Breakout Sessions

Carolyn M. Hendriks
Professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University

Carolyn M. Hendriks is a Professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University. She is an educator and social researcher with expertise in democratic aspects of contemporary governance, including public participation, community organising, deliberation, inclusion, listening and representation. Carolyn’s current research is exploring how citizens themselves are leading informal collective problem-solving efforts to address governance voids or to repair dysfunctional institutions. Carolyn is the author of three books, including Mending Democracy (with Ercan & Boswell, Oxford University Press, 2020), The Politics of Public Deliberation (Palgrave, 2011), Environmental Decision Making: exploring complexity and context (with Harding & Faruqi, Federation Press 2009).

Elise Klein OAM
Associate Professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University

Elise Klein (OAM) is an Associate Professor of Public Policy at the Crawford School, Australian National University. Her research focuses on development policy with a specific interest in work, redistribution, decoloniality and care.

Heba Al Adawy
Policy Officer, Volunteering Australia

Heba is a Policy Officer at Volunteering Australia. She is also a PhD candidate at the Coral Bell School of Asia & the Pacific at Australian National University. Her previous degrees are from Mount Holyoke College (USA) and the University of Oxford (UK) respectively. Her research and policy portfolio at Volunteering Australia includes: volunteering in the aged care sector; informal volunteering within culturally and linguistically diverse communities, and indigenous forms of volunteering in Australia.

Peter Davis
Founder, Bloodbikes Australia

Born in Brisbane Australia 1958, spent 40 years as a cartographer, then 5 years as a bus driver. Being an avid motorcyclist I was inspired by the Bloodbikes movement in the UK to start a similar volunteer service in Australia. In September 2019 started Bloodbikes Australia, in Brisbane with Mater Pathology offering a free last resort medical transport service. Bloodbikes Australia now has 279 fully qualified volunteers, in all states and territories, offering a free volunteer last resort medical transport service to more than 50 healthcare providers. Bloodbikes Australia is not a charity but a group of individual volunteers agreeing to a set of rules, attaining the same national certification and looking after all their own expenses.  

Professor Nicholas Biddle
Associate Director, ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods

Professor Nicholas Biddle is Associate Director of the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods and head of the methods and survey program in the centre. He has a Bachelor of Economics (Hons.) from the University of Sydney and a Master of Education from Monash University. He also has a PhD in Public Policy from the ANU where he wrote his thesis on the benefits of and participation in education of Indigenous Australians.

Professor Kirsten Holmes
Professor, School of Management and Marketing, Curtin
University

Professor Kirsten Holmes is an internationally-recognised expert in the study of volunteering, particularly in events, leisure, sport and tourism contexts; rural volunteering; non-volunteers; and student volunteering. Kirsten has taught at universities in Australia and the UK, conducted research projects across 15 countries, and published over 80 peer reviewed papers. She is the lead editor of the Routledge Handbook of Volunteering in Events, Sport and Tourism (2021).

Kirsten’s research has been funded by the Australian Research Council, the Australian Government, the UK Government, the International Olympic Committee and she is currently working with Men’s Sheds of WA. Kirsten is Co-Chair of Volunteering Australia’s National Volunteering Research Network, and Chair of Volunteering WA’s research committee.

Professor Leonie Lockstone-Binney
Associate Professor, Griffith University

Professor Leonie Lockstone-Binney is based in the Department of Tourism, Sport and Hotel Management at Griffith University, Australia. Leonie’s research expertise relates to volunteering, contextualised to event and tourism settings. Leonie has published over 95 peer-reviewed articles, many of these in top-tier journals. She has received competitive research funding from the Australian Research Council and the International Olympic Committee and continues to collaborate with leading researchers from Australia, the UK and New Zealand.

Matt Calf
Senior Manager – Industry Projects, Australian Sports Commission

Passionate about the power of sport in building healthy, engaged, and productive communities, Matt has spent the past eighteen years driving increased nation-wide participation in sport and physical activity through the Australian Sports Commission’s flagship sport participation programs.

With extensive experience in national policy/program design and implementation, Matt is currently leading the delivery of the Australian Sports Commission’s Sport Volunteering National Plan – supporting the sport sector to re-think the volunteer experience and navigate the evolving volunteer landscape.

As a dedicated volunteer in several community sport organisations, Matt has a deep appreciation of the value of volunteering to individuals and communities.  Matt is a member of the National Strategy for Volunteering Council, and contributed to the design of the National Strategy for Volunteering as a member of the Core Design Team.

Dr Pam Kappelides
Senior Lecturer, La Trobe University

Dr Pam Kappelides is an expert in the field of volunteer management, community development working with minority groups and the impact of sport participation and development in the community. Pam has secured several research projects and has consulted to many organisations and government agencies such as the VicHealth, YMCA, Special Olympics and Sport and Recreation Victoria. She specialises in qualitative research methodology and evaluations. She has also published in the area of volunteer management and sport management. Pam has also been a practitioner in the sport, health and recreation industry prior to an academic career and has a wealth of knowledge in the sector. 

Scott Tutton
Head of Community Customer Support, Cricket Australia

Scott has over 12 years’ experience in leading the development and growth of community sport, through roles held at Netball Australia, Cricket Victoria and Cricket Australia. Scott’s current role of Head of Clubs and Volunteers at Cricket Australia is focused on ensuring that volunteers are continually supported to have exceptional experiences in delivering vibrant and attractive community competitions that showcase cricket as a sport for all.

Scott has studied Psychology and Human Resources at University of Wollongong, and completed a Masters of Sport Management with La Trobe University in 2019. In addition to studies, Scott has also held roles at Netball Australia leading the creation of their National Workforce Development Strategy and eLearning platform for volunteer coaches and umpires as well as pathway athletes, and ClubsNSW supporting volunteer club directors with the development of accredited courseware in strategic planning, finance, leadership and management development.

John Lalor
Volunteer Alumni, Australian Volunteers Program

John was a former senior executive with the Department of Finance, and had spent over twenty years in senior management roles over many diverse program and policy areas.  He retired from the public service in 2007 to work as a consultant/contract and dedicate his time to volunteering in South East Asia.  He has undertaken many specialist volunteer assignments over the past decade. John has always welcomed the opportunity to work with organisations to build their capability, grow and prepare for the future. His particularly interest is working with NGOs and social enterprises to plan head and operate in a continuously disrupted world. During the COVID period he has undertaken two remote volunteer assignments in Cambodia and Vietnam and is currently on remote assignment in Vietnam.  His current assignment is with a fledgling social enterprise, Hopebox, that works with survivors of gender-based violence. From his experience John considers that in-country and remote assignments are valuable to organisations in their development and personally rewarding for the volunteers.“I’ve maintained an ongoing network through my volunteer assignments and made many long-term friendships.” 

Madeleine Legge
Volunteer Alumni, Australian Volunteers Program

Madeleine lives in Darwin and currently works for NT Health in the Activity Based Funding team. 

Madeleine’s interest in moving to Darwin arose partly from her experience in Tonga as an Australian volunteer 10 years ago. 

Madeleine volunteered as an Economic Policy Analyst for the Tongan Ministry of Infrastructure and assisted the ministry with their corporate plan and a new website. In her spare time in Tonga Madeleine explored the beautiful country, tried to learn Tongan and made many great friends. She also volunteered for a small community organisation, Pasikala Nuku’alofa, Tonga’s only cycling group. 

As in Tonga, volunteering locally in Darwin has expanded my skills and connected me more closely to my now home. I learnt to sail while volunteering for Rotakat, a local sailing program for young people experiencing social barriers and have had the opportunity to volunteer in a liaison capacity to coordinate a delegation of athletes from Tonga and Nauru during Darwin’s 2019 Arafura Games. 

Being part of Australia’s international volunteer program is a privilege and a great opportunity for all Australians.  

DJ Cronin
Volunteer Experience Manager, Uniting Care Queensland

Irish-born, Diarmuid Joseph Cronin, and known as DJ in Australia, Diarmuid commenced volunteering for organisations at the age of 15 and has been active in volunteering for most of his life. DJ believes that volunteerism is a powerful movement for betterment and change in our society.

DJ has lead volunteers in various settings in Australia for the past 25 years and has developed a special interest in volunteer leadership, mindful leadership, authentic leadership and presence. DJ writes on Volunteer Leadership, Leadership in general and Volunteerism and has written for Energize, an international peer-reviewed journal on Volunteerism, Pro Bono News in Australia, OZVPM, IVO, the National Magazine for Volunteering England the ABC and Volunteering Auckland.

DJ has twice been a Faculty member with the Australasian Retreat for Advanced Volunteer Management and his work with volunteers has been recognised by innovation awards from the Private Hospital Association Queensland and the Australian Private Hospital Association. DJ had delivered presentations for various groups across Australia and is a current member of the International Association of Volunteer Effort, The United Nations Association in Australia and sat on the Volunteer Management Working Group and the Strategy Core Design Team assisting Volunteering Australia with the new National Strategy for Volunteering.

DJ is trained in “Dare to Lead’ which equips him with the skills, practices, and tools that underpin the four skill sets of courage: Rumbling with Vulnerability, Living into Our Values, Braving Trust, and Learning to Rise. DJ believes that more people will volunteer, formally and informally who will not only change our planet but will leave a better planet for children and theirs. He believes that this will only be achieved by ensuring inclusion where any person can give their time, in any way, by any means. A poet, writer, actor and lover of connection, DJ lives with his family as guests in Cullen Cullen on Quandamooka land. 

Tracey O’Neill CVA
Senior Manager Volunteer Engagement, Brotherhood of St Laurence

Tracey O’Neill, CVA, has been a volunteer since she was 10 and involved in volunteer engagement since 2001. She is currently the Senior Manager of Volunteer Engagement the Brotherhood of St. Laurence, a social justice organisation that works to prevent and alleviate poverty across Australia. Tracey was a member of the Victorian Volunteer Strategy Taskforce and the National Volunteering Strategy Volunteer Management Working Group.

Tracey is an advocate for transformative and sustainable volunteer management and developing advanced leadership training opportunities to develop and retain exceptional members of the sector. She is passionate about the elevation of the profession of volunteer engagement and encourages leaders of volunteers to actively participate in enhancing the visibility, respect, and leadership skills of those in the profession. Tracey would like to see volunteer management become a chosen career path and to see the role occupy senior leadership positions within organisations.

Tracey is proud to be Certified in Volunteer Administration (CVA) and a 2020 Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement Exemplary Leader award recipient. She is the founder of the Volunteer Engagement Professionals – Connections & Camaraderie Facebook group, connecting colleagues across the globe. In 2019, she became co-editor of Voices for Engage.

Leesa Riley
Statewide Volunteering Manager, Parks Victoria

Leesa has eighteen years’ experience in professional volunteer management. Leesa is currently the Statewide Volunteering Manager at Parks Victoria responsible for the Volunteering in Parks Strategic Plan 2017 – 2021, award-winning volunteer management system, ParkConnect, and delivers industry first programs including the Volunteering Innovation Fund.  Previously Leesa pioneered a role between Conservation Volunteers Australia and Parks Victoria building understanding between diverse sectors and developing exemplary volunteer partner models. Leesa spent 11 years at Conservation Volunteers Australia developing volunteer programs in Australia and internationally.  Leesa is passionate about developing the profession of Volunteer Management and gained her Certification in Volunteer Administration (CVA) in 2021 and is a Professional Leader of Volunteers (PLV) since 2019. 

Kylie Elliot
Volunteer and Supporter Engagement Lead, Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation

Kylie is a dedicated volunteer for more than 30 years; she turned her passion into a career 12 years ago. Responsible for setting up and growing the innovative Volunteer Program at Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation, Kylie has also been involved in creating SCHF’s Volunteer Policy and Procedures, ensuring they’re aligned to the National Standards for Volunteer Involvement and the first organisation in NSW to fully implement the standards. Kylie was the recipient of the 2020 NSW Excellence in Volunteer Management award.  Chosen as a member of the 2022 National Strategy for Volunteering; Volunteer Managers Working Group and 2022 NSW Volunteer Taskforce.  

Traci Gamblin
Executive Manager Engagement, Volunteering WA

Dedicated to harnessing and promoting the power of volunteering, Traci developed and now oversees Volunteering WA’s leading corporate volunteering program, which connects thousands of corporate employees into organisations that need their support. Traci established Australia’s first Corporate Volunteer Council comprising business leaders in WA committed to advancing corporate volunteering, and works with other volunteering peaks to share knowledge of this growing area.  In addition to leading the corporate volunteering program, Traci’s role at Volunteering WA involves sponsorships and partnerships, as well as marketing, communications and events. She is passionate about bringing people and organisations together to tackle some of the community’s most pressing challenges. 

Ash Rosshandler
Chief Executive Office, GoodCompany

Ash Rosshandler is the Chief Executive Office of GoodCompany, Australia’s largest unified Workplace Giving, Volunteering, Fundraising and Rewards Platform. Passionate about connecting businesses with charities to bring out the best in everyone, Ash leads a small team to connect over 2000 charities with Australia’s best companies including OPTUS, MEDIBANK, CSL, NBNCO, ANZ and MIRVAC. As a restless Social Entrepreneur Ash has been responsible for launching Australia’s first Charity Gift Card, The Top 40 Best Workplaces to Give Back and GoodCompany Volunteer Mystery Bus. Ash is married and lives in Melbourne with three teenage children and two pets named Loki and Fonzie.  

Liz Mackinlay
CEO, Australian Business Volunteers

Liz has 25 years’ experience in the not-for-profit sector, in senior executive experience internationally and Australia. She has held roles with a variety of NFP’s including with World Vision International as Global Vice President of Strategy, with World Vision Australia as Director of Indigenous development, with Australian Doctors International as CEO, International Red Cross Society in Cambodia as a gender specialist as well as serving on several NFP Boards in Australia.  Under Liz’s leadership as CEO, Australian Business Volunteers is implementing an innovative approach to community-led disaster across Australia and innovation in SME business recovery in the Pacific.

Tina Williams
CEO, Volunteering WA

Tina Williams is CEO at Volunteering WA, Western Australia’s peak body for volunteering, representing over 520,000 volunteers and over 750 member organisations across the state. Tina has proven experience in both the NFP and corporate sectors driving strategies that build strong collaborations and excel performance through people-focused leadership, continuous improvement and learning and development. With a belief there is a volunteer in all of us, Tina feels privileged to be in a position to help communities thrive and inspire people to realise their passions and purpose through volunteering. She is always happy to have chat about the opportunities and challenges in the sector, and how everyone can contribute. Tina holds numerous executive and leadership roles, including Convener of the Minister for Volunteering’s Volunteer Community Reference Group, and Trustee of WA Charity Direct.

Bennett Merriman
Co Founder & CEO of Rosterfy

Bennett Merriman is the Co Founder & CEO of Rosterfy. Bennett is a versatile and hands on business leader with 12 years experience in creating and scaling purpose driven technology and service businesses globally. Focussed, resilient and a determined problem solver, Bennett has overseen all phases of business growth from a three person startup to an international sector leader with Rosterfy, now working with organisations across sports, events, cities and nonprofits in 23 countries globally. With a mission to connect communities to events and causes through volunteering, Bennett has extensive knowledge and experience working alongside some of the biggest volunteer and workforce programs worldwide and is highly regarded as a global leader in workforce engagement and management. 

Marion Allan
Team Leader, Virtual Volunteer Team for Program and Scholarship Administration, The Smith Family

With more than 24 years’ experience in Volunteer Management, I am currently Team Leader of the Virtual Volunteer Team for Program and Scholarship Administration at The Smith Family. I lead a team of paid staff and Virtual Volunteers across the country to support organisational growth and the development of a National strategy, ensuring we provide a model of best practice in virtual volunteering. Previous roles include Queensland State Lead for the Growing Careers Project with The Smith Family and coordinating School and Community Programs at UniSC and The University of Newcastle.

Rose Leto-Rerecic
Operations Manager, Volunteering, The Smith Family

Rose Leto-Rerecic’s experience spans 25 years in the Community Services sector, encompassing emergency assistance, women’s health, family support and youth leadership. Her experience extends to various industry specialities including volunteer management, adult education in the VET sector, mentoring and coaching, community development and governance. Over time, Rose has developed skills with focus on strengths-based and relationship building approaches. Within her Operations Manager role, Rose managers a virtual team located across Australia and provides input into managing programs, and projects for all volunteer involving activity at The Smith Family. 

Victor Lee
CEO & Co-Founder, Communiteer

Victor is a lifelong volunteer with over 30 years of experience in the sector. He’s been involved in engaging volunteers from within universities, corporates and VIOs, and is a champion for cross-sector collaboration. Vic co-founded Communiteer in 2016, a social enterprise with the mission to connect, engage and mobilise communities to tackle complex social issues. Vic is part of the core working group on the National Volunteering Strategy, a finalist for the Social Entrepreneur of the Year, and a graduate of The Growth Project, Social Leadership Australia and AICD. Most importantly, Vic is a Dad of his 5 year old son, Ethan, and always strives to be the change he wants to see in this world. 

Derek Turner
Client Director, Not for Profit, Aon

Derek is a Client Manager within the Not for Profit team where he specialises in the management of association partners and peak bodies, including the onboarding new NFP clients and development of education materials for NFP’s. Derek’s responsibilities also include assisting in management of the Not for Profit team through in-depth policy reviews, day to day account management of associations and large clients and placement of insurance programs.

Brad Cooper
Chief Executive Officer, Volunteering Gold Coast

Brad has worked in Not-For-Profit organisations for the majority of his working life. He has over 15 years of experience in senior operational and executive roles in human services organisations across Victoria, Tasmania, and Queensland. 

Brad began his career as a Nurse moving from hospitals into tertiary education and research, then transitioned to community aged care, homelessness services, and mental health services. 

Brad’s focus is on outcomes and impact for service users and employees, drawing on the collective wisdom and insights across the organisation. 

Brad has held volunteer roles as a board member and project roles developing professional practice standards. 

Julia Gaoyuan Huang 
PhD candidate, Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of Tasmania

I am Julia, a second-year PhD candidate at the Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of Tasmania. My research explores how to sustain volunteer board members’ engagement in community service organisations in Australia. I am enthusiastic about volunteer leadership and nonprofit governance research.

Simon Vaughan
Simon Vaughan, Measurement Lead, Huber Social

Simon Vaughan is a Measurement Lead at Huber Social where he runs social impact measurement projects across a range of sectors including education. Prior to this, he worked as a fundraiser in international development for over a decade across a broad swathe of fundraising areas, raising millions for the organisations he worked for. 

Kate Thiele
National Executive Director, Meals on Wheels® Australia.

Kate Thiele is the National Executive Director for Meals on Wheels® Australia.  She is also a Board Chair, Non-Executive Director, and Principal of Klarity, where she supports for-purpose, government, and private organisations with a range of strategic environmental, social and governance advice.  Kate is an award-winning business leader – previous CEO of Guide Dogs SA/NT and GM, Business Development, Marketing and Communications at Cancer Council SA.  Her corporate career included executive roles in manufacturing retail and health.

Kate’s current Board roles include – President Skylight Mental Health, Chair Adelaide Crows Foundation and Board Member of the Flinders Foundation.  Kate will be joined on-stage by Huber Social’s Simon Vaughan.    

Dannika White
Director of Community, Be Collective

Dannika is an experienced leader who has specialised in implementing transformation and change within a number of industries. She now applies a foundation in communication management together with broad business experience to the community sector. She currently works with charities, not-for-profits and community groups helping them implement programs which attract, engage and retain volunteers.

Penny Aquino
General Manager – Volunteer Resources, The Salvation Army

Penny has held volunteer management roles at World Vision, RSPCA and currently holds a national role as GM – Volunteer Resources at the Salvos, equalling over 17 years in the sector. In each organisation she has successfully advocated for an increase in strategic and resource investment to ensure current sustainability and future growth through volunteer involvement. Penny sees voluntarism as the vehicle in which to create a fairer and more inclusive society and is passionate to see more Australians serve causes, they care about. Penny has recently completed a master’s in Leadership and Management (Organisation Dynamics) and has qualifications in change management and training 

Toni Hunt
Director, Safer Organisations and Culture Section, National Office for Child Safety

Toni Hunt is the Director of the Safer Organisations and Culture Section within the National Office for Child Safety where she leads a team to deliver and promote measures aimed at promoting children’s wellbeing and protecting children from harm. She has worked on child safety policy within the Commonwealth and ACT government for over 10 years. Prior to this she worked in the community sector. Her professional experience has in large part focused on communities with increased vulnerabilities, including work on children’s policy, international child and adult safeguarding policy, justice and corrective service’s policy, and tenancy law and advocacy. 

Julie Hourigan Ruse 
Chief Executive Officer, SHINE for Kids

Julie is the Chief Executive Officer of SHINE for Kids. She is a results focused leader achieving better outcomes for children, young people, families and communities experiencing vulnerability.

Julie has significant experience in the community sector predominantly in the areas of early intervention and prevention; domestic violence; and homelessness. She was previously the Chief Executive Officer at NSW Family Services Inc (Fams). Julie is a professionally certified Results Based AccountabilityTM practitioner, and wishes she had access to the framework principles a decade earlier than she did.

Julie has also worked in community legal centres, government legal roles and corporate accounting firms.

She maintains her legal practising certificate and has a Masters in Law (Human Rights and Social Justice). She has been an NSW Government appointed member of the Housing Appeals Committee since 2010 and a Presiding Chair since July 2013.

Holly Hazel
Manager Marketing & Communications, Volunteering WA

Holly is passionate about working for organisations that exist to make lasting change for the communities they operate in. For the past 10-years, Holly has worked within the marketing, communications, media and events space for some of the largest volunteering peak bodies in Australia and Scotland.  Holly holds nationally recognised certificates/degrees in commerce, public relations, management, events and journalism through the Australian Institute of Management and Curtin University. 

Jasmine Sue
Program Coordinator, Kids Giving Back

As a creative by nature, and professionally nurtured over the years in the community and corporate fields, Jasmine’s journey as Program Coordinator of Kids Giving Back began 3 years ago when she was found volunteering with a charity partner, Thread Together. Homeless and feeling hopeless she became a client of Thread Together and rediscovered her passion and purpose through volunteering. Not only did this reinforce to her the value of giving back, but she also gained a greater understanding of working within the community services sector and the broader spectrum of homelessness and vulnerability. 

With a background in horse riding instruction, business solutions, and as a national trainer in the printing industry, Jasmine has brought her diverse range of knowledge and skills with youth, coaching and innovation to Kids Giving Back. Teaching and role modelling the importance of giving back is at the core of her dedication. She sees the significant and direct impact of her work by sharing her lived experience, breaking down stereotypes and stigmas around vulnerability, homelessness and empathy for generations of youth.

Jasmine is deeply connected to her work, and her professional and personal mission is to expand volunteering opportunities to school students, Duke of Edinburgh participants, TAFE and international students, to connect youth volunteers to service opportunities and help young people improve the world we all share together.

Mathew MacDonald
Volunteer Coordinator & Chairperson, Radio Lollipop Gold Coast

Mathew MacDonald is the Volunteer Coordinator and Chairperson of Radio Lollipop Gold Coast, a charity providing care, comfort, play and entertainment to children in hospital. Radio Lollipop gives young patients a voice and a choice during their stay, and Mathew has been responsible for recruiting volunteers across their three QLD stations for the past three years. Mathew also volunteers with non for profit organisation FreddyMatch as an SME on volunteer management best practices, as he is passionate about volunteering.

Roxane Foulser-Piggott 
Founder, FreddyMatch

Roxane’s volunteering journey began as a teenager doing gardening work in an aged care home. She continued to volunteer throughout her undergraduate and doctoral studies in engineering, helping STEM education in local schools and designing databases for a charity supporting the families of prisoners. During her career in consulting and finance, Roxane was an independent monitor in a maximum-security prison in the UK. Following the loss of her infant son, Frederick, Roxane dedicated her professional life to volunteering. Developing FreddyMatch, an algorithm-driven website to match volunteers with those in need, Roxane builds supportive communities to expand the reach of volunteering.  

Alex Connor
Social Impact Project Lead, UTS SOUL Award, University of Technology Sydney (UTS)

Alex is an experienced social impact and volunteer engagement professional. Passionate about the sector and leveraging people power to address social challenges, Alex believes we need to change our approach to volunteer engagement to ride the growing wave of people looking for meaning, climate and social change action.  Alex holds a graduate certificate in Social Impact from UNSW, is a qualified trainer and facilitator and a previous winner of the NSW Excellence in Volunteer Management Award. Alex currently works at the UTS Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion, leading the SOUL Award leadership and volunteering program.

Michelle Gillard
Program Coordinator – Peer Programs, Western Sydney University

Michelle coordinates two peer led volunteer programs, the MATES Mentoring Program and English Conversation Groups at Western Sydney University. Michelle sees herself as a “forever learner” and started her university journey as a student at the age of 39 after a career change from the banking industry.  She is passionate about ensuring the volunteering experience provides valuable training,  transferable skills and that recognition should not be a “one size fits all” model.

Heidi Unferdorben
Senior Policy and Project Officer – Volunteers, Department for Education, South Australia

Heidi leads the development of evidence-based resources and training which helps embed student volunteering in the school curriculum and in everyday classroom activity. She has led the establishment of a network of student volunteering champions across South Australia. This network, now incorporated into the work of the Volunteering Strategy for SA is committed to strong partnering with local and state government, the volunteering sector and Business SA.  Heidi is chair of the Public Sector Volunteer Policy Network, a panellist for the State Volunteer Awards, a member of the Governors Civics Awards for Schools reference group and past president Rotary Club of Adelaide. 

Tracey Wallace
Service Learning Coordinator, Scotch College, Adelaide, South Australia

Having designed and driven Service Learning programs in schools across three continents, Tracey has witnessed first-hand the invaluable contribution volunteering makes to a young person’s holistic education. Working with champion teachers, Tracey mentors schools across the trisector, helping them to develop service learning programs, that support students to authentically become active citizens within their communities. As a Global Schools Advocate, Tracey works to empower educators and students to contribute to tackling the Sustainable Development Goals through Service. Tracey acknowledges the unique position we are in as educators, to empower the youth to be change-makers – locally and globally.

Sharon Walsh
Director, Volunteer Services, Bendigo Health

Sharon is the Director, Volunteer Services for Bendigo Health, the Founder/Chair of the LOHVE Network and the driving force behind their annual Benchmark aimed at understanding health volunteer programs.  Sharon is passionate about enhancing the health volunteer sector and has presented, locally, nationally and internationally such as the IAVE Conference in Kuala Lumpur (2017) and more recently invited to share her experience with 46 hospitals for the Hong Kong Hospital Authority.  Sharon was humbled to participate as a member of the Victorian Volunteer Strategy Taskforce and the National Volunteering Strategy Core Design Team.  Sharon is also current the Project Lead for the Loddon Mallee Health Network (LMHN) Volunteer Strategy which was developed to volunteering across the 16 public health services who now make up the LMHN and which has led to attaining a seat ‘at the decision making table’ alongside the LMHN CEOs, working together and shaping their future for health volunteering for this region.

Rachel Winterton
Senior Research Fellow, John Richards Centre for Rural Ageing Research, La Trobe University

Rachel is a senior research fellow with the John Richards Centre for Rural Ageing Research at La Trobe University. She is internationally recognised for her research examining the role of the volunteer sector in supporting rural healthy ageing and is particularly interested in how governments and communities can support engagement of rural older volunteers. Rachel has published extensively in key international journals on topics associated with volunteering, and was called as an expert witness to the recent Royal Commission for Aged Care Quality and Safety to highlight the role of volunteering in supporting rural aged care. 

Nicky Pearson
Volunteer Services Manager, Children’s Hospital Foundation

Nicky Pearson is the Volunteer Services Manager for the Children’s Hospital Foundation. She offers her services to other Health based not for profits as a support for their volunteer recruitment, program development and program delivery as well as volunteer engagement needs. She is a firm believer in helping her community and likes to say her job is to ‘help people help people’. She is known for utilising her passion for inspiring people, evidence-based strategies and aligning her innovative thinking with global volunteer trends around engaging, supporting, and acknowledging the work of volunteers. Nicky has over 12 years direct experience in volunteer management, recruitment, program development, program coordination, training delivery and learning design across a wide range of family centred care initiatives and within government agencies.  

Kirsten Turner
Director of the Consumer Support Section, Department of Health and Aged Care

Kirsten Turner is the Director of the Consumer Support Section, Department of Health and Aged Care. The section has a focus on older Australians, including those who are vulnerable and isolated, to ensure they are supported and empowered as they engage with the aged care and health systems. Kirsten has worked with governments and communities in evaluation, policy and programs across various government organisations in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander public health and language; and aged care volunteering, dementia and diversity. Throughout her life Kirsten has been a committed volunteer in the community, environment and with refugees.

Dr Megan Paull
Senior Lecturer & Postgraduate Research Chair, Murdoch University

Dr Megan Paull is a long term volunteering researcher who has often investigated the more challenging aspects of volunteering and volunteer management. Megan’s focus on practical outcomes for volunteers and volunteer managers means that those who participate in her research are able to see how their contribution can lead to better volunteering experiences. Megan’s current research is on volunteering in aged care settings.

Lori Modde
Managing Director, Visitor Economy Development

Lori is currently the Managing Director of Lorick Management Pty Ltd, the parent company of Visitor Economy Development and currently contracted to be the CEO of Outdoors NSW & ACT. She also holds 6 volunteer board roles and volunteers in mentoring and supporting award programs through judging. She has worked in community and economic development for close to 30 years and sees her role in the world to amplify and empower the maestros in their area of expertise so that they continue to make a difference in the world. Previously Lori has held roles in commercial, local government, state government and not for profit entities including senior management roles in Tourism NSW (now known as Destination NSW), Hills Shire Council, Sydney Olympic Park Authority and various regional tourism organisations.

Peter Abbott
Chief Executive Officer, Emerald Tourist Railway Board – Puffing Billy Railway

Peter is CEO of the iconic Victorian heritage attraction, Puffing Billy Railway. Reporting to the Emerald Tourist Railway Board he manages the organisation that includes volunteers and staff that operate this much-loved part of the Dandenong’s. Now living in Emerald (and hearing the Puffing Bill locomotives passing-by), and having worked in the tourism, heritage and events industry, he has extensive experience in volunteer/staff-based organisations in the Not for Profit Sector – many of which he has led to a range of local, state and national awards. With a focus on building the value of workforce programs that link to the organisations goals of preserving and celebrating the Puffing Billy Railways links to the Dandenong’s community, the organisation is rebuilding after a number of changes since 2018.  

Robert Campbell
Program Manager, Self Help Addiction Resource Centre

Rob has been working in the human services field for over twenty-five years across a number of fields including alcohol and other drugs, gambling, men’s behaviour change and family violence, couple and family work, community health, acquired brain injury, and acute and ambulatory services.  He is currently the Programme Manager of Family Drug and Gambling Help, a programme of Self Help Addiction Resource Centre (SHARC), that is underpinned by a strong volunteer core of family members with lived and living experience of the impact impact of a loved one’s substance use and/or gambling.  His qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts, Master of Social Work in Management and Human Services, Master of Counselling, Graduate Certificate in Family Therapy, Certificate IV in Alcohol and Other Drugs and Certificate IV in Work Place Training.  He has also been involved in research projects with Beyond Blue, Deakin University, ARBIAS and Monash University. 

Jane McIntosh
Executive Manager, People Team, Salvos Stores

Jane is an accomplished workforce strategist with extensive experience in designing innovative, uncomplicated solutions for growth. She has a successful record of generating a future focused and influencing change to maximise individual, group and organisational potential. In addition to running her own consulting practice, Jane has held executive roles at ANZ, NAB, Deloitte, Clayton Utz Lawyers and Beyond Blue.  Jane is currently the Executive Manager of People at Salvos Stores, growing an already 10,000 strong workforce, including over 7,000 volunteers across 360+ stores.   

Fiona Tucker
Manager Visitor Programs, Sydney Olympic Park Authority

Fiona Tucker is Manager Visitor Programs for Sydney Olympic Park Authority. She has 25 years professional experience in delivery of natural and cultural heritage visitor programs. Alongside this experience are 25 years volunteering with Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT, both as District Manager and Kayak/Canoe Skills Instructor.

Fiona’s qualifications include Bachelor of Science, Graduate Diploma of Education and certificates in Assessment and Workplace Training and Graphic Design and Flatwater Kayaking Instruction.

Fiona leads a highly customer focused team as Sydney Olympic Park transforms from being a place to visit to also being a place to live. Using her combined experiences, she is managing the implementation of a new Park Care Program at Sydney Olympic Park. This program provides opportunities for the community to connect and care for place and includes the new Neighbours Nurturing Nature volunteer project.

Dr Robyn Gulliver
Research Fellow, Australian National University and the University of Queensland

Dr Robyn Gulliver is a Research Fellow at Australian National University and the University of Queensland. She is a multi-award winning environmentalist, writer and researcher who has served as an organiser and leader of numerous local and national environmental organisations. Her research focuses on the antecedents and consequences of environmental activism. Her recent publications include The Advocates, Civil Resistance against Climate Change and the Psychology of Effective Activism. She has developed Australia’s largest database of environmental groups and campaigns alongside the ‘Campaign Explorer’ citizen science project, which won the 2020 Australian Council of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences Distinctive Prize.

Katie Ronald
National Volunteer Program Coordinator, Bush Heritage Australia

Katie Ronald has been in volunteer management within the conservation sector for over ten years. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Management and Conservation Biology and a Certificate IV in Coordination of Volunteer Programs. Like most people, she fell into volunteer management as part of the operations role with her first industry job. Katie now works as the National Volunteer Program Coordinator for Bush Heritage Australia and lives in Perth with her family. Katie’s passion is to match a volunteer to their perfect role, ensuring positive outcomes for the volunteer and the organisation they are volunteering for.

Sumayyah Ahmad
PhD Candidate, Curtin University

Sumayyah Ahmad is a PhD candidate at Curtin University investigating how spontaneous Volunteers use social media before, during and after a disaster. She completed her Master’s in Business Administration with distinction and has been part of many non-profit volunteering organisations and projects for the empowerment of women. She is an instructor at Curtin School of Management and Marketing and a casual academic at UWA. Sumayyah has researched the role of micro-finance to alleviate poverty and has a keen interest in female leadership and mentorship.  She is a firm believer in psychological empowerment of women. As a mother who witnessed the devastating earthquake in 2005 in Pakistan, she started thinking about sustainable disaster management and how social media can facilitate that. She has presented at Voluntary Sector and Volunteering Research Conference UK, International Society for Third Sector Research Conference, Volunteering WA Conference, National Volunteering Conference and Centre for Muslim States and Societies, UWA, ICAN Perth, WAAMH and Volunteering WA in Perth.  

Dr Faye Bendrups OAM 
Vice Chair, National SES Volunteers Association

Faye Bendrups is a frontline volunteer responder with VICSES. She has been deployed to major flood and fire incidents in roles such as Crew Leader, Safety Officer, Staging Area Manager or Base Camp Manager. She is a past recipient of the  Victorian Premier’s Volunteer Champions Award for Leadership, and an Emergency Services Foundation (ESF) grant for research into earthquake and tsunami response at the National Institute for Civil Defence in Peru. Dr Bendrups serves on numerous EM reference groups at local, state and national levels including with EMV and AFAC, is President of the Victoria SES Volunteers Association and Vice-Chair of the National SES Volunteers Association.  

Marjorie Pagani
CEO, Angel Flight

Marjorie became the CEO in early 2015, although she has supported the Charity in other ways from the beginning. She is a practising barrister who assisted Angel Flight, on a pro-bono basis, particularly in aviation law, since the inception of the charity in 2003. She was also one of the first volunteer pilots and holds a commercial pilot license. She was a long-serving presiding member of the Qld Anti-Discrimination Tribunal, the Queensland Mental Health Review Tribunal, and the former North Qld Parole Board, as has held positions on both government and private Boards. She retired from the RAAF after 17 years of service as a Squadron Leader in the RAAF specialist legal corps reserve and is a member of the James Cook University Council, and the Torres and Cape Hospital and Health Service Board.

Professor Leonie Lockstone-Binney
Associate Professor, Griffith University

Professor Leonie Lockstone-Binney is based in the Department of Tourism, Sport and Hotel Management at Griffith University, Australia. Leonie’s research expertise relates to volunteering, contextualised to event and tourism settings. Leonie has published over 95 peer-reviewed articles, many of these in top-tier journals. She has received competitive research funding from the Australian Research Council and the International Olympic Committee and continues to collaborate with leading researchers from Australia, the UK and New Zealand.

Professor Melanie Oppenheimer
Professor Emerita, Australian National University
Chair, NSV Research Working Group

Professor Melanie Oppenheimer is currently based in the School of History at the Australian National University. Previously she was Professor of History at Flinders University (and awarded the title of Professor Emerita) and has held positions in Australian history at the University of Western Sydney and the University of New England. In 2018-19, she was the Visiting Chair in Australian Studies at the University of Tokyo. A Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and appointed to the Australian Research Council’s College of Experts (2016-18), Melanie has recently completed a two-year term as President of the Australian Historical Association.

For over twenty-five years, Melanie has been exploring the role of voluntary organisations, volunteers and voluntary action in times of war and peace, in contemporary and historical contexts, with a special interest in the Australian Red Cross and the global Red Cross Movement. She is the author of multiple books and published widely including The Red Cross Movement, edited with Neville Wylie and James Crossland (2020); Volunteering. Why we can’t survive without it (2008); The Power of Humanity (2014), and All Work. No Pay. Australian Volunteers in War (2002), short-listed for the NSW Premiers’ History Awards. Melanie was a member of the Federal Government’s National Volunteering Strategy Advisory Group (2009-10); involved with the SA Volunteering Strategy (2015-17); and has been delighted to be a member of VA’s National Strategy for Volunteering Council and Chair of the Research Working Group (2022). In October last year, she delivered the JC Bannon Oration, ‘Volunteering for the Ages’ in Adelaide.

Professor Amanda Davies
Professor, Head of University of Western Australia’s School of Social Sciences

Professor Amanda Davies is a social scientist with expertise in demography, population geography and rural and regional development. Her research focuses on examining Australia’s population growth, distribution and patterns of demographic change, particularly in response to economic, social or climatic challenges. Her work also focuses on exploring the social, economic and environmental issues related to rural and regional development, particularly in mining and agricultural communities.

Dr Annette Maher
Research Assistant, College of Arts and Social Sciences, The Australian National University

Dr. Annette Maher is a Research Assistant, College of Arts and Social Sciences, The Australian National University. Annette has a long history in volunteering, working for Volunteering Australia and Volunteering Victoria. She has edited two journals, Australian Journal on Volunteering (2000-2010) and Australian Association of Community Work Journal  (2019-2021). This is the third ARC funded project where Annette has been engaged.

Amy Williams
Principal Lawyer, Justice Connect’s Not-for-profit Law program

Amy was admitted to practice as a solicitor in 2015 and commenced her legal career as a solicitor at the commercial law firm, Corrs Chambers Westgarth.

As a lawyer at Justice Connect, Amy regularly provides legal advice, training and assistance to community  organisations  across Australia on various legal issues, including legal issues relating to volunteer management.

Amy sits on the board of Volunteering Australia, the not-for-profit national peak body for volunteering. Prior to becoming a solicitor, Amy was a social worker working with a range of small to medium sized not-for-profit  organisation.

Matt Cowgill
Senior Economist, SEEK

Matt Cowgill is SEEK’s Senior Economist. He has previously worked as Chief Technical Adviser at the UN’s International Labour Organization, as a senior researcher at Grattan Institute, and as a senior executive in the Victorian Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions. SEEK’s is Australia’s most visited employment site.

Rebecca Miller
Head of Seek Volunteer

Rebecca Miller has been leading SEEK Volunteer for over five years and prior to that led a number of social impact programs for NAB. SEEK Volunteer has been connecting volunteers with volunteer involving organisations for 23 years, making it one of the longest social impact investments of a technology company in Australia.