What makes us different is our unique skills and experiences from our varied professions. What unites us is our passion for community contribution. We have heart and we can relate with your community, because we are all active in our own communities.
A big hearted team
Cindy's desire for quality engagement puts her at the forefront of the industry. She finds an approach that meets people where they're at and uses her genuine, approachable manner to cut through to what really matters.
Cindy lives and breathes engagement. In the field she rest until everyone's had a say - a skill she honed while working the perfume counter at Myer as a teen.
She is adept in both community and urban development sectors, undertaking social infrastructure planning, engagement, research, analysis and evaluation while delivering programs across a wide range of government and non- government organisations.
Cindy is effective at building understanding and creating a narrative that creates favourable experiences within communities. She enjoys building trust with the community who are then more inclined to give their precious time to participate in projects and process, rather than go outside of the process in frustration.
Key Strengths & Attributes:
- Community and stakeholder engagement
- Public participation in government settings
- Facilitation of complex workshops
Qualifications:
- MA Social Science, Environment and Planning (HD), RMIT Melbourne
- Certificate in Public Participation, IAP2
- Adv. Dip. Facilitation, Group Work Institute
- ProSci Change Management Accreditation
- Member of International Association of Public Participation
- Member of International Association of Facilitators
- Advanced Practitioner Certificate in NLP, The Coaching Institute
Jacqui is driven by her love of helping people to achieve their best. In communities this involves community engagement, advocating for social justice and developing inclusive plans and programs. In organisations this is through developing successful teams and working with individuals to meet their goals. Jacqui loves building the capacity of individuals and groups, setting people up for success.
She is effective at building and advising local government on ways to strengthen partnerships between community groups and allied health partners to create a holistic health planning and service delivery model.
With a background in local government, Jacqui has direct experience in leading the development and implementation of Reconciliation Action Plans; the coordination and delivering of Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plans and the coordination of Disability Action Plans.
With comprehension of Council’s budgetary cycles, she understands both the implications of a rate constrained environment, and the need to partner and advocate to improve population health.
Jacqui spends most of her free time with her husband and two young boys. She is a huge musical theatre fan and loves spending weekends at the theatre or watching her beloved Saints play.
Key Strengths & Attributes:
- Health planning and promotion
- Community development
- Capacity building
- Community grants
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Health Sciences, Deakin University
- Diploma of Management, Swinburne University
- IAP2 Foundations in Public Participation
- Igniting Leadership, Leadership Victoria
In every project you can always hear Kate asking how we can amplify the voices of young people. Passionate about building the capacity of our youth and the importance of codesign, Kate draws on her volunteering and youth work experience to design and implement creative and inclusive projects.
A genuine care for those she interacts with can be seen through Kate’s warm and compassionate approach with community members and clients alike. Clients often note that Kate feels like a friend by the end of the project!
Kate's strength is project management, she thrives on being highly organised and across all aspects of the project. From small projects to large, across metro and regional, Kate has developed successful systems and processes to deliver strong outcomes.
Kate’s practice is centred on understanding the communities in which she is engaging. She works collaboratively with agencies, stakeholders and project partners to ensure an integrated approach, leveraging off existing relationships, communication channels and networks.
Key Strengths & Attributes:
- Community and stakeholder engagement
- Youth capacity building
- Reliable friendly approach
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Arts in Youth Affairs, RMIT Melbourne
- IAP2 Engagement Essentials and Engagement Design
- Groupwork Centre Facilitation Skills
Kate has been described as the ‘cool older sister’, this super skill and vibe is used at pop-ups to draw young people into conversations about place and their community. She is a natural conversationalist and most happy when processes involve people that normally wouldn't normally have a say.
Kate is on track to be an industry all rounder. Alongside her project work,. she is learning and practicing graphic design and Auslan. In the hope of making our practices more inclusive.
Off the clock you will find Kate somewhere in the bush, walking, foraging for wild edible greens or searching for an addition to her green tree frog habitat. When not in the wild, she enjoys spending time with family and friends.
Key Strengths & Attributes:
- Data coding and analysis
- Building and maintaining rapport with people
- Preparing presentations and graphics
Qualifications:
- IAP2 Engagement Essentials
- AUSLAN Level 1 & 2 (Ongoing)
Andrew (aka Drew) is always the first person to lend a hand in any situation. He has close to 20 years experience working in the health sector - he’s been a paramedic, physiotherapist and has even designed frameworks to improve client treatment and care.
Problem solving and finding a better way is always a common theme with Drew, who has worked for large agencies like Ambulance Victoria and the Alfred Hospital, as well as smaller health practices.
Drew’s direct experiences in health ensure his approach is considerate of both perspectives; that is advocating for improved outcomes for consumers, while balancing strategic direction and funding obligations for agencies. Drew is passionate about having the often difficult conversations about health to ensure the system remains focused on prevention, promotion and care.
Drew is also very much a handyman who has created many of Conversation Caravan’s impressive props. While he’s not on Pinterest or Instagram himself, he likes it when his props are re-Pinned! He also built our popular caravan April.
When not in the shed or in the field, Drew is rowing or coaching rowers. He has spent 17 years sitting on sporting club committees, liaising with Council and integrating the club into the community.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Health Science
Conversation Caravan is the perfect place for Sarah to work – she has a licence to drive a caravan, can fix trailer lights in the rain and has mastered how to back a caravan.
More importantly she is friendly, approachable and understanding which are all important qualities as a conversation facilitator.
Sarah is very much a people person, having spent 14 years working predominately with secondary school students and staff on outdoor education camps.
Working in remote environments with limited resources has sharpened Sarah's ability to think quickly on her feet and problem solve successfully.
Sarah lists her strengths as clear and effective communication, a positive attitude and lead by example behaviour.
Listening to others, encouraging participation and always seeking to better a situation are reasons Sarah loves working with us at Conversation Caravan.
Qualifications:
- Diploma Outdoor Recreation
- Certificate IV Trainer and Assessor
- Certificate IV Adventure Tourism
Linda can get anyone to stop and chat. Her friendly and positive approach invites people into conversations keen to learn more. She loves helping participants recognise their connection to a project and seeing their enthusiasm to contribute.
She is a logistics thinker. At pop-ups, she has a plan for every contingency and can make the most of any situation.
Linda has worked across fashion, sporting and educational settings. She is highly adaptable, fast to learn new project material and skilled at helping participants understand complex ideas.
Key Strengths & Attributes:
- Place-based engagement
- Youth engagement
- Intercept surveying
