Keynote Speakers

Dr. Tina Champagne
OTD, OTD, OTR, FAOTA

Dr. Tina Champagne is the CEO of Cutchins Programs for Children and Families and an international consultant for Champagne Conferences & Consultation. She has specific expertise in the areas of trauma, attachment, sensory and trauma informed approaches, and organizational change. In 2003, she became the first OT to present with the U.S. National Office of Technical Assistance on sensory approaches, trauma informed care and restraint reduction, where her work became part of the Six Core Strategies.

She has numerous publications, including two books, numerous book chapters, continuing education and research articles, and she is a reviewer for OT and nursing journals. She has received many awards for her work including the 2023 Award of Merit, the highest honor from the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Presenting in the Opening Session on Thursday 13 June 2024 on Developmental Trauma and Sensory Approaches: Where Have We Been and Where are We Going?

Judith Hewitson

Renowned as an award-winning film and eLearning producer, Judith is celebrated for her groundbreaking contributions to emerging learning technologies. Her unwavering commitment lies in merging immersive technologies with online professional development to drive significant social impact on community health and well-being.

Collaborating with governmental bodies, services, peak organizations, and universities in Australia, China, and Europe, Judith has spearheaded pioneering eLearning initiatives. Her passion for exploring innovative solutions in social and climate justice issues such as climate change, displacement, disaster mitigation, inclusivity of marginalized communities, social justice, and human rights has culminated in the establishment of Reality Learning. This platform focuses on co-creating knowledge through immersive, experiential learning models.

Judith's impactful endeavors in scenario-based training for health and social services reflect her dedication to enhancing capabilities and catalyzing positive transformations for the real world.

Presenting in the Closing Session on Friday 14 June 2024

Jenny Gribbin
OTA Oration

Jenny graduated in 2005 (University of Queensland) and completed OT driver assessor training in 2012 (University of Sydney). She founded her business Driving Well Occupational Therapy in Brisbane in 2016 with the mission to serve clients locally and occupational therapists nationally. During COVID Jenny forged a productive international relationship with Dr Miriam Monahan (OTR/CDRS, Driver Rehabilitation Institute in USA), exploring and challenging best practice in assessing learner drivers. She has pioneered implementation of the “potential to drive” approach and dedicated her efforts to improving occupational therapists’ ability to work with learner drivers, creating opportunities for thousands of young Australians.

Presenting in the Morning Plenary Session on Friday 14 June 2024 on Your OT road map to innovation success

Senator Jordon Steele John

Jordon Steele-John is an Australian Greens Senator for Western Australia and a passionate disability rights advocate. Elected to the Senate at age 23, Jordon’s goal is to challenge the boundaries of political norms – both in the Senate and the community – to create a just and peaceful future.

Jordon advocates relentlessly for a fair, accessible and fully funded NDIS, and played a leading role in the campaign to establish the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. He is a strong proponent of disability pride and justice and hopes to create a legacy of accessibility that reflects the true diversity of Australian society.

Presenting in the Morning Plenary Session on Friday 14 June 2024 on Personal and political reflections on 10 years of the NDIS

Ms. Karen Tighe

Karen has been a regular face and voice of ABC TV and radio sport since joining the ABC in 1989.

After completing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and Psychology at Macquarie University in Sydney, Karen spent eight years as a TV sports broadcaster and presenter, anchoring golf, tennis and other major sporting broadcasts on the ABC network.

In 1997, she made the move to ABC Radio as the presenter of the weekend national sports program ‘Summer Grandstand’ – a role she still enjoys from her adopted home town of Perth.

Karen co-hosted ABC Radio’s cover of the Sydney, Athens and Beijing Olympics, Kuala Lumpur and Manchester Commonwealth Games and has hosted six Paralympic Games (Lillehammer, Barcelona, Atlanta, Sydney, Beijing and London) with ABC TV.

She was part of the Friday night fun of ‘Live & Sweaty’ on ABC TV in the early nineties and for six years presented sport on ABC TV’s weeknight news in Perth.

Karen was also the regular host of ABC TV’s annual coverage of the Hopman Cup tennis tournament from 1994 to 2010.

She was the Media Award winner at the 2000 and 2001 Australian Sports Awards and in 2020 Karen received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Sport Australia Media Awards in Sydney.

Karen is married to former ABC sports commentator Glenn Mitchell and is mother of James.

Karen is an excellent master of ceremonies who regularly hosts major conferences, corporate and sporting functions such as Alumina 11th AQW International Conference in Queensland; International Innovations in Nursing Conference; UDIA National Conference; Chamber of Commerce & Industry of WA Resources Conference; W.A. Industry & Export Awards, Australian Tourism Awards; WorkCover Injury Management Conference; AMEC (Association of Mining & Exploration Companies) Convention; Western Australian Primary Principals Association Conference; Department of Training & Workforce Development Training Provider’s Forum; Corporate PA Summit for their Perth, Sydney and Melbourne events, and many others.

She has numerous publications, including two books, numerous book chapters, continuing education and research articles, and she is a reviewer for OT and nursing journals. She has received many awards for her work including the 2023 Award of Merit, the highest honor from the American Occupational Therapy Association.