Kerryn Vaughan - Connecting through open conversations
This episode challenges how we store emotions, and how differing realities can cause us to carry these perceptions long into adult life without ever realising they exist.
This weekend I went away with my sister to Byron Bay Yoga Centre for a long weekend retreat. While there was some element of self care replenishment, we also hoped it would give us a great opportunity to get away from everyday life to connect on a deeper level. That certainly happened.
But what else happened was a realisation that two worlds can collide in the exact same space and the outcome can be two completely different perspectives and realities. We all know that, and on a surface level that’s ok, but what happens with our buried emotions? Do we suddenly release them with the acknowledgement that realities are vastly conflicting? Or do we hold them deep down until they make us sick, or until we consciously confront them?
This episode looks at how open honest conversation can lead not only to deeper connection, but also to healing.
Evie Wilson - Empowering women and girls to dream big
Evie Wilson is a mindset coach, focused on empowering women and girls to step into their dreams and authenticity. Her Hype Club, Clubhouse and Dance Dance Dopamine events create a space for fun, exploration and authenticity.
Evie Wilson is a mindset coach, positivity rebel, dream chasing guide, group space enthusiast and podcast host of the podcast Wildly Positive. She is also a mother to two small girls, a marriage celebrant and feminist, always.
As a mindset coach, Evie creates spaces for women to open their minds to lush, audacious dreams for their lives, pairing it with the essential mindset work required to fully step into making these dreams their new realities.
Her favourite ways to do this are within group spaces such as her monthly, in person small community event Hype Club and her fast growing girls empowerment sessions, Clubhouse.
Evie is also the creator of Dance Dance Dopamine, where women can experience the full joy of dance without all the stress and anxiety of dressing to impress.
Positivity, joy and connection are the pillars Evie builds her life and work on, and she fully believes in guiding women and girls on how their wild and bold positivity can truly change their lives, championing them to strive for more and to forever take up more space.
Socials:
Website: https://eviewilson.com.au/
FB: Evie Wilson - Marriage Celebrant + Mindset Coach
Insta: Evie Wilson @__eviewilson
Insta: Gippsland Celebrant @eviewilson_celebrant
Mentions:
Beautiful You Coaching Academy
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Simon Alexander Ong - Energizing every moment
Simon Alexander Ong is a personal development entrepreneur, coach and public speaker. He is also the author of the bestselling book ‘Energise - Making the Most of Every Moment’, and passionately advocates the power of stepping into your future self.
Simon Alexander Ong is a personal development entrepreneur, coach and public speaker. His clients are from all walks of life but they share one trait; they all believe that the greatest investment you can make is in yourself. His work has seen him invited onto Sky News and BBC to be interviewed, while Barclays featured him in a nationwide campaign asking him questions on how families could embrace better lifestyle habits.
His insights have seen him featured in HuffPost, Forbes, Virgin and the Guardian. He also regularly speaks at organisations (these have included Salesforce, Microsoft, EY, Adobe and Unilever) and keynotes public events and conferences across the globe.
His debut book Energize was published by Penguin in April 2022 and became an instant bestseller. It also received endorsements from the likes of New York Times bestselling authors Simon Sinek, Marie Forleo and Dr Marshall Goldsmith.
Socials:
Website: https://www.simonalexanderong.com/
LinkedIn: Simon Alexander Ong
Insta: Simon Alexander Ong @simonalexandero
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Tim Bye - Making candles with pride
Tim Bye is the proud creator of The Gay Farmer Candles. After being bullied and harassed in the workplace, Tim made a formal complaint but it wasn’t upheld. Broken, he developed severe mental health issues and making candles was his salvation.
Tim Bye is The Gay Farmer, and also the proud creator of The Gay Farmer Candles.
In 2016, Tim was working in the Northern Suburbs of Melbourne, and was bullied, harassed and discriminated against in the workplace, simply for being gay. He was then terminated after complaining about the treatment he was receiving from the manager.
Tim hoped WorkSafe Vic would help, but sadly they didn’t. This led to Tim’s mental health declining badly, and he now suffers with severe mental health issues.
In 2022, Tim’s niece visited and told Tim about how she made candles, and how it was relaxing and a great creative outlet. Recognising his own creative spark, Tim wanted to try this in the hope that his mental health would improve. He started making candles for his friend, Molly Irvine to raise money for her to compete in a World Championship Triathlon event.
Falling in love with candle making, Tim now makes 100% Soy Candles in drink ware, so the candle jars have a second use and people get something other than a jar they would ordinarily throw out.
Socials:
Website: https://thegayfarmer.com.au/
Insta: The Gay Farmer Candles @thegayfarmeraus
Mentions:
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Laura Robinson - Legging it with Laura
Laura Robinson had been trying to lose weight and feel good about her body image for 25 years, but to no avail. What changed everything, was a promise she made to walk every day for one whole year.
At the end of 2021, Laura set herself a a massive challenge…. Go for a walk everyday for a year! At the time she honestly thought she would last a week, or maybe a month tops. There were a few reasons for the challenge but one of the biggest ones was listening to someone who had lost a massive amount of weight, describe how they could finally be happy now they are living in a thinner body.
Laura had heard this before, but this time she reflected and realised she was already happy. She had a wonderful family, a great job and a wonderful life… she was just frustrated that she had been trying to change her body every day for at least 25 years and nothing had ever worked.
It was in that moment of reflection that Laura realised she had been doing so much damage to her body and her mind while striving for something that really in the grand scheme of things didn’t matter. She needed to be kind to herself like she would be to her family or best mate! What really mattered was that her 3 kids had a great role model that didn’t obsess over their weight and could keep up with how busy they were. Ultimately the decision to walk every day was for the kids, but she also needed to fit it in around them and was working almost full time.
The more walking Laura did, the better she felt physically, but she also felt better emotionally and mentally. Within the first few weeks she discovered so many more amazing benefits and became acutely aware how much her mindset was changing. She also realised that of all the people she was following on social media, not one of them was like her. While there was extreme dieting or extreme fitness models, and loads of weight loss surgery accounts, nobody was taking a gentle approach.
Laura decided that ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ so began sharing her journey on Instagram. The community that has grown from this experience has kept Laura inspired to continue encouraging and inspiring people to be as kind as they can be to themselves, and to spread kindness across the whole community in the hope of making this world a more loving and nurturing one.
Socials:
Insta: Laura Robinson @legging_it_with_laura
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Graeme Simpfendorfer - Investigating murders and chasing identity
For 27 years Graeme Simpfendorfer dedicated his life to the police force, solving murders, leading armed robbery investigation teams, and becoming a decorated officer. Now as a TV celebrity, he’s chasing his true identity.
Whilst working at a country bank in rural New South Wales in 1993, Graeme was witness to an armed robbery from behind the service counter. On this day, police dramatically arrested the offenders as they exited the bank. This moment proved pivotal in his decision to apply for the Victoria Police, graduating from the police academy in 1994.
Graeme worked the ‘beat’ across many suburbs of metropolitan Melbourne before being promoted to Detective in 2003. In 2006 he transferred to the prestigious Homicide Squad, honing his skills from the legends of Victoria Police Homicide.
He then led small teams in the highly dynamic and pressured world of armed robbery investigations. He obtained two departmental commendations for some high profile, infamous investigations before moving to the North East of Victoria as the Officer in Charge, Wodonga Detectives.
Graeme is the recipient of the National Emergency Medal (Black Saturday Bushfires 2009), National Medal (25 years service), National Police Service Medal and Victoria Police Ethical Service Medal. He has a Bachelor of Policing (Investigations) and Graduate Certificate in Fire Investigations, both from Charles Sturt University, New South Wales.
After an esteemed career as a Detective Sergeant with Victoria Police, Graeme went on to establish Peregrine Investigations and Consultancy in 2021. He is also the lead investigator on the Ch10 TV show ‘Hunted’.
Socials:
Website: Peregrine Investigations and Consultancy https://www.peregrineconsultancy.com.au/
LinkedIn: Graeme Simpfendorfer
Insta: Graeme Simpfendorfer @simpfofficial
Insta: Graeme Simpfendorfer @peregrineconsultancy
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Prasiddhi Singh - Planting 100,000 trees for a greener world
At 10 years old, Prasiddhi Singh has already planted more than 100,000 trees and establish around 100 micro forests, facilitated more than 600 workshops, presented 2 TEDx talks, and isn’t stopping any time soon.
Prasiddhi Singh, Age 10, Prime Minister National Child Awardee (Highest Civilian Honor Under 18 years). She is the founder of the Prasiddhi Forest Foundation. She is the youngest Fruit Forest Creator of India-by-India book of Records.
Prasiddhi is Brand Ambassador for the Nationwide Girl literacy campaign – “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” by Tamil Nadu Government. She has also been appointed as Child Ambassador of Green Tamil Nadu Mission. Prasiddhi has been featured in Wikipedia for her plantation program & environmental contribution.
Prasiddhi has planted over 1Lac trees and created several Prasiddhi micro forests in government schools, colleges, Panchayat & farmer’s land. Prasiddhi is an advocate of biodiversity, she has created her own eco army of 40,000+ eco-warriors spread across the globe through 600+ (online & in-person) workshops on topics like climate change, circular economy, sustainability, 3Rs and how to be an impact creator to students, corporates, villagers & farmers successfully.
Two times TEDx speaker, Prasiddhi is also the youngest keynote speaker of Harvard Model United Nations, India. Now she is working on Web3 Climate technology & Nature Based Solutions.
Awards /Recognition:
The Diana Award - U.K (Highest & Prestigious global accolade for social Action & Humanitarian efforts).
Zee TV Born to Shine Award.
The Global Child Prodigy Award, Dubai.
TV18 Byju’s Young Genius Award
Finalist “Indian of The Year” CNN News18.
Eco Hero Awards, California USA.
Earth Day Network Rising star (USA).
Global Sustainability Award by GCPIT
Young Changemaker by Cartoon Network- Warner’s Brothers.
Prasiddhi, young social entrepreneur, is a true inspiration for countless kids and people of all age groups. At an age when kids are busy imbibing the basics of life, she is leading global environmental initiatives. Prasiddhi has also initiated her G3 PROJECT - (Generate your oxygen, Grow your own food, Gift your community) with an aim to widespread environment awareness to every school & every student of India.
Socials:
Website: Prasiddhi Forest Foundation prasiddhiforest.org
LinkedIn: Prasiddhi Singh
Insta: Prasiddhi Singh @prasiddhi.official
Insta: Prasiddhi Forest Foundation @prasiddhiforest
FB: Prasiddhi Forest https://www.facebook.com/PrasiddhiForest
FB: Prasiddhi Singh
Youtube: Prasiddhi Singh
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Sue Centra - Unleashing a caravanning extravaganza
Sue Centra loves bringing people together and creating a stronger community. She also loves caravanning. When she got the opportunity to host a traveller’s extravaganza in her home town of Sale, she did not expect it to be so successful on so many levels.
Sue Centra is an energetic optimist, passionate about bringing people together and creating a stronger community.
Right before Covid started, Sue retired with big plans to caravan around Australia. Sue and her husband sold the family farm and headed north. Locked out of Victoria due to Covid, Sue and Mick took the long way home and found themselves at a Traveller Caravan Group get-together in South Australia, which would continue to play in Sue’s mind long after the gathering.
Upon arriving back in Victoria, Sue was asked to head up a specialised Covid team, and it was then that Sue really knew she was meant to be working for the community and helping people.
Eventually Sue decided to emulate the get-together she enjoyed so much, but this time in her beloved Gippsland town of Sale.
She called this event the Sale Traveller’s Extravaganza, and with some local support, Sue delivered the very successful event, helping others to create deep friendships and boosting the local economy by more than $30,000 over a few days.
Mentions:
Dane Nicholls (solo musician)
Sporting Legends (venue)
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Lewis Swire - Building global success for youth
Lewis Swire is a 16 year old entrepreneur from Scotland whose focus is to bring young people together to find success. He leads the Global Young Entrepreneur Society, founded award-winning online magazine ‘The Curios Times’, and is now moving into snack bars.
Lewis Swire is a 16-year-old social entrepreneur from Scotland, whose entrepreneurial journey started at the age of 10 when he founded Aurora Bath Bombs, and at 12 founded Cheeky Lemonade.
He then founded The Curious Times (curioustimes.co.uk), an award-winning international online magazine ‘By Young People, For Young People’, dedicated to amplifying the voices of young people. He founded the non-profit in the April lockdown of 2020, in response to the isolation and disconnection being experienced by young people globally. Since then, he has built a community of hundreds of thousands of young people passionately sharing the issues facing their generation and striving to enact positive change in the world. With a core editorial board of 12 and a greater team of over 200 writers, the magazine also operates as a hub for young people to read the latest news on a variety of topics.
In February 2021, Lewis co-founded The Global Young Entrepreneur Society (GYES), a completely youth led international non-profit organization that supports exceptional young people in realising their aspirations by giving them a platform for entrepreneurial growth. GYES frequently publishes ‘signature’ content on their website (gyes.org) and YouTube channel, making interviews with some of the most successful entrepreneurs, politicians and academics freely available to the GYES community.
Lewis has recently founded Scranables, a subscription based snack bar line, which is currently in product development phase.
In September 2022, Lewis was invited to the Summit of Minds in Chamonix, France, in recognition of his work to-date on The Curious Times and GYES. At the three-day conference, Lewis embraced the opportunity to speak face to face with world-leaders and heads-of-state. His opening and closing plenary speeches provided him a platform to represent and amplify the issues concerning young people today, ensuring that these are brought to people in power and change is acted upon.
Beyond the business world, Lewis is a talented field hockey player and trains as a ballet dancer with Scottish Ballet Associates and Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Associates programmes. He began ballet dancing when he was just three years old and now spends evenings, weekends and holidays rehearsing in the ballet studio – he finds the studio a great place to clear the mind. Lewis is in full-time school and preparing to sit his first set of national examinations (National 5s) this year.
Socials:
Website: The Curious Times https://www.curioustimes.co.uk/
Insta: The Curious Times @curious.times
Website: Global Young Entrepreneur Society (GYES) https://www.gyes.org/
LinkedIn: Lewis Swire
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Kerryn Vaughan - Knowing when to quit
Are you ready to quit? Before you do, take a listen to this episode and keep in mind that it is perfectly OK to call it a day.
This episode takes a look at some questions to ask yourself if your project or idea has made you wonder whether you should quit.
Quitting is not failure, and actually takes enormous strength and courage.
If you have lost your passion, are frustrated, have lost connection with other things you care about, or are gaining no traction, this episode will give you some things to reflect upon, if you have the courage to be honest with yourself.
Happy listening 😁
Website: kerrynvaughan.com
Laurent Notin - Unsticking the entrepreneur bottleneck
Laurent Notin is a coach to entrepreneurs helping them become un-stuck and to stop being the bottleneck in their business.
Laurent is a French national who left France at 23, spent 20 years in South-East Asia, before relocating to Finland in the summer of 2019. His professional background is in market research and advertising, where
he ran 7-figure businesses across 3 countries.
Throughout the years, and as a result of his own burnout, Laurent has developed a passion for coaching, mentoring, advising and training people. He is particularly focused on helping entrepreneurs get unstuck and recognising that often they are the bottle-neck getting in the way of success.
Socials:
Website: https://www.laurentnotin.com/
LinkedIn: Laurent Notin
Youtube: Laurent Notin
Insta: Laurent Notin @laurentnotin
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Mick Harrington - Leading change through music and politics
Mick Harrington is passionate about music, politics, family and community. After making his way to the grand final on The Voice, Mick launched his political career where he expects to make great change within his community.
Mick Harrington grew up amongst the picturesque farming communities of East Gippsland, Victoria where he has established himself as a successful small business owner and decorated musician.
Having worked in a variety of roles in the agricultural, retail, journalism and native timber industries, Mick is passionate about regional and remote Australia including the need for communities to access quality healthcare and affordable housing, alongside gainful employment and quality training.
While life has certainly changed for Mick in recent times, after gaining the admiration of the nation on TV show "The Voice", Mick is usually more comfortable working in hi-vis and boots than he is stepping on stage to perform for his fans.
A passionate voice for his rural community, Mick is strong believer in the need for improved rural and regional infrastructure and he strongly supports primary industries within Victoria.
Mick is regularly seen popping up at many community events offering his help to raise much needed funds and loves the passion for community that rural people express. He is also a volunteer and long time committee member at Lindenow South football netball club.
When he isn't on-stage or operating his business, Mick loves to watch his beloved Geelong Cats and spend time playing at the park with his daughters Bella, Katie and Niamh or exploring his local countryside.
Socials:
Insta: Mick Harrington @mickharringtonmusic
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Michael Bartura - Building Happy Habits
Michael Bartura is the founder of Happy Habits Coaching, and is committed to helping people find new ways to look at things, as well as lean in to brain neuroplasticity to make impactful and long-lasting change.
Michael Bartura has well over 30 years of experience in a variety of fields including education, international aid, manufacturing, training & development, business development and innovation. Over the years, he in as many as a dozen countries in Asia, Australia, North America, and Europe.
Michael has worked as a director, manager, business developer and consultant with organisations such as The Halo Trust and the IMC Group. He has spent 12 years as a therapist and 17 years as a facilitator, trainer and a coach. He has a master’s degree in management and taught classes on Leadership, Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence for the School of Life and now the Small Giants Academy.
In Australia, he founded Happy Habits Coaching using principles of Servant leadership and Positive Neuroplasticity - a mindfulness-based approach to increase our self-awareness of the brain’s tendency for negative biases and better deal with anxiety and fear. Together with his daughter, he established the Gatherer’s Leadership project to work with the next generation on models of leadership, entrepreneurship and advocacy for social goodwill.
He is committed to helping his clients better understand how their minds are limiting their growth and happiness, and how mental patterns that served us well in the Savannah are not well suited to modern times and get in the way of a life worth living. He listens deeply and asks questions with a mix of curiosity, empathy, and honesty.
Michael lives in the forest just outside Melbourne and is constantly amazed by how easily his children see through his pretensions. He is addicted to quotes from people much smarter and linguistically more adept than himself, and finds shopping for anything other than office equipment boring and tedious.
Socials:
Website: www.lifecoachingmelbourne.com.au
Website: www.happyhabits.com.au
LinkedIn: Michael Bartura
FB: Michael Bartura
Insta: Michael Bartura @positiveneuroplasticity
Mentions:
Lisa Miller (book) ‘The Awakened Brain’
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Dr Jen Pratt - Making a wish and saving lives
Dr. Jen Pratt is a pediatric physician who cares for children in the very same hospital where she was treated for cancer at the age of 11. During her treatment she was offered a wish by Make A Wish Foundation and decided to dedicate her life to giving back to kids in a similar situation.
Dr. Jen Pratt is a pediatric physician that is caring for children in the very same hospital where she was treated. Her story has come full circle, back to where her life was transformed. Dr. Pratt is now able to help improve the lives of other children battling critical illnesses with the gift of a wish referral and personally share in the transformation that comes with her patients’ wish experiences.
She attended medical school at Midwestern University in Chicago, IL and completed her pediatric residency training at the University of Minnesota. Her areas of interest include teaching medical students and residents, quality improvement work, and caring for medically complex children. Outside of the hospital, Jen enjoys golfing and exploring the outdoors with her family.
Make-A-Wish creates life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, Make-A-Wish is the world’s leading children’s wish-granting organization, operating in every community in the United States and in nearly 50 countries worldwide. Together with generous donors, supporters, staff and more than 24,000 volunteers across the U.S., Make-A-Wish delivers hope and joy to children and their families when they need it most.
Make-A-Wish aims to bring the power of wishing to every child with a critical illness because wish experiences can help improve emotional and physical health. Since 1980, Make-A-Wish has granted more than 520,000 wishes worldwide; more than 350,000 wishes in the U.S. and its territories alone.
Socials:
Website: www.wish.org
Twitter - @MakeAWish
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/makeawish
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/makeawishamerica/
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/makeawish
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Mike Fox - Making a big splash in film making
Mike Fox is a Multi award-winning Filmmaker, Director, Producer, Writer, Designer, Creative Professional, Actor, Voiceover, CEO & Entrepreneur. He is determined to make the world a better place through his projects and is well on the way.
Mike Fox | Multi award-winning Filmmaker, Director, Producer, Writer, Designer, Creative Professional, Actor, Voiceover, CEO & Entrepreneur.
Featured on front page newspapers, Mike Fox's ultimate goal is impacting lives to empower, inspire and encourage and give direction in some way. Along the journey, are many curvy and cool paths from comedy, to suspense and scary, to sci-fi, to emotional, to pure cinematic.
His professional work is known across the U.S. including receiving numerous accolades and awards, featured on multiple media outlets on television, publications and print. As well, Mike has been named Top Pioneer & Entrepreneur by K.I.S.H. Magazine, won numerous awards from the prestigious Delaware Press Association (DPA), Local Business Person of the year by Alignable two years in a row, and continues to speak and teach filmmaking, directing, creative design and business to educational outlets.
With an accumulative of over twenty plus years of Creative experience, from design, video production, audio production, filmmaking marketing, social media, photography and videography and much more, his momentum to make an impact only grows stronger. Alignable’s 2021 and 2022 Businessperson of the Year.
He’s also been an Official Film Festival Judge as well as currently being an actor, voiceover professional, CEO of Design business Splash Designworks, and produces Ambient EDM music as Dubblestep & Trillex. Now, with his feature film on Amazon Prime, Tubi TV, and IMDB TV (Freevie), he and his beautiful family continue their focus on producing filmmaking content through a newly formed business, Crystal Fox Films.
“Life isn’t about finding yourself, life is about creating yourself.” -George Bernard Shaw
Socials:
Website: Splash Designworks https://splashdw.com
Website: Crystal Fox Films https://crystalfoxfilms.com
LinkedIn: Mike Fox
Facebook: Splash Design Works
Instagram for Splash: @splashdesignworks
Instagram for Mike Fox
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Danni Brooke - Living an undercover double life
Danni Brooke lived the double life for over a decade as she unravelled some of the most dangerous people in the UK. She now runs a cybersecurity company and speaks all over the globe.
Former Metropolitan Police Officer, Danni Brooke AKA Undercover Mother is highly regarded as an investigation and intelligence expert across The Globe. Having worked on some of the most dangerous and high-profile cases, Danni has seen herself face to face with crimes involving guns, drugs and prostitution rings.
'My life was full of danger every day and I couldn’t tell my friends or family what I did for a living. My mum didn’t even know! There were definitely times I was in too deep but somehow I always got away with it.
I was living a double life and it felt normal.'
For over a decade Danni Brooke was one of the most effective female undercover cops in the UK, one of a very small number of women in the Met’s elite unit. She was so successful at taking down criminals she was seconded to forces around the country.
Whether she was infiltrating organised crime gangs or disrupting drug supply lines, Danni played the innocent Essex girl, fooling even the most suspicious villains, using her quick wits to keep her out of trouble. She loved the job but the pressures of her work, and trying to balance the long hours with being a mother, were to take a toll on her personal life.
In her honest, warm and gripping memoir, Danni also reveals why she left the police, how she found a new career (and love) on C4’s Hunted – and why the thrill of covert work still pulls her into private investigations.
Today Danni Brooke enjoys the quiet life with her two children at her home in Spain, where she also runs a cybersecurity company with partner and fellow TV hunter Ben Owen. She likes experimenting with Italian recipes, baking and watching true crime documentaries on Netflix. It is a world away from the high-risk life she lived for ten years as a covert police officer. Then she spent her days on the streets and her nights in dingy clubs and crack dens, helping to gather evidence to put hundreds of dangerous criminals behind bars.
Since leaving the force in 2013 she has built up a successful career as an investigator on C4’s Hunted, now in its 10th series. She has also participated in the ‘Celebrity Hunted’ programmes, appeared on ITV’s This Morning, taken part in the C5 series Troll Hunters and is due to star in a new C4 gameshow hosted by Ellie Taylor launching this Spring. Danni has also filmed a pilot with a Hollywood production company.
As one of the only female undercover cops operating at a senior level Danni has a unique insight into the workings of this specialist unit. And though her extraordinary bravery and quick-thinking earned her commendations, today she takes a more critical view of her police work.
‘My view on drugs has completely changed over the years,’ she says. ‘Though I’m proud of what I did, taking out some really nasty characters, I can see that drugs problem isn’t going to be solved unless there is some serious thinking at a governmental level.
Socials:
LinkedIn: Danni Brooke
Insta: DGB @dannigbrooke
Twitter @DanniGBrooke
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Mat Bowtell - Creating Free 3D Hands
Mat Bowtell founded Free 3D Hands after being his job in the car manufacturing industry came to a close. He now sends bionic hands and other assistive devices to people around the world completely free of charge.
Mat Bowtell is the founder and CEO of Free 3D Hands, an Australian charity who designs and 3D prints hands and assistive devices. The hands are provided for free, to children and adults all around the world and they even pay the postage! Mat freely shares his designs under an open-source licence so others can make and repair their own devices and to encourage further innovation.
Mat's goal is to significantly bring down the cost of assistive technology to help those who currently cannot access or afford it.
Located on Phillip Island, the small team have provided hundreds of devices all around the world. Their designs are also being made by volunteers in Italy, Thailand, France, South Africa, Egypt, USA, Poland and others.
They are currently developing a low cost, multi-grip bionic arm and are making exciting progress with the latest prototype. Their goal is to make the equivalent of a $60,000 bionic arm...for under $60 in parts!
To learn more about Free 3D Hands or to make a donation, head to their website at http://www.free3dhands.org
Socials:
Website: https://free3dhands.org/
FB: Free 3D Hands
Insta: Free 3D Hands @free3dhands
Mentions:
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Ben Tunks - Building a Little Village to bring equity to kids
Ben Tunks is the Student Wellbeing officer in a regional Primary School. After feeling overwhelmed and frustrated by the system’s failure to address inequity, Ben founded The Little Village Project to help families experiencing trauma and disadvantage so that the kids could engage in education and life.
Ben Tunks is a Youth Worker and Musician, and founder of the Little Village Project (LVP).
After working in the community service sector for many years, Ben made a change to the Department of Education & Training in 2017. There he came to see school staff as the real workers at the coal face of Youth Work, particularly when it came to children who have experienced trauma and those who live in out-of-home care.
Ben soon found himself in a Student Wellbeing role in a Primary School in Traralgon (Victoria, Australia), and in 2020 founded the LVP to support the work that his school were doing with some of the vulnerable children and families within the local community.
Since then, the LVP has spent over $22,000 on 150 interventions for 36 students/families. This includes therapeutic support such as counselling, psychology and speech pathology, funding for assessments, and providing some material needs for education such as clothing, shoes and glasses.
Socials:
Website: kindredspirits.org.au/tlvp
FB: Little Village Project https://www.facebook.com/thelittlevillageau
Mentions:
Gippsland Regional Executive Forum
Gippsland Emergency Relief Fund
Heather Baird podcast interview
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Kristi Maggio - Empowering young change makers
Kristi Maggio is the founder of Maggio Multicultural Academy and Maggio Multicultural Foundation, based in the Dominican Republic. She is also the author of “Follows and Likes Is This All That I’m Worth”, and her latest release “Young Changemakers”.
Kristi Maggio is dedicated to creating access to equal education and employment opportunities worldwide. For over 20 years, she watched many children fail and feel inadequate merely because they didn’t fit into the traditional way of learning. As a result, she chose to take action and founded a school that gives students the tools to create success in their life no matter who they are or where they come from. She is also the author of the book “Follows and Likes Is This All That I’m Worth”, and her latest release “Young Changemakers”.
After starting Maggio Multicultural Academy and Foundation, Kristi’s mission became clear, to impact the lives of 1 billion youth in the next 10 years by providing an educational program based on entrepreneurship and applied learning. She has often said and heard, “I wish I knew then what I know now!” So, why does the world continue educating young people in a passive way? Why is there a lack of access to education and employment in many countries? It has become Kristi’s obsession, to make a new ecosystem that stops generational poverty, by providing youth the skills they need to be competitive in this world, and upon graduation have the opportunity to either, receive employment, start their own business, or go on to higher education. For the first time ever, people can study and work from anywhere as long as they have a computer and a signal.
Kristi does not do hard work; she does “heart work,” because nothing is ever hard when it comes from the heart.
Maggio Multicultural Academy is a bilingual school in the Dominican Republic founded in 2016. Starting small with only 7 students, she bootstrapped the business and did mostly everything herself to grow, from accounting, curriculum, teacher training and marketing. To expand her vision, she needed to build credibility and transparency, so she started a radio show, a podcast, authored a book and started a 501c3 in the US and the Dominican Republic.
Socials:
Website: https://kristimaggio.com/
LinkedIn: Kristi Maggio
Follows and Likes Is This All That I'm Worth? (Book)
Maggio Multicultural Academy (Bilingual Hybrid School)
Maggio Multicultural Foundation
The Secret To Success… Isn’t So Secret (Podcast)
Social Media and Podcast Links
Mentions:
Evan Carmichael - Your One Word
Jonte Hall (Harlem Globetrotter)
Herb Lang (Harlem Globetrotter)
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
Jordan Wylie - Conquering extreme adventures for a better world
Jordan Wylie is an award winning extreme adventurer, Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author, TV personality, Guinness world record holder, charity fundraiser, TEDx speaker and former soldier. He is also the United Kingdom national ambassador for Army Cadets.
Jordan Wylie is an international bestselling author, award winning adventurer and one of the stars of Channel 4’s BAFTA-nominated shows Hunted and Celebrity Hunted. He is also currently the United Kingdom’s national ambassador for the Army Cadet Force.
Jordan grew up on one of the largest council estates in the country in Blackpool, Lancashire. After a few brushes with the law at an early age, some harsh lessons learnt and having left school with no qualifications, Jordan talk the life-changing decision to join the British Army at 16 years old and has never looked back since.
Jordan has an exemplary military service record which saw him dedicate 10 years to Queen and country. He saw operational service in Northern Ireland and Iraq where he specialised in military intelligence, close reconnaissance and armoured warfare. Jordan spent much of his spare time as a soldier playing football and studying, he left the military proudly having represented the British Army as a player and coach and having obtained a foundation degree, Bachelors degree and Masters degree in the field of Security and Risk Management.
On leaving the Army, Jordan entered the world of Maritime Security, making headlines after armed Somali pirates boarded a ship that he was tasked with protecting. As the onboard security team leader, Jordan found himself in charge and forced to make critical decisions for the safety of his crew. It was this period of his life and unique experiences that led Jordan to write “Citadel: The True Story of One Man’s War Against the Pirates of Somalia”, which became a Sunday Times bestseller (general paperbacks) on publication.
Jordan has had a thirst for adventure and the great outdoors since he was a young boy but after having a mental breakdown in late 2015 with a diagnosis of severe depression and chronic anxiety, he has since dedicated himself to using the power of purpose and the spirit of adventure to have a positive impact in the world and the lives of others, especially the next generation.
Jordan is respected as a multi-discipline adventurer around the world and has set and broken several official world records whilst raising over one million pounds in the process for charitable and good causes including delivering a school from concept to completion and opening on the Horn of Africa.
Jordan is a proud patron, trustee, ambassador and volunteer of several charities. He is also the author of 4 books, two of which have been bestsellers in both the UK and US. Jordan is a regular commentator on Sky News and an accomplished keynote conference speaker.
Jordan lives by his own mantra of “Be The Difference That Makes A Difference”…
Socials:
Website: https://www.jordanwylie.org/
LinkedIn: Jordan Wylie
Insta: JORDAN WYLIE @mrjordanwylie
Enjoy the visual here on Youtube
