Professor Neil Thomas is a clinical psychologist and researcher based at Swinburne University. He has headed the Voices Clinic since 2006, which delivers therapy to people nationwide who are troubled by persisting experiences of hearing voices. As one of the world’s current top ten most published researchers on hearing voices, he has conducted research trials of multiple therapeutic approaches for people dealing with difficult voice hearing experiences, including cognitive behavioural, acceptance-based, mindfulness, relational, and trauma-focused therapies, peer support, and novel uses of digital technology. Neil has also worked closely with the Victorian and international hearing voices networks in bridging between consumer networks, clinical practice and research.

Nicole Thompson is the Deputy CEO and Manager of Residential Peer Programs and Intentional Peer Support at SHARC. Nicole has completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Community Sector Management, Graduate Certificate in Public Health, Diploma in Counselling, Diploma of Welfare Studies and a Diploma of Community Services. She has worked within the Alcohol and Other Drug Sector for the past 24 years in a range of lived and non-lived experience roles and has a passion for reducing the harms and improving the supports offered to people experiencing Alcohol and Other Drug issues and elevating the expertise of the lived and living experience workforces.

Paul has been a member of the ACT Mental Health Consumer Network (ACTMHCN) since 2017. He has a Lived Experience of a Mental Health condition, having first been diagnosed some 30 years ago. His first 23-year career was in International Banking, after which he was retrenched, starting his journey of self-discovery. Despite being diagnosed, he went on to have successful careers in Employment Services, working with prisoners and their families, then with providing food security to the homeless. In more recent years he studied community services and mental health and is currently serving on five committees as a Mental Health Consumer Representative, and as Chair of the ACTMHCN. He is also currently employed as a Mental Health Support Worker under the NDIS.

Kath has over 30 years’ experience as a mental health worker, educator, facilitator and consultant and is recognised for her work in co-design and co-production, project management, curriculum development, and curating innovative mental health events and projects. Kath has experience working in public mental health services and educational institutes, and co-founded a mental health consultancy with a reputation for collaborative and lived experience led approaches. Kath is a PhD candidate at the UNSW Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity, researching a co-designed approach to improving the physical health of people with mental health lived experience in primary care settings.

Nick Titov is a Clinical Psychologist and Professor at Macquarie University. Nick is also Executive Director of MindSpot and MindSpot GP. MindSpot is an Australian digital psychology service that provides digital assessment and treatment for adults with anxiety and depression. MindSpot GP delivers digital psychological care via primary care across the state of WA. Together, these clinics serve 30,000 Australians each year.

Kia ora mai tatou, my name is Jamie Toko. I have 30 years' experience working voluntarily in the city of Hamilton, New Zealand, predominantly in the West of Hamilton. I was awarded the Hamilton City Civic Award for my extensive longstanding contribution to the community. I work extremely hard to ensure whanau voices are heard and that actions to eliminate low socio dilemma and corresponding barriers are removed. I have chaired many community boards and currently preside over to community boards. I am approachable and solution focused, trustworthy and honest. Ngaa mihi Jamie

Maggie Toko Bio Maggie identifies as having a lived experience of schizophrenia and as being indigenous to Aotearoa and comes from Ngati Whatua and Ngapuhi tribes. Maggie is currently a Commissioner Consumer at the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission – there are 3 other commissioner. Maggie comes to this role having been the Assistant Commissioner of the Mental Health Complaints Commission. Maggie has worked in homelessness, youth, sexual assault and young women’s services as well as mental health most recently having been the CEO of VMIAC – Victorian Mental Illness Awareness Council and the Peak Consumer organisation in Victoria. Maggie is a staunch believer in Human Rights and has a commitment to raise the voice of Mental Health Consumers and Carers in the mental health system. Maggie believes that the voice of first nations and multi cultural communities should be championed as much as possible and has recently been involved in a project that addresses shared information in a variety of community languages. Working in codesign the Mental Health Complaints Commission worked with Polaron to hear the voice of communities in what they want to know about the complaints processes in languages that are accessible and clear.

Michael Tong is a Senior Research Fellow in Environment, Climate and Health Group at the ANU National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health. He is an experienced medical science and public health researcher with a strong background in environmental health, epidemiology, risk assessment, climate change, healthcare cost evaluation, public and community health promotion, and vulnerable population health research.

Bryan Tran is a Wellbeing Clinician at the Hornsby-Brooklyn GP Unit and a Social Worker by training. He has experience working with complex adults and youth in a variety of mental health settings. Bryan is interested in advocacy, policy, and integrated models of care.

Nga is the Lead Mental Health Pharmacist at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne since 1997. In her role, she has contributed to numerous mental health initiatives. Her goal is to improve the well-being of mental health consumers, carers, and clinicians through the integration of clinical expertise with informatics tools.

Dr Sarah Trobe is a Clinical Psychologist and the National Manager of the National Eating Disorders Collaboration. Sarah’s interests and expertise lie in the link between physical health and mental health and current care structures in this field, and she is passionate about setting up strong treatment networks and systems across the country. Sarah works across NEDC's projects, including the implementation of the National Eating Disorders Strategy, NEDC Training Approvals, eLearning, communications, and workforce development initiatives.

With over 10 years’ experience in the lived experience field, Lydia Trowse holds a rights-based, moral, ethical and professional commitment to supporting families and children with lived experience to have voice and influence in the co-production of resources, services and systems across Australia. Her work has involved developing organisational frameworks, policies and processes to ensure safe enough and effective partnerships with people with lived and living experiences. She works closely across a wide variety of projects including collaborative and co-production processes, as well as supporting lived experience voices to be heard in workforce development and systems change spaces. She is passionate about disrupting business as usual and redistributing power to children and families with lived experience.

Lydia is a dedicated change-maker committed to driving mental health system transformation for positive social impact. She is passionate about centering Lived Experience voices and wisdom at the core of her work. In her current role as Innovation and Design Coordinator with Neami National, Lydia applies a human-centered and design justice lens to promote community-centered solutions within the mental health sector.

Neil Turton-Lane is a consumer/survivor based in Melbourne, Australia, working to support social change, human rights, and justice within mental health and disability. For over 20 years, Neil has worked as an advocate in lived experience leadership roles. He is deeply committed to working towards a future in which people experiencing isolation, marginalistion and homelessness due to trauma, distress and disability are fully supported within their chosen communities.

Carissa Uzabeaga is a Social Worker with almost 20 years of professional experience ranging across an array of clinical areas. Majority of this experience has been in the mental health context. More recently Carissa has expanded her knowledge to include disability specific work, including psychosocial disability, to create and influence change. Carissa is passionate about promoting improved quality of life for people with complex psychosocial disability accessing health services and facilitating system change to better meet the needs of the people they service.

Sonali is an Honours student at the Centre for Mental Health Research, where she is examining self-recognition of mental health conditions and help seeking behaviour. She also works with the ACT’s Child and Youth Mental Health Alliance (CYMHSA) Youth Reference Group (YRG), collaborating with other young people to guide local mental health initiatives. Sonali hopes to contribute impactful user-led research to improve mental health outcomes for all, including those with diverse, intersectional backgrounds.

Jayme is a PhD Candidate at Swinburne University, working on the ARC project "Activating Social Connection to Reduce Isolation in Australia." She is passionate about enhancing social connection across various projects. Her research focuses on developing and validating a multifaceted, strengths-based measurement for capturing social connection at both program and population levels.

Vanessa is a senior clinician with experience in psychosocial recovery within Public Mental Health and Non-Government Organisations. Overarching these experiences is her ongoing research focus on inclusion and service improvement.

Chris Wagner spent two decades forging a successful career in communications and media management before joining Talkforce Media and Communications Strategists as a partner. He is an award-winning communicator, with a track record in the design and delivery of integrated national communications campaigns, using his public relations, media management, social media and marketing skills to great effect. He has significant leadership experience, coming to Talkforce Media and Communications Strategists after holding a number of senior positions leading the communication functions of major charities and federal departments. He brings to clients a wealth of knowledge on all aspects of facilitation, media, public relations and communications strategy, marketing, planning, advocacy and social media. He is a seasoned trainer and facilitator, basing this on his day-to-day interactions within the PR and marketing industry.