Callie Elward-Barrett, pronouns she/her, is a neurodivergent neurodiversity advocate!

Callie has acted in various Assistant Secretary positions at the Department of Health and Aged Care, and has led research, design, and development of multiple platforms, pathways, and communications for people who experience barriers in accessing health services.

Callie actively promotes and models inclusive work practices for neurodivergent staff. She educates on the role of leaders in creating practices that enable NDers to succeed, and harnessing the incredible strengths diverse approaches bring to delivering better Government policy and programs.

She has recently established and Chairs the Health Neurodiversity Community of Practice, is a founding member of the APS-wide Neurodiversity of Practice, and was an SES signatory on the inclusion of a Neurodiversity question in the APS Census. She is a firm believer that the APS should lead the way in inclusive work places.

Prior to working with Government, Callie worked in the Community Sector with both state and territory governments, and not for profit organisations. She started her professional life as a Police Officer in England and then in South Australia.

She has a successful podcast about adult ADHD and what it is like to get a late diagnosis, with all of the challenges it can bring.

Callie identifies as having lived experience with disability, and as the parent of a child with disability

As a leader in the Advancing Economic Statistics Program at the ABS I’m working with a small team to think about ensuring the continued relevance of some of Australia’s most important economic statistics, such as GDP. We’re looking at starting from implementing the recent changes to economic statistic standards through to how the ABS can evolve to suit the economy of the mid-21st century.

I want to demystify statistics, help everyone understand how we make our publications, what the numbers are saying, and how to look into the details. I write about all kinds of details that go into the work of the ABS, as well as keep you up to date on the latest economic news. 

I’m an authentic neurodivergent leader. I lead with my true self, with honesty about my strengths and weaknesses. I want to be a visible example of a neurodivergent person with career success without having to compromise my beliefs and self. As a Neurodiversity Champion at the ABS I’m helping to make the ABS the best place in Australia for neurodivergent people to work.

I’ve built a career on the intersection between data and policy, with 20 years at Commonwealth Treasury working across budget, tax, modelling and forecasting. I’ve been involved in some of the biggest economic modelling projects in Australia, including Australia’s Low Pollution Future and the Intergenerational Report.

My specialities include tax modelling, tax forecasting, Economic modelling, economic policy, economic forecasting, management of economic specialists, government policy, budget policy, government debt, balance sheet, energy policy, macroeconomic statistics.

I love being part of the conversation, and always love to see the comments and reactions on my posts. I’m always happy to try and answer the questions you have about what the ABS does and how we do it. Please follow along and join the discussion in the comments!

Claire is a proud Yorta Yorta woman and is a prominent senior NSW Public Servant with over 21 years of experience in government across agencies such as Transport, Department of Communities and Justice, Treasury and Education. Claire was also the Head of the School of Leadership and Management at Charles Sturt University for the NSW Police Force. She believes in being the change and making a difference in everything she does. Claire is committed to serving the people of NSW and is a patron of young people and embodies the spirit of inclusivity and diversity.

Claire knows that diversity is more than a bumper sticker and has been a game changer in proving that diversity results in efficiency whilst leading in traditionally male dominated roles. She was the first female Manager in Traffic Operations in NSW history and delivered the first operated, maintained and delivered tunnel in NSW (St Helena Tunnel $858m), was the first female A/CEO of School Infrastructure NSW leading a historical investment in NSW Public Schools over $10b and the first female First Nations Deputy Secretary in the Department of Communities and Justice. Claire has led geographically dispersed teams throughout her career with interesting projects and crisis management such as being one of the operational leaders in the response to the Sydney Siege from the Traffic Operations Room.

Claire is an advocate for young people and the community. Claire tirelessly works for the people of NSW and has stood up programs such as the first ever cross government, cross industry Infrastructure Traineeship which supports investment in the future of over 400 young people.

Claire is on many non-for-profit boards as a Director including: the Women and Girl’s Emergency Centre in Redfern, Macquarie Universities’ Fire to Flourish and member of the Cultural Diversity Committee with Women on Boards. She was recently appointed to the National Indigenous Disaster Resilience Board.

Claire holds qualifications in Education, Law, Psychology, Project Management, Disability Services, Social Work, Leadership and Management, Workplace Training and Assessment, Executive Coaching and Traffic Engineering.

Claire has been the recipient of high-profile commendations including winning and being a finalist in the Premier’s Awards multiple times, a Finalist in the Australian of the Year and Young Australian of the Year Awards and Finalist in the Women’s Agenda Awards.

Nu Nu is an Assistant Secretary at the Department of Treasury and a 2021 Sir Roland Wilson Scholar with a broad range of experience across tax policy, legislation, forecasting and macroeconomic modelling. Nu Nu also previously led the BHP’s macroeconomic team in Singapore and worked in the World Bank’s macroeconomic modelling team in Washington DC.  Nu Nu is passionate about diversity and inclusion and creating a public service that truly reflects the Australian community it serves. In 2014 she led the Department of Treasury’s analysis of gender bias in promotions outcomes and most recently has been involved in analysing outcomes for NESB/CALD men and women as well as staff who identify as Indigenous or as having a disability.

Antonio is the current director of the Australian Professional Services Review Agency. Antonio grew up in rural parts of Italy and NSW and attended Sydney University. He has been a GP for 30 years and has been a long-term practice principal in Canberra. His passions include practitioner wellbeing and representing the interests of patients and their doctors. He was AMA ACT president elect/president from 2016 to 2021, served on many boards and committees, and was Chair of the International Assessment Panel under Medevac Legislation for refugees in 2019.

For 25 years, he has served as a volunteer for distressed doctors and currently is the deputy chair of the National Drs4Drs Board and for many years ran the ACT service. He was awarded the AMA National Presidential Medal in 2020 for services to doctors’ health, and to refugees. Antonio has been involved in teaching roles and currently lectures at ANU on medicine and medical regulation, and has held roles for AHPRA, Medical Council of NSW, Medicare, AMC, and PSR for over 20 years.

He has been the Acting Director and is currently Medical Officer of PSR as well as clinician, teacher, and advocate for community health and supporting the vulnerable in our midst. He speaks regularly promoting health compliance and the work of DOHA and PSR, as well as supporting doctors’ wellbeing. His passions are professional standards, as well as medicine, sports, writing, family, friends, literature, music. He founded and runs charities, and is the worst all round sportsman in Australia today or ever. He actively enjoys the APS Neuro-diverse, Pride, CALD, and Inclusion networks, and is a long-time supporter of many of Australia’s finest arts ventures and disastrous sporting teams.

Joey is committed to the unique professional development needs of neurodivergent people. In this role, Joey has developed an innovative and world-first online program that incorporates self-paced learning, cohort accountability and support, and digital asynchronous collaboration and communication.

Joey is a former management consultant with EY and Minister Counsellor (Commercial) with the Australian Embassy in Washington DC.

Joey has extensive experience driving and innovating organisations in complex and disruptive environments for revenue growth and productivity. Her focus was on leadership excellence, transformation strategy and change management. Her experience spans the Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas.

Jim was appointed as Secretary of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport Regional Development, Communications and the Arts in July 2022.

Jim Betts has spent over 30 years working in government agencies in the UK, Victoria and (for the last 8 years) New South Wales.

Prior to becoming Secretary, Jim was a partner at strategy consultancy EY Port Jackson Partners, having previously led the New South Wales Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) as Secretary for 2.5 years. During that period, the department undertook transformational reform in areas like land use planning, water, urban design, sustainability, climate change, biodiversity conservation and energy. From 2013 to 2019, Jim was Chief Executive Officer of Infrastructure NSW where he led the development of 2 State Infrastructure Strategies, oversaw the state’s infrastructure program, delivered major state infrastructure projects and developed a state plan for the construction sector.

Before moving to New South Wales, Jim spent 5 years in Victoria as Secretary for the Victorian Transport Department and 4 years as Victoria’s Director of Public Transport. Jim strives to be a champion for inclusivity and social justice, not least for First Nations people.

He is a supporter of St Kilda football club, but privately admits they are rubbish.

As she is affectionately known, Michelle Sheppard, or “Mama Mish”, is a highly respected presenter, advocate, and trainer in the gender equity space. As a transgender woman, she appreciates the difficulties within the grey created by the gender divide, traverses them herself, and willingly takes others on the ride with her.

Michelle brings her experience as a trans woman into her work, running diversity, equity, and inclusion training, mentoring colleagues, and providing extra support to anyone transitioning or affirming their gender. Michelle lays out the sobering statistics around violence and discrimination against transgender people, unemployment, financial troubles, and mental health issues but mixes them with anecdotes and funny stories from her life.

She embodies dignity, grace and the change needed to make a positive difference in others’ lives, empowers women and challenges barriers to inclusion, discrimination, and harassment.