Professor Dave Coghill

Natalie Colmer

Natalie Colmer is a Clinical Nurse Manager she manages the Community and Crisis Mental Health Teams in Alice Springs. She has worked in mental health for many years in both government and non-government services she has experience in working with both children and adults. 

Natalie was a part of the prestigious Australian Mental Health Leaders Fellowship in 2020. She has received multiple nominations under the NT Nursing and Midwifery Excellence Awards and took out the award for Mental Health Nurse of the year in 2013.

Natalie has been volunteering with CanTeen for over a decade being the sole nurse in many camps around the country. She is both passionate and committed to mental health and she works hard to encourage mental health nurses to pursue their ongoing professional development. 

Helen Day

Helen Day has lived experience of mental health challenges and was born in Darwin but raised in Canberra returning to the Territory in 2009.

She changed careers to work in the mental health industry in 2017, and currently is the Chief Executive Officer for the only Northern Territory consumer-run drop-in centre – Top End Mental Health Consumers Organisation (TEMHCO). This drop-in centre provides a range of holistic therapeutic activities to assist with mental health recovery plus encourage social inclusion.

In her current role, Helen has been able to use both her personal and work experience to advocate for consumers living with mental health, who can sense her experience, genuine empathy and can feel safe to share any concerns.

Helen is a qualified counsellor who provides basic one-on-one counselling services for the consumers who attend the centre. More recently, she has been involved in establishing the NT Peer Workforce pilot project that helps support vocational pathway for people with lived experience of mental health challenges to enter the community services sector as well as educate and build the capability of organisations in the NT to employ these people. She has also been involved in establishing a Northern Territory Lived Experience Network (NTLEN).

Helen is a co-facilitator of the Wellways My Recovery Program and a board member of the Northern Territory Mental Health Coalition and NT Consumer Representative for the National Mental Health Consumer and Carer Forum.  

Before working in the mental health industry, Helen had a successful career as an accountant working both in both the public and private sector with non-government and not-for-profit charity organisations. One of her greatest achievements as an accountant was when she was appointed as Chief Financial Officer for a large Aboriginal Corporation to assist them in coming out of Special Administration. 

Helen first developed a passion for protecting consumer rights in the health industry when she worked for the Consumers Health Forum in Canberra during the early 90s. She believes that progress is achievable when the voices and expertise of people with lived experience and service providers can work together for the same purpose. 

Dr Barbara Disley

Barbara has extensive leadership and management experience leading large teams within the New Zealand education and health sectors. She has held a number of senior public positions including chair of the first Mental Health Commission and Deputy Secretary Ministry of Education where she had responsibility for special education.

Barbara has worked in a number of non government organisation Chief Executive roles including the Mental Health Foundation, Richmond Fellowship and now Emerge Aotearoa.

Barbara has been involved in a number of Government reviews including chairing the review of the ACC Sensitive Claims pathway and as a panel member of the recent Mental Health Inquiry. Barbara was also a panel member for the Confidential Listening and Assistance Service which heard the stories of over 1000 people who had experienced abuse or neglect while in state care.

She is currently the Chief Executive of Emerge Aotearoa, a large non government mental health, disability and social housing provider.

Barbara has a doctorate in education from Macquarie University Sydney and in 2011 was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to mental health.

Annette Jackson

Annette has worked for over 35 years with children and families who have experienced trauma and neglect. She has worked across child protection, out-of-home care, family preservation and therapeutic services. She currently oversees Berry Street’s statewide services including Take Two (therapeutic service for children who have experienced the trauma of abuse and neglect) and the Berry Street School. Annette has published in peer-reviewed journals and books on topics with a particular focus on child neglect and child trauma.

Katie Larsen

Katie Larsen is the Senior Manager Inclusion, Participation and Strategic Reform at Mind Australia. Katie works to better mental health outcomes for people within marginalised populations through systemic and structural change processes focusing on cultural safety, equity, lived experience and participation. She works from a social justice and human rights perspective incorporating lived experiences of LGBTIQ+ identity and mental health supported by a Master of Social Work. She is a graduate of the National Mental Health Commission, Australian Mental Health Leaders Fellowship and is a PhD Candidate at Deakin University researching intersectional approaches to inclusive leadership and decision-making in mainstream mental health services.

Associate Professor Melissa Norberg

Melissa is the Deputy Director for the Centre for Emotional Health at Macquarie University and the National President for the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy. She convenes and teaches undergraduate and postgraduate units within the School of Psychological Sciences at Macquarie and also maintains a small private practice that focuses on providing treatment to individuals experiencing obsessive-compulsive and related problems.  

Melissa’s research is focused on discovering the factors and processes that contribute to the aetiology and maintenance of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, and substance use problems. She examines both general (e.g., interpersonal difficulties and perceived distress intolerance) and disorder-specific factors (e.g., object attachment in hoarding disorder).  

Melissa is passionate about closing the science-practice gap. Whether focusing on her own scientific research or digging into the scientific literature, she consistently sticks to the research evidence, highlighting the knowns, unknowns, and limitations of the literature. She believes it is imperative that mental health practitioners use treatments that have not only been shown to work, but that are also based on plausible theories that have scientific support. This philosophy guides her approach to research dissemination and clinical training. Melissa was recently recognised as a 2021 Highly Commended Finalist for the Student-Nominated Vice-Chancellor Learning and Teaching Award at Macquarie University for her approach to fostering critical thinking and providing educationally worthwhile experiences.   

Lynette Pearce

Lynette’s perspectives of mental health and mental health services are shaped by both personal and professional influences. She began her working life as a nurse before a life altering injury resulted in a change in career and a move back to her rural Tasmanian home, from Queensland.  

Lynette has been involved in mental health systems advocacy and reform for more than twenty years. She has contributed to the development of state, national and international projects, committees, and initiatives. She held the position of Chair of Tasmania’s mental health community advisory committee to Tasmania’s Minister for Health for six years before moving to her current role as Senior Consumer and Carer Liaison Consultant with Mental Health, Alcohol and Drug Directorate in Tasmania. As an Associate with the University of Tasmania Lynette was instrumental in developing and implementing the inclusion of lived experience perspectives into undergraduate and post graduate nursing programs in the university.  

Lynette’s own experiences of mental health challenges and her supporting role caring for family members with mental illness continue to inform all aspects of her work. A strong interest in leadership and seeking to understand how best to engage people in all aspects of systems development, culture change and personal achievement is a driver in Lynette’s current area of study, Advanced Diploma of Neuroscience of Leadership. 

Sophie Potter

Sophie Potter is the Director of Services at SANE Australia. Passionate about digital programs, she is proud to lead the team delivering SANE’s support services across peer support, counselling and self-help resources. Before her current role as Director, Sophie led SANE’s peer program through a period of significant growth.  She is a mental health professional that combines her lived and learned experience to deliver exceptional digital programs.

Sophie has worked in the UK, south-east Asia and Australia with a focus on women’s and youth mental health – most recently holding senior roles at ReachOut Australia. She has academic qualifications in Cultural Studies and Community Welfare. 

Marion Wands

Marion is the CEO and co-founding Director of ConNetica, a social enterprise dedicated to advancing mental health and reducing suicide through effective leadership, change management and training. ConNetica, since its inception in 2007 has completed more than 300 mental health and suicide prevention related consulting assignments in Australia and overseas. Prior to establishing ConNetica, Marion was a  senior executive (Strategic HR) in the ACT and Commonwealth Pubic Services and was the ACT Deloitte Consulting Change Management and Training Manager.  

Key to Marion’s work is supporting individuals, communities, and organisations to achieve their potential. She is a strong believer in systems thinking, early prevention and advocate for authentic conversations that result in practical solutions to complex challenges. She has worked in the areas of change management, strategic HR, mental health, and suicide prevention for 3 decades.  

Marion has undertaken numerous mental health and long term employment service evaluations, conducted in-depth analysis and compiled reports on hospital transition pathways for people with a mental illness, consulted on self-managed care plans, facilitated co-design and consultative workshops with service providers, carers and consumers, and designed and delivered over 100 evidence informed wellbeing and suicide prevention training programs across Australia.  

Marion is the key driver behind ConNetica’s early suicide prevention programs, which includes the design and delivery of face to face, eLearning, live webinars, and Apps. These programs have been delivered to a broad cross section of First Nations Peoples and non-indigenous people across Australia in rural, remote, and metropolitan locations. The Stronger Smarter Yarns for life program is endorsed and commended by The Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention and was a finalist in the 2018 Qld Mental Health Awards. 

Marion launched a community grass roots initiative, Conversations 500 which aims to further shift the dial to early suicide prevention. To achieve this aim, Marion created a cross sector collaboration with Qld Pharmacy Guild and PRDnationwide real estate and individuals with a lived experience. Supporting businesses included R U OK? Movember, multinational mining company Glencore and diverse businesses based in rural, remote and metropolitan locations and overseas. In 5 days, Marion gained the support of 48 businesses and filled 145 training spaces.  

Marion was awarded one of ten, 2021 Westpac Social Change Scholarships. This scholarship is providing numerous opportunities to extend her leadership, networking and professional expertise and work with First Nations Peoples. 

Marion has a Master of Education, Human Resource Studies (UniSA), a Bachelor of Education (QUT) and has initiated the process to commence her PhD. 

Zed Tintor

Zed has worked in the not-for-profit community service sector for thirty years, specializing in homelessness, housing, and mental health.
Zed specialises in values-based leadership, business and strategic development and cross sector collaboration.
Zed has previously sat on a variety of Boards, including, President Gender Centre Inc, The Settlement Neighbourhood Centre and Women and Girl’s Emergency Centre. Zed currently sits on the Board of Suicide Prevention Australia and is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer at LGBTIQ+ Health Australia.
Zed’s qualifications include a Bachelor of Sociology and Social Policy and Advanced Diploma of Community Sector Management.

Shanna White

Shanna White is a Psychologist and Clinical Consultant, named as an Ambassador for the Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Association Inc. As CEO of bespoke consultancy firm Cognitive Behavioural Education, Shanna brings passion, knowledge, and experience to providing trauma-informed practice skills, therapeutic resources, and professional development. Host of successful podcast, The Trauma Tales, Shanna interviews trauma survivors and shares their stories with compassion, knowledge, and even a few laughs. Becoming a published author has provided a platform to share training, resources and most importantly, honours the stories of those who have survived and thrive beyond their experiences of trauma.

Melanie Cantwell

Ms Cantwell is currently the Acting CEO of Carers Australia. Carers Australia is the national peak body representing Australia’s 2.65 million unpaid carers, advocating on their behalf to influence policies and services at a national level.
Carers Australia’s vision is an Australia that values and supports the contribution that carers make both to the people they care for and to the community as a whole.

Ms Cantwell has a wealth of experience in the not-for-profit sector including 14 years with Mental Health Australia, the peak, national non-government organisation representing and promoting the interests of the Australian mental health sector. Melanie has over 20 years of board director experience and has previously volunteered overseas with Australian Volunteers International. Her areas of expertise are in governance, executive leadership, compliance and accountability, risk management, strategic and operational planning, budget planning and management, policy analysis and development, stakeholder engagement, and health lobbying and advocacy.

Dr Filipo Katavake McGrath

Filipo recently joined the Commission as the Director of Wellbeing System Leadership and Insights, bringing extensive lived LGBTIQA+ and childhood experience of trauma to the role.  

In this role, Filipo leads on cross-government relationships and ensuring the voices of Māori and priority population groups are reflected in the implementation of the He Ara Oranga Wellbeing Outcomes Framework. Filipo also drives both the qualitative and quantitative strategic data insights capability approach for the Commission and takes an all-of-Government approach to how the framework is developed and implemented. 

Prior to working as a policy analyst in social, economic, and fiscal policy as well as supporting Ministers in Parliamentary Service, Filipo spent 10 years as a broadcast journalist in New Zealand, the UK, Ireland, South Africa, Canada and the USA.  

Filipo has also spent time in the finance sector as a Corporate Responsibility Manager and Strategy Manager for BNZ, and as a Marketing and Communications Manager at Te Papa.  

Filipo holds a several qualifications from AUT University including a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in the Lived Experience of Pasifika Gay Men of Legislative Change, a Master of Philosophy, a Bachelor of Communications Studies (Hons), and a Diploma of Journalism. 

Bronwen Edwards

Bronwen is the CEO of Roses in the Ocean, Australia’s national lived experience of suicide organisation providing innovative, highly collaborative leadership within the suicide prevention sector, for people with LE of suicide, communities, sector organisations & government.

Having dedicated themselves for over a decade to developing the lived experience of suicide movement, driving system reform, sharing learnings, and co-designing innovative service solutions that address service gaps, Roses in the Ocean has recently launched the Lived Experience of Suicide Informed and Inclusive Culture Change suite of resources to support services, organisations and government to meaningfully integrate lived experience in all suicide prevention activity.

As the driving force behind the National Safe Spaces Network, Roses in the Ocean have been working with communities over recent years to co-design safe spaces and peer enhanced services, including their community managed and led Pop-up Safe Spaces. Their Peer CARE Connect service provides a national lived experience of suicide warm line and in-community suicide prevention peer workforce services.

Bronwen holds a variety of state and national advisory positions, to which she first and foremost brings her personal lived experience of suicide to the table, while also striving to honour the vast perspectives of others she has been privileged to work with and walk alongside over many years.

Bronwen is the Co-Chair of the International Association of Suicide Prevention Special Interest Group: Lived Experience.