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Alanna Ball
Women in Safety
Amanda Anderson
L’Occitane Group
Anna Wilson
GHD
Ashley Houston
Bain and Co
Brigid Kerley
Royal Rehab Group
Bronwyn Williams
Cara Williams
Bolton Clarke
Cathy Connors
Essential Energy
Deborah Peach
Cleanaway Waste Management
Deni Murray
Vaughan Civil
Ellie Andrivon
Lightsource bp
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Genevieve Nix
Pacific National
Jackie Hegger
Ausenco
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Jen Falco
Barwon Water
Joanne Cuomo
NSW Health
Kara Livingstone
Thales
Karen Halliday
CIP Constructions
Kathy Naumczyk
Comcare
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Letitia Kavanagh
Australian Unity
Lisa Crawford
Jemena
Mell Greenall
Before you Dig Australia
Nicole Ashcroft
Uber
Nicole Everingham
Hoyts Group
Peggy Cheong
WorkSafe ACT
Rebecca Williams
Comcare
Rhian O’Sullivan
Energy Queensland
S J Price
Stirling and Rose
Sally Stahmer
Aquila Clean Energy APAC
Tanya Pelja
BGIS
Alanna Ball
Founder & Chief Executive OfficerWomen in Safety
As the Director and Principal Consultant of The Safety Team, Alanna Ball has over 10 years of experience in workplace health and safety (WHS) consulting, coaching, and leadership. She holds an MBA, a Post Graduate Certificate in Applied Law, and a Bachelor of Occupational Health and Safety, among other credentials. She is also the founder of Women in Safety, a platform that supports and celebrates women in the WHS industry.
Alanna's mission is to be the missing piece of the organizational puzzle and create great safety outcomes. She works with medium to large organizations across various sectors and regions, helping them improve their WHS performance and culture. She is skilled at developing and implementing WHS strategies, communicating with boards and leadership teams, and delivering engaging and impactful workshops. Alanna is passionate about empowering organizations to embrace authentic leadership and foster a culture of safety.
Speaking at
08:50
Opening remarks from the Chair
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08:50
Opening remarks from the Chair
Peggy Cheong
Deputy CommissionerWorkSafe ACT
Peggy Cheong is the WHS Deputy Commissioner at WorkSafe ACT, with nearly 30 years of experience in regulatory compliance, WHS, workers’ compensation, and employment law. Formerly the Executive Director of NT WorkSafe, she led major legislative reforms, including psychosocial hazard regulations and electrical safety laws. Peggy is a passionate advocate for safe workplaces and has held leadership roles in the Northern Territory legal sector. Peggy holds degrees in Science and Law from the University of Western Australia and the University of Queensland.
Speaking at
09:00
Driving safer workplaces through collaboration and a proactive safety culture
Anna Wilson
Global HSE Business Systems ManagerGHD
Anna is the Global HSE Business Systems Manager at GHD, where Safety is a core value. She leads the development and maintenance of GHD’s externally certified Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) management systems. In addition, Anna manages a Philippines-based team that supports global HSEQ, integrity, and sustainability operations—freeing up HSEQ professionals to focus on strategic risk management initiatives.
Anna began her career in Injury Management within several New South Wales state government agencies. She soon transitioned into health and safety, driven by the belief that preventing injuries is more impactful and rewarding, than managing them after the fact.
She is a member of the Australian Institute of Health and Safety and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA).
Speaking at
09:30
Panel discussion: What does a successful safety career look like and how can you get there?
Deborah Peach
Executive General Manager - HSE Fleet & Fixed AssetsCleanaway Waste Management
Deborah Peach is an executive leader with 30 years’ experience across the mining, energy, and industrial sectors. She joined Cleanaway in 2022 as Executive General Manager for Health, Safety & Environment, leading HSE, Fleet, and Asset Integrity nationally. Prior to this, Deborah held senior roles at Alcoa World Alumina and Woodside Energy, including Vice President Governance, Risk & Compliance, and General Manager HSE.
With a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Deborah brings deep expertise in high-risk operational settings with demonstrated success in driving regulatory alignment, operational performance, and cultural change.
Deborah is a strategic, curious, and passionate leader and throughout her career has been instrumental in developing innovative solutions to complex challenges, from award-winning approaches to managing environmental risks to championing industry-wide best practice in frontline HSE leadership.
As the Co-Chair and Board Member of Safer Together WA/NT, Deborah remains dedicated to advancing safety culture and performance across industry. In 2022, she was recognised in the International WeQual Awards, winning the Innovation category for Asia-Pacific, honouring the outstanding achievements of women in business.
Speaking at
09:30
Panel discussion: What does a successful safety career look like and how can you get there?
16:10
Building the 3 foundations of safety success: systems, people & execution
Karen Halliday
Head of HSEQCIP Constructions
Karen Halliday brings over 25 years of experience in systems engineering and HSEQ leadership across mining, oil and gas, fabrication, civil, and construction (residential and industrial).
As Head of HSEQ at CIP Constructions, Karen leads transformative safety and quality initiatives, combining strategic systems thinking with a deep commitment to organisational performance and cultural change.
Her career is marked by impactful contributions to national programs in wellbeing, risk management, and responsible sourcing, as well as leadership roles in major infrastructure and energy projects. A certified Organisational Coach, Karen is known for her ability to influence change, build high-performing teams, and architect solutions that align business goals with human values.
Karen is a passionate advocate for diversity, reconciliation, and ethical procurement, and has served on multiple industry committees. Her speaking style blends analytical insight with real-world experience, offering audiences practical strategies for driving safety, sustainability, and leadership in complex environments.
Speaking at
09:30
Panel discussion: What does a successful safety career look like and how can you get there?
Joanne Cuomo
Work Health and Safety AdvisorNSW Health
Joanne is a work health and safety professional with some twenty years’ experience working within health and safety.
She has predominately worked within the health sector but has held safety roles in other government departments developing and reviewing safety management systems.
She has held roles in local government and worked at various councils, worked within the disability, and educational sectors.
She holds a master’s in occupational health and Safety Management systems of which she obtained from the University of Technology Sydney.
She is passionate about work health and safety about workplace cultural change and about injury prevention and the minimization of harm to workers whist at work.
Speaking at
09:30
Panel discussion: What does a successful safety career look like and how can you get there?
Kara Livingstone
Environment, Health and Safety Manager (Head of HSE Australian Munitions)Thales
Speaking at
10:50
Mastering 5 critical non-technical skills that every safety professional needs
Mell Greenall
Chief Executive OfficerBefore you Dig Australia
Speaking at
11:40
Establishing your voice, presence, and influence as a woman in safety, no matter your level or industry
Roundtable 3: Choosing the path that promotes healing and prioritises safety after an assault/harassment in the workplace
Amanda Anderson
Global Mental Health Project LeadL’Occitane Group
Amanda Anderson does real. And raw. And the kind of reframes that stop people mid-note-taking and make them go, “…damn.”
As the Mental Health Ambassador at L’Occitane and a sought-after speaker known for her bold delivery and “audio grenades,” Amanda works at the intersection of mental health, high performance, and identity. She helps people take the rubble from their personal earthquakes - burnout, breakdowns, identity crises dressed up as promotions - and build something better. Not shinier. Not more impressive. Better. More honest. More human. More sustainable. At this year’s Women in Health & Safety Summit, Amanda is cracking open the silent epidemic of self-abandonment - the career-long habit of over-giving, peace-keeping, people-pleasing, and quietly disappearing in plain sight. She brings practical tools, sharp insight, and a challenge: What would it look like to stop managing everyone else’s risk - and start protecting your own well-being, your boundaries, and your voice? Her keynote gives you more than ideas - it gives you a new standard for yourself. Expect clarity. Expect courage. Expect the conviction to hold your ground, even when the pressure hits. Because in a world that rewards compliance, the strongest move you’ll ever make is to take charge of your thinking.
Speaking at
12:10
Handling difficult conversations, challenging people & professional setbacks
Sally Stahmer
HSE Director – APACAquila Clean Energy APAC
Her career spans key leadership roles in renewable energy, including Head of Health & Safety at Fluence and Tilt Renewables, and HSE Manager at Biosar, where she championed safety strategies for wind, solar, and battery energy storage projects across Australia and New Zealand.
Sally holds an MBA and is a Certified OHS Professional with the Australian Institute of Safety. She is also an active member of StayLive NZ, contributing to safety leadership in the electrical industry.
A passionate advocate for women in HSE and environmental responsibility, Sally brings a collaborative, values-driven approach to safety leadership. Her work is grounded in the belief that safety is not just a compliance function—but a strategic enabler of innovation, inclusion, and operational excellence.
Speaking at
13:40
Advocating for yourself at every career stage & negotiating to achieve your goals
Nicole Ashcroft
Head of Safety Australia and NZUber
For the last twenty years, Nicole has worked across a range of industries in a health and safety remit, including construction, mining, rail, defense and technology.
Her role at Uber includes overseeing the prevention of serious incidents as a result of person to person interactions and road safety accidents. This includes developing safety policies and processes, and implementing innovations that support the safety of every Uber app user.
As well as her primary role as Head of Safety, Nicole also leads the Reconciliation Action Plan and our relationship with women's safety organisation, WESNET.
She balances Uber’s value of “Standing for Safety” with spending time with her two young children and volunteering with the Coogee Surf Life Saving Club.
Speaking at
14:10
Managing risk in a changing workforce: contractors, gig work and grey areas
Lisa Crawford
General Manager Health and SafetyJemena
Lisa Crawford is the General Manager of Health & Safety at Jemena, where she leads the occupational health and safety strategy across both Jemena and Zinfra. With a strong focus on the wellbeing of employees, delivery partners, and the broader community, Lisa heads a dedicated team of health, safety, and injury management professionals who work closely with operational leaders to identify and manage risk across the operations of the business.
With over 15 years’ experience spanning management and consulting roles in construction, civil infrastructure, and renewable energy, Lisa brings a wealth of expertise to complex, high-risk industries. She is known for her ability to build trusted relationships, navigate operational challenges, and drive meaningful safety outcomes. Lisa holds a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) and is a passionate advocate for creating safer, healthier workplaces.
Speaking at
14:40
Climate change: new safety risks, duties & protocols
Nicole Everingham
General Manager Workplace Health & SafetyHoyts Group
Nicole Everingham is the General Manager of Workplace Health, Safety and Wellness for the HOYTS Group, overseeing operations across 60 cinema locations in Australia and New Zealand and Val Morgan. With a career spanning over 20 years in WHS leadership, Nicole is passionate about making safety practical, people-focused, and embedded in everyday culture.
Leading a team where the majority of employees are under 25, Nicole is dedicated to translating complex WHS legislation into clear, actionable strategies that resonate with frontline teams, while also influencing senior executives on the strategic value of health, safety, and wellbeing.
At the core, Nicole believes safety is about human connection, preparation, and leadership accountability and that young workforces deserve safety systems designed with their world in mind.
Speaking at
15:40
Mastering digital safety and injury management tools
Genevieve Nix
Chief HSE & Sustainability OfficerPacific National
Speaking at
16:40
Panel discussion: What happens when safety, workplace culture, and business goals collide?
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Ellie Andrivon
Head of HSE – APACLightsource bp
Ellie is a highly experienced HSE leader with over 10 years of expertise in the energy sector, specialising in contractor management and risk mitigation. She has a strong track record of optimising safety performance, driving regulatory compliance, and aligning HSE initiatives with business objectives to enhance operational efficiency and reduce risk exposure. With a focus on leadership and collaboration, Ellie has successfully led large-scale safety programs, fostering a culture of safety and continuous improvement across diverse teams and projects. Her commercial acumen and ability to navigate complex regulatory environments make her a key contributor to organisational success and growth.
Speaking at
16:40
Panel discussion: What happens when safety, workplace culture, and business goals collide?
Roundtable 1: Creating an effective team: finding, training, and retaining a skilled safety team
Jackie Hegger
Director, Health, Safety and Environment – APAC/AfricaAusenco
Speaking at
16:40
Panel discussion: What happens when safety, workplace culture, and business goals collide?
Letitia Kavanagh
Head of Employee Safety and Injury ManagementAustralian Unity
Letitia Kavanagh is a strategic leader in workplace health, safety, and injury management, currently serving as the Head of Health and Safety at Australian Unity. With experience in high-risk and complex operational environments, Letitia is known for her ability to drive cultural transformation, reduce workplace incidents, and embed proactive safety practices across diverse industries.
In her current role, Letitia leads the development and execution of enterprise-wide health and safety strategies, ensuring compliance with legislative requirements while fostering a culture of care, accountability, and continuous improvement. She oversees multidisciplinary teams responsible for injury prevention, incident response, wellbeing initiatives, and regulatory reporting, aligning safety performance with broader organisational goals.
This role requires Ms Kavanagh to provide leadership and direction toward the delivery of strategic safety and wellbeing initiatives working collaboratively with key partners to ensure a consistency across the organisation. In addition to this Ms Kavanagh is required to work collaboratively to identify process and performance gaps and influence senior executives and stakeholders in developing, promoting, implementing, and reviewing strategic initiatives that deliver a safety- first culture across the organisation to improve the overall safety performance.
Speaking at
16:40
Panel discussion: What happens when safety, workplace culture, and business goals collide?
Brigid Kerley
Executive Manager, Quality, Safety and RiskRoyal Rehab Group
Brigid Kerley is a highly accomplished Health Care Executive with extensive senior leadership experience across complex health and human service organisations. With a career spanning almost two decades in clinical and corporate governance, Brigid is recognised for driving system-wide change that embeds governance frameworks, regulatory compliance, and continuous improvement into organisational culture.
With postgraduate qualifications in Health Service Management (Safety and Quality), along with degrees in Health Science and Psychological Science, Brigid combines deep technical expertise with a strong focus on culture, leadership, and system integration.
She offers valuable insights into how organisations can innovate, adapt, and embed sustainable improvements within an increasingly complex and dynamic environment.
Speaking at
16:40
Panel discussion: What happens when safety, workplace culture, and business goals collide?
Tanya Pelja
Executive Director, HSEQ APACBGIS
As a multi award-winning expert in her field with over 15+ years’ experience, she has held prominent and influential leadership positions across both Government and Private sectors. Her people focused leadership style allows her to deliver actionable insights for boards and leadership teams.
She has a reputation for building organisational culture, increasing risk maturity, leading change management, environmental, health and wellbeing programs. Tanya intuitively builds successful organisational partnerships and high performing teams across business functions.
Speaking at
09:00
Shaping what’s next: the future of women in health & safety
S J Price
PartnerStirling and Rose
Speaking at
09:30
When AI joins the team – safety, responsibility and opportunity in the future of WHS
Cara Williams
Head of Safety and WellbeingBolton Clarke
With a background in occupational therapy, OH&S and ergonomics, Cara is a People & Culture Leader who is passionate about creating environments to optimise psychosocial and physical health and wellbeing. After working across numerous industries, Cara moved into the aged care/community healthcare industry around 8 years ago, initially in an injury management role which expanded to also encompass safety and wellbeing nationally for their staff of over 16,000 employees.
In her substantive role, Cara leads teams of safety and wellbeing professionals, safety systems specialists, and claims and rehabilitation professionals to deliver injury prevention and management supports. The team recognise the importance of managing psychosocial risk and a focus on optimising holistic wellbeing and thriving.
Currently, she is acting in the Head of Business Partnering role, coordinating a team of People & Culture Business Partners to support employees across the organisation, including implementing initiatives focused on employee engagement, psychosocial risk management and optimising the work environment for holistic employee wellbeing. As such, she is well placed to provide insights about the roles of Health & Safety, HR and leadership collaborating together to drive psychological health and safety.
Speaking at
10:50
Piecing the puzzle together to drive psychological health & safety
Jen Falco
Head of Safety and WellbeingBarwon Water
Jen is a strategic thinker with a strong community focus, and demonstrated ability to develop and lead transformational strategies across multiple functions in complex, fast-paced and highly regulated environments. With more than 20 years of experience in strategy and risk management, operations and delivery, Jen has held Executive and Non-Executive roles across the private, public and not for profit sectors. She has experience in a broad range of industries including Education, Health, Community Services, Utilities, Technology & Telecommunications and Engineering.
Jen’s current portfolio includes: Chair, Sacred Heart College Advisory Council; Board Director and Treasurer, Womens Health & Wellbeing Barwon South West; Board Director, Tweddle Child & Family Health Service; Head of Health, Safety & Wellbeing, Barwon Water.
Jen holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical), a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance), is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, is a Registered and Chartered Engineer and is currently undertaking the Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) Program.
Speaking at
11:20
Designing effective mental health support and psychosocial risk management programs
Kathy Naumczyk
Assistant Director – Psychosocial RegulationComcare
Kathy Naumczyk is an Assistant Director Psychosocial Regulation at Comcare, leading a specialist regulatory team to deliver the psychosocial inspection program. Kathy is an experienced Australian Public Service leader, having worked in diverse complex settings such as crisis intervention, trauma-informed complex administrative decision making as well as program development and strategy. This includes roles within Services Australia, Department of Home Affairs and Australian Border Force. Kathy holds a Bachelor of Social Work and a Bachelor of Arts (Criminology) and is a current member of the Australian Association of Social Work. Kathy is particularly passionate about empowering organisations to build healthy and safe workplaces to prevent psychological injury.
Speaking at
11:50
From risk to response: a health & safety approach to preventing and managing workplace sexual and gender-based harassment
Rebecca Williams
Senior Inspector, Psychosocial Regulation, Regulation Operations GroupComcare
Rebecca Williams is a Senior Inspector in Comcare’s Psychosocial Regulation team, undertaking psychosocial inspections in workplaces across Australia as well as co-facilitating regular trauma informed awareness training for workers in Comcare’s Regulatory Operations Branch. Rebecca has a diverse career background in federal and state public service and higher education, across Fisheries Management, Policy Development, Media and Communications, and organisational culture change program delivery . Rebecca holds a Bachelor of Science (Hons) and a Bachelor of Psychology. Rebecca is passionate in guiding organisations to implement practical and meaningful actions to ensure psychologically safe and healthy workplaces.
Speaking at
11:50
From risk to response: a health & safety approach to preventing and managing workplace sexual and gender-based harassment
Rhian O’Sullivan
Senior Legal CounselEnergy Queensland
Rhian is a Senior Legal Counsel at Energy Queensland. She was previously a Special Counsel at MinterEllison.
Rhian has a range of experience in employment law and work health and safety. She is particularly passionate about work health and safety law and has been recognised in Doyle’s Guide for employment and WHS (Leading Workplace Health and Safety Lawyers Queensland list 2023 & 2024 and Leading In-House Employment and WHS Lawyers – Australia, 2025).
Over the course of her career, Rhian has advised private and public sector clients in industries including mining, energy, construction, education, health and insurance and has assisted in the conduct of litigation in courts and tribunals in State and Federal jurisdictions. She has regularly delivered training to Boards and Executives regarding work health and safety obligations and is experienced in managing serious safety incidents.
Rhian was also Associate to the Honourable Justice Martin Daubney of the Supreme Court of Queensland in 2009.
Speaking at
12:20
A legal lens – managing psychosocial hazards and risks: what’s changed and what’s next
Deni Murray
National HSEQ ManagerVaughan Civil
Speaking at
Roundtable 2: How to deal with difficult co-workers, managers, conversations and situations
Ashley Houston
Manager Global Safety and SecurityBain and Co
Speaking at
Roundtable 4: Developing strong communication and collaborative skills for effective leadership
Cathy Connors
Health and Wellbeing ManagerEssential Energy
Cathy joined Essential Energy in June 2020 as the Health and Wellbeing Manager. Since her appointment, she has focused on developing and implementing comprehensive health and wellbeing initiatives aimed at promoting good health, preventing injury and illness, facilitating early intervention, and supporting recovery when health is affected. These programs are designed to empower Essential Energy employees to pursue meaningful and healthy lifestyles through the effective provision of holistic health support.
More recently, Cathy has prioritised the evaluation and management of psychosocial hazards and risks within Essential Energy, ensuring that psychosocial health and safety receive the same emphasis as physical health and safety. Her leadership in this area was recognised with her being named the 2024 Psychosocial Risk Management Professional of the Year at the Women in Safety Awards.
Speaking at
Roundtable 5: Overcoming imposter syndrome and building your confidence
Bronwyn Williams
Keynote Speaker, Mentor, PhD ResearcherBron Williams is a powerful woman dedicated to helping other women reconnect with their own power. Despite her achievements - including an honours degree, serving as a school principal, being an ordained minister, and having experience working with asylum seekers - Bron once struggled to tap into her full potential because of the expectations of family and society.
By guiding women to understand their own drivers, needs and values Bron helps women reconnect with their own power, so they can confidently negotiate their salaries and pursue leadership positions, unapologetically celebrating their achievements along the way.
Speaking at
09:00
Masterclass: Leadership & management skills to guide your team & organisation to success
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