Positive Duty: Changing the culture and eliminating discrimination

Dr Anna Cody 

Dr Cody started as Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner in September 2023. Before this, Dr Cody had a distinguished career as an academic, a lawyer specialising in discrimination, and a passionate advocate for human rights.  Her work over the years has included substantial advocacy to various United Nations human rights committees when they have reviewed Australia’s and other nations’ fulfilment of their human rights obligations.

Most recently, she was the Dean of the School of Law and Professor at Western Sydney University for 4.5 years, leading education and research impact within the school to better reflect the diversity of the community and the intersection of law and justice.

Leanne Liddle 

Born and raised in Alice Springs, Central Arrernte, woman Leanne Liddle has a passion for justice. 

In her previous role as Director of the Aboriginal Justice Unit, based in Darwin, she has travelled thousands of kilometres to meet and listen to over 120 Aboriginal communities across the Northern Territory to hear the reasons for and solutions to the over-representation of Aboriginal people in the justice system. 

Now acting First Nations Health Officer in NT Health- Leanne has embarked on another journey. 

In 1988, Leanne was South Australia’s first Aboriginal policewoman. During her decade-plus service, she experienced racism and abuse that she fought and used to fuel her passion to make a difference in justice. Leanne went on to complete a law degree at Flinders University with honours and has since worked for the United Nations and in several high-profile government roles.

Leanne is a member of the Royal Flying Doctor board for SA/NT and Deputy Chair of the Menzies School of Health, Council member for Flinders University and she has the honour of being the 2022 Northern Territory’s Australian of the Year.

Leanne is committed to empowering Aboriginal Territorians with justice solutions that will work where others have failed.

Dr Dinesh Palipana OAM 

Dr Palipana was the first quadriplegic medical intern in Queensland. Dinesh is a doctor, lawyer, disability advocate, and researcher. While in medical school, he was involved in a car accident that caused a spinal cord injury. 

Dinesh works in the emergency department at the Gold Coast University Hospital. He is a researcher and senior lecturer at Griffith University. Dinesh is a researcher in spinal cord injury. He is a doctor for the Gold Coast Titans physical disability rugby team. Dinesh was a senior advisor to the Disability Royal Commission. He is an ambassador to the Human Rights Commission’s IncludeAbility program. He is a founding member of Doctors with Disabilities Australia. He is an advisory board member of HealthyLife and a John Monash Scholar. 

Dinesh was the Gold Coast Hospital and Health Service’s Junior Doctor of the Year in 2018. He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2019. He was the third Australian to be awarded a Henry Viscardi Achievement Award. He was the 2021 Griffith University Young Alumnus of the Year. Dinesh was the Queensland Australian of the Year for 2021. In 2022, Dinesh was listed as number 33 in the Courier Mail’s top 100 power list for Queensland’s most influential in health and wellbeing. His autobiography, Stronger, was published by Pan Macmillan in 2022. 

Host

Kim is the Director of the Northern Institute and previously held various senior positions at RMIT University – as a Deputy and Associate Dean of Research and Director of the Centre for Applied Social Research.

Kim is an interdisciplinary academic, originally trained in politics, social theory, HPS and history but predominantly working in the domain of sociology (and is incoming Vice-President of The Australian Sociological Association 2023-24).

Internationally, Kim is best known for her work on the socio-cultural and political dimensions of consumption and material life. She has also worked extensively on social and cultural aspects of Indigenous health (in the NT and Victoria) and cross-cultural research ethics. Over the last two decades, Kim has published widely in these fields, has held a number of Australian Research Council grants, and has pursued collaborations through visiting research/professorial positions in sociology and media & creative industries at the University of Manchester, King’s College London, and the University of Sussex.

Panel Chair

Jeswynn Yogaratnam is the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and has over 20 years of experience in law reform, legal policy development, teaching, and research. He is a highly skilled collaborator and excels at developing relationships nationally and internationally. He has a keen passion for championing social value through policy reform, which he gets to put into action in his current role at the NTADC, especially as a positive duty champion. 

Commissioner Yogaratnam leads with empathy, challenges conventional thinking, upholds human rights and transcends traditional boundaries of what can be achieved. He is interested in human-centred and strength-based approaches to achieve equitable, restorative and inclusive outcomes. 

He is also the recipient of awards including the NT Fitzgerald Human Rights Award, Vice Chancellors Award for Outstanding Teaching and Learning and Rotary Youth Leadership Award.

Darwin Innovation Hub
GALLERY NORTH
Level 1/48-50 Smith St
Darwin City NT 0800

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