Alanna Bastin-Byrne
Director, Femeconomy.com
Alanna Bastin-Byrne has over 19 years’ experience in Marketing, Communications and Community Development leadership in the UK and Australia. She is the Director of Femeconomy, a national membership organisation that educates how purchasing decisions can create gender equality. Femeconomy’s approved companies have at least 30% women on the Board of Directors or 50% female ownership, they believe companies with female leaders are more likely to have workplace flexibility and less likely to have a gender pay gap, which could help creating gender equality for their employees and communities.
Alanna’s experience spans a wide range of industries including Health, Arts, Events, Education, Social Housing and Tourism. In 2018 Alanna was announced as one of 80 Women2Watch in Business Disruption in US, Canada, Australia, and Europe. In 2020 Alanna was a Telstra Businesswoman of the Year finalist in Queensland and Griffith University Entrepreneur-in-Residence.
Alanna was born on the land of the Giabal people at Toowoomba, and now lives and works on Bundjalung Country.
Web: femeconomy.com
LinkedIn: Alanna Bastin-Byrne
Alison Shaw
Co-Owner, Tambo Teddies
Alison Shaw is the Co-Owner of Tambo Teddies. Her career journey has a fascinating amount of twists and turns. She is worked on a goat dairy, as a wool classer and Jillaroo, a small business entrepreneur and as an Arts and Cultural Officer with Regional Council.
Having dropped out of University as a young woman to travel around Australia, left her native New Zealand, she resumed tertiary studies as a mature age student and in 2016 completed a Bachelor of Business specialising in marketing. During this period, she purchased Tambo Teddies with a business partner. With fresh ideas and thirst for a challenge, the pair have managed to grow the iconic Tambo Teddies business and raise the profile of Tambo.
After receiving a steady stream of requests for grant writing, Alison figured it was time for another challenge. In 2019 she created a new business The Right Grant, drawing on her ability, life experience and knowledge of the funding space. She enjoys matching projects to the right fund and helping businesses and organisations grow.
Website: tamboteddies.com.au
Facebook: @tamboteddies
Instagram: @tamboteddies
YouTube: tamboteddies
Andrew Taukolo
Coordinator and Youth Ambassador, YFS Men4Respect and R4Respect program.
Andrew is an Australian male of Tongan descent who coordinates the YFS Men4Respect program and is a youth ambassador for the broader award-winning R4Respect program. R4Respect and Men4Respect use a peer-to-model to support young people to develop the values, knowledge and skills required to build respectful relationships.
Andrew graduated from Griffith University with a Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice in 2017 and has worked in the community services sector for over 7 years as a Disability Support Worker, Peer Educator and as a Case Manager for the YFS YouthLink Program.
Andrew has presented at a range of national and international conferences on gender-based violence, and violence in relation to young people. He was also a member of the Policy Advisory Group for the National Communities Attitudes towards violence against Women Survey (NCAS) which is led by Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS). In 2021, Andrew was appointed to the Queensland Government’s Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Council. Andrew is passionate about empowering young people to be leaders and leaders into agents of change.
LinkedIn: Andrew Taukolo
Instagram: @AndrewTaukolo
Twitter: @AndrewTaukolo
Anita Vievers
Executive Director, Centacare FNQ
As a strong advocate for local solutions, Anita aims to make a difference in her community every day. Passionate about working with people Anita has worked in the social services sector for more than 30 years, holding various leadership, management, and governance roles. Anita is Executive Director of Centacare FNQ, a place-based organisation which delivers services across mental health and wellbeing, aged care, disability support, and multicultural services.
Anita has introduced a range of social innovation initiatives in response to community need, whilst participating in numerous community and government boards and committees, ensuring a collaborative approach to service delivery. Initiatives such as school savvy and work savvy have engaged local level, collaborative responses to community need.
Anita is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is a Company Director of Catholic Social Services Australia, a role which allows Anita to share her passion for place-based service delivery at a national level.
LinkedIn : @AnitaVeivers
Instagram: @AnitaVeivers
Facebook: @AnitaVeiversCentacare
Anoushka Dowling
Assistant Director MATE Program, Griffith University
Anoushka has a passion for social justice, particularly the promotion of gender equality, the prevention of violence against women and racism and discrimination, therefore, being the Assistant Director of the MATE program is a dream come true as it enables her to have these conversations in diverse and varied environments.
Anoushka is also a facilitator of a Men’s Domestic Violence Education and Intervention Program, for the Domestic Violence Prevention Centre on the Gold Coast.
Anoushka enjoys facilitating training and discussions that promote attitudinal change through critical thinking and analysis of the status quo.
Anoushka was born in Sri Lanka and now lives and works on the land of the Kombumerri Salt Water people. Having had children now born on this land also, she holds a deep respect for the generations of Kombumerri women who have called this land home for thousands of years.
Anpanuwa Joyce Crombie
Aulpunda’s (Jean) art tracks her journey through country as she weaves the old stories with colours of the land in a unique spirit of discovery. She finds beauty in the gnarled tree, and love in the sand against bare feet, a love for country that brings colour and life to her paintings.
For Aulpunda (Jean) as a Wangkangurru/Yarluyandi woman, the big questions inspire her works are, 'who am I, and where do I belong?' Those are the questions she explored in her artistic journey.
Through deep listening to the spirit of the land, a spirit that beats in her blood, Aulpunda comes to her art as learner and teacher, bearing the gifts of an ancient culture to share with family, children, and grandchildren, and those not yet born.
Angela Stirton
Fitness Instructor, Charleville Leading Group Fitness
Angela Stirton is currently working as a fitness instructor in Charleville leading group fitness. She has many sessions with children, teenagers, mothers, and adults. She also offers Pilates classes to the local community. Angela is registered as a middle school teacher and qualified psychologist. In her past careers she has had worked as an organisational psychologist and youth counsellor for Lifeline.
Having experienced mental health difficulties, personally and professionally, as well as within her family and friends, she is deeply passionate about normalising the language and conversations around mental health. She is a huge advocate for physical activity aiming to bring positivity and benefits it can bring to our mental health.
Facebook: @PilateswithAnge
Instagram: @AngelaStirton
Anne Tiernan
Dean, Griffith University Business School
Professor Anne Tiernan is Dean (Engagement) of the Griffith University Business School. A political scientist with earlier careers in federal and state government, teaching, and consultancy, Anne has written extensively on the political-administrative interface, governmental transitions, and policy advising.
She is author of Lessons in Governing: A Profile of Prime Ministers’ Chiefs of Staff and The Gatekeepers: Lessons from Prime Ministers’ Chiefs of Staff (both with R.A.W. Rhodes, Melbourne University Publishing, 2014), Learning to be a Minister: Heroic Expectations, Practical Realities (with Patrick Weller, Melbourne University Press, 2010) and Power Without Responsibility: Ministerial Staffers in Australian Governments from Whitlam to Howard (UNSW Press, 2007). With Julianne Schultz, Anne co-edited Griffith Review 51 ‘Fixing the System’.
Anne is a Member of the Board of the Museum of Australian Democracy (MoAD) at Old Parliament House in Canberra. This, and her work as Co-Editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Australian Politics (with Professor Jenny Lewis), makes her optimistic about Australia’s democratic future.
LinkedIn: Anne Tiernan
Twitter: @AMTiernan
Aulpunda Jean Barr Crombie
Artist
Aulpunda (Jean)’s art tracks her journey through country as she weaves the old stories with colours of the land in a unique spirit of discovery. She finds beauty in the gnarled tree, and love in the sand against bare feet, a love for country that brings colour and life to her paintings.
For Aulpunda as a Wangkangurru/Yarluyandi woman, the big questions inspire her works are, 'who am I, and where do I belong?' Those are the questions she explored in her artistic journey.
Through deep listening to the spirit of the land, a spirit that beats in her blood, Aulpunda comes to her art as learner and teacher, bearing the gifts of an ancient culture to share with family, children, and grandchildren, and those not yet born.
Beth Mohle
Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union Secretary
Beth Mohle is the Secretary of the Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union, the largest union in Queensland. She is Senior Vice President of the Queensland Council of Unions.
After completing a Bachelor of Arts at Griffith University, Beth followed the family tradition of nursing, training at the Royal Brisbane Hospital before becoming an Organiser at the QNU. She held various union roles before being elected Assistant Secretary in 2007 and Secretary in 2011.
Beth is currently a board member of QSuper and was previously a board member and Chair of HESTA. She is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) and was named AISTs Trustee of the year in 2008.
Bec Brayley
Senior Biosecurity Inspector, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Bec has always had a keen interest in Agriculture. After leaving school, Bec spent a year working as a jillaroo in an otherwise-all-male stock camp in the Channel Country. She then enrolled at UQ Gatton Campus, graduating with a degree in Applied Science, (Production Animals) with a specialisation in Beef Cattle obtained at Texas A&M University USA.
Bec worked for two years in an Abattoir with an all-male crew, trail-blazing a path for other women. For the last 13 years Bec has been working in a traditionally male role as the ‘Stocky’ Biosecurity Inspector in Charleville. In recent years, she is delighted to have seen an increase in the number of women join the ranks in Queensland.
Her husband Chris is a local tradie who is often working away from home. Consequently, while she has a nanny during her work hours, when Chris is not there, she juggles work and parenting three small children on her own. Bec’s downtime revolves around their garden which is both beautiful and productive and the ever-increasing menagerie of dogs, chooks, and assorted feathered friends.
Instagram: @Corymbia
Bec Mac
Artist – Founder, POPSART
The core of creative entrepreneur, Bec Mac’s work is unifying communities through candid conversations and experiences as an artist, creative producer, presenter, and arts journalist.
Bec Mac’s legendry live art event LOVE TV has been presented Internationally in partnerships with multiple City Councils including the City Of New York.
As founder of "POPSART; Content Creator Conversation Curator" she revolutionised the way audiences engage with the arts through spontaneous, insightful interviews with artist at their exhibitions openings and launches. Working with Caroline Gardam POPSART collaborators have included QAGOMA, UQ Art Museum, Museum of Brisbane, Opera QLD, and Inner-West Council Sydney and Richard Bell for Embassy 2019 Venice Biennale.
Recently Bec Mac launched Chrysalis Projects with Carmel Haugh; an artist-led economic stimulus projects aimed to foster philanthropy within the community.
Her work is unique and sits at the intersection between the creative community, on-line media, the urban environment, cultural organisations, government, community engagement and the philosophy and outcomes of Placemaking.
Instagram: @becmactv
Facebook: Popsart@becmactv
Belinda Drew
CEO, Community Services Industry Alliance (CSIA)
Belinda Drew is CEO of Community Services Industry Alliance (CSIA), where she has been the driving force behind CSIA since its inception. Under her leadership, CSIA has become a collaborative, innovative organisation, building strong relationships across Industry and Government to advance the community services industry through doing business better. Her passion for social investment, innovation and transformation helped launch CSIA’s developmental and collaborative agenda.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Belinda worked closely with senior Government around strategic planning and preparedness. This led to bringing together the Community Services Taskforce that provided insights, information and guidance around the big issues facing Industry each week.
She also believes that Industry has a key role to play in Reconciliation and elevating the voices of people with lived experience, something she brings to all her strategic activities.
Belinda has extensive experience on Boards. She is the Chair of Social Enterprise Finance Australia (SEFA), a Director of the National Affordable Housing Consortium and a Director of the Community Services Industry Portable Long Service Leave Authority Board.
LinkedIn: BelindaDrew
Bri Lee
Writer & Editor
Bri Lee is a writer and editor whose work has been published in The Monthly, Harper's Bazaar Australia, The Saturday Paper, Crikey, The Guardian, Griffith Review, i-D, VAULT Art Magazine, and elsewhere. She regularly appears on The Drum on ABC TV, various ABC Radio National programs, and often gives talks on writing, law, feminism, fashion, pop culture, and art. As the Founding Editor of the quarterly print periodical Hot Chicks with Big Brains, Bri commissioned and published diverse non-fiction about women and their work from 2015 to 2018.
Her first book, Eggshell Skull, was published by Allen & Unwin in June 2018. It was shortlisted for the 2019 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards in non-fiction, winning the 2019 People's Choice Award, and won the 2018 People's Choice at the Nib Awards for research in writing, and the 2019 ABIA for Biography of the Year. Eggshell Skull has also been shortlisted for the 2019 Indie Book Awards and longlisted for the 2019 Stella Prize. Her latest work, Beauty – published in November 2019 - is a powerful meditation on beauty and body image.
Instagram: @bri.e.lee
Twitter: @bri_lee_writer
Facebook: @bri.lee.writer
Website: bri-lee.com
Christine Castley
CEO, Multicultural Australia
Christine is the Chief Executive Officer of Multicultural Australia, with substantial expertise in organisational transformation, community engagement and service delivery. Prior to this, she was Deputy Director-General in the Queensland Department of the Premier and Cabinet and the Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works.
Christine has a strong track record in delivering significant reform and innovation projects, including for adult and youth justice, disaster management response and recovery and public sector ethics and integrity reform. In 2014-2015, she led the Secretariat for the Special Taskforce on Domestic and Family Violence, chaired by the Honourable Quentin Bryce, which delivered the landmark ‘Not Now, Not Ever’ Report.
Christine is a passionate advocate for equal access to justice and services for everyone regardless of their gender, beliefs, or circumstances, drawing on her lived experience as a first-generation migrant to do everything possible to help the most disadvantaged people in our community, including refugees, migrants and asylum seekers. Christine holds a Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of Arts (English and Communications) and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Queensland.
Web: multiculturalaustralia.org.au
Facebook: /multiculturalAU
Twitter: @mda_qld
Instagram: @multiculturalaustralia
Youtube: /mdaqld
LinkedIn: /mdaqld
David Leser
Journalist and Author
David Leser is a multi-award-winning Australian journalist and author of seven books, including his memoir To Begin To Know, shortlisted for the 2015 National Biography Award, and his acclaimed 2019 book Women, Men, and the Whole Damn Thing, about patriarchy, misogyny and toxic masculinity in the age of #MeToo.
In his 42-year career David has worked in the United States, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, and, in Australia, as a staff feature writer for the Australian, the Bulletin, HQ, the Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Women’s Weekly and Good Weekend where he became known for his in-depth profiles of some of the leading figures of our time.
David is also a writing mentor, public interviewer, and Doctor of Creative Arts, as well as executive producer of the award-winning documentary on singer-songwriter Paul Kelly: Stories of Me.
LinkedIn: DavidLeser
Instagram: @David_Leser
Facebook: @DavidLeser
Twitter: @DavidLeser
Elise Stephenson
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Policy Innovation Hub, Griffith University
Dr Elise Stephenson a creator, characterised by her love of hands-on and atypical projects. She is recognised by Google and Deloitte as one of Australia's 50 most outstanding LGBTIQ+ leaders and has travelled by road over 75,000kms over the past few years chasing her passion for empowering women and driving social change. Now, she is a multi award-winning researcher and strategist in the Policy Innovation Hub and Climate Action Beacon at Griffith University. She is also on the board of queer feminist creative agency, Social Good Outpost, combining entrepreneurship and academia for social change.
Web elisestephenson.com
LinkedIn Dr. Elise Stephenson
Elizabeth Clark
Longreach artist and resident green thumb
Elizabeth come from a family of seven girls. They were all born and raised on a property in Western Queensland. Elizabeth returned home after finishing boarding school, supposedly to help her widowed mother run the property, later on she went down to Victoria to work for a couple of years.
She married and went to live on a sheep stud at Blackall for 11 years where she had two children. Elizabeth and her husband eventually returned to Longreach and bought into the family property, where they raised and educated their children.
She loves the west because of the people and what the area offers. For her, it is a wonderful area to raise a family, bush kids learn to be independent and reliable. Apart from enjoying working as a partnership with her husband, her hobbies are gardening, painting and photography.
Enrica Centorame
Founder and Managing Director, Global Forwarding Pty Ltd.
Enrica is an advocate for procurement diversity and connects with Indigenous, Veteran and Women-Owned businesses, utilising where possible diverse suppliers around the world. Global Forwarding is the 1st Logistics business in Australia to be a globally certified Woman-Owned enterprise securing this accreditation in 2016.
Enrica has spent time in the USA studying the NMSDC Model of Supplier Diversity and is actively engaged with policymakers in Australia to reshape the Supplier Diversity Landscape as an effective fiscal lever in the economy creating wealth and social impact. A vocal advocate for Small Business in particular for the International Trade Community with a focus on Waterfront reforms and improving supply chain efficiencies.
Enrica holds qualifications in International Trade and has worked in logistics since 1996.
A qualified medico/legal interpreter NAATI Level 3, Enrica has worked extensively with crisis teams around the world. A devoted mum of boys and active SES Member. Hailing from Melbourne, Enrica is a diehard Hawthorn Supporter (AFL).
Twitter: @GlobalForwarding
LinkedIn: Erica Centorame
Facebook: @GlobalForwarding
Website: globalforwarding.com.au
Faiza el-Higzi
Director, WOW Australia
Faiza El-Higzi OAM is an active community member who has been living in Australia for the past 20 years. She is of African, Mid-Eastern descent.
Faiza has worked in Australia and overseas, in the public, private and the NGO sectors and has more than ten years public sector experience in Australia providing strategic policy advice at both the State and Federal levels.
She is currently the National Human Rights Advisor for the National Council for Women and was the Economic Advisor for the Queensland Chapter.
Faiza holds four post graduate degrees in science, education, project management, and international business. She is currently the Manager of the Romero Centre, a drop-in community centre in Brisbane for refugee and asylum seekers’ support.
LinkedIn: /Faiza-el-higzi