2026 International Indigenous Strong Women’s Health, Wellbeing & Leadership Conference

Bernice Hookey’s family lineage traces back to the Waanyi people from the Lower Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. She embodies courage despite the fear that occasionally arises. As a solo mother, aunty, sister, cousin, colleague, and friend, she is deeply passionate about challenging the status quo.

An accomplished Lead Facilitator for an Indigenous National Women’s Empowerment program via Tranby, Bernice is also the Founder of MZB Empowerment. She is widely recognized as a Changemaker, Difference Maker, and Cycle Breaker, as well as a published author, mentor, and multi-award winner. Her achievements include being a finalist for national and international awards that celebrate Indigenous Excellence and Leadership.

Bernice has overcome challenges related to disempowerment, feelings of unworthiness, and well-being depreciation, navigating limited opportunities and barriers to self-expression within cultural spaces. Through experiential learning, she has lived these realities firsthand and continues to thrive.

As both a participant and now a Fellow of a globally recognized top 10 leadership program, Bernice has developed invaluable leadership skills that have strengthened her confidence. These skills, combined with her grassroots-led leadership approach, drive her mission to advance generational equity. Above all, she remains a steadfast cheerleader for families and communities, inspiring those around her with her unwavering dedication and vision.

Dr. Amber R. Logan is a traditional Kahungunu Māori wahine, a New Zealand Health Psychologist and Doctoral Fellow in Public Health at Otago University. She teaches health psychology course work at the University of Auckland & Otago University and is well-known in New Zealand for her work in methamphetamine education and community activism. She is a consummate grant writer, health services evaluator and health services program designer. She has presented extensively in Australia, Canada, and the USA at Harvard University, the University of Washington, and to the US Federal Government.

Mundanara is a proud Wonnarua, Bunjalung, Birri-Gubba, and Gungalu woman with over two decades of experience working across Indigenous and non-Indigenous organisations in NSW and QLD. She is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of BlackCard Pty Ltd, a 100% Aboriginal-owned consultancy delivering cultural capability training, co-founded with Dr Lilla Watson. An award-winning advocate, she hosts the Black Magic Woman podcast—the first Indigenous podcast to join the iHeart network—and was named Indigenous Businesswoman of the Year at the 2023 Supply Nation Awards.

Recognised internationally for her teaching and leadership, Mundanara is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in the UK and serves on several boards and committees, including The Murri School and Philanthropy Australia’s First Nations Governance Committee. She is a Visiting Fellow at QUT, Founder of Deadly Futures Indigenous Corporation, and Founding Director of The Land Back Foundation. Currently completing a Masters in Indigenous Business Leadership at Monash University, Mundanara continues to champion Aboriginal knowledge and leadership while making a positive contribution to her community.

Lidia Thorpe is a proud Gunnai, Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung woman, mother, grandmother, the first Aboriginal woman elected to the Victorian Parliament, and the first Aboriginal Senator from Victoria in federal parliament. Her story is rooted in her family’s legacy and the ongoing resistance of First Peoples across this continent.

Growing up in the Collingwood public housing flats, Lidia was surrounded by strong Blak Elders, activists and community. Her grandmother, Alma Thorpe, founded the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service, while her mother, Marjorie Thorpe, co-commissioned the Bringing Them Home report on the Stolen Generations and later served on the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation. Influenced by Elders like Uncle Robbie Thorpe and Uncle Gary Foley, she learned that resistance, truth-telling, and care for community are the foundation of change.

Before entering Parliament, Lidia worked in Aboriginal health, at the Koori Information Centre, and at the Aboriginal funeral service, witnessing firsthand the impacts of colonisation, systemic racism, deaths in custody, and child removals on her people.

Since 2020, Lidia has used her Senate platform to hold the colony to account — demanding Land Back, Treaty, and an end to the ongoing genocide of First Peoples. Her work is driven by the need for justice, healing, and the survival of Sovereignty, culture, and Country for future generations.

Trudy Hart serves as the Director of Business Solutions at Indigenous Business Australia, a role she commenced in 2023. Leading a team dedicated to empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, she facilitates business workshops, access to resources, and commercial finance to support entrepreneurs in starting and growing their businesses.

Before joining Indigenous Business Australia, Hart held the position of Acting Deputy Under Treasurer at Queensland Treasury, where she was responsible for attracting and stimulating investment in priority industries. Prior to her move to Queensland in 2022, she held diverse leadership roles within the Victorian Government, overseeing commercial, economic, and budget functions at the Department of Treasury and Finance while also supporting health services across metropolitan, regional, and rural Victoria.

With over 20 years of experience as a senior government executive in the Victorian and Commonwealth governments, Hart has built and led multiple teams, developed strategic policies across commercial, budget, and social sectors, and implemented significant financial management reforms. With Central American heritage, she remains deeply committed to reducing inequality and increasing economic participation.

Dr. Rose Harris is a Māori doctor, advocate, and founder of Hine Health, a kaupapa grounded in restoring hauora for wāhine Māori and their whānau through culturally-led, community-driven care. Raised with a deep connection to whakapapa and whenua in the Hokianga, Dr. Harris brings both lived experience and clinical expertise to her work. Her journey into medicine has been shaped by resilience — including navigating hardship, motherhood at a young age, and systemic barriers — which now fuel her commitment to equity and transformation within health systems. Dr. Harris currently works across emergency and primary care settings in both Aotearoa and Australia.

Her clinical experience, combined with her grassroots leadership, has led to the development of Hine Health — an initiative designed to reduce barriers to care by bringing services directly to whānau. Through Hine Health, she has led community-based events that integrate education, screening (including breast and cervical cancer), and direct access to specialist care such as obstetrics and gynaecology, creating seamless pathways from prevention to treatment. Her work is grounded in Te Whare Tapa Whā, tikanga Māori, and a belief that true healing occurs when care is relational, culturally safe, and led by the people it serves. She is particularly passionate about early intervention, empowering wāhine with knowledge, and shifting health systems from reactive models to preventative, whānau-centred approaches. Dr. Harris is also an emerging voice in Indigenous health innovation, with a strong focus on integrating clinical excellence, cultural frameworks, and digital solutions to improve outcomes for underserved communities. Through her speaking, she shares not only models of care, but a vision — one where Indigenous leadership, identity, and connection are central to health and wellbeing. “Knowledge is care. Hauora is wealth.”

Janine Dureau is the Founder and Inaugural Chairperson of the Kimberley Aboriginal Women’s Council and a Paul Ramsay Foundation Fellow leading the development of the Kimberley Nation Rebuilding Framework. Her work centres on cultural governance reform, strengthening Indigenous women’s leadership and restoring systems of authority grounded in culture, accountability and self-determination. With a focus on long-term structural change, Janine works at the intersection of healing, governance and nation rebuilding, recognising that sustainable wellbeing outcomes are shaped by the strength of cultural governance systems. Her leadership is grounded in lived experience and deep community engagement across the Kimberley. Janine’s work seeks to move beyond program responses to create the conditions for safer families, stronger leadership and thriving Nations.

Ariel Meteking, Ngati Toa Rangatira, Te Atahaunui a Paparangi, Ngati Tahu Ngati Whaoa, Ngai Tahu, Te Arawa, I am a father of 10 children, raised by a single mother. Our tupuna have also been recognised the need to pivot, and adapt to the changing world. From Taiaha, muskets, cell phone, computors, cloud. My mother and Aunties, started to work in our community 50 years ago, with no money and supported all people, . We have had 100s of whanau, children, adults through our homes over the year and its been our mission to make a difference. To use our cultural and spiritual values to make a difference. We are the lived experience and have use both business and social services to develop a unique model and program.

Trish is a Wadandi Bibbulmun woman from the south-west of Western Australia, with kinship ties that extend to Broome. She has been recognised for her outstanding leadership within the Aboriginal community, earning several awards for her contributions. Her role as a respected Elder has been celebrated, notably through NAIDOC and Curtin University - accolades that highlight her influence and commitment to cultural preservation and community wellbeing. Drawing on her extensive and varied experience working with Aboriginal people, Trish has consistently demonstrated dedication to uplifting and supporting her community. In addition to her leadership achievements, Trish has recently completed her first book. This significant work will form part of her thesis as she completes her PhD, which she expects to finalise in October 2026. Her ongoing academic and literary contributions further reflect her commitment to sharing knowledge and empowering future generations. Trish will submit her book, 'My Interruption,' for publication in 2027.