Alison is a Behavioural Scientist who has lived and worked in Victoria’s rural farming community for almost 2 decades. Her expertise in rural/farmer mental health and suicide prevention has drawn on a range of innovative techniques including digital interventions, digital storytelling, community education programs and peer support models. Alison has led numerous farmer mental health projects and continues to build the Centre’s capacity and reach by working collaboratively with researchers, farmers and industry stakeholders across Australia and internationally. Her expertise has been recognised through research awards, numerous advisory roles, peer review publications, international research consultation, invited presentations and expert witness testimony before the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System. Alison is passionate about co-designing the Centre’s research, education and services in collaboration with the community and industry—to ensure the Centre’s work continues to be effective, relevant and tailored to the needs of rural farming communities.
Sue was the Founding Director of the National Centre for Farmer Health and brings a unique blend of practical and theoretical experience in both health care and agriculture. She is passionate about regional communities and the ability to make a difference to farmers’ lives through innovative service delivery, research translation and education and training. A Chief Investigator on numerous research grants and a graduate of the Australian Rural Leadership program, Sue has presented and published nationally and internationally.
Jacquie is a Senior Lecturer and Researcher in Rural Health for Deakin University School of Medicine. She lectures and chairs the units HMF701 Agricultural Health and Medicine and HMF702 Healthy and Sustainable Agricultural Communities. She has completed a Graduate Certificate in Higher Education and is the Course Director of the Graduate Certificate of Agricultural Health and Medicine. She has multidisciplinary scientific and industry expertise, in particular, translational research within human population health, occupational health and safety, agrichemical exposure and culture/behaviour change. She contributes as a member of a number of advisory committees in the areas of Climate adaptation and farm occupational safety, including the Agriculture Safety Reference Group established by WorkSafe Victoria.
Cecilia has been part of the NCFH team since 2016 and has been responsible for implementing and managing service delivery offerings in line with the Centre’s values and strategic plan as Business Development &Industry Engagement Manager since 2019.
Over the last 6 years she has experienced first-hand the importance of stakeholder partnership and engagement in building sustainable programs and she is committed to growing the Centre’s footprint by working in collaboration with farmers, industry partners, government organisations and the wider community.
In 2021-2022, she helped facilitate the delivery of the Gear Up for Ag Health & Safety program into Victorian secondary schools and thoroughly enjoyed working with the next generation of farmers to build their understanding and awareness of farm safety hazards.
Cecilia was Chair of the Combined Preschool of Southern Grampians Board of Management for 4 years and has also sat on the Hamilton (Gray Street) Primary School Council. She enjoys cooking, keeping fit through Crossfit and spending quality time with her husband and two energetic children.
Jo is a Research Fellow who currently works on the evaluation of projects in agricultural communities across Victoria aiming to increase resilience. Born and raised in South West Victoria she is passionate about regional communities and is eager to help improve the health, wellbeing and safety of farming communities. When not at work you will find her spending time with her young family, renovating her home, baking or out and about enjoying good food and coffee.
Jo is currently on maternity leave.
Jessie joined the NCFH team in 2018 and is currently an Associate Research Fellow. Growing up on a beef farm in northeast Victoria, she is passionate about improving the health, wellbeing, and safety of farming communities, with a particular focus on child safety on farms. Jessie is also the Western Alliance Research Translation Coordinator at Western District Health Service and South West Healthcare, where she continues to work towards improving rural health.
Tracey joined the NCFH team in 2009, where she effectively coordinated the award-winning Sustainable Farm Families™ program.
Currently, she successfully manages the Centre’s health and lifestyle service delivery programs. Additionally, Tracey is responsible for overseeing the collection and analysis of data from NCFH projects to ensure that service strategies and objectives are effectively met and reported.
Tracey lives and works with her husband on their sheep farm in Western Victoria. She is passionate about the health and wellbeing of farming communities across the country. As a farmer herself, Tracey has a deep understanding of the challenges that come with farming life, which motivates her to promote a focus on improving the health of all farm families and rural communities.
Sally Cunningham has been involved in community engagement and capacity building with Victorian farmers, Landcare and producer groups for many years. She enjoys working with farm families to bring about positive changes for their enterprise, community and the environment. Since joining the National Centre for Farmer Health team in 2021, Sally has been talking with farmers through podcasts, workshops and community events about improving mental health in their workplaces to reduce stress and build a more positive workplace culture. Supporting farmer mental health following natural disasters like floods fires and dry seasons has led to the development of numerous resources including the Tackling the Tough Topics guidelines.
Kelly grew up on a family farm in the south of England and worked on farms and for shearing teams in the UK, New Zealand and Australia before settling permanently in Dunkeld in 2011. She transitioned to work in agribusiness roles including rural merchandise and farm management software and developed a passion for health and wellbeing in farming communities. Kelly completed modules in Agricultural Health and Medicine and Healthy and Sustainable Agricultural Communities and was honoured to be named the 2020 Victorian Agrifutures Rural Women’s Award winner with her pilot working dog training school, which encourages social connection and the use of working dogs as a support tool to build mental resilience in farming communities.
Kelly has enjoyed participating in co-design workshops and as a member of the working group for Mental Health 4 Ag and has joined the team as a research assistant working with the Agriculture-dependant Community Resilience Project Teams Community of Practice.
Matilda joined the team as an Administrative Assistant, using knowledge from her Bachelor of Psychology and Business alongside her farming background to help support farmers’ mental health and wellbeing. She has grown up working in Agriculture and is currently on maternity leave.
Lucinda joins the team as a Research Assistant working in the Back on Track project. Graduating from University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Medical and Health Sciences in 2023, Lucinda grew up on a mixed livestock and cropping farm in the Riverina, NSW. She is excited to combine her passions of health and agriculture to contribute to this project. She enjoys hiking, playing sport, reading and travelling.
Anita joined NCFH in 2024, bringing a diverse background in the health industry, including experience in quality and risk management, education and project management. She is passionate about preventative health and improving access to healthcare and other vital services in rural communities.
A fourth-generation farmer, Anita relocated with her husband and three children from Northern Victoria to Balmoral in the Western District following the millennium drought. Alongside family, they now run a cattle and sheep farm.
Committed to community wellbeing, Anita actively participates in local projects that foster connectedness and improve overall quality of life in her own patch.
Iksheta is a Lecturer/ Research Fellow in Rural Health at Deakin University’s School of Medicine. She assists in coordinating the Agricultural Health and Medicine (HMF701) and Healthy and Sustainable Agricultural Communities (HMF702) units. She has over nine years of experience in academia, research and clinical practice, with a strong focus on chronic disease management, rural and public health particularly in rural/regional communities.
Iksheta has successfully led multiple diabetes self-management projects, working collaboratively with general practitioners, researchers and community stakeholders across Australia and other countries. Her expertise lies in digital health interventions, patient activation, self-management education and peer coaching to improve healthcare outcomes. She has also worked extensively with Indigenous youth, mentoring and supporting them while addressing their health disparities through research and education.
Iksheta’s contributions to health research have been widely recognised through peer-reviewed publications, international collaborations and research awards. Passionate about regional communities, she is committed to improving health and well-being of farming communities through sustainable and evidence-based healthcare initiatives.
Dr Richard Lunz is a South African trained doctor with experience in science/research/education and postgraduate degrees in Primary Care/Public Health/Occ Med/Aviation/Safety and risk. He joins NCFH for a return role after initial work with AgriSafe for a project support position.
Iván is a PhD in Education candidate at Monash University (Australia). His research focuses on the implications of globalisation and non-state actors on education policies.
He has a particular interest in understanding the dynamics of education, policy and inequities in Latin America. Since 2018 he has been a researcher at Think20, the G20 engagement group that brings together think tanks and research centers. He completed a Master’s Degree in Political Studies in Education at the Institute of Education at University College London (UCL) and the Latin American Leadership Program at Georgetown University. He joined the National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) to put his experience and passion for research and social policy into practice through projects addressing farming, disabilities and mental health.
Jordan is a qualified ICT professional with deep experience in Engineering, Project management and Agile. He has worked in technical and leadership roles for more than 10 years across Europe and is now settled in Melbourne, VIC. He joined the National Centre for Farmer Health (NCFH) to help deliver the organisation’s new web platform and lead the digital transformation of new services. He has a sound track record of executing Agile transformations, mentoring highly efficient cross-functional teams and leading the execution of a variety of IT projects. Jordan is passionate about innovations and everything digital.
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