Our people

Nominated by Integrated disAbility Action Inc (IDA)

Grant is a Life Member of Down Syndrome Australia and was a Founding Director from its inception in 2011 and was the Deputy Chair until his retirement as a Director in September 2023. He was President of Down Syndrome Australia (NT) for thirteen years. Grant was on the Board of Carpentaria Disability Services from 2005 until November 2024 and a past Board Chair.  He is a member of Integrated Disability Action, our NT member.

He is also the Past President of the Rotary Club of Darwin, and is currently the Club’s International Service, National Projects and Rotary Foundation Assistant Director. He is also the Global Grants Sub-Committee Chair for Rotary District 9560 (Northern Australia and Timor Leste). Grant is a Director and Senior Consultant of his own company, Creative TEAMS.

Grant and his wife Tammy have two children. Their daughter, Alishia, has Down Syndrome and is 25 years of age. Grant is a strong advocate for people with intellectual disability, promoting inclusion and equity in all things.

Nominated by Disability Justice Australia

Trevor is passionate about protecting the human rights of people with disabilities. He acquired an incomplete spinal cord injury in 1994 and lost his hearing in 2019. He was recognised for his service in the 2022 Queens Birthday Honours List with the award of the Order of Australia Medal (OAM).

He has a particular interest in overcoming the barriers that people with disabilities face when accessing services and has an excellent record in individual and systemic advocacy in this area.

He has been on the AFDO Board since 2012, serving as Treasurer, President, and Vice President respectively. Trevor remains CEO at Disability Justice Australia (DJA) since 2009. He represents AFDO as:

• Director and Information Officer, Board of Disabled Peoples’ International (DPI)
• Chair of the DPI Asia-Pacific Region
• Member of the Pacific Disability Forum (PDF)
• Member of the Australian Electoral Commission Disability Advisory Committee

Nominated by Deafness Forum of Australia

Christine is an Adviser to Deafness Forum Australia (DFA). Although she has lived with hearing loss since childhood, she was able to enjoy a successful and rewarding school-teaching career until retirement.

Christine is a past president of Hearing Matters Australia and continues her involvement as an honorary Life Member and current Committee member of that organisation. As an active hearing loss advocate, she represents DFA on the Transport NSW Accessible Transport Advisory Committee (ATAC) and has made representations to Australian federal and state government agencies, consultation panels and international forums and projects.

Christine engages with community groups, participates in research initiatives and collaborates with hearing care professionals, consumer representatives and international organisations as an advocate for a global best practice model focused on the needs of the individual and on strengthening the quality of hearing care and hearing loss management.

Nominated by Post Polio Victoria

Robyn is a 75 year-old mother of two and grandmother of six.

Robyn has been disabled since the age of 3 due to poliomyelitis.

Robyn is a retired registered nurse/midwife/critical care nurse health manager and a committed advocate for the aged and disabled.

Robyn is the President of Post Polio Victoria, is on the OPAN’s National Older Persons Group NOPRG and is a former Ministerial appointee on the Federal Government Aged Care Council of Elders.

Nominated by South West Autism Network

Amy is a 38-year-old single parent with disabilities and multiple chronic health conditions.  Amy is diagnosed with PDA profile ASD & ADHD (combined) (late diagnosis at age 31); Type 1 diabetic since 2 years old; Epilepsy (diagnosed in 2011); and C-PTSD, Agoraphobia and GAD since childhood.  Amy’s three daughters are also PDA profile Autistic and ADHD (combined) with various co-occurring chronic health conditions.  Amy and her daughters are NDIS participants (since early 2020) and are in the Complex Stream.  Amy actively advocates on their behalf in all settings.

Amy is creative, artistic, musical and an “outside the box” problem solver.

Today, she serves as a Board Director for the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations (AFDO) and as Vice President on the Board for the South West Autism Network (SWAN).  Additionally, Amy actively contributes to two Systemic Advocacy Reference Groups, where she works to champion the rights and needs of individuals and carers with ASD.

Amy has extensive lived experience in self-advocating in the areas of:

• NDIS and ART (formerly AAT)
• Health
• Housing
• Legal settings
• Education
• NDIS Safeguards Commission and Privacy breach complaints
• DV

Nominated by Physical Disability Australia

Dr Sharon Boyce is an educator, author, speaker and disability advocate from Toowoomba. Sharon has dedicated her life and considerable talents to promoting a true understanding of disability, diversity and complex health issues, receiving many awards including the 2016 University of Southern Queensland’s Alumnus of the Year Award; 2012 Queensland Regional Achiever Award; 2008 Human Rights Award for Individuals, and 2003 Disability Action Week Award.

As founder of Discovering DisAbility & Diversity Sharon delivers positive change with community attitudes and awareness across government, health, and education sectors to achieve real outcomes for people with disability and regularly delivers keynote and conference presentations, both nationally and internationally, in the areas of inclusion and awareness.

She is the Director of the Australian Institute of Inclusive Education and Research, Director of the Disability Training Institute and Chief Executive Officer and Director of Aus Inclusion Pty Ltd. In 2020 Sharon was awarded a Doctor of Letters for her research in education inclusion and dyslexia, and is currently completing a Doctor of Philosophy.

Sharon is also the current chair of the Queensland Disability Advisory Council (Queensland Government) She is an appointed member of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Independent Advisory Council, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Queenslanders with Disability Network, President of the Physical Disability Australia Board, and advisor to the Toowoomba Regional Council’s Access Committee.

She has authored several books and educational resource kits to help educators understand disability including Another Day in the life of Sharon Boyce, a children’s book called Discovery at Paradise Island that deals with the issues of social justice, disability and how children react to it (later chosen to form part of the NSW school syllabus) and Discovering Dyslexia – Experiencing Mysteries Exploring Solutions.

Sharon continues to lead work and change fundamental to the principles that people with disability need a valued and equal seat at the table.

Independent Director

Richard is appointed by the Board for his governance and leadership expertise. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has been active in the disability field for more than 25 years.

He contributed to the leadership of the NDIS campaign, and he has held CEO, Executive and Board member roles within UnitingCare, the E W Tipping Foundation (now Aruma), National Disability Services, and many other organisations.

Richard has been active in Australian civic life for almost three decades, including as Leadership Victoria’s Chief Executive Officer, where he implemented programs and initiatives for equity in disability, gender, multiculturalism and LGBTIQA+. He is a specialist international consultant in leadership, strategy and NFP governance and has advised governments and contributed to public policy through VCOSS, NDS and other peak bodies.

Richard is active in a wide range of community organisations and academic institutions including Australian Rural Leadership Foundation, Leadership New Zealand, Tasmanian Leaders, UNSW, Monash University and Graduate House. He is an leader in human leadership and in Artificial Intelligence leadership, and his contributions have included making progress on gender equity, multicultural equity, economic wellbeing, fostering social fairness, upholding animal welfare rights, fostering leadership in rural, regional and remote communities, building the relationship between Australia and Aotearoa, maintaining a sustainable global environment and upholding global human rights, particularly with a focus on rights of all people with disability.

Independent Director and International Coordinator

Tim Harte is a passionate advocate for disability rights, driven by his lived experience as a young rural person with disabilities. A graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Tim holds qualifications in performing arts and science and has a strong background in disability, social, and environmental justice activism. Currently pursuing a PhD in materials chemistry at Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials, his research focuses on structural electrolytes.

Tim is the youngest Chair of a government disability advisory committee in Australia, leading the Surf Coast Shire’s All Abilities Advisory Committee. Tim is the elected Pacific Region Representative for the UN-affiliated Global Network of Young Persons with Disabilities. Tim is a former Co-Chair of the Commonwealth Children and Youth Disability Network. A staunch advocate of the human rights-based model of disability, Tim works to ensure equitable access and meaningful inclusion for people with disabilities in all aspects of society.