Joanne Leary and Emma Whitechurch are Community Engagement Officers with the Medicare Mental Health Centre program in regional New South Wales. Together, they lead community engagement initiatives that strengthen access to mental health support and build meaningful partnerships across diverse communities in Wagga Wagga and Young. Through the Connecting Cultures project, they have worked alongside Burmese, Afghan, Yazidi and Islamic communities to develop culturally responsive, community-led approaches to engagement. Their work centres on building trust, supporting Community Navigators, fostering community leadership, and improving pathways to mental health support through collaboration, inclusion and culturally safe practice.