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Program

 

This program is interactive. You can click on each of the presenter sessions to view the presentation outline and presenter’s biography.

 

The conference sessions will run on AEST – Queensland time

 

Agenda items highlighted in:

 

Pink will be available in person and online via OnAIR

Blue will be available in person only

 

All sessions (excluding workshops) will be recorded and made available to delegates in the Resource Centre five business days after the conclusion of the conference.

 

Ready to register?  Click here

 

To return to the website, click here

 

Please email the Conference Manager if you have any questions – camh@anzmh.asn.au

 

The 2026 Child & Adolescent Mental Health Conference reserves the right to amend or alter any advertised details relating to dates, program and speakers if necessary and without notice, as a result of circumstances beyond their control. All attempts will be made to keep any changes to an absolute minimum.


Monday, March 16, 2026

MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM Registration & Exhibition Open
Welcome! Come and say hello to the Conference Team and collect your name badge!
Welcome to the 2026 Child & Adolescent Mental Health Conference
1:00 PM - 1:30 PM CAMH26 Opening Address
Including Welcome to Country, Lived Experience Acknowledgement & Housekeeping
Join us for our opening Keynote Panel
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM Social Media & Young People: Where Are We At?
Confirmed Panellists: Lucy Thomas. Stay tuned for announcement of additional panellists
2:30 PM - 3:00 PM
Afternoon Tea
WORKSHOP 1 - MONARCH ROOM - In-Person Only
Chair:
WORKSHOP 2 - PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
Chair:
WORKSHOP 3 - MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
Chair:
3:05 PM - 4:35 PM Trauma Informed Care: From Principles to Practice
Caroline Crlenjak, Orygen
How Narrative Therapy's ‘Wonderfulness Interview’ Creates Connections and Sparkling Stories During Parent Intake Conversations
Kim Billington, Counselling Conversations - Private Practice
Helping Anxious Kids Feel Heard and Safe: Teaching Emotional Regulation Through Brain & Body Awareness
Anja Zimmermann - Calm Kidz Program
Digital Lives and Mental Health: Navigating Tech, AI, and the Evolving Online World
Chair:
Families in Focus: Mental Health in the Home and Beyond
Chair:
Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5)
Chair:
4:40 PM - 5:00 PM Social Media Use, Online Bullying and School Engagement in Adolescents: The Role of Anxiety
Dr Mark Kohler, Adelaide University
Details of this exciting presentation coming soon
Meeting Families Where They're At: Service User Perspectives of an Innovative Model of Perinatal Care
Dr Zalia Powell, University of the Sunshine Coast
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM CAMH26 Welcome Networking Event
Connect with friends, industry peers, sponsors and exhibitors while enjoying live music and light refreshments at the CAMH26 Networking Function!
MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM Registration & Exhibition Open
Welcome! Come and say hello to the Conference Team and collect your name badge!
Welcome to the 2026 Child & Adolescent Mental Health Conference
1:00 PM - 1:30 PM CAMH26 Opening Address
Including Welcome to Country, Lived Experience Acknowledgement & Housekeeping
Join us for our opening Keynote Panel
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM Social Media & Young People: Where Are We At?
Confirmed Panellists: Lucy Thomas. Stay tuned for announcement of additional panellists
2:30 PM - 3:00 PM
Afternoon Tea
WORKSHOP 1 - MONARCH ROOM - In-Person Only
Chair:
WORKSHOP 2 - PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
Chair:
3:05 PM - 4:35 PM Trauma Informed Care: From Principles to Practice
Caroline Crlenjak, Orygen
How Narrative Therapy's ‘Wonderfulness Interview’ Creates Connections and Sparkling Stories During Parent Intake Conversations
Kim Billington, Counselling Conversations - Private Practice
Digital Lives and Mental Health: Navigating Tech, AI, and the Evolving Online World
Chair:
Families in Focus: Mental Health in the Home and Beyond
Chair:
4:40 PM - 5:00 PM Social Media Use, Online Bullying and School Engagement in Adolescents: The Role of Anxiety
Dr Mark Kohler, Adelaide University
Details of this exciting presentation coming soon
5:00 PM - 6:00 PM CAMH26 Welcome Networking Event
Connect with friends, industry peers, sponsors and exhibitors while enjoying live music and light refreshments at the CAMH26 Networking Function!






Tuesday, March 17, 2026

MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities
Chair:
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience
Chair:
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Starting Early: Embedding Mental Health Literacy in Primary Schools through Student-Led Learning
Irene Foulis, headspace
More Than Worries: How Anxiety Presents Differently in Autistic Children and How We Can Help
Raelene Dundon, Divergent Matters / Deakin University / Okey Dokey Childhood Therapy
Healing Adolescent Violence in the Home Through Attachment
Dr David Burck, Courage
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities.
Chair:
Supporting the Workforce, Sustaining the Mission: Empowering the People who Support our Young People
Chair:
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation.
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Engaging Whole School Communities in Regional and Rural Schools: A Preventative Approach to Student Wellbeing
Janine Harrington & Libby Foster, Centacare SWNSW
Caring, Kindness and Getting it Right!
Sandra Volvricht & Kim Whitehead, CAMHS South Australia
Reimagining Youth Mental Health: Nature-Based, Trauma-Informed Solutions for the Missing Middle in Regional Australia
Jennifer Parke, Human Nature
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM Starting Too Late: The Need for Earlier Interventions to Address Peer Sexual Harassment in Australia
Gabrielle Hunt, Australian Catholic University
Major Steps Taken in Building Youth Mental Health Care Capacity in the Maldives
Helen Nicoll, Orygen
‘Give Us a Chance and Listen to Us’ – Your Voice 2025
Benjamin Pook, Your Town
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Beyond the Clinic: Building Strong Minds and Safe Spaces through an Embedded School Wellbeing Hub
Rebecca Kennedy, Narromine High School
Navigating Vocational Vulnerability and Advocacy in Youth Mental Health
Morgana Walker, Bee Kind Psychology
Let's Not Wait Until They Are Teenagers - Taking Childhood Suicidality Seriously
Dr Lyn O’Grady, Community Psychologist
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!
MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities
Chair:
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Starting Early: Embedding Mental Health Literacy in Primary Schools through Student-Led Learning
Irene Foulis, headspace
More Than Worries: How Anxiety Presents Differently in Autistic Children and How We Can Help
Raelene Dundon, Divergent Matters / Deakin University / Okey Dokey Childhood Therapy
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities.
Chair:
Supporting the Workforce, Sustaining the Mission: Empowering the People who Support our Young People
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Engaging Whole School Communities in Regional and Rural Schools: A Preventative Approach to Student Wellbeing
Janine Harrington & Libby Foster, Centacare SWNSW
Caring, Kindness and Getting it Right!
Sandra Volvricht & Kim Whitehead, CAMHS South Australia
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM Starting Too Late: The Need for Earlier Interventions to Address Peer Sexual Harassment in Australia
Gabrielle Hunt, Australian Catholic University
Major Steps Taken in Building Youth Mental Health Care Capacity in the Maldives
Helen Nicoll, Orygen
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Beyond the Clinic: Building Strong Minds and Safe Spaces through an Embedded School Wellbeing Hub
Rebecca Kennedy, Narromine High School
Navigating Vocational Vulnerability and Advocacy in Youth Mental Health
Morgana Walker, Bee Kind Psychology
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!

MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Healing Adolescent Violence in the Home Through Attachment
Dr David Burck, Courage
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation.
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Reimagining Youth Mental Health: Nature-Based, Trauma-Informed Solutions for the Missing Middle in Regional Australia
Jennifer Parke, Human Nature
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM ‘Give Us a Chance and Listen to Us’ – Your Voice 2025
Benjamin Pook, Your Town
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Let's Not Wait Until They Are Teenagers - Taking Childhood Suicidality Seriously
Dr Lyn O’Grady, Community Psychologist
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!

MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Starting Early: Embedding Mental Health Literacy in Primary Schools through Student-Led Learning
Irene Foulis, headspace
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities.
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Engaging Whole School Communities in Regional and Rural Schools: A Preventative Approach to Student Wellbeing
Janine Harrington & Libby Foster, Centacare SWNSW
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM Starting Too Late: The Need for Earlier Interventions to Address Peer Sexual Harassment in Australia
Gabrielle Hunt, Australian Catholic University
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Beyond the Clinic: Building Strong Minds and Safe Spaces through an Embedded School Wellbeing Hub
Rebecca Kennedy, Narromine High School
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!

PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM More Than Worries: How Anxiety Presents Differently in Autistic Children and How We Can Help
Raelene Dundon, Divergent Matters / Deakin University / Okey Dokey Childhood Therapy
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Supporting the Workforce, Sustaining the Mission: Empowering the People who Support our Young People
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Caring, Kindness and Getting it Right!
Sandra Volvricht & Kim Whitehead, CAMHS South Australia
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM Major Steps Taken in Building Youth Mental Health Care Capacity in the Maldives
Helen Nicoll, Orygen
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Navigating Vocational Vulnerability and Advocacy in Youth Mental Health
Morgana Walker, Bee Kind Psychology
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!

MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 2: Registration & Exhibiton Open
8:30 AM - 8:40 AM
Day 2 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations!
8:40 AM - 9:25 AM Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities.
Prof Chelsea Watego, Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
9:30 AM - 10:15 AM STILL HUMAN: Sparking Connection and Wellbeing in an Evolving Online World
Lucy Thomas OAM, Digital Lives and Mental Health
10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
Morning Tea with Exhibitors
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation
Chair:
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM Healing Adolescent Violence in the Home Through Attachment
Dr David Burck, Courage
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch with Exhibitors
Emerging Mental Health Challenges: Identity, Safety and Complex Realities for a New Generation.
Chair:
1:30 PM - 2:00 PM Reimagining Youth Mental Health: Nature-Based, Trauma-Informed Solutions for the Missing Middle in Regional Australia
Jennifer Parke, Human Nature
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM ‘Give Us a Chance and Listen to Us’ – Your Voice 2025
Benjamin Pook, Your Town
2:40 PM - 3:10 PM Let's Not Wait Until They Are Teenagers - Taking Childhood Suicidality Seriously
Dr Lyn O’Grady, Community Psychologist
3:10 PM - 3:40 PM
Afternoon Tea with Exhibitors
Join us for these inspiring Keynote Presentations
3:40 PM - 4:15 PM
Details of this Keynote Presentation Coming Soon
4:20 PM - 4:50 PM Keynote Presentation: Foundations First: Mental Health in the Earliest Years (0–5) & Culturally Safe and Self-determined Care
Daniel Knapp, Executive Director - First Nations Wellbeing & Engagement, headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation
4:50 PM - 5:00 PM
Conference Day 2 Reflection
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Topgolf
Tee off for an evening of fun at Topgolf – where it’s not about having the perfect swing, it’s about having the most fun!
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM CAMH26 Trivia Night
Engage in some friendly competition, make new connections and win some fabulous prizes at the CAMH26 Trivia Night. Register solo or as a team and join in the fun!


Wednesday, March 18, 2026

MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience.
Chair:
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities..
Breaking the Cycle: Trauma, Family Violence, and Abuse
Chair:
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Discussing Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence with Families
Dr Jasmine MacDonald, Australian Institute of Family Studies
From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Elizabeth Wilson, St John's Anglican College
Breaking Silence, Building Strength: Pathways Out of Abuse
Shweta Goyal, FNQ Diverse Communities Council
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM Communicating Unmet Needs: The Use of Potentially Harmful Behaviours by Autistic Children
Kylie Butler, Australian Institute of Family Studies
What Wellbeing Means to Me - Students Perceptions of Wellbeing and Wellbeing Programs
Amanda Madden, Edith Cowan University
Breaking the Cycle: Generation Liberation
Ruby Allen, Kids of Purple
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Reforming Systems, Reclaiming Space: Neuroaffirming Support through the Affirming Access Project
Brendan Chippendale, Achieve Collective
Monitoring Student Mental Health: The Utility and Feasibility of Data Analytics for Systematic Screening
Rebecca Terlich, University of Southern Queensland
Supporting Young People Using Violence in the Home and in Their Intimate Partnerships
Casey Thorpe & Kiel Brennan, Kaydi Wood, Anglicare Southern Queensland
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Families in Focus: Mental Health in the Home and Beyond.
Chair:
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience..
Chair:
Culturally Safe and Self-Determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Families as Change-Makers: Reducing Accommodation in Anxiety and OCD to Restore Resilience
Dr Celin Gelgec & Victoria Miller & Catherine McGrath, Melbourne Wellbeing Group
Practice Strategies for Supporting Autistic and ADHDer Children's Mental Health
Jacquelynne Lee, Emerging Minds
Stronger You: Culturally Safe Pathways to Work, Study, and Wellbeing
Ella Birchall, headspace
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM From Despair to Connection: Parent/Carer Groups Supporting Recovery Through Lived Experience
Alison Parkinson, Clare Henderson, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services
Working Creatively with Neurodiverent Children
Brianna Thomas & Dr Jane Goodman, The Psych Hive
Responsive Care for Young Queer and Trans People of Colour (QTPOC): Key Ingredients and Recommendations
Dr Isabel Zbukvic, Orygen, The University Of Melbourne
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement
MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience.
Chair:
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities..
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Discussing Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence with Families
Dr Jasmine MacDonald, Australian Institute of Family Studies
From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Elizabeth Wilson, St John's Anglican College
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM Communicating Unmet Needs: The Use of Potentially Harmful Behaviours by Autistic Children
Kylie Butler, Australian Institute of Family Studies
What Wellbeing Means to Me - Students Perceptions of Wellbeing and Wellbeing Programs
Amanda Madden, Edith Cowan University
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Reforming Systems, Reclaiming Space: Neuroaffirming Support through the Affirming Access Project
Brendan Chippendale, Achieve Collective
Monitoring Student Mental Health: The Utility and Feasibility of Data Analytics for Systematic Screening
Rebecca Terlich, University of Southern Queensland
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Families in Focus: Mental Health in the Home and Beyond.
Chair:
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience..
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Families as Change-Makers: Reducing Accommodation in Anxiety and OCD to Restore Resilience
Dr Celin Gelgec & Victoria Miller & Catherine McGrath, Melbourne Wellbeing Group
Practice Strategies for Supporting Autistic and ADHDer Children's Mental Health
Jacquelynne Lee, Emerging Minds
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM From Despair to Connection: Parent/Carer Groups Supporting Recovery Through Lived Experience
Alison Parkinson, Clare Henderson, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services
Working Creatively with Neurodiverent Children
Brianna Thomas & Dr Jane Goodman, The Psych Hive
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement

MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Breaking the Cycle: Trauma, Family Violence, and Abuse
Chair:
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM Breaking Silence, Building Strength: Pathways Out of Abuse
Shweta Goyal, FNQ Diverse Communities Council
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM Breaking the Cycle: Generation Liberation
Ruby Allen, Kids of Purple
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Supporting Young People Using Violence in the Home and in Their Intimate Partnerships
Casey Thorpe & Kiel Brennan, Kaydi Wood, Anglicare Southern Queensland
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Culturally Safe and Self-Determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Stronger You: Culturally Safe Pathways to Work, Study, and Wellbeing
Ella Birchall, headspace
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM Responsive Care for Young Queer and Trans People of Colour (QTPOC): Key Ingredients and Recommendations
Dr Isabel Zbukvic, Orygen, The University Of Melbourne
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement

MONARCH ROOM - In-Person & Virtual via OnAIR
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience.
Chair:
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Discussing Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence with Families
Dr Jasmine MacDonald, Australian Institute of Family Studies
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM Communicating Unmet Needs: The Use of Potentially Harmful Behaviours by Autistic Children
Kylie Butler, Australian Institute of Family Studies
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Reforming Systems, Reclaiming Space: Neuroaffirming Support through the Affirming Access Project
Brendan Chippendale, Achieve Collective
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Families in Focus: Mental Health in the Home and Beyond.
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Families as Change-Makers: Reducing Accommodation in Anxiety and OCD to Restore Resilience
Dr Celin Gelgec & Victoria Miller & Catherine McGrath, Melbourne Wellbeing Group
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM From Despair to Connection: Parent/Carer Groups Supporting Recovery Through Lived Experience
Alison Parkinson, Clare Henderson, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement

PRINCE ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Beyond the Curriculum: Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Resilient Learning Communities..
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM From the Inside Out: Empowering Student-Led Wellbeing and Peer-to-Peer Support in Schools
Elizabeth Wilson, St John's Anglican College
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM What Wellbeing Means to Me - Students Perceptions of Wellbeing and Wellbeing Programs
Amanda Madden, Edith Cowan University
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Monitoring Student Mental Health: The Utility and Feasibility of Data Analytics for Systematic Screening
Rebecca Terlich, University of Southern Queensland
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Neurodivergence in Focus: Beyond Labels to Lived Experience..
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Practice Strategies for Supporting Autistic and ADHDer Children's Mental Health
Jacquelynne Lee, Emerging Minds
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM Working Creatively with Neurodiverent Children
Brianna Thomas & Dr Jane Goodman, The Psych Hive
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement

MARQUIS ROOM - In-Person Only
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM
Day 3: Registration Open
8:30 AM - 8:50 AM
Day 3 Welcome & Housekeeping
Join us for these inspiring keynote presentations.
8:55 AM - 9:40 AM Stronger Together: Preventing Loneliness and Empowering Youth
Assoc Prof Michelle Lim, Emerging Mental Health Challenges
9:45 AM - 10:30 AM Beyond the Curriculum
Prof. Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish Educator, Teacher & Author | Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Melbourne
10:30 AM - 11:00 AM In-Person Poster Presentations & Morning Tea
Click to view the list of posters on display for the duration of the conference. Poster authors will be available at their poster during this time to discuss their research and answer your questions.
Breaking the Cycle: Trauma, Family Violence, and Abuse
Chair:
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM Breaking Silence, Building Strength: Pathways Out of Abuse
Shweta Goyal, FNQ Diverse Communities Council
11:25 AM - 11:45 AM Breaking the Cycle: Generation Liberation
Ruby Allen, Kids of Purple
11:50 AM - 12:10 PM Supporting Young People Using Violence in the Home and in Their Intimate Partnerships
Casey Thorpe & Kiel Brennan, Kaydi Wood, Anglicare Southern Queensland
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Day 3: Lunch with Exhibitors
Culturally Safe and Self-Determined Care: Mental Health Across Diverse Communities
Chair:
1:10 PM - 1:40 PM Stronger You: Culturally Safe Pathways to Work, Study, and Wellbeing
Ella Birchall, headspace
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM Responsive Care for Young Queer and Trans People of Colour (QTPOC): Key Ingredients and Recommendations
Dr Isabel Zbukvic, Orygen, The University Of Melbourne
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Working Afternoon Tea
Grab a coffee and join us for our final keynote
Closing Keynote Session
2:40 PM - 3:40 PM Protecting the Spirit of Youth: Mental Health, Identity, and Connection in a Changing World
Dr Will Dobud, Charles Sturt University
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Conference Close & 2027 Announcement


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