our speakers
TV presenter, Master of Ceremonies
Katrina Blowers
TV personality, presenter, NRL legend
Sam Thaiday
Australian Childhood Foundation
Phil Doorgachurn
Principal Commissioner, QFCC
Luke Twyford
Demographer and social researcher
Ashley Fell
Psychologist, TV presenter, parenting expert
Dr Justin Coulson
Butchulla and Garawa Aboriginal Australian man, Entrepreneur and storyteller
Isaiah Dawe
Director, Institute of Child Protection Studies, ACU
Professor Daryl Higgins
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Katrina Blowers
TV presenter, Master of Ceremonies
Katrina was seven years old when she saw a news bulletin on TV and a fire was lit inside her. When her mother told her a job existed where she could satisfy her endless curiosity by asking important people questions, travel the world and uncover valuable information she could pass on to others, Katrina was hooked.Fast forward a few years to when Katrina was 12 and pestered the chief-of-staff of a radio station into letting her intern at Parliament House in Canberra. Her first official foray into the world of journalism saw her holding the microphone during the bitterly cold early mornings and door stopping arriving politicians. She never looked back.
Since then, Katrina has covered global events for major newspapers, radio stations and television networks. She has been a correspondent for the Commonwealth Games and the G20, travelled with the media packs covering state and federal elections and assigned to the murder trial that fixated a nation: that of Gerard Baden-Clay. She’s a former opinion columnist for the Sunday Telegraph, several major magazines and online news sites and was a restaurant critic for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Brisbane Times. Katrina is now based in Brisbane as a presenter and Chief Reporter for 7 News Queensland and is a proud ambassador for The Royal Flying Doctors, The Kelly Wilkinson Foundation and Fight MND.
Sam Thaiday
TV personality, presenter, NRL legend
Rugby league legend Sam Thaiday’s playing career took off when he signed with the Brisbane Broncos in 2003 making his professional NRL debut that year. He spent his entire career at the Broncos, with whom he won the 2006 Premiership. In 2011, he was awarded the captaincy and went on to win the Dally M award for best second row player. He has played an impressive 29 matches for Queensland in the State of Origin series and has over 30 test caps to his name representing Australia on successful domestic and European tours. Playing at the top of his game, Sam was one of only three current players to be named in the indigenous Australian rugby league team of the century. He retired from NRL at the end of the 2018 season cementing himself in an elite club of players having played over 300 games for the one club.One of the most highly regarded and respected players in the league, Sam is also known for his community involvement. Sam has been awarded the Ken Stephen Medal for his outstanding commitment to a wide range of community and charity activities. In his retirement, apart from spending time with his wife and beautiful girls, Sam has forged a successful media career with Channel Nine and having also hosted his own radio show Thank God It’s Thaiday on Nova.
Sam is also an ambassador for a host of brands including for the Starlight Children’s Foundation, has a strong and interactive social media presence and is actively sought after in various speaking engagements. Sam has a personality that endears him to many and is often commended on his personable, approachable and very professional manner. In 2025 he was crowned winner of “I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here”.
Professor Daryl Higgins
Director, Institute of Child Protection Studies, ACU
Professor Daryl Higgins’ research focuses on public health approaches to protecting children, and child-safe organisational strategies. A registered psychologist, Professor Higgins has been researching child abuse impacts and prevention, family violence and family functioning for over 30 years.As the Director of ACU’s Institute of Child Protection Studies (ICPS), and the former Deputy Director (Research) of the Australian Institute of Family Studies, Professor Higgins has extensive research experience in the areas of child-safe organisations, child abuse and neglect, child protection, out-of-home care, family law and allegations of child abuse, disability and family care, welfare reform, family and interpersonal violence, jobless families, past adoption and forced family separation practices, and community development approaches to child and family welfare issues.
In relation to child-safe organisations, Professor Higgins has provided presentations to welfare peak bodies, Indigenous welfare agencies, sports and community organisations, regarding organisational risks and child-safe approaches. Professor Higgins contributed to a number of reports and provided expert advice to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse about how and why abuse occurs, the risks within different sectors that need to be addressed within child-safe organisational strategies, and ripple effects that organisational sexual abuse has on families and others. He is also a member of a Reference Group for the Australian Psychological Society, contributing to the development of the Society’s policies and frameworks for responding to the issues raised by the Royal Commission.
Phil Doorgachurn
Australian Childhood foundation
Phil began his child safeguarding career with the UK’s National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), where he led initiatives to strengthen organisational safeguarding practices.He was appointed to oversee safeguarding for the London 2012 Olympic Games, ensuring a safe environment for young athletes and attendees. He then led safeguarding for British Tennis and Arsenal FC, managing child safety across elite competitions, match days, and international soccer schools. Phil later joined LimeCulture as Director of Safeguarding, where he developed pioneering solutions to complex challenges—most notably the world’s first accredited Safeguarding Lead Officer training program, setting a new global standard in professional safeguarding education.
After moving to Australia, Phil worked with Kids First in Victoria before becoming CEO of YMCA Safeguarding. There, he led a national strategy to embed strong child safety cultures, systems, and environments across all Australian YMCAs. Phil currently sits on the boards of LimeCulture UK and Families Australia as the Deputy Chair. He also advises the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse through the Attorney-General’s Office.
Known for his strategic and courageous approach, Phil is committed to creating safer systems and spaces for children. Outside work, he enjoys beach walks with his dog, Chula.
Luke Twyford
Principal Commissioner, QFCC
Luke was appointed the Principal Child and Family Commissioner in January 2022. In this role he advocates for children in care and justice, and for the role of families.Luke’s career spans more than 20 years across Commonwealth, New South Wales and Northern Territory governments where he has led critical reforms of the child protection and youth justice system. He is currently responsible for monitoring the performance of the Child Safety Department and reviews the deaths of children known to the system.
Luke’s parents fostered a number of children throughout his childhood, and his own lived experience and those of his foster brothers and sisters profoundly shapes the perspective he brings to his work. Luke holds a Bachelor of Laws with Honors which he has drawn on in providing extensive evidence to courts, inquiries and commissions. His evidence was the most referenced in the final report of the Royal Commission into the protection and detention of children in the Northern Territory.
In Queensland his recent work on residential care, adolescent mental health and the use of watchhouses have attracted national attention. Luke is currently leading the review into system responses to child sexual abuse.
Isaiah Dawe
Butchulla and Garawa Aboriginal Australian man, Entrepreneur and storyteller
Isaiah Dawe is a Butchulla and Garawa Aboriginal Australian man. Isaiah is an entrepreneur, story teller, and social change advocate and professional speaker. Also known by many as the Foster Kid to CEO.Isaiah is the Founder and CEO of ID. Know Yourself. Which is a NFP mentoring organisation supporting Aboriginal young people growing up in the out of home care and child protection system within Sydney, Australia (Gadigal Country). Isaiah’s genesis for starting IDKY was his personal experience growing up in foster care and going through multiple homes with disadvantage and suffering.
Isaiah is a Board Director, and also the Chair of the Aboriginal Advisory Council for TAFE NSW, and currently sits on the National RAP Advisory Committee for Uber, Australia and previously was a Board Director of Marist 180 Youth Care. Isaiah was on secondment with a financial firm called ROC Partners, which specialise as a private markets investment manager in venture capital and private equity.
In 2022, Isaiah was a nominee for the NSW 2022 Young Australian of the Year and was also one of the 2022 Sydney’s Inner West 30 most influential people under 30. Isaiah has completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors Course. Recently, Isaiah was just awarded a full scholarship by Stanford Australia Foundation to attend the Executive NFP Leadership Course at Stanford GSB in California.
Ashley Fell
Demographer and social researcher
Ashley Fell is a social researcher, author, TEDx speaker, and Director of Advisory at the internationally renowned McCrindle. As the author of Work Wellbeing and Generation Alpha, Ashley provides expert insights into leadership and generational trends. Known for her engaging and research-driven approach, she delivers keynote presentations, workshops, and panel facilitation across a wide range of industries.Whether exploring generational shifts, technological impacts, or global megatrends, Ashley brings clarity and relevance to complex topics. With a background in communications and a leading role in national research studies, she connects data with storytelling to inspire and inform audiences around the world.
Dr Justin Coulson
Psychologist, TV presenter, parenting expert
Dedicated to helping families thrive through his research-backed and hard-won wisdom, Dr Justin Coulson is a leading voice in parenting in Australia. Justin is the co-host and parenting expert on Channel Nine’s Parental Guidance and his Happy Families podcast, which he co-hosts with his wife Kylie, is the most downloaded parenting podcast in Australia.Justin is also the founder of happyfamilies.com.au and the author of nine books, with his 10th book (on raising boys) soon to be published. Justin is a sought-after public speaker, appears regularly in the media and his viral content has racked up over 100 million views.
Justin earned his psychology degree at the University of Queensland and his PhD in Psychology from the University of Wollongong. He and his wife Kylie have been married since the late 1990s, are the parents of 6 daughters, and are the grandparents of one granddaughter.
Laurel Downey
Therapeutic Residential Care practice expert
Laurel currently works part time as a consultant to mental health and therapeutic care organisations and part time within the residential care sector in Victoria. She has been a mental health clinician and family therapist for nearly 40 years and has specialised in child trauma and attachment issues in the Government, Non-Government, Community and Child & Adolescent Mental Health systems.She previously worked as CEO of a non-government organisation, Catalyst Child and Family Services, delivering therapeutic residential care in northern Queensland. Laurel has extensive experience in the development of assessment and practice frameworks as well as the design and delivery of training for the child and adolescent mental health, child protection & OOHC placement sectors.
Professor Lynne McPherson
Chair, Out-of-Home Care Research Group, Executive Director, Centre for Excellence in Therapeutic Care (CETC)
Professor Lynne McPherson is the Chair, Out of Home Care Research, Centre for Excellence in Therapeutic Care and Acting Director Centre for Children and Young People, Faculty of Health Southern Cross University. Lynne's program of research has focussed on out of home care: foster care / kinship care /residential care, drawing on participatory methodology. Lynne is interested in looking beyond ‘care’ to ameliorating the impact of adversity- therapeutic models of care. A range of projects over last 10 years-reflect that interest, (including her current ARC Linkage Grant 2022-2025 Strengthening Connections and Relationships in Therapeutic Residential Care). Lynne is a kinship carer herself.Prior to becoming an academic, Lynne spent more than 25 years as a senior social work manager and practice leader in child protection and the wider child, youth and family sector. She has undertaken roles as a practitioner, manager, training consultant and senior policy advisor. Lynne became a social work academic 15 years ago, initially based in Melbourne at La Trobe University. Lynne moved to Southern Cross University in 2016. She works with funding and research partner for the Inaugural Chair position, The Australian Childhood Foundation.
Tom Allsop
Chief Executive Officer, PeakCare
Tom Allsop is the Chief Executive Officer of PeakCare, Queensland’s peak body for child and family services. Tom is a social worker, sessional academic and has led the design and implementation of nationally significant programs and projects for both the government and non-government sector. He is a Non-Executive Director of Families Australia, the national peak body for children and families, a Board Member of the Child and Family Welfare Association of Australia, and a founding member of the National Foster Care Sustainability Group. Tom’s expertise includes the intersection of child protection with related service systems including youth justice, early childhood education and care, education, health, and housing.our voluteer
Board Members
Chief Operation
Lena Hughes
volunteer
Felecia Norris
voluteer
Bernardo Gordon
Vice chair
Kari Kelley
volunteer
Darrell Ritter
volunteer
Scot Brooks
volunteer
Michal Snow
volunteer
