Michelle is a Palawa woman, a proud mother and grandmother from Southern Tasmania, who has spent the last 27 years living, learning, and working on Noongar Boodjar. With a deep commitment to the health and well-being of First Nations communities, Michelle has dedicated her career to advocacy, research, and education.

Her diverse professional experience spans tertiary education, youth mental health research, and disability services, always with a focus on empowering First Nations people and communities. She applies a strengths-based and culturally grounded approach, ensuring that community needs and perspectives remain central in all her work.

Michelle’s PhD research explored how young Aboriginal people define and understand mental health and success. Her dissertation, “If you’re Kaarty and you know it clap your hands”, provides critical insights into the cultural nuances of mental health for young Aboriginal people. By highlighting their resilience and strengths, her work challenges conventional notions of mental health and contributes to a deeper, more culturally informed understanding of well-being.