senior project positions. Kerry is the Principal Policy Officer for Aboriginal Mental Health, NSW Ministry of Health.
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| | Malima - Weaving Workshop
Weaving is a way to share knowledge, connect to people and country, invite mindfulness, and much more. Forum participants will have the opportunity to join the Malima team in an interactive weaving workshop. Malima are from the La Perouse Aboriginal community and have strong cultural connections to Botany Bay and coastal Sydney. Everyone can join this workshop as Malima share the rich history, cultural knowledge, and traditions of their family.
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