Sandra Pankhurst - Finding belonging through trauma

Sandra Pankhurst is truly label-defying. 

A transgender woman, Sandra has lived many lives, rising above adversity. Her remarkable life is the subject of the internationally acclaimed, multi-award- winning book ‘The Trauma Cleaner’. 

Sandra (then “Peter”) was adopted into an abusive family, relegated to a backyard bungalow, malnourished, excluded from family life and escaped home in his teens. 

Marrying young, he soon realised it was not possible to continue his life as a husband and father – so he left that life to become Sandra -- drag queen, sex worker and a gender reassignment patient in the early 80s. With an enviable work ethic, she went on to become Australia’s first female funeral director, a trophy wife and a local government candidate. 

Sandra is now CEO of one of Australia’s most successful trauma cleaning businesses, transforming the filth and squalor of murder, suicide, drug dens, crime, and mental illness. The idea for her trauma cleaning business emerged when she was a funeral director, as there were no death/crime scene specialist cleaners. Sandra saw a gap in the market and created a business that combined her ‘neat freak’ CSI stain-removing genius with her next level ability to relate and connect to people in difficult situations, specifically in trauma. With a unique ability to treat her clients with unpatronising dignity and respect, she transforms their properties back to their former glory. 

An active advocate for aged care rights, disability, mental health and ethics, Sandra has recently been an Ambassador for ‘Becoming Colleen’, a documentary about a woman who transitioned at 82. Sandra is extremely passionate about making a positive impact on the welfare of people of all lifestyles in the aged care and mental health sector. 

As a public speaker, Sandra does keynotes, panel discussions, interviews and book-clubs, and has been featured on ABC Radio, Nova100, SBS, Studio 10,  and in The Guardian, Herald Sun, Life Matters and The Australian

Her incredible story reminds us there can be an after, survival and a next chapter.

Mentions: 

Website - https://www.sandrapankhurst.com.au/

STC Services - https://www.stcservices.com.au/

Socials: 

FB - Sandra Pankhurst - The Trauma Cleaner

LinkedIn - Sandra Pankhurst

Instagram - pankhurst_the_trauma_cleaner

Roy Juarez Jr - Igniting dreams of hope

Roy Juarez Jr. is a speaker, author and activist, and travels to inspire youth. 

At the age of 14 years old, Roy found himself homeless due to domestic violence, moving from house to house to survive. With only a duffle bag to call home, he was at the mercy of the streets and after navigating his way to college, Roy swore to never return to that life again. 

Roy is extremely passionate about helping young people and providing them with hope for the future. He has dedicated his entire life to creating positive change in communities across the country, partnering with organisations such as the U.S ARMY, Ford Motor Company Fund, and the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute. 

His work has also been featured on CNN and in the Chicken Soup For The Soul book - Extraordinary Teens 

Roy is still young, but has lived a life beyond his years. Since 2010 Roy has been able to lecture to over 450,000 youth, educators, and parents throughout the US and abroad, as a motivational speaker and activist fighting for homeless youth, families and higher education. 

He vulnerably shares his heart wrenching personal story of surviving the streets of San Antonio, Texas. 

In 2005, Roy created and founded IMPACTtruth, Inc. which supports youth through variety of programs. 

He is the author of the Book - ‘Homeless by Choice’ - A memoir of love, hate and forgiveness (2018), and the co-author of the Book - ‘4 steps to not allowing the pandemic to affect your home’ Co-authored with Ret. LTC Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch (2020) 

Mentions: 

Website - https://www.homelessbychoice.com/

Hardin-Simmons University - https://www.hsutx.edu/

Janet Hogan - Unlocking the 5th Door

Janet Hogan spent 30 years as a serial entrepreneur, running everything from restaurants to an advertising agency to multi-million dollar land developments. It wasn't till she was well into her 50s, during a simulated death experience, that she heard a voice deliver the ultimate brickbat : "You've let everyone down." 

In that one wake up call, she realised that by being what she thought was selfless, sacrificing her life to work and family, she was in fact being selfish, denying the world her gift.

Today, this former consumer brand builder (remember "Aussie Kids Are Weetbix Kids"?) devotes her time to reshaping the human brand, through her pragmatic and provocative self-discovery program: The 5th Door. She loves nothing more than taking people on a deep dive into themselves to conquer their Core Destructive Belief, the one thing that, according to Janet, keeps so many of us feeling stuck and unfulfilled. 

"I am here to wake people up to who they truly are and from there, craft a living that they love."

Mentions:

Website - https://www.janethogan.com/

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/the5thdoor/

Penny Cula-Reid - Inspiring women to play hard

Penny Cula-Reid began her journey at just 6 years old, playing football with the boys. It wasn't until the age of 14 after a training session one day, that she realised she might be different. She was tapped on the shoulder and told she couldn't play football anymore "because she was a girl" - but instead of listening, Penny asked "why?"

Alongside her peers Helen Taylor and Emily Stanya, Penny took Football Victoria to VCAT (Victorian Civil Administrations Tribunal), and the case was a landmark moment for sexual discrimination in Australian sport.

Girls could now play in mixed competition football up to the age of 14 (originally 12), and a girls competition for U/17's was introduced, effectively creating a pathway for girls and women in Australian Rules Football that previously did not exist.

With the birth of the AFLW (Australian Football League for Women) in 2017, Penny was drafted to play for her beloved Collingwood Football Club. Penny quickly realised that her passion lay in supporting other women, and helping to build them up in their own sporting journeys. 

Penny began coaching the Collingwood VFLW team, and in just her first year led the team to become minor premiers and took out the Coach of the Year award for the VFLW. In 2019 she coached the team to back-to-back minor premierships, and finished the season winning the 2019 VFLW Grand Final. 

Despite having achieved so much so early on, Penny continues to work hard and develop her coaching skills, currently with Williamstown Football Club. 

Hoping to spread her message to as many young women as possible, and with a passion for empowering women to work together, Penny inspires many through her speaking events across Australia. She engages audiences as she talks about her experiences with facing adversity, and shines a light on how women can effectively work together.

Penny's latest achievement is being a part of the new Australian Sports Museum exhibition, where she is a feature piece in the creation of the AFLW.

It hasn't been smooth sailing for this young ambitious woman throughout her journey, overcoming many obstacles along the way, but that's what makes Penny determined, focused, and unstoppable. 

Insta: @pcula

Mentions: 

AFLW - https://womens.afl/

VFLW - https://vfl.com.au/women/

Collingwood Football Club - https://www.collingwoodfc.com.au/

Williamstown Football Club - https://www.williamstownfc.com.au/

Even Girls Play Footy - http://www.evengirlsplayfooty.com/

Dr. Ash Pachauri - Creating a movement for climate action

Dr. Ash Pachauri is the president and founder of the Center for Human Progress in India. Founded in 2009, with the aim to improve the quality of life of individuals and societies by supporting, promoting and encouraging healthy behaviours and human rights.

He has also co-founded with, and inspired by, his late father R.K Pachauri, two global organisations - Protect Our Planet Movement (POP Movement) and the World Sustainable Development Forum.

The POP Movement’s aim is to empower youth to play an active role in addressing issues of climate change faced by our planet.

While the World Sustainable Development Forum, aims to mobilise global action for the effective implementation of both the Paris Agreement on climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the UN General Assembly.

With a PhD in Decision Behaviour and Master’s degree in International Management, Dr. Pachauri has contributed to several initiates in the field of HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and sustainability.

As a master trainer in in behaviour change communications and strategic leadership, Dr. Pachauri has led over 20,000 workshops, events, and activities globally to outreach to youth and communities to promote health and sustainable development.

As well his academic work being widely published and celebrated, Dr. Pachauri has also been recognised by the United Nations for his dedication and leadership. He is valued member on boards and advisory groups of several organisations worldwide.

Social Media

FB:    

The POP Movement      @popmovement

Center for Human Progress - Ash At Work

World Sustainable Development Forum - @theworldsdf

Instagram:

POP Movement - pop.movement

Center For Human Progress - centreforhumanprogress

WSDF - theworldsdf

Mentions: 

World Sustainable Development Forum - https://worldsdf.org/

Protect Our Planet - https://thepopmovement.org/

Center for Human Progress - https://www.thechp.org/

Amy Hay - Empowering women through restoration

People ask how I got into woodworking, but, it’s been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My father is the kind of man who can do a bit of everything and knows a bit of everything (maybe a lot of some things, but I don’t want it to go to his head..). He was always working on something; a portable art gallery display for the local theatre, an elaborate plant stand for our orchard or a trailer BBQ for the local Rotary Club. I followed along, paid attention, helped where I could and tried to understand how this brilliant man’s brain worked (yeah, that’s definitely going to his head).

As I got older, I started planning my own projects. We would sit down together and throw around ideas of what was possible and, without fail, he would teach me something new every single time. I started to understand what went into planning a piece and learnt how to think a little more outside the box.

In 2014 I started a small business, AJ Artwork, which grew into Sarani Art & Events. I created rustic home decor, artwork and succulent stands, attending markets all across Gippsland every weekend. The woodwork skills that went into these creations were basic, but it sparked my creativity and love of all things timber. Unfortunately, after a couple of years I felt more like a production worker trying to keep up with the sheer number of items required to keep a stable income, and made the hard decision to cease this business.

In 2019 I needed a few things around my home - a custom bench, plant stand, dog lead holder, music stand etc. One thing lead to another, including taking an old potting table and making it into my new kitchen table, and The New Red. was born. I wanted to push my skills, to continue to challenge myself, to make things that I didn’t even know were possible. 

It feels like riding a bike. If that bike was flying down a hilly road covered in large rocks. But, strangely, it feels like exactly what I’m meant to be doing.

Mentions: 

The New Red - https://www.thenewred.com.au/

Squishy Face Animal Rescue - http://squishiesrescue.org.au/

Michelle Redfern - Moving inclusion from conversation to action

Michelle is the founder of Advancing Women, an enterprise providing research and advisory services on equality, inclusion and gender diversity. She is also the founder of women’s network Women Who Get It, co-founder of social enterprise CDW (Culturally Diverse Workforce) and Co-Host of A Career that Soars! Michelle is determined to contribute to achieving global gender equality in her life time, especially through her research and advocacy about the leadership gender gap in the sporting industry. 

Michelle is an experienced Non-executive director and is currently Chair of Speckle Financial Health and a member of the Wayfinder Steering Committee. She was previously a board director for Williamstown Football Club, Good Shepherd Microfinance, Gippsland Football Netball League and Business Without Borders. She is an Ambassador for Honour a Woman, Respect Victoria and Flexible Working Day. She has held executive leadership roles ASX & FTSE listed companies NAB, Telstra and Serco during her 30-year career. 

Michelle was named City of Melbourne B3000 Female Entrepreneur of the Year (2019), is a proud recipient of the AFR 100 Women of Influence Award (2018) and was a finalist in the VicHealth EWN Community Award (2018) for her significant contribution to the AFL. She is a panel judge for the VicSport Awards and has been a long-term Telstra Business Women’s Awards judge. Michelle is a Graduate of the AICD (Australian Institute of Company Directors), holds an Executive MBA (Distinction) and hold various accreditations in organisational diversity and coaching. 

Social Media Handles 

LinkedIn: Michelle Redfern
Twitter: @redfernmichelle
Facebook: @AdvancingWomeninBizandSport 

Instagram: @advancewithmichelle 

Mentions: 

Michelle Redfern - https://michelleredfern.com/

Advancing Women - https://michelleredfern.com/services/the-advancing-women-formula/

Mind Tribes - https://mindtribes.com.au/

Culturally Diverse Women - https://mindtribes.com.au/culturally-diverse-women/

Williamstown Football Club - https://www.williamstownfc.com.au/

Change Our Game - http://changeourgame.vic.gov.au/

Office for Women in Sport and Recreation - https://sport.vic.gov.au/our-work/participation/women-and-girls-sport/office-women-sport-and-recreation

VicSport - https://www.vicsport.com.au/

Jessyca Mathews - Teaching social justice activism

Jessyca Mathews received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan-Flint in English, with a minor in history, with a Specialization in Secondary Education. She received her Masters in the Art of Teaching from Marygrove College. Along with these degrees, Jessyca attended Michigan State University and is a member of the Red Cedar Writing Project. 

Ms. Mathews is a language arts teacher at Carman-Ainsworth High School and a Racial, Environmental Justice, and Institutional Racism activist. In 2017, Jessyca was named a finalist for the NEA’s Social Justice Activist of the Year for her work on the Flint water crisis. Jessyca has done national interviews, projects, protest, and community actions to speak out for those affected by the Flint water crisis. In celebration of her activism work, Jessyca was named the 2018 Secondary English Teacher of the Year from the Michigan Council of Teachers of English and the 2018 National Sanford Award Winner for being the most inspirational teacher in Michigan.

Recently, Jessyca was awarded Regional Teacher of the Year from the state of Michigan and was a finalist for Michigan Teacher of the Year 2019-2020.

Along with her activism work, she is a prominent member of the writing community. In 2013, Jessyca Mathews won a national contest sponsored by MANA Publishing and was named the 2013 Passion for Poetry writer. After winning this prestigious award, Jessyca was able to publish her first poetry collection, Simply: A Collection of Poetry. In 2015 she published her memoir, 318: A Chubby Chick’s Tale of Weight Loss Surgery. She co-wrote her first play, Appointments in 2017, which features a focus on the Flint water crisis. She also has been published writer in Nia Magazine, Pure Haiku, Mighty Magazine, and is now a blogger for Teaching Tolerance.

Mentions: 

318: A Chubby Chick’s Tale of Weight Loss Surgery - https://www.amazon.com/318-Chubby-Chicks-Weight-Surgery/dp/1504984358

FB - Jessyca Matthews @JesTakeAStand

Insta - jes_the_activist

LinkedIn - Jessyca Mathews

Flint Water Crisis - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_water_crisis

Katrina Bart - From Christian to clairvoyant

Katrina-Jane is a down to earth, ‘out of the box’ clairvoyant medium, multiple times award winning author, inspirational speaker, teacher and thought leader - who is dedicated to guiding people on your soul journey.  Her specialities include death and dying, clairvoyant readings, support for sensitive children and empowering women with the steps to help find their purpose and live their dreams.

Katrina-Jane has a passion for helping people to deal with death, dying and grief - both nationally and internationally. Through her work she deals with the passing of loved ones on a daily basis. Her aim is to help people get over the fear and awkwardness of speaking about death, whether this is through her books, speaking arrangements, writings or social media. 

She has authored 4 books, having won an international book award for her inspiration biography ‘Christian to Clairvoyant’ and 5 international book awards for ‘Where Did They Go’.  The latter explains to children in a simple but clear way what happens when we die. It takes away the mystique and fear that currently surrounds death and encourages people to talk, and has attracted significant global attention.

Katrina-Jane has also appeared on radio, been featured in the local press on several occasions and often guest writes for a variety of online blogs and new age publications, as well as regular and high profile keynote presentations. She openly shares the things she has been through, both good and bad, in a ‘tell it like it is’ way of speaking which is highly appreciated on many levels.

Having overcome many of her own obstacles in life, Katrina-Jane speaks and teaches from experience.  She spent over 30 years in the Seventh-day Adventist Church – when life sent her a curve ball and she realised she was clairvoyant.  She then had the challenge of overcoming years of indoctrination to follow her soul’s destiny as a Clairvoyant Medium.  

Mentions: 

Website - https://www.katrina-jane.com/

The Motivational Woman - http://themotivationalwoman.com/

FB - Katrina-Jane More Than a Clairvoyant

Insta - katrinajane01

LinkedIn - Katrina Bart

Chris Hollyfield - Using difference to make a difference

Chris Hollyfield started out as a Pro Wrestler but his big break came when he was invited to join the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment), bursting into the arena as Little Boogeyman.

He is also a radio and TV personality, appearing in 3 independent movies - ‘WWF SmackDown!’ (1999), ‘Hell Date’ (2007), and Festival (2011).

Chris has also appeared on talk shows including Maury, Sally Jessy Raphael, and Jerry Springer, as well as appearances on ESPN, 60 minutes, NBC Dateline, and Primetime Live.

He has also made the rounds of the reality show circuit, featuring in - Road Trip, Gamers, 5 Days in the ‘A’, The real World Extreme Challenge, and Miami Ink.

Chris is an African American born with dwarfism. An undersized man in an oversized world, very determined to succeed in life. Standing just 4 feet 4 inches, Chris never let anything get in his way and despite al the amazing accolades, Chris is most proud of being an awesome Dad.

With an incredible career to his name, and with some differences to carry though life, Chris decided it was time to give back.

Chris wrote the book ‘Big Message Short Story’ to share the massage of anti-bullying. He certainly got his share of that over the years. He then created the ‘Got Respect Tour’, where he visits schools and organisations presenting as a motivational speaker on the topic of anti-bullying, with the tagline “I’m different to make a difference”.

Chris also gives back by coaching a Special Olympics Power Lifting team.

Physically Chris may be little, but the size of his heart is almost as big as him!

Mentions: 

Chris Hollyfield - https://www.chrishollyfield.com/

Got Respect Tour - http://www.gotrespecttour.com/

WWE - https://www.wwe.com/

Jerry Springer - https://www.jerryspringertv.com/

Rachel Clissold - Unlocking your epic vision

Rachel is a bold woman who constantly pushes the limits of her own boundaries.  As a solo world traveller over the last 10 years, Rachel has learnt through direct experience to communicate vulnerably, lean into the discomfort of fear, follow the innate guidance within and step into her leadership.

“It wasn’t a decision to be a mentor, it was part of my becoming.”

Whilst living in Spain in 2013, Rachel received her first healing session and from that moment, everything in her life changed and a whole new way of being opened up.  To live life from the flow, rather than the hustle of trying to make things happen.  

Rachel has organised  events with up to 500 people around Australia, United Kingdom, Bali & [an island in] Costa Rica.

With a 20 year career spanning the globe, 17 of which were in the corporate world as an Executive Assistant and Project Manager for companies such as; PricewaterhouseCoopers (UK), Deloitte, Macquarie Bank, Telstra and Novartis.

With the transition out of the corporate world in 2017 a new direction was born; the merging of all Rachels skills in the corporate world, talents as an intuitive healer and passion to support Visionary Leaders to overcome fear, breakthrough limitations and bring their epic vision to life. 

If you’re ready for rapid transformation and to step into your leadership, Rachel is the woman to work with.

Rachel is  an acclaimed Reiki Master, Qualified practitioner in NLP, EFT, Hypnosis & Past Life Regression.

Mentions: 

Rachel Clissold - https://rachelclissold.com/

Hugo Richard - Designing AI for kids with disabilities

Growing up dyslexic and dysgraphic, Hugo is a self-taught entrepreneur, but with a particular focus on finding solutions for challenges that come with dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyspraxia. 

Hugo turned his own childhood challenges into a massive positive by creating efficient tools, specifically apps, that can be used for early detection of learning disabilities.

He had previously created an app Dyscreen, that screens for dysgraphia, and on the 1 June (just gone), Dyscreen was upgraded to include the ability to screen for Dyslexia as well.

There is also the app ‘Sliper’ that enable speech pathologists, specialised teachers and other professionals to support the kids they work with.

Hugo’s work includes the application of image recognition and natural language processing techniques, which he and his team uses to solve real-world problems. 

He has worked on diverse Artificial Intelligence projects & startups in France, the UK and Australia. 

Hugo is a co-founder of Dystech (who the apps are developed through) which has already gained support from the likes of Amazon and Dear Dyslexic.

The mission of Dystech is to help children with dyslexia to reveal their talents.

Mentions: 

Dystech Australia - https://www.dystech.com.au/

Dyscreen (app)

Sliper (app)

Ask a Speechy - https://www.dystech.com.au/category/ask-a-speechy/

Jemimah Ashleigh - Positioning your business for success

Jemimah Ashleigh is a global authority on positioning, an international keynote speaker, MC and podcaster.

Jemimah is an Australian set on world domination. After a decade long career in law enforcement, Jemimah now works exclusively as a positioning consultant and coach to reduce the alarming statistic that 97% of female owned start-up businesses fail within the first 5 years. Women are failing at almost twice the rate of men. Jemimah seeks to be part of the reason this changes worldwide. 

Jemimah started her journey in entrepreneurship with the creation of Tangs Design, an ethical jewellery business and then soon after started The Business Experiment Podcast. Jemimah is now the co-founder of Who Run The World.

She has spoken in Indonesia, United States, Canada and Australia, and has had the opportunity to take the stage with the likes of:

• Valerie Jarrett - Former Senior Advisor to U.S. President Barak Obama

• Frank Shankwitz - Co-founder of the Make a Wish Foundation

• Elizabeth Broderick - Australian Sex Discrimination Minister

Jemimah’s debut book ‘Position Me’ is an international best seller on Amazon, and her media coverage includes Huffpost, Thank You, Marie Claire, Qantas, Business Chicks, MamaMia, Financial Review - Women of Influence, and NBC News to name a few.

As well as being a global thought leader in over 70 countries and having a reach of 6.3 million through social media and podcasting, Jemimah was also named in the Top 10 female entrepreneurs in Australia. She is also a board member of The Hope Project.

Mentions: 

Jemimiah Ashleigh - https://www.jemimahashleigh.com/

Tangs Design - https://www.tangsdesign.com.au/

The Business Experiment Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-business-experiment-podcast/id1134351825

Gary Vaynerchuk - https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/

Jim Rohn - https://www.jimrohn.com/

World Health Organisation - https://www.who.int/

Bossy Pants - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bossypants

The entrepreneurial dip

The 5 monkeys study

Who Run The World

Nicholas Domingo - Bringing out the superhero in kids

Nicholas Domingo is certainly not your average superhero. Nicholas is a 29 year old entrepreneur, speaker, children's book writer and change maker obsessed with making strides towards creating a better tomorrow. He is currently the Co-Executive Director of the anti-bullying superhero non-profit, Captain Encouragement, an organization with the goal to cultivate the next generation of leaders. They do this by using early intervention leadership techniques combined with superpowers to work and inspire children in the Kindergarten to 3rd grade age range!

His story started in Ridgely Missouri, a town with a population of 64 people, growing up working random odd jobs Including: dishwasher, Server, rabbit farm worker, tobacco farm worker, furniture mover, landscaper and construction hand.

He was a high school athlete with Years in the sports arena playing football, wrestling, mixed martial arts and briefly cage-fighting in the OFC based in Omaha. 

He briefly stepped into acting and modelling, being on various shows including The Thundermans on Nickelodeon, Mighty Med on Disney and The Arsenio Hall Show.

His journey came to an abrupt halt due to a Subarachnoid Brain-Hemorrhage that nearly cost him his life. This life changing event sent him down a long path looking for answers and ultimately leading to self-discovery. This reshaped his focus to what was truly important, helping create a better world. 

The program he currently runs has been to many schools around the United States and has gotten a lot of media attention and buzz, being featured in: The Boston Globe, The Rotarian Magazine, The Kansas City Star, The Union Democrat Newspaper, Action 41 news, among others. Through this program he has stretched his legs into children's book writing, live musical theatre, promoting and live acting, curriculum development, film production, video game development and more. 

He continues to travel the country to help reach more children with a message of hope to create the next generation of leaders! He continues to work day and night until he works himself out of a job and we see an end to bullying and suicide.

Thanks to Rotary Club of Jackson (California), 101 Heroes, Paul & Debbie Sessa, Micro-Tronics, AutoTech & Tires, and Olga Jones for supporting these wonderful initiatives.

Mentions: 

Call To Inspire - https://calltoinspire.com/

Captain Encouragement - Captain Encouragement Youtube

David Johnson (videographer) - http://www.davidjohnsonproductions.biz/

Michigan State University - https://msu.edu/

Kate Austin - Building dignity with one tiny bottle

Kate Austin is the founder of Australian Not-for-Profit, Pinchapoo. After living through many years of domestic violence, and eventually ending in a situation that almost cost her life, Kate decided that nobody should ever have to go through what she experienced.

What started out as a sneaky movement to get people to pinch their hotel shampoo, has see Pinchapoo grow to become the biggest national NFP supplier of personal hygiene products, to disadvantaged adults and children.

Pinchapoo works with over 500 leading organisations, community groups and government institutions as a total hygiene solution, providing a reliable source of customised packs to EVERYBODY in EVERY situation of need.

In the 11 years since the trailblazing inception of Pinchapoo, Kate and her team have distributed more than 5.5 million hygiene items in a bid to maintain the dignity of those less fortunate.

Pinchapoo utilises the services of thousands of volunteers; Kate insisting that every one of those amazing humans are considered family - even wishing they could all come over for a Sunday roast!

So with the strong, brilliant, compassionate and energetic Kate Austin at the helm, Pinchapoo is making one hell of a difference.

And the future looks like it might also turn some heads!

Mentions: 

Pinchapoo - http://pinchapoo.org.au/

Leah Mether - How to communicate effectively under pressure

Leah Mether helps people get out of their own way with the development of soft skills (which are really hard).

She is a speaker, trainer, coach, facilitator and author of the book Soft is the New Hard: How to Communicate Effectively Under Pressure.

With a background in leadership, corporate communications and journalism, Leah works with executives, leaders and employees across Australia to help them improve their communication, mindset and self-management.

Leah lives in the small town of Willow Grove overlooking Blue Rock Lake in Gippsland, Victoria with her husband and three energetic sons.

She is a dedicated community volunteer, trained speaker for beyondblue, and a raging chocoholic.

In this episode we speak about everything from the importance of backing yourself, through to starting a business, overcoming fear, the problem with perfection, communication under pressure, emotional intelligence, and self-management at times of stress.

Mentions: 

Leah Mether - https://www.leahmether.com.au/

Brene Brown podcast - https://brenebrown.com/unlockingus/

Girls With Hammers - https://girlswithhammers.com.au/

Viktor Frankl - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Frankl

Jim Collins - https://www.jimcollins.com/

James Stockdale - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Stockdale

Stockdale Paradox - https://www.jimcollins.com/media_topics/TheStockdaleParadox.html

Leah’s Values checklist and other resources - https://www.leahmether.com.au/resources/

Questions:

What is it like to me around me?

What emotion am I feeling at the moment?

How am I doing at the moment?

How am I feeling?

What’s the worst that can happen?

What’s the reality if it did happen?

How do I mitigate the worst from happening?

Who am I?

Who do I want to be?

Christy Nichols - Finding meaning through purposeful travel

Personal Development Facilitator | Curator of Transformational Experiences| Leadership Training Expert | Purposeful Travel Advocate | CEO at Venture Within

Escaping the rat-race, Christy found herself in Nicaragua, deep in the jungle (but still close to the beach), and through this found inner-peace that kickstarted a whole new adventure.

Christy’s professional education expertise has afforded her the opportunity to work all over the world. Since achieving a Masters Degree and Teaching Credentials in Sussex, England, she has delivered educational and leadership initiatives internationally to individuals in the UK, Europe, Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, South Africa, Canada, the USA, and Australia. After successfully creating and developing EDventure International, an organization combining leadership development, education, and conservation projects overseas, she launched Venture Within. 

Her passion is creating transformational experiences for personal and professional growth through overseas immersion, coaching, and mentoring workshops, and adventurous experiences abroad. She enables and inspires others to live a full and meaningful life.

As Christy’s line up of 2020 Retreats has been paused due to COVID-19, she is working with one on one coaching clients, teaching personal growth and leadership for teenagers online, working on two books and a podcast about Expat Life, and has a youtube channel featuring BED TALKS. 

Her lifestyle is the envy of many, as she still manages to find time for all the things that were important beyond work -  yoga, guitar, pondering life while walking the beach, and stealing the neighbour's 80lb puppy who’s cuddles are second to none!

In this episode, we chat about how travel and teaching has taken Christy around the world in life and business, eventually living the ex-pat life in Nicaragua.

We explore WHY she started Venture Within, the "Ah-ha!" moment, personal breakthroughs and the magic people find on her Retreats, and how she’s keeping her own love for her business alive through Covid-19. 

Mentions: 

Venture Within - www.venture-within.com

Kate Parker - Saving the oceans with courage and humility

From a young age, Kate had a passion for the oceans and this was only deepened when Kate moved to Melbourne in 2014 where she joined Sea Shepherd, an international, marine focussed environmental group with a mission to Defend, Conserve and Protect our oceans. Kate joined Sea Shepherd because she was passionate about preserving our planet and felt she could no longer be a bystander, anxious about threats to marine habitats. Starting off as an onshore volunteer; Kate spent her time fundraising for the organisation and promoting marine conservation in her spare time. She then signed up to crew on board the Sea Shepherd vessels and has since taken part in 6 campaigns off shore, starting with an Antarctica campaign to oppose Japanese whaling and most recently has been concentrating her efforts on defending the world’s most endangered marine mammal, the Vaquita Porpoise, from becoming extinct in Mexico.  

Kate also decided she wanted to fundraise for this cause, managing to raise just under $7000 that was spent directly towards keeping the ships at sea and the crews fed and safe Mexico. Kate wanted to raise awareness for the plight of this animal and along with another Sea Shepherd crew member they did just that, by walking 400km in 20 days down the west coast of the USA, along the Pacific Crest Trail in January of this year. Sadly due to COVID these vessels are no longer able to patrol the area and for the few remaining Vaquita (estimated between 6-19) things are looking increasingly desperate.

Mentions: 

Sea Shepherd -  https://www.seashepherd.org.au/

Whale Wars (series) - https://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/whale-wars/

Animal Planet - https://www.animalplanet.com/

Cowspiracy (film) - https://www.cowspiracy.com/

The Cove (film) - https://www.opsociety.org/our-work/films/the-cove/

Blackfish (film) - http://www.blackfishmovie.com/

Sea of Shadows (film)- https://films.nationalgeographic.com/sea-of-shadows?fbclid=IwAR3aUzAFV2MhDcVxwCrJUp2tz4HGlDkcafM0ZJHJnQz5OIkEejDEyzrmcrs

Wild (movie) - https://www.searchlightpictures.com/wild/

Racing Extinction (documentary) - https://streamingmoviesright.com/us/movie/racing-extinction

Feral - George Monbiot (book) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feral_(Monbiot_book)

Lamave - https://www.lamave.org/

Hero Round Table - http://heroroundtable.com/

Matt Langdon - Setting the stage for everyday heroes

Matt Langdon has traveled the world teaching people how to be heroes. Through keynotes, workshops, and coaching, he helps people move from potential bystander to hero-in-waiting. He is as comfortable running an intimate day-long workshop for twenty global executives as he is addressing an audience of over 500 in a university, high school, or major event across the globe.

He has interviewed on stage many celebrities and thinkers, including Daniel Ellsberg, Philip Zimbardo, Joe Gatto, Edith Eger, Len Wein, Chase Masterson, & DeRay McKesson.

Matt is the creator of Hero Round Table that hosts conferences all over the world, and sets the stage for everyday heroes. As Matt says, he created the conference he would want to attend.

Mentions:

Hero Round Table - heroroundtable.com

Caroline Hammond - The tree change with wings

A colony of bees teaches us that we aren’t in this life alone, we have (if we want to!) an entire community around us that want to support and encourage us. 

Maybe this is the reason Caroline Hammond became a beekeeper. 

Moving to West Gippsland, Victoria from Brisbane about 8 years ago, Caroline sought to find a healthier lifestyle where she could be a valued part of her community. 

After being there a few years, Caroline found the most idyllic place in the hills to call home and started to implement the self-sufficient lifestyle model/principles which she had yearned for since leaving the family sugar cane home in Queensland as a teenager. 

She always knew she had a connection with nature and animals. 

After setting up the perfect chook run, Caroline decided that she would now get bees, you know for pollination…and honey…and wax products…and mead!

Caroline’s idea was that she would be a classic beekeeper who used every element of the hive…in a no wastage principle.

Well…after only a short period, Caroline found herself working intensively with her mentor in his bee business and was soon out mentoring beekeeping clients and managing hives, as well as helping to run the day to day aspects of the business. She had made so many wonderful connections with people from all over Victoria in the beekeeping industry - an amazing community of people in itself. But more locally, she thought she’d really found her passion, being outside with nature… You see Caroline is from a corporate background, in her words ‘chained to a desk/computer/telephone’ and her health was starting to really show the signs of the imbalance this created. 

A bitter sweet situation occurred where the above mentioned business no longer continued to operate, but Caroline found support from people around her and decided to start her own small business.

Come Fly With Me Beekeeping is her little bee business which was born to celebrate the connections we have with each other and our environment through the meeting and mentoring of like-minded people. 

Her main focus is in mentoring beekeepers and helping them find their wings in this fascinating hobby. Through her techniques of teaching, she aims to empower confidence and understanding in people around her who are willing to give things a go. 

To compliment her mentoring, she also has around 30 honey production hives across the West Gippsland region. These bees are nurtured to produce local honey, with all the amazing health benefits that Raw Honey has… and that list is long! She also has a good selection of beekeeping equipment and products such as protective clothing, paradise honey hive equipment, raw honey, unique gifts and artwork. She provides extraction services and sets up live bee colonies in the spring, among other things!

Whilst Caroline’s little piece of paradise is located in West Gippsland (Victoria, Australia), she finds herself travelling long distances locally, so if you happen to be located in the wonderful region of Gippsland, she’s able to help.

She thoroughly enjoys spending time with so many different people who she then has the pleasure of seeing grow with confidence and fascination through the activity of keeping bees. And I think that’s what has had her hooked from the beginning. 

So, as Caroline says 'come fly with me, enjoy the journey’.

Get in touch with Caroline if there’s anything you’d like to ask -she really does love a good chat and a cuppa!

Mentions:

Come Fly With Me Beekeeping - www.comeflywithmebeekeeping.com.au

Instagram - @comeflywithmebeekeeping