WHO

CHILD SAFETY IS EVERYONE’S BUSINESS

Bindi Bindi Place is a Communify initiative.

Communify has been providing services to vulnerable families in Brisbane for more than 40 years. They have witnessed first-hand the limitations and stress on the current child protection system and the long-term impacts of these on children and their families.

They have established and are trusted providers of nationally accredited ‘excellent’ childcare and award-winning intensive family support, mental health, drug and alcohol and homelessness support services, and understand the families and their challenges and needs.

Being part of the day-to-day lives of these vulnerable children has convinced Communify that urgent action is required to protect and support them.

In 2020, a steering committee was established to help fundraise and develop the first Bindi Bindi Place.

The committee is made up of a diverse group of professionals - from sectors such as property, architecture, urban design, HR, organisational psychology, business coaching, marketing and communications - who all have one common goal - to ensure all children have the support they need to feel safe and to flourish, irrespective of the circumstances of their family of origin.

Meet the steering committee:

Communify Chief Executive Officer
Karen has a social sciences background and over 40 years of experience working within the community sector.
She has worked with Communify since 1994 and has seen the organisation grow from a small neighbourhood centre with limited resources to the thriving multi-service hub that it is today. Always with a community development focus, Karen works to develop services and programs that will support people living the communities of Brisbane.
Karen also works broadly in the community and has sat on the boards of several prominent community organisations and other representative committees including Eating Disorders Qld, 4Walls Housing Company, Suncorp Stadium Advisory Committee and the Building Services Authority.
She has a strong interest in supporting and developing responsive services within the housing, mental health, family support, financial and social inclusion and refugee support areas.
Karen is recipient of the 2001 Centenary Medal and the Brisbane Australia Day Award for her contribution to the community sector.

Managing Director, Sagacity Consulting
Zea is management consultant with more than two decades experience in senior and chief executive positions in the public and private sectors.
Her expertise ranges from early childhood education to corporate strategy (HR, finance, infrastructure, shared services, governance and risk management), strategic policy and education futures, employment, training and skills policy, strategic research and legislation services.
Zea established Queensland’s first office of Early Childhood Education in 2009 and has extensive experience in rolling out significant national and state-wide reform, and leading complex multi-jurisdictional negotiations.
Zea holds a Master of Administration (HR major) from Griffith University with a research thesis on industry and empowerment, a Graduate Diploma of Teaching from Queensland University of Technology, a Bachelor of Arts (communication and media major) from Griffith University and is an Executive Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand School of Government.

Principal, Pilot Places
At Pilot Places we collaborate with social and environmental leaders to bring innovative ideas to life through design.
Caroline is a skilled designer, communicator and leader of teams on complex architecture and city shaping projects. Her experience spans 34 years and projects in London, South East Asia and throughout Australia.
Caroline’s consistent design focus has been to deploy design excellence to address the complex issues of people, place and cities. She prioritises listening to people and place as a foundation for creativity, climatic design, collaborative and technically integrated design, social architecture and addressing environmental challenges. This sustained focus on design quality has been recognised through numerous architecture and planning awards.
Caroline is an Adjunct Professor in the Creative Industries Faculty at QUT, and a regularly invited conference speaker. She is active in her professional community: serving on the Brisbane City Council’s Integrated Design Advisory Panel and The Queensland Urban Design and Places Panel. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Architects and has been inducted into the Queensland Urban Design Alliance Hall of Fame.

Stephanie is an urban and social planner who is committed to advancing fairness, equity and sustainability in our cities and communities.
She brings more than 25 years of experience in government, university and private sectors, where she was involved in the design and delivery of a range of policy, strategy and development projects.
In her current role as Professional Planner in Residence with the University of Queensland, she is working to equip the next generation of values-led urban professionals with the mindset, knowledge and skills for a more complex future world.
Stephanie is a Planning Institute of Australia Fellow, and member of the South Bank Corporation Board.
Stephanie's involvement in Bindi Bindi Place, was sparked by a conversation with Caroline Stalker in 2019, about the need for fresh thinking on community spaces for Brisbane families.

Naomi White is an executive coach, mentor and advisor, leadership and culture expert, and specialist in strategic communications, organisational change, and business integration and simplification.
Her extensive career in the human potential arena has spanned multiple roles and industries from financial services and government to aviation, both in Australia and overseas. Prior to the establishment of her company, Naomi spent ten years with the Suncorp Group in multiple senior executive roles ranging from people, culture, change, communications, to transformation and integration.
With an award winning career as a People and Culture Director and a proven track record in creating high performing teams and businesses, Naomi now specialises in setting businesses up for success, growth and impact through strong leadership, high team engagement and enablement, and focused productivity and accountability, particularly when leading virtual or part virtual teams, and the underestimated importance of connection and fun to long-term business success.

Sarah is the Managing Director of Bespoken, focusing on media relations, crisis communications, content marketing and stakeholder engagement.
A dynamic leader in corporate communications, Sarah is passionate about developing and delivering tailored, targeted and strategic marketing and communications that surpass client briefs and KPIs.
She has worked with many high-profile companies, including Lendlease, Davidson, RCSA, The Johnathan Thurston Academy, The Big Pineapple, RetireAustralia, InvoCare, Clubs Queensland, Cover-More and Hanson Construction.
Sarah has a broad skill base having worked across a range of industries such as retail, hospitality, recruitment and HR, technology, construction, property and not-for-profit organisations.
She also has a strong journalism background as a former senior reporter with several regional newspapers, magazines and online publications in Australia and England.
An accomplished communicator who is a strategic and creative thinker, Sarah is highly sought after to provide communications advice, media relations and stakeholder support. She is also increasingly being engaged for public speaking and presenting opportunities.

As an experienced urban development strategist and planning professional with over 25 years of experience across both public and private sectors, Désirée brings a depth and breadth of skills and experience to the table. Leading with a pragmatic, outcomes-focused approach, her expertise is in facilitating impactful urban solutions that seek to enhance social, environmental and economic outcomes. With a proven track record in collaborative negotiations and complex stakeholder engagement, her core strengths are problem solving, communication, trust building, and integrity.
Désirée was the National Planning Service Line Lead in a public consultancy before working in the State Government for six years as Executive Director – Planning at Economic Development Queensland. Désirée has recently returned to the private sector as Director, Planning at SMEC. Triggered by a conversation with Caroline Stalker and a core belief in the importance of early education founded in an early career as a teacher, Désirée more recently joined the Bindi Bindi Place Steering Committee.

Erin is a Mandandanji woman who instils her culture throughout the design process, she pushes the boundaries through a holistic approach in translating Indigenous technologies, embedding cultural identity in the built environment. Erin is passionate about educating designers to think innovatively in an approach to provide economic growth for communities.
As Principal of Design & Interiors at Blaklash, Erin works closely with Indigenous communities to reflect their cultural values and traditions in the built environment. With a deep understanding of cultural protocols, she ensures respectful and inclusive engagement by elevating First Nation voices throughout the process.
Erin has extensive experience in large-scale commercial developments, working alongside Traditional Owners, Elders, architects, and developers. She has completed projects in the health, workplace, and cultural sectors, and is involved in projects bids, design competitions, fee proposals, clients and community workshops, design, and delivery.
Erin holds a Bachelor of [Interior] Design with honours and a second major in Architecture from QUT. She is a former DIA councillor and DIA student president and currently sits of the Board of Directors for the Indigenous Architecture and Design Australia. She has tutored across multiple universities and currently mentors design students across various fields.
Erin actively participates in educating up-and-coming Indigenous designers and provides pro bono support for various community projects. She is also a mentor to design students across various fields and has been a panellist in talks about Indigenous design and the built environment, influencing the perspectives of non-Indigenous practitioners.