Racism Revisited: Speakers' Biographies
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Mr Abeselom Nega Mr Nega is the Managing Director of Iempwoer Pty Ltd, a private rehabilitation, education and training services company that operates in Sydney and Melbourne. Mr Nega was the General Manager, Adult Multicultural Education Services’s (AMES) Employment Division for several years until June 2006 and has served as board member of the National Employment Services Association (NESA). He is the Immediate Past Chair of the Federation of African Communities Council (FACC), and a founding member of the Australian Partnership of Religious Organisations (APERO) and Mr Nega is also a Board Member of National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI). He has served as a member of several boards and advisory committees over many years. Me Nega is an Associate Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management, a Certified Member of Australian Institute of Human Resources and Member Australian Institute of Project Management. Mr Nega is serving as a member of the National Steering Committee for Australian Human Rights Commission and he is the National Convenor of the Federation Ethnic Communities Council of Australia New and Emerging Communities Advisory Committee (FECCA NEC Advisory Committee)
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Mr Viv Ahmun Over the last quarter of a century Viv Ahmun has developed many private sector and not-for-profit companies. He has always maintained close links with those in the poorest communities whilst simultaneously adopting a strategic approach to campaigning for economic and political equity. He is a passionate and inspirational international speaker, known as someone who gets things done whilst making simple sense of seemingly complex and emotionally charged socio economic and politically charged issues. Mr Ahmun has successfully developed many interventions that have enabled some of the most challenged young people and adults in our society to come to terms with the harsh world in which they are expected to function. He has worked tirelessly to support professionals primarily in the public sector, although in recent years the need for his ability to come with uniquely appropriate corporate social responsibility enhancing solutions when the need is greatest has endeared him to an increasing number of corporates. He has worked with the Criminal Justice System both locally and internationally for more than 20 years on a wide range of issues (extremism, racism, organized crime, drug dealing/importation, community engagement, diversity, staff empowerment, domestic violence, gun crime etc.). He is Director of Equanomics UK a national social campaigning organization affiliated to the NAACP, and Rainbow Push, and sits on the board of a number of service providers, and Ministerial Bodies. Mr Ahmun describes himself as a public and private sector entrepreneur specialising in service and workforce development, which encompasses the development of systemic approaches to supporting those communities in greatest need, effective communication underpins all of his activities. Examples Viv chaired London’s Practitioners Forum, which kick started London’s development of coordinated strategies for addressing the increased instance of weapons, and group related violent crime amongst young people. He is credited with establishing the first young people’s drug treatment service in the UK, and developing the treatment approaches now most commonly used in relation to stimulant users. His work in recent years has focused on: • Capacity building, psychotherapeutic interventions, mentoring, coaching and leadership development for professionals, both in the private and public sector in the UK and abroad. Identity and Difference as a conceptual frame underpins all of Viv's activities, which is further underpinned by his focus on enabling people to unpack past, and more recent experiences in ways that enable and empower them to be the best that they can be. www.in-volve.org.uk/involve/index.aspx
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Mr Kim Collard Prominent Aboriginal Cross Cultural Awareness trainer, Director of Kooya Consultancy delivering Aboriginal education and training courses to all sectors of community. Mr Collard is a Balladong man of the Nyoongar Nation of the southwest of Western Australia and is a fluent speaker of the Balladong dialect. Mr Collard has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Aboriginal Community Management and in 2006 graduated from Curtin University of Technology with a Masters in Aboriginal Health Economics. In the 1990’s Mr Collard was a Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Aboriginal Studies at Curtin University of Technology and during that time established a Bachelor of Arts, Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate in Indigenous Australian Cultural Studies. During this time he sat on the Aboriginal Education and Training Council which was the peak Aboriginal education body that provided strategic advice to the West Australian Government on Education and Training and was a member of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee for the Curriculum Council of Western Australian. Mr Collard is now the Director of his own consultancy firm, Kooya Consultancy that delivers Aboriginal education and training courses to all sectors of the community. |
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Ms Hanifa Deen Award-winning Australian author Ms Deen writes narrative nonfiction and lives in Melbourne. She now works full-time as a writer, which she sees as the perfect medium for a woman with an irreverent tongue, a maverick Muslim perspective on life, and a passion to subvert stereotypes wherever they lurk. Ms Deen has held a number of high profile positions in a career spanning twenty-three years in human rights, ethnic affairs, and immigration, including: • Hearing Commissioner with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission of Australia
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Mr Andrew Demetriou Mr Demetriou has been CEO of the AFL since 2003 after previously holding the job as AFL General Manager of Football Operations for three years. Mr Demetriou was also CEO of the AFL Players' Association from 1998-2000 and previously served as non-Executive Chair of the Baxter Group, which he took from a market capitalisation of $40 million in 2003 to its sale to Transpacific for $260 million. He is the Public Appeal Chair for the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre.
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Professor Kevin M. Dunn Professor Kevin Dunn (BA (W'gong); PhD (Newcastle); FNGS), is Professor of Human Geography and Urban Studies, School of Social Sciences, at The University of Western Sydney. His areas of research include the geographies of racism, immigration and settlement, Islam in Australia, and local government and multiculturalism. Recent books include Landscapes: Ways of Imagining the World, and his recent articles are published in Society and Space, Ethnicities, The Australian Geographer, Studia Islamika, Urban Studies and the Australian Journal of Social Issues. He is a Fellow of the New South Wales Geographical Society and President. www.uws.edu.au/social_sciences/soss/key_people/academic_staff/kevin_dunn
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Ms Jane Elliott Ms Jane Elliott, Internationally renowned teacher, lecturer, diversity trainer, and recipient of the National Mental Health Association Award for Excellence in Education, exposes prejudice and bigotry for what it is, an irrational class system based upon purely arbitrary factors. And if you think this does not apply to you... you are in for a rude awakening. In response to the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. over thirty years ago, Ms Elliott devised the controversial and startling, "Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes" exercise. This, now famous, exercise labels participants as inferior or superior based solely upon the color of their eyes and exposes them to the experience of being a minority. Everyone who is exposed to Ms Elliott's work, be it through a lecture, workshop, or video, is dramatically affected by it.
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The Hon Laurie Ferguson MP The Hon Laurie Ferguson MP is the Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services. He was appointed to the position in 2007 after significant activity in this policy area within the New South Wales (NSW) Parliament from 1984 to 1990 and the Australian Parliament, since 1990. In his current role he engages with community and faith groups across Australia and has overseen several major national initiatives. Mr Ferguson launched the Diverse Australia Program (DAP), which ensures that the best possible approach is taken to promoting the benefits of Australia's cultural diversity. It takes a national approach to issues of cultural, racial and religious intolerance by promoting respect, fairness, inclusion and a sense of belonging for everyone. The program recognises that ordinary Australians are best placed to identify what issues exist between groups in their communities, and that the communities should be supported in addressing them. A crucial part of Mr Ferguson's responsibilities is to build resilient communities. This includes overseeing engagement with Australia's 6000 ethnic organisations through the community liaison officer network in the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC), speaking with individuals, groups and peak bodies on relevant issues and increase awareness within government departments that government services need to be accessible to all Australians. Mr Ferguson's work as parliamentary secretary builds on his commitment to Australia's refugee program throughout his parliamentary career and his long-standing interests pursuing social justice and the role of communities in building a fairer Australia, where everyone belongs. www.minister.immi.gov.au/parlsec/biographical/
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Professor Sylvester J. Gates, Jr. S. James Gates Jr. is the John S. Toll Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the University of Maryland, College Park. He is the first African American to hold an endowed chair in physics at a major research university. He has served as a consultant to the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Departments of Energy and Defense, and the Educational Testing Service and held appointments at MIT, Harvard, California Institute of Technology and Howard University. He is a member of President Barrack Obama's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology - www.ostp.gov/cs/pcast/members For more information about Professor Gates, see a recent profile on the University of Maryland Newsdesk site.
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Ms Yvonne Henderson Appointed Commissioner for Equal Opportunity in June 2003. A former high school science teacher and politician, Commissioner Henderson practiced law for five years after retiring from the WA Parliament. A Minister in the WA Government for five years Commissioner Henderson held the portfolio of Industrial Relations, Consumer Affairs, Housing and Construction. Commissioner Henderson is passionate to ensure that the Western Australian Act works effectively in practice, promoting equal opportunity and eliminating discriminatory practices. www.equalopportunity.wa.gov.au/
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Dr Shakira Hussein Dr Hussein is undertaking a McKenzie postdoctoral fellowship on "Muslim women in Australia negotiating gendered violence and racialised political discourse" at the National Centre for Excellence in Islamic Studies, University of Melbourne. She completed her PhD at the Australian National University and is a regular media contributor on issues including gender, multiculturalism and Islam.
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Professor Andrew Jakubowicz Mr Jakubowicz is Professor of Sociology at the University of Technology Sydney. He has an Honours degree in Government from Sydney University and a PhD from UNSW. Since the early 1970s he has been involved in action research and race relations, and has been centrally involved in the development of materialist theories of cultural diversity. He has taught at universities in the USA, Europe and Asia, and was the foundation director of the Centre for Multicultural Studies at the University of Wollongong. He has published widely on ethnic diversity issues, disability studies and media studies. In 1994 he led the research team that produced "Racism Ethnicity and the Media (Allen and Unwin), and more recently has been involved in multimedia documentaries such as "Making Multicultural Australia" (1999-2004) and "The Menorah of Fang Bang Lu" (2001-2002). He was historical adviser to the exhibitions on the Jewish communities of Shanghai, at the Sydney Jewish Museum (2001-2002), the National Maritime Museum (2001-2003) and the national travelling exhibition "Crossroads: Shanghai and the Jews of China" (2002-2003). He was foundation chair of the Disability Studies and Research Institute. Supervision areas include new media and social change, racism and ethnicity, public policy and marginalised minorities. His Areas of Expertise is Australian studies; Race & ethnicity; Social communication. His major publications include the famous book Jakubowicz, A.H., Martin, J.A., Mitchell, A.W., Randall, L., Goodall, H. & Seneviratne, K. 1994, Racism, Ethnicity and the Media, Allen and Unwin, Sydney; Jakubowicz, A.H. & Seneviratne, K. 1996, Ethnic Conflict and the Australian Media, ACIJ, UTS, Sydney; Jakubowicz, A.H. 1997, Is Australia A Racist Society? Australia Lecture (English and Bahasa), Australia-Indonesia Foundation, Jakarta and Sydney. He has written numerous book chapters and journal articles in the area of racism and race relations. http://datasearch2.uts.edu.au/fass/staff/listing/details.cfm?StaffId=967
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Mr Paul Power Mr Power has been Chief Executive Officer of the Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA), the national umbrella body for 130 agencies working with refugees and asylum seekers, since 2006. Paul leads the organisation's policy development and public education on refugee issues and its advocacy with the Australian Government, international networks, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other inter-governmental bodies. In 2008, he was appointed to the Australian Government's Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council. Mr Power worked in the newspaper industry for 12 years as a journalist and editor before moving to the non-profit sector in 1993, originally as communications officer for the international aid and development agency Caritas Australia. He later developed and managed the St Vincent de Paul Society's social action centres in outer south-western Sydney and Wollongong, where he led community development initiatives in public housing estates, social support for people with mental illness, volunteer training, social research and advocacy.
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Mr Suresh Rajan Suresh Rajan was formerly a Director and financial adviser with SMCR - Financial Planners. Prior to setting up this firm in December 1991, Suresh was employed by one of Perth’s largest Investment advisory firms. Before commencing in the Financial Planning industry Suresh worked for the Australian Taxation Office in both Perth and Canberra. Suresh has a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of WA and a Masters of Business Administration degree, also from UWA. He has a Certificate in Superannuation Management from Macquarie University. He is a member of the Australian Institute of Management, the Australian Society of CPA’s, an affiliate of the Securities Institute of Australia, and a Certified Financial Planner of the Financial Planning Association of Australia. Suresh has been involved in the area of multiculturalism since being elected as President of the Ethnic Communities Council of WA in September 2001. He has also been President of Multicultural Arts WA. He is on a number of committees for State and Federal governments and is no stranger to media in this area including the following: • Ethnic Youth at Risk http://eccwa.multiculturalwa.org.au/ ; www.celebrityspeakers.com.au/brspeaker_bio.asp?Speaker_Index_Text=314
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Ms Tammy Solonec Ms Solonec has a passion for Aboriginal social justice and has been involved in advocating for the rights of Aboriginal people in human rights, crime and justice, housing, consumer protection, anti-smoking and culture and the arts. Ms Solonec was born in Derby, Western Australia (WA) and descends from the Nyikina of the Fitzroy River. Tammy's Nannas and sisters were all raised at Beagle Bay mission. Tammy grew up in the northwest of WA including Derby, Exmouth, Mullewa, Marble Bar and Tom Price, before settling in Perth when she was 16. Ms Solonec was the Convener of NAIDOC Perth (Inc.) and is presently involved in convening an Indigenous Lawyers Association for WA. Tammy is the Director of Nyikina Yorga Consultancies and has developed and facilitated Aboriginal Cultural Awareness Training at the Department of Commerce, the Ombudsman's Office, the Minister for Correctional Services and Staff, Country Lawyers WA, Legal Aid WA and for the Australasian Residential Tenancies Conference. Ms Solonec has two children (Jonathan aged 13 and Jacinta aged 9).
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Dr Casta Tungaraza
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Miss Daisy Tjuparntarri Ward Tjuparntarri Daisy Ward is a Ngaanyatjarra Mantjiltjarra woman from the far east of central Western Australia. Her mother walked and lived in the salt lake and range country of the West Australian - Northern Territory border. Her father came from several hundred kilometres to the north and west in the Gibson Desert. Tjuparntarri was born at Murrku near what was to become the Giles Weather Station. She spent her childhood in the era of Australia's blue streak missile testing, when patrol officers sought out Aboriginal groups living their traditional life styles and assisted them in relocating to emerging residential locations such as Papunya and Docker River in the Northern Territory and Warburton, Balgo and Jigalong Missions in WA. She was at Warburton when Mr Ward's family were brought out of the desert. It was at this time that she met her father's family. From their childhood on both Tjuparntarri and the now deceased Mr Ward developed to be leaders of their people. Both held a variety of jobs and positions working cross culturally to educate mainstream Australians and to better the lives of their own people. Tjuparntarri has featured in two Four Corners documentaries: Who Killed Mr Ward?, 2009, and almost a decade earlier in her pioneering advocacy role with the Ngaanyatjarra, Pitjatntjatjarra, Yankunyatatjarra Women's Council in assisting women victims of domestic violence in central Australia. She has been an employee and on the Executive of the NPY Women's Council for many years. Her passions are many. First and foremost she is a mother and grandmother, an upholder of the Law and is well versed in Women's Law songs, dances and ceremonies. She is an artist and a story teller. She is a strong believer in 'two way' education and currently holds the most senior Ngaanyatjarra position in the Ngaanyatjarra Education Area. For years she has campaigned against domestic violence, unregulated alcohol sales and substance abuse, most recently successfully heading the campaign against the sale of leaded fuels in central Australia and the roll out of lead free "opal" fuel from the Goldfields of Wa to Alice Springs. Tjuparntarri Ward is a tireless campaigner for human rights.
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Maurice Agale Maurice Agale is an Administration Officer for The National Native Title Tribunal’s Research Section in the Principle Registry (Perth). Maurice has a passion and been an advocate for change in the areas of Aboriginal social justice, human rights, native title, corporate responsibility and governance. Maurice has been involved in public speaking and community radio. Maurice was born in Port Hedland, Western Australia (WA) and descends from the Kariyarra people as well as Murray Island in the Torres Straits. Maurice’ mothers’ family was raised on pastoral leases of Mundabullanguna and Mallina station’s on the Pilbara Coast. Maurice grew up in the Pilbara and Nth Queensland as well as travelled extensively across Australia and worked with local communities where ever he has lived. Maurice was the founder of Western Australia’s first Indigenous Toastmaster’s, Ngalya Indigenous Lawyers Association in NSW and helped found the National Indigenous Doctors Association. Maurice has facilitated cultural awareness training for the Law Society of NSW, Department of Conservation and Land Management in WA as well as working with the Equal Opportunity Commission on equity issues.
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Commissioner Graeme Innes AM Graeme Innes was appointed Australia's Disability Discrimination Commissioner and Race Discrimination Commissioner in July 2009. In December 2005 he was appointed as Human Rights Commissioner and Disability Discrimination Commissioner. In these roles he led or contributed to initiatives including the Same-Sex: Same Entitlements Inquiry, achieving removal of discrimination across federal law; drafting of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and ratification by Australia; three inspections of Australia's Immigration Detention facilities; and development of a National Disability Strategy. Graeme is a Lawyer, Mediator and Company Director. He has been a Human Rights Practitioner for almost 30 years in NSW, WA and nationally. Graeme has been a Member of the NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal, the NSW Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal, and the Social Security Appeals Tribunal, as well as a Hearing Commissioner with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. Graeme was Chair of the Disability Advisory Council of Australia, and the first Chair of Vision Australia, Australia's national blindness agency. Graeme has been a consultant to organisations such as Westpac, Qantas, and Sydney Water, on disability issues. He has also been a Councillor on Ku-ring-gai local Council. In 1995 Graeme was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM). He was a finalist for Australian of the Year in 2003. Graeme is married with an adult son and a daughter in primary school. He enjoys cricket (as a spectator) and sailing (as a participant), and relaxes by drinking fine Australian white wine.
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Mr Abeselom Nega
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Pino Migliorino Pino Migliorino is Chair of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) and manages his own research and marketing company, Cultural Perspectives. Pino has an intimate knowledge and understanding of multicultural affairs having previously worked in senior government and community sector roles in that field. Pino was born in Bari, Italy and educated in Australia attaining an Arts degree from the University of Sydney. He lives in Sydney with his family.
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Mr Shaun Brown Shaun Brown has been Managing Director of SBS for the past three years following a similar period as the boadcaster’s Head of Television. His career as a journalist started 43 years ago and 40 of those years he has worked for a range of public broadcasters, including NZBC and TVNZ (New Zealand), The BBC (UK) and ABC and SBS (Australia). Among his reporting assignments was, in 1973, coverage of French nuclear testing at Muroroa Atoll from onboard the frigate HMNZS Otago, for which he was awarded the New Zealand Special Service Medal in 2002. He also received industry recognition for his work as an investigative current affairs reporter and a producer of election night programs. At TVNZ he was Managing Editor, News and Current Affairs from 1994, Head of Television One from 1997 and, in 2001, Head of Television responsible for running both TVNZ channels.
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Professor Jan Thomas Jan Thomas has held the position of Deputy Vice Chancellor Academic at Murdoch University since 2003. Her portfolio has included Indigenous education, academic policy, academic planning, student supports, student services, student liaison and administration, library services, social justice; quality assurance, flexible delivery and staff development. From 2009 Jan’s portfolio also includes both domestic and international recruitment and organisational capability. Jan’s background is in Veterinary Science where she taught and researched in the area of Veterinary Pathology. Having been nominated for, and winning numerous university and national awards for her teaching and for equity provision, Jan has also received international recognition for innovative curriculum design in Veterinary Science. In 1999 she was awarded the cross-sectorial Catherine McAuley Award for Leadership and in 2008 was a finalist in the Western Australian Women of Influence Award. A Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Member of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists, Jan has also been a Member of the governing Board of MercyCare Ltd since 1999. She participates nationally on a range of national working groups and committees. Jan has been an honorary auditor for the Australian Universities Quality Agency since 2004 and has chaired several audits for AUQA during that time. Jan is an external international reviewer for the Oman Accreditation Council, and an auditor for the Quality Assurance Council, Hong Kong.
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Professor John Yovich Professor John Yovich AM was appointed Vice Chancellor and President of Murdoch University in 2002.
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Dr Noel Nannup - Welcome to Country Noel Nannup is a Nyungar/Injabarndi man who has worked tirelessly to promote public awareness of the importance of caring for the environment. His entire career has been dedicated to educating young (and not-so-young) Western Australians about the rich cultural heritage of Aboriginal people and their lands and, throughout that process, Noel as played an active and leading role in cross-cultural awareness and reconciliation. In 2004, Noel was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Education award by Murdoch University in recognition of his outstanding achievements in indigenous education. In addition to significant work with community groups, Noel has also contributed greatly to State government policy initiatives concerning Caring for Country and Cross-cultural Awareness including: • A position on the board of the Swan River Trust; |
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Geraldine Mellet - Master of Ceremonies Geraldine is a broadcaster with over 20 years experience in TV and radio. She has been host and chief interviewer for a number of prime time current affairs and magazine programs including ABC TV's 7.30 Report (W.A.edition and national summer edition), 720 ABC morning program and six years as weekend newsreader for Channel Ten. Geraldine is also a scriptwriter and has produced and presented a number of documentaries including 'Turning Japanese', a documentary on Australian women coping with life in Japan. Geraldine has also written scripts for five Australian childrens' television series, two short films, and has a feature film funded to third draft stage. In the last few years she has written and directed an arts documentary 'Living Dangerously' for the ABC, edited and interviewed for 'Whose Hand is This'? – a book relating the dual stories of a nurse whose life was literally cut in two by a debilitating stroke. She has also worked as a script editor, mentor and interviewer on 'Silent Legacy', a documentary relating the experiences of a member of Australia's indigenous 'stolen generation'. Her latest TV credit is host/interviewer for the national seven part series 'Outback Upfront'. She is currently enrolled in a research masters program at Murdoch University, and hosts several regular programs on ABC 720. AWARDS: • Winner 'Best Radio Report: Equal Opportunity Commission Media Awards for 2x1 hour programs 'Sex & Disability', ABC Radio. |
