Qld Disability Advocacy Conference 2025

Conference Program

Location: Victoria Park Conference Centre – Garden Marquee

Day one – Tuesday 27 May

Day two – Wednesday 28 May

Day three – Thursday 29 May

Speakers

Day one – Tuesday 27 May

Dr. Lenine Bourke 

Capacity Building Advocate, Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion (QAI) 

Lenine Bourke (BA Hons, BED, PhD) is currently a freelance artist and consultant. She was with the Australia Council for the Arts as Director of Community Partnerships from 2014 – 2016. Prior to this she was the Artistic Director of Contact Inc an arts and cultural organisation committed to social change, more recently she was known for her work as Executive Director of Young People and the Arts Australia, the national peak body for youth arts.

Lenine currently works at Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion as a Capacity Building Officer.

She has a broad range of professional experiences in the arts and cultural sectors, which have taken her throughout Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA. She has led various arts organisations and projects, and worked for peak bodies, local and state government, statutory authorities, educational institutions, galleries, festivals and artists groups. Including, Youth Arts Queensland, Brisbane City Council, Stylin’UP Regional, Ideas Festival, Backbone Youth Arts, Tafe NSW, Office for Youth Affairs, Qld University of Technology, The Roadside Room (ARI), Public Art Agency, Transit Lounge, Queens Public Girls School (Dunedin).

She is currently engaged in various projects with Mammalian Diving Reflex (Canada) in the creation of new performance based works made in collaboration with children for adults. She is a skilled practitioner and arts executive who has deliberately developed a career across a wide variety of art forms, research, policy development, writing and service delivery.

She has focused the majority of her work in engaging children and young people, as well as diverse communities. She was recognised as a young leader in 2006 when she was awarded the inaugural Kirk Robson award from the Australia Council for the Arts and again in 2009 when she received the Brisbane City Council Lord Mayor’s creative fellowship to undertake research in the area of Social Practice and completed a 1 year Fellowship from the Australia Council on the intersection of community engaged and socially engaged arts practices.

Aunty Kathryn Fisher  

Aboriginal Elder 

Kathryn Fisher (Aunty Kathy) is a Aboriginal elder who was born on and grew up on Cherbourg Aboriginal Reserve. She now lives in Brisbane where she is linked to the Turrbal People through kinship ties. She has a strong spiritual connection to her people, the land, and traditions. 

turrbal.com.au

Jautia Cora

Training, Workforce Capacity and Engagement Officer, First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN)

Whichway! My name is Jautia Cora, mob and friends know me as “Tia”. I’m a proud grass roots Murri, a Ugarapul (mother side) and Ewamin (father side) woman who grew up in Woodridge (Yugambeh country), Logan City QLD. My traditional homelands are Ipswich and surrounding areas where I currently live. I’ve had diverse community and professional experience in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander programs, Administration, Workplace operations, and Quality/Auditing. My passion is “Self Determination” for my people and communities.  I hold high regard for equality, cultural integrity and am a hard worker. I am well known and respected for my big happy personality which consists of empathy, understanding, care and most importantly “Respect”.   

We are First Peoples Disability Network Australia (FPDN) – a national organisation of and for Australia’s First Peoples with disability, their families and communities. Our organisation is governed by First Peoples with lived experience of disability.

fpdn.org.au

Brigot Pugh

Team Leader, Intake Officer and Public Relations, Rights in Action (RIA)

Born in the mountains of PNG, I grew up on a farm in North Queensland. I am an experienced hairstylist and the proprietor of an 11-year-old business. I have worked as a lab technician in a mine, on cruise ships, in the child safety and community services sector. I am passionate about self-care, nutrition, health, and sports especially lifting heavy things. 

Rights In Action Incorporated (RIA) was formed in August 2001 and provides strong independent advocacy for people with disabilities and mental health who are in vulnerable situations. We are completely on the side of the person with a disability.

rightsinaction.org.au

Aunty Elsja Dewis

Age Care and Disability Advocate, Aged and Disability Advocacy Australia (ADA)

Elsja Dewis’s people are the Wuthathi people from the Cape of Far North Qld on her mother’s side and Boigu Island on her father’s side from the Torres Straits.  She has spent the last 4 years advocating for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders as an Age care and Disability Advocate. Prior to working as an advocate, she worked in the state and federal government for over 35 years. Elsja has always been passionate about positive change and enhancing the wellbeing of all peoples.  She has a strong belief that through her efforts she is only part of a solution and ensure she is not part of the problems and is always finding ways to encourage others to speak up not just through their words but through their actions. 

Aged and Disability Advocacy Australia (ADA Australia) is a not-for-profit, independent, community based advocacy and education service with 30 years’ experience in supporting and improving the well being of older people and people with disability. Headquartered in Brisbane we provide advocacy services to older people and people with disability in metropolitan, regional, rural and remote communities across Queensland. Our services are free, confidential and client focused.

adaaustralia.com.au

Louise Staunton

Indigenous Advocate, Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion

Louise has been working in the human services field for almost 30 years. Her roles have included direct support work, restrictive practice oversight, service coordination, financial capability, social and emotional education courses for children, child and family practitioner including DFV support and disability advocacy. Louise is passionate about helping people make informed decisions and choices about their life and ensuring their voice is heard on matters important to them. Louise is a Palawa descendent from the beautiful lands of Lutruwita Tasmania. 

Established in 1987 by a small group of passionate Queenslanders with and parents of people with disability, QAI is an independent not-for-profit advocacy organisation and specialist community legal centre for people with disability. We are first and foremost a systems advocacy organisation focused on changing attitudes and policy to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people with disability.

Mikayla Bohmer

Community Advocate

Mikayla Bohmer is a proud descendant of the Kaurareg people of Thursday Island and a lived experience consultant committed to inclusion, accessibility and meaningful change. Living with cerebral palsy, she brings empathy, insight and a holistic perspective to her work. Her lived experience informs the way she helps shape environments, services and technologies that are responsive to the real needs of people with disability.

Mikayla has contributed to research, co-design projects and the steering committee for the Disability Employment Catalyst, working to improve employment outcomes through lived experience leadership. She is passionate about designing and developing assistive technology that empowers independence, enhances autonomy and reflects the diverse ways people choose to live. Her approach is grounded in supporting people on their own terms, in ways that reflect their goals, needs and preferences.

Her work is grounded in challenging attitudes, shifting assumptions and pushing beyond tokenism. Mikayla is guided by a deep commitment to equity, autonomy and the recognition of the full humanity of people with disability. She defines inclusion as creating space for people to lead their own lives, make their own choices and be respected for who they are. Real change begins when systems value people not for how well they adapt, but for the lives they live. That is the future she is working toward.

Byron Albury

President, Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion

I am an Indigenous male with a disability, which I believe gives me a unique perspective on fighting for the rights of not only Indigenous people but also other marginalised and disadvantaged people. I became a member of QAI in the year 2000 and was then elected president. My disability type is Cerebral Palsy Spastic Quadriplegia. My family are from Rockhampton and are part of the Cherbourg community.

I was 5 years old when I was forcibly placed in an institution and special school for children with disability. In the institution, I was told I would never amount to anything. I missed out on learning my Indigenous culture. The best thing about my childhood was the friendships I made for life with other children. However, the emotional toll is something I will never get back. Physical scars heal, emotional ones take years. 

Now, I have a university degree, have been the president of QAI for over 2 decades, and I have worked to reconnect with culture and family. 

Since I was 22 years old I have been passionate about advocacy from a grass roots understanding while working across government and community sectors. I advocate to make sure no one else goes through what I went though. 

I am particularly passionate about the human rights of Indigenous people with disability in Queensland. As president of QAI, I guaranteed the inclusion of First Nations leadership on the Management Committee by amending our Constitution. I also initiated organisational reforms to create and sustain an Indigenous Advocacy practice and to maintain a Reconciliation Action Plan.

I have been foundational in creating the first community-controlled organisation in Queensland set up by and for First Nations people with disability, Mob for Mob, of which I am the inaugural Chairperson.

In 2024 I worked in New York as part of the Australian Delegation to the United Nations, contributing an intervention about my experiences of institutionalisation. I have also represented QAI at the local, state and national levels.

The experiences I have gained throughout my life assist me to contribute to furthering QAI’s guiding principles.

Mitch Medcalf (He/Him)

Disability Project Officer, Queensland Council for LGBTI Health (QC)

The Queensland Council for LGBTI Health (QC) has been a home for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Sistergirl and Brotherboy people and communities in Queensland for over 40 years. We are proud to be a community led and community owned health and wellbeing service, representing the diversity of our communities. Walking with you to find the support you need. Changing to meet our diverse communities needs.

qc.org.au

Uncle Willie Prince

Elder and Advocate for People with Disabilities

Wilfred Thomas Prince was born in Cherbourg Aboriginal Mission in Queensland. He is a descendant of the Kalkadoon Clan from the Mt Isa area in Queensland.

He helped establish the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Disability Network of Queensland and is a long-standing board member of LinkUp (QLD) Aboriginal Corporation. He was the bearer of the Paralympic torch through Brisbane streets during the 2000 Paralympic Sydney Games and was a Gold Coast Commonwealth Games Queen’s baton bearer in 2018.

A proud Kalkadoon person, Willie is very proactive in both the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community and the disability sector. He has a key role in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Disability Network of Queensland, as well as serving on numerous boards in the community.

Aunty Semah Mokak-Wischki

Community Advocate and Aboriginal Elder

Semah Mokak-Wischki is a Djugun woman from Broome, Western Australia.

Semah is the Writer/Director of Through Our Eyes, a documentary which explores growing up Muslim and Aboriginal in remote Australia.

Semah is also a carer and parent to her adult son who has Cerebral Palsy and Autism. She is a disability advocate and has been actively involved in the Brisbane disability sector for many years, committed to ensuring people with disabilities are equal citizens.  She is well known member of the Qld network, passionate speaker, community organiser, and powerful parent advocate.

Semah’s unwavering commitment to the disability sector and to people who have high support needs and use facilitated communication. She wants to make more spaces in all of our organisations and services to have those that are invisible fully seen and heard.

Portrait by Lars Vester.

Duane Doyle (He/Him)

Artist, West End Community House Art Gang (WECH)

My mob is the Yimen/Jiman mob, located in Central Queensland, Taroom. Our water flow is the Gummoo Wongarra meaning One Water which flows from from the Carnarvon Gorge/ Ranges, down through the land and out to the sea. In the Garingbal tribe my animal totem is the Googoobing, meaning scrub turkey. My first language is English however I am still learning our Ghungalu and Yimen/ Jiman words. I was given a cassette tape by an Elder, which is long lost now, with Ghungalu words and my dad also spoke a little bit of Yimen/ Jiman language. Some words I was able to memorize however most is lost, often my pieces are named with Ghungalu language. 

in these last 30 years my art has taught me spirituality, but not in the typical sense like aurous or ghosts/spirits but rather I have been learning and trying to practice: patience, acceptance, organisation, disappointment, rejection and decision making. I am also learning to accept positive affirmations about myself and my art which is giving me self-confidence. 

I have become a West End Community House (WECH) Art Gang family member and artist. They have taught me life skills I need to live in Brisbane for example, one of my Art Gang brothers George, sold a painting and he saved up the money to go on a holiday to Uluru, and I thought to myself, “maybe I can spend my hard working money on something good for myself these days (instead of on bills)”. I’ve met incredible people from many walks of life, we’ve been able to create and display our art together in exhibitions across Brisbane and they’ve been able to give me the love of a big family that I haven’t felt for a long time, especially being a single parent for over 20 years now. 

doyleduane1967.wixsite.com

Khadija Gbla, (He/She/They)

Consultant, Khadija Gbla Cultural Consultancy

Khadija Gbla is a multi-hyphenate; high-profile, passionate, and inspiring African-Australian woman. She is a single mum, carer, black, non-binary, queer, neurodivergent, and disabled award-winning human rights activist, model, inspirational speaker, writer and mentor. She has displayed great courage and determination in achieving her aspirations of giving women, youth and minority groups a voice at a local, state and international level. Khadija utilises her powerful and inspired voice to advocate for structural change and everyday simple actions we can all take to achieve true equality and inclusion for all people. 

Khadija Gbla was born in Sierra Leone, spent her youth in Gambia, and, as a teenager, put down roots in Australia. Khadija was just three years old when the war broke out in her country, Sierra Leone and ten years later they attained refugee status and resettled in Adelaide. Khadija provides advocacy, training, coaching, mentoring, and speaking on domestic and family violence, sexual health, racism, FGM, human rights, gender equality, intersectionality, inclusion and diversity, bias, mental health, disability, NDIS, migrants and refugees and cultural diversity and so much more through her cultural consultancy, Khadija Gbla Cultural Consultancy. 

Khadija is the lead voice and campaigner on Female Genital Mutilation in Australia. She runs a not-for-profit organisation, Ending Female Genital Mutilation Australia, which protects Australian girls from FGM and supports survivors of FGM. Khadija provides training for professionals, advocacy and community education for practising communities in Australia. Khadija is also a TEDx speaker with nearly 3 Million views on her talk, “My Mother’s Strange Definition of Empowerment”.

Matilda Alexander (She/Her)

CEO, Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion (QAI)

Matilda is a leader and human rights lawyer with over 20 years experience including at Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion, Prisoners’ Legal Service and LGBTI Legal Service.  She has won multiple awards for her work with vulnerable communities and holds an enduring passion for justice and human rights. She taught Prison Law at Griffith University and has previously worked at the Queensland Human Rights Commission and Legal Aid Queensland.  She is currently CEO of Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion and Patron of the LGBTI Legal Service.  She has been selected three times as a delegate to the United Nations Conference of State Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in New York. Matilda was appointed to the Independent Ministerial Advisory Council, Queensland Disability Advisory Council, LGBTIQ+ Roundtable, the National Strategy Advisory Group and serves on the board of Legal Aid Queensland. 

Established in 1987 by a small group of passionate Queenslanders with and parents of people with disability, QAI is an independent not-for-profit advocacy organisation and specialist community legal centre for people with disability. We are first and foremost a systems advocacy organisation focused on changing attitudes and policy to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people with disability.

Akii Ngo (They/Them)

Consultant

Akii Ngo (they/them) is an international multi-award-winning and multi-disciplinary professional, consultant, trainer, educator and DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging) practitioner who is dedicated to and deeply passionate about human rights, disability, accessibility, intersectionality, non-tokenistic representation and all aspects of inclusion and co-design/community-led principles.

They have dedicated their entire life and career to making a positive, sustainable difference to marginalised communities, especially those they are part of. Akii is a proudly multiply-disabled, multiply-neurodivergent (Autistic, ADHD & c-PTSD), Queer/LGBTIQA+ trans and gender-diverse, culturally and racially marginalised (CARM) person of colour from a non-English speaking refugee background (NESB). Akii also lives with very complex chronic illnesses, has dealt with more life and death situations than they can count (and any one person should ever deal with!), endures constant debilitating and often tortuous chronic pain in addition to several degenerative physical disabilities.

Akii is also a fierce survivor-advocate and activist for violence prevention– especially since one of their main disabilities (spinal injury) is a direct result of IPV. Akii contributes extensively to community development and positive change-making through their advocacy and education work as well as being a lived experience subject matter expert providing consultation, advisory, professional keynoting, storytelling, facilitation, contributing to research and the creative industries (media, fashion & beauty) as an internationally published model and creative, fighting for improved non-tokenistic diverse and intersectional mainstream representation.

akiingo.com | @akii_ngo

Nina Carr

Nina Carr is a passionate advocate, co-researcher, and systems change-maker dedicated to social justice, equality, and inclusion. Drawing on her lived experience of disability, Nina works to amplify the voices of people with disability, ensuring health and social systems are accessible, equitable, and led by those with lived experience. She collaborates with key stakeholders, universities, and organisations across Queensland and nationally — contributing to research projects, advisory committees, and systemic advocacy efforts. Nina actively shapes disability policy and practice, advocating for consumer-led decision-making and inclusive approaches at all levels. A skilled communicator and public speaker, Nina empowers emerging advocates and leaders with practical tools, encouragement, and confidence to create meaningful change. She has contributed to high-level policy discussions and statewide initiatives focused on improving accessibility and inclusion in healthcare. Nina remains deeply committed to breaking down barriers, improving health messaging, and fostering a society where everyone—regardless of ability—has the opportunity to thrive. She continues to champion inclusive policies and co-design approaches, working alongside community members and professionals to create a more just and accessible world.

Day two – Wednesday 28 May

Aimee McVeigh (She/Her)

CEO, Qld Council of Social Services (QCOSS)

As a community lawyer and human rights advocate, Aimee led the successful campaign for a Human Rights Act for Queensland. Aimee has qualifications in communications and law, attaining a Master of Laws (International and Public Law) from the University of Melbourne. Her work as a lawyer focused on human rights and discrimination, guardianship, estate planning, child protection and domestic violence. Prior to joining QCOSS, she worked in various senior and advisory roles, including at the Disability Royal Commission, Disability Law Queensland and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Legal and Advocacy Service. Aimee has been engaged by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples as a gender advisor and has worked with a number of non-profit organisations in Queensland, including during the Child Abuse Royal Commission.

For 65 years, QCOSS has been the champions for people experiencing poverty and disadvantage in communities across the breadth of Queensland – from Torres Strait to the Tweed, from Burketown to Burleigh – in metropolitan, regional and remote areas. We create positive social change through our work in advocacy, policy development, engaging and empowering the social service sector and communities.

qcoss.org.au

Katherine Hayes  

CEO, Youth Advocacy Centre (YAC) 

Katherine is the CEO of the Youth Advocacy Centre, a community legal centre that provides legal and social support for young people in Queensland. Katherine joined YAC in 2022 with over 20 years of corporate law experience with a desire to make positive change in the community. As youth justice issues have begun to dominate political debates, Katherine has become a vocal advocate for the rights of children whose voices are often left out of the story. 

Youth Advocacy Centre (YAC) is a Brisbane-based not-for-profit organisation that has a mission to increase young people’s access to justice, both legal and social.

yac.net.au

Murray Benton (He/Him) 

Deputy CEO, Youth Justice, Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak  

Murray Benton is a proud Aboriginal Barkindji Koori man from Central West New South Wales and serves as Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Youth Justice at Queensland’s Youth Justice and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Protection Peak (QATSICPP). He is an appointment member of the Child Death Review Board with the Queensland Family and Child Commission and a Board Director of DVConnect. 

QATSICPP is the peak body representing thirty-five (35) Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled child protection organisations in Queensland. We work closely with our members, our communities, practitioners and policymakers to protect our children, young people and families. Our vision is that all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people are physically, emotionally and spiritually strong, live in safe and caring environment within their own families and communities, and are afforded the same life opportunities available to all children and young people to achieve their full potential. 

qatsicpp.com.au

Nathan Skinner (He/They) 

Senior First Nations Youth Advocate, Open Doors LGBTIQ service 

Nathan is a Taungurrung brotherboy. Senior First Nations Support worker at Open Doors Youth Service Inc. Nathan is passionate about LGBTQIAP+SB community, justice and improving outcomes for our emerging leaders.   

Open Doors Youth Service (ODYS) was created by community for community 25 years ago and remains Queensland’s only dedicated LGBTIQ+ Sistergirl & Brotherboy (SB) youth service.  

opendoors.net.au

Candice Hughes  

Principal Solicitor, Youth and Family Service (YFS) 

Candice Hughes is the Principal Solicitor at YFS. At YFS we back people in Logan and surrounding areas to overcome adversity and to thrive.  We know everyone needs secure housing, a decent income and safe relationships. But we also understand the importance of skills, connections and hope. 70% of people who contact YFS have housing issues. By the time they leave us, 80% are securely housed, 80% feel safer and 85% report improved financial wellbeing. We achieve these outcomes through integrated services and partnerships. For example, families escaping domestic violence work with our domestic violence counsellors, financial counsellors, housing specialists and employment advisors. Our evaluations show integrated approaches are cost effective. They break intergenerational cycles of disadvantage and crisis. We have been doing this work in Logan since 1983. We’re well run, with strong management, skilled staff, firm governance and an established reputation as a trusted provider of high-quality services.

yfs.org.au

Gillian O’Brien 

Director, WWILD  

Gillian is a non-disabled Social Worker who has been working with victims of crime who have intellectual disability for over 13 years. Gillian is the current Director of WWILD Sexual Violence Prevention Association, having started at WWILD as a Case Manager, before moving into management 6 years ago. Gillian is passionate about ending violence against people with intellectual disability, and also regularly advocates for this in her other role as the Chair of the Queensland Sexual Assault Network. She was also privileged to have been included as a member of the Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce in 2021-22, which recommended that Queensland move to an affirmative consent model for sexual activity, and that police and judicial responses be improved to stop misidentification of domestic violence offenders and better protect victim-survivors, among the hundreds of recommendations made to improve the legal and service system for women and non-binary people in Queensland. 

WWILD supports people with intellectual disabilities who are victims or survivors of sexual violence or have been victims of crime and other forms of exploitation. 

wwild.org.au

Hayley Blackburn

Integration Manager, Women’s Safety and Violence Prevention, Dept Families, Seniors, Disability Services and Child Safety 

Hayley has a background in frontline child protection, working in Child Safety Service Centres in a variety of roles in Moreton Bay for 19 years. Hayley has also spent time as a Senior Program Manager and Practice Lead for Mercy Community, overseeing multiple Family and Child Connects, Intensive Family Support, Early Intervention services, Foster and Kinship Care programs and Domestic Violence System Coordination. Hayley now works for Women’s Safety and Violence Prevention as Integration Manager for Brisbane Region, supporting Integrated Services Responses for Domestic and Family and Sexual Violence across the sector. 

noviolence.org.au

Karyn Walsh 

CEO, Micah Projects 

Karyn is a founding member of Micah Projects and has held the position of CEO for over 28 years. She has since been a determined social justice advocate for over 40 years. During her career, Karyn has served in numerous roles including as the president of the Queensland Council of Social Services, as a former executive member of the National Coalition for Gun Control, as a former coordinator of the Domestic Violence Resource Centre, as a member of the Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Implementation Council, as co-chair of Queensland’s Anti-Poverty Week, as a council member at the Queensland Mental Health Commission and as the Chair of the Australian Alliance to End Homelessness. 

Micah Projects is a not-for-profit organisation in Brisbane dedicated to creating justice and responding to injustice in our community. We believe that every child and adult has the right to a home, healthcare, education, income, safety, dignity, and meaningful connection. 

micahprojects.org.au

Kristy Hill

Peer Worker, WWILD  

Kristy, is a passionate advocate with a disability, and who has been through domestic violence. Kristy has been a Peer Worker at WWILD for 3 years, and has been involved with WWILD for a lot longer than that! As a Peer Worker, she help with groups with women with disability who have experienced violence, works on projects like the Listen Up! Project and the ACT domestic and family violence training project. Kristy also travels to help with training organizations to make their services better, make podcasts, online training, and help with Easy English writing and videos. She is also a part of Resound with Brisbane Domestic Violence Service, which is a lived experience domestic violence group, and gives talks on panels for that to help educate about stopping domestic violence.

WWILD supports people with intellectual disabilities who are victims or survivors of sexual violence or have been victims of crime and other forms of exploitation.

wwild.org.au

Sara Martins (She/Her)

Systems Advocate, Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion (QAI)

Sara joined QAI in May 2019, performing different roles, from being a volunteer, a paralegal and an NDIS Appeals Advocate. Currently Sara is the systems advocate for Queensland Independent Disability Advocacy Network (QIDAN) which is coordinated by Queensland Advocacy for Inclusion (QAI). Sara has a Bachelor of Laws from a Brazilian university and is a licensed lawyer in Brazil. She has just completed her Juris Doctor, an extended Masters in Law, from Griffith University. Sara loves engaging with communities, and she has a particular interest in human rights.

Established in 1987 by a small group of passionate Queenslanders with and parents of people with disability, QAI is an independent not-for-profit advocacy organisation and specialist community legal centre for people with disability. We are first and foremost a systems advocacy organisation focused on changing attitudes and policy to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people with disability.

Anna Burke

Policy and Government Relations Manager, The Summer Foundation

Anna is the Policy and Government Relations Manager at the Summer Foundation where she leads the Foundation’s policy agenda to expand housing and support options for people with disability with high support needs. Anna has more than 20 years professional experience in social and disability policy in Australia and internationally.

Summer Foundation invests in identifying, designing and scaling up great ideas that deliver better housing and living solutions for 40,000 Australians with disability. Established in 2006, we have a proven track record, delivering innovative solutions to improve the lives of people with disability.  In collaboration with other organisations, we have helped 7,500 young people with disability avoid aged care. But there is more to do to improve the quality of housing and living support options for Australians with disability who need access to 24/7 support.

summerfoundation.org.au

Karin Swift

Consultant

Karin Swift is a leader and advocate for people with disability. She has worked for over 20 years to make systems like housing, health and support services more fair and inclusive. Karin is the President of Women With Disabilities Australia and leads a group in Queensland that gives advice about housing for people with disability. She uses her own lived experience and works with others to make sure people with disability are listened to. Karin believes in human rights and that people with disability should lead the way in making change.

Paige Ridgewell

Assistant Director-General, Housing and Homelessness Programs, Department of Housing and Public Works

Paige’s 30-year Queensland public sector career has seen her working across a number of portfolios including infrastructure and planning, main roads, racing, national parks and environment, social policy, and leisure, sport and recreation. She is known for her experience in successfully leading transformation within government through community collaboration and co-design and a strong focus on creating better futures for Queenslanders. With over ten years in executive roles in the Queensland Government, she has extensive experience in leading business divisions and directing teams to achieve high-level outcomes in strategy, policy and program development, and delivery.

Paige has served on a range of community boards and committees and is well-versed in engaging with diverse stakeholders, as well as Government Statutory Authorities and Committees to achieve mutual outcomes. In her roles, Paige has driven organisational reform to enhance delivery of government services and led State-wide communication and advertising campaigns for initiatives such as the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan, policy and legislation development across portfolios as well as delivery of significant strategic initiatives including the Queensland Government’s Activate! Queensland 2019–2029 sport strategy.

Paige currently serves as the Assistant Director-General of Housing and Homelessness Programs, where she is leading the development and implementation of a comprehensive Transformation Roadmap aimed at establishing a Target Operating Model for the division as a whole.

Paige brings her many years of experience as an athlete, coach and administrator, as well as her background in multiple government sectors, to the work environment by applying the principles of high performance, training and teamwork.

The Department of Housing and Public Works in Queensland provides a range of housing and homelessness programs to support individuals and families. These programs include social housing, private rental assistance, and funding for organizations assisting people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

housing.qld.gov.au

Penny Carr

CEO, Tenants Queensland

Penny Carr is the CEO of Tenants Queensland where she has worked since 1998. She has extensive knowledge of tenancy law and of tenants’ experience of renting. Penny Carr graduated with a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Queensland, holds a Graduate Certificate in Housing Management and Policy from Swinburne University and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.  Penny has worked for over 25 years in the community sector and has a keen interest in social policy. The main focus of her work has been with homeless young people, in youth affairs broadly and housing and tenancy.  Penny convenes the National Association of Renters Organisations (NARO) and is the contact for the International Union of Tenants in Australia. 

Tenants Queensland (formerly Tenants’ Union of Queensland) was established in 1986 and seeks to represent the concerns of all Queensland tenants who live in rental accommodation, including caravan park and boarding house residents. For many years Tenants Queensland has performed an important role for Queensland tenants; providing specialist advice services for tenants, advocating on behalf of tenants, and securing improvements to Queensland’s residential tenancy laws. Our vision is a society where renting is a secure tenure and tenants can understand and exercise their rights and responsibilities under tenancy law.

tenantsqld.org.au

Sally Pennell (She/Her)

Housing Advocate, Speaking Up For You

Sally has been an individual advocate for Speaking Up For You (SUFY) since January 2022. In recent months, She has also focused on a Housing & Homelessness project within SUFY to develop more collaborative relationships with the Department of Housing and Specialist Homelessness providers to improve housing outcomes for people with disabilities. 

Speaking Up For You Inc. (SUFY) defends the human rights of the most marginalised and vulnerable people with disability through advocacy to address injustices and make a positive difference to their lives.

sufy.org.au

Day three – Thursday 29 May

Elly Desmarchelier

Consultant

As a proud disabled woman, Elly was the national spokesperson for the Defend Our NDIS campaign during the 2022 Federal election. Her fierce advocacy has gained her access to rooms where decisions are made that impact the lives of Australians with disability, such as speaking at the Prime Minister’s 2022 Jobs and Skills Summit.  From appearing on national TV on shows such as The Project, The Drum, Q&A and 7:30, to speaking at the Sydney Opera House for the 2023 All About Women Festival, Elly shares her insights and experiences on being a disabled woman in modern society. Her writing has been featured in national publications such as Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and the ABC.

ellydesmarchelier.com

Annabelle Oxley

Disability Project Officer, Queensland Council for LGBTI Health (QC)

Annabelle Oxley is a disability project officer at the Queensland Council for LGBTI Health (QC) has been a home for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Sistergirl and Brotherboy people and communities in Queensland for over 40 years. We are proud to be a community led and community owned health and wellbeing service, representing the diversity of our communities. Walking with you to find the support you need. Changing to meet our diverse communities needs.

qc.org.au

Cate Akaveka

CEO, Neighbourhood Centres Queensland

Cate Akaveka is the CEO of Neighbourhood Centres Queensland (NCQ), the peak body representing over 150 Centres around the state. Throughout her career, Cate has worked across a range of government agencies and community organisations and, prior to joining NCQ, was the Enterprise and Development Manager with Hervey Bay Neighbourhood Centre.

Neighbourhood Centres Queensland (NCQ) is the peak body for Neighbourhood Centres in Queensland. With over 150 Neighbourhood Centres (NCCs) across the state, our sector represents the largest community-led infrastructure in Queensland. NCQ is here to grow our collective impact by increasing the resourcing, recognition, and relationships of Neighbourhood and Community Centres at the local, state, and national level. We collaborate with our members, partners and government to measure impact and build sector capacity for long-term community and social resilience.

ncq.org.au

Chloe Jesson (She/Her)

Deputy CEO, Queensland Alliance of Mental Health (QAMH)

Chloe is the Deputy CEO of Queensland Alliance for Mental Health (QAMH), where she leads sector development initiatives that strengthen the capability, sustainability, and connectedness of the community mental health workforce. She is currently completing a Master of Governance and Public Policy at the University of Queensland and brings experience across systems reform, workforce strategy, and service co-design. Chloe is also a mum of six-year-old twins with NDIS plans, which grounds her work in a deep understanding of how policy and community intersect in the lives of people with disability. She is passionate about building inclusive communities where connection and belonging are possible beyond funded supports.

Queensland Alliance for Mental Health (QAMH) is the peak body for the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Sector and people with experiences of psychosocial disability in Queensland. Our role as the peak body for the Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Sector is to reform, promote and drive community mental health and wellbeing service delivery for all Queenslanders, through our influence and collaboration with our members and strategic partners.

qamh.org.au

Lia Pa’apa’a,

Artist, Púuna 

Lia is a mama, textile artist and creative producer who works within a community engaged practice.  This means that throughout all her projects over the past 15 years in the Arts, the clear thread through them all. Lia serves her communities by creating culturally and creative safe spaces for people to tell stories, to learn, be empowered and build capacity and to explore creative and cultural practice.   Lia’s ancestors hail from Samoa and the Luiseño nation of Southern California and her practice is informed by this. She seeks to revitalise, reclaim and reimagine her culture for her and her children as a contemporary artist, community practitioner and mama.

liapaapaa.com

Michelle Moss

CEO, Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN)

I have worked in the human services sector for almost 30 years including disability, health, and domestic violence. I have worked in both Government and non-Government sectors in a variety of roles including direct support work, complex behaviour support, policy, training and education, consumer and community engagement and project management. My work is founded on a strong commitment to ensuring the voice of people is part of the public policy and the design, planning and evaluation of services and systems.

Queenslanders with Disability Network (QDN) is a state-wide organisation of, by, and for people with diverse disability. All our work is focused on disability rights and advocacy. QDN’s work is centred around a strong network of people across Queensland and almost 30 peer support groups which inform, connect, lead, and influence change. We believe there should be ‘nothing about us without us’

qdn.org.au

Nas Campanella

National Disability Affairs Reporter, ABC

Nas Campanella is the ABC’s National Disability Affairs Reporter. Nas is totally blind and lives with a neurological condition called Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) which means she can’t read Braille. After completing a Communications degree at the University of Technology Sydney, majoring in journalism she started with the ABC as a cadet. Nas has worked as a regional reporter in southeastern New South Wales and then as a triple j newsreader for seven years. In taking on this role, Nas became the first blind newsreader in the world to read and operate the studio for herself live to air. In 2020 she was appointed to the senior national Disability Affairs role. 

Nas travels the world to speak at events, helping to motivate people on issues ranging from inclusive education, adaptive technology, accessible travel and the importance of empowerment and leadership for women. Now also a proud mum to her son, Nas shares her experiences navigating motherhood as a parent with disability. As well as working in the area of policy development in Australia and across the Pacific, Nas has volunteered abroad creating disability awareness training programs for the United Nations and has held several board positions in the disability sector.

 Nas is a freelance writer, MC and mentor and is an ambassador for The Centre of Perinatal Excellence.