Associate Professor Caroline Ellison

Associate Professor Caroline Ellison is the Crossing the Horizon Professor of Ageing and Disability at UniSA and a Developmental Educator. Caroline has an extensive multidisciplinary professional practice, teaching and research experience across disability and human services in Australia and SE Asia. Key to Caroline's approach is engaging with people living with disability as co-researchers and collaborators as well as academic researchers, mainstream society, the NDIS and global disability organisations to create increased inclusion of all people. Approx 20-25% of the population lives with impairment.

It is an economic, not just human rights issue that we consider full inclusion and employment of diverse populations in all societal systems. She is interested in systemic, societal and individual issues across sectors such as disability-inclusive development, employment, urban planning, housing, end of life choice and planning, arts, sports and leisure (how we use our free time), access to spiritual activities, positive behaviour support, protective behaviours and sexual health, family leadership, social role valorisation and workforce development. The global theme of her research is to transform communities to be accessible and inclusive to benefit everyone.

Dr Claire Hutchinson

Dr Claire Hutchinson is a mixed methods social scientist who conducts research in disability and aging. Her research focuses on consumers' service preferences, outcome measurement - especially quality of life, and social return on investment. Given her previous experience as an occupational psychologist working in vocational rehabilitation with disadvantaged job seekers, Dr Hutchinson has a particular research interest in the economic participation of people with disabilities.

Over the last few years, she has completed several studies on this topic, including examining the lived experiences of microenterprise business owners with intellectual disability, and the open employment experiences of young people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). She is currently conducting a mixed-methods evaluation of a transition program for students with a range of disabilities seeking opportunities in the mainstream labour market.  

Robbi Williams

Robbi Williams has over 30 years of experience working in disability, health and other human services in several countries. A psychologist, Robbi, is the author of the Model of Citizenhood Support, a framework for people and agencies to think about the nature of helpfulness toward good inclusive lives.

Robbi is CEO of the Julia Farr group, a trio of social profit agencies working in systemic advocacy, social housing, assistive technology, and philanthropy, anchored on the values of Personhood and Citizenhood. This includes JFA Purple Orange, whose body of work comprises:

• More than 1500 researched policy submissions to the government, anchored on the experiences of people living with disability and their families 
• Community consultation and system design projects for the commonwealth, state, territory, and local governments
• Capacity-building work for human service providers
• Storytelling (video and podcast)
• Hosting several peer-governed organisations offering peer networks, capacity-building, and policy and practice input, to government and community

Lisa Gorman

Lisa Gorman is the founder of Gorman fashion. She grew up in the Victorian coastal town of Warrnambool, the eldest of 4 daughters, spending many teenage hours on the sewing machine making herself wild and wonderful outfits inspired by what she found in Vogue and Elle magazines. After moving to Melbourne at 18 to study nursing, Lisa continued to work on and off at the Royal Melbourne Hospital over the next eight years, dotted with a bunch of other studies, travel and jobs that eventuated in her founding of the Gorman brand in 1999.

Over the last 23 years, the Gorman brand has grown to become a 52 store womenswear, kids, and lifestyle label that is distinctly recognisable through its print and colour. Gorman has collaborated with over 100 artists, designers and institutions over the last decade, most notably her collection with Australian artist Mirka Mora, the Mangkaja collection, which has set a benchmark in Indigenous collaboration, as well as her work with Arts Project Australia in which she created a 52 piece collection with artists with disability. After a long and fruitful career with the Gorman brand, Lisa has recently moved on to take up other creative passions while the Gorman team continues her legacy.

Sim Luttin

Sim Luttin is a Melbourne-based curator and has run the gallery and exhibition program at Arts Projects Australia (APA) since 2008. As well as fostering innovative curatorial projects, she brokers collaborations between artists, commercial galleries, and arts institutions and has grown APA's publications, artwork leasing, and image licensing programs.

She is a founding curator of the international platform Art et al. and was a member of the Supported Studio Network in Australia. She has travelled worldwide, having curated, written, and presented extensively on APA and its artists at international conferences. Sim has a passion for supporting neurodiverse artists to be seen, represented, and connected in contemporary art and culture sectors.

Sue Roff

Sue Roff has had a broad career in arts management. She has held the role of Executive Director at Arts Project Australia since 2009. During this time, Sue has driven a strong increase in profile for the organisation, its artists and unique studio practice and innovative programs. Prior to this, Sue has held roles as National Manager, Cultural Development at the Australia Business Arts Foundation, Community Relations Manager at RACV, Sponsorship Manager at Melbourne Theatre Company, and kick-started her arts management career as National Administrator with the Australian Girls Choir.

Sue is experienced in project development, fundraising, sponsorship, and marketing and has chaired the boards of Strange Fruit and the Victorian Actor's Benevolent Trust. She is the former President of the Public Galleries Association of Victoria.

Michael Mooney

Michael Mooney is an enterprising businessman with a knack for connecting his business with his local community and the kind of customers who most appreciate freshly-picked, locally-grown, organic, seasonal produce. Michael lives with hearing impairment, speech and learning difficulties. He had previously studied horticulture, loves being outdoors and had a large north-facing front yard—the ideal place to grow produce. Michael has NDIS-funded support through Community Living Project’s Micro Enterprise Project and has an Enterprise Management Group set up to support him, his personal assistant and the business. Michael has built up a solid customer base who he speaks with regularly. He enjoys doing work he is passionate about and loves the flexibility of working for himself – choosing his own hours and being his own boss. But most rewarding of all is seeing the positive response of his customers when he turns up with his home-grown, freshly-picked produce.

Dr June Alexander

June Alexander is a lecturer in the Disability and Community Inclusion Department, in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. She has over 30 years’ experience as a Developmental Educator and her previous experience includes CO of a best practice SA rural disability service. June specialises in training for both disability staff and people with intellectual disability. Specifically, her research focuses on adult outcomes in employment for those with intellectual disability.

Professor Ruth Rentschler OAM

Professor Ruth Rentschler OAM (BA Hons Melbourne; PhD Monash) works in UniSA Business, University of South Australia. She is a management scholar in the context of arts and culture, with a history of research excellence demonstrated by her national and international grants, journal publications and leading of national and international research teams while developing an international profile as a researcher. She is Chair of the board of Australian Dance Theatre and Chair of the Board of No Strings Attached, Theatre of Disability and sits on the committee of the Contemporary Collectors at Art Gallery of South Australia. She has published books; quality journal articles (e.g., Journal of Business Ethics; Journal of Business Research; British Journal of Management); and industry research reports nationally and internationally, with a focus on disability, diversity and social inclusion in the context of the arts. She has received various honours and awards, such as Vice-Chancellor's Award for Service to the Community, Best Doctoral Supervisor Award, Cutting Red Tape Award, and an Order of Australia for services to education, the arts and the community.