Our Team

Joel studied engineering and psychology at UWA. His design won 2008 WA Inventor of the Year and he was a finalist on ABC’s The New Inventors in 2007. He is currently completing his PhD - developing next-gen orthopaedic implants. Joel was Science Magazine’s 2011 Dance Your PhD winner. He is co-founder and licensee of TEDxPerth.

Fuelled by a love of reading, Victoria gained a Bachelor of Arts, (Hons) degree in English Literature with Language and Communication, and combined this with her passion for education in which she undertook a Professional Graduate Certificate in Education.

Since arriving in Perth, Victoria has developed her expertise in teaching and learning by undertaking a Post Graduate degree at UNSW, specialising in Gifted and Talented Education. She has worked in the private sector for the past five years through which she continues to develop a culture of excellence and embed her love of technology and futuristic thinking.

Marilyn’s role as Head of Academic Excellence allows her to focus on educating and motivating students to develop problem solving, critical thinking, innovation and creative skills through integrated inquiry-based learning projects which are fast becoming part of the learning culture in the boys’ college where she works.  She coordinates and runs the Gifted and Talented program, STE[A]M projects and promotes the idea of global citizenship, taking students as far afield as NASA and Beijing. Her passion is to inspire students to develop a love of learning through curiosity, independent thinking, gratitude and grit.

Marilyn is first and foremost a Maths teacher whose mantra is ‘If you’re going to limit your dreams, at least tend them to infinity’. She has taught at both secondary and tertiary levels, worked in teacher development programs, co-authored a series of middle school text books linking Maths and Culture and a number of research papers on various aspects of student engagement and learning. Her ongoing interest in action research and collaboration between schools and universities is an integral and rewarding part of her role at present.

Her most important role, however, is to inspire her three sons to follow their dreams with courage and integrity.

At age 13, Lexi released her first community venture - the app Girlgonehappy, providing forums and resources on mental health and wellbeing for young women. This led Lexi to becoming a National Youth Week representative, and a Channel 7 Ambassador for Youth.

Lexi is also heavily involved in the global World Scholars Cup competition, as both a scholar and volunteer. Winning the global level of the competition in 2018, Lexi noticed that significant financial and educational inequality dictated the performance of students in the competition. In order to combat this, she went on to form an online tutoring group to improve the disparity between students in the competition. World Scholars Club supports more than 100 underprivileged competitors weekly on curriculum content, debate, and leadership skills.

In 2017, Lexi undertook an astronomy research project with UWA, compiling a research paper eventually submitted to the Association of Variable Star Observers. Building on this experience, Lexi undertook the National Youth Science Forum flagship program, developing leadership and science research experience, and has since been selected for the program’s nationally recognised Student Leadership program.

Paris is a second year law student at Curtin University, a Curtin Excellence Scholar and the recipient of the J&J Top Solutions Opportunity Bursary for displaying entrepreneurial spirit for 2019.

Paris is a graduate of the John Curtin Leadership Academy, the flagship leadership program at Curtin University, where she worked with REmida WA for eight months to attempt to change perspectives regarding sustainability and reuse.

Paris is heavily involved with Curtin Volunteers! and is currently the program leader of the Boronia Pre Release Centre for Women Resume Squad where volunteers work with the residents to create resumes and cover letters after being out of the work force for a number of years.

She is also involved in developing content for a student leadership workshop series termed the “Game Changers” which Paris and her team will facilitate at Curtin University in 2020.

As a Global Ambassador for No Girl Left Behind ­— a social venture company dedicated to uniting and empowering girls globally — Paris promotes pertinent issues faced by young girls such as positive self-talk, creating a sense of sisterhood and the impact that tall poppy syndrome has on a women’s fight for equality.

11 year old Reuben Saggar is our youngest Youth Panel member at TEDxPerth. As a committed climate activist, Reuben is dedicated to spreading the message that 'no-one is too small to make a difference', and strongly believes that there is no age limit on climate activism. He recently started up a drop-in lunchtime 'Fridays for the Future' club at his school, to raise awareness about how we can all make small changes in our lives that have a positive impact on the environment. His lunchtime group sessions often allow younger children to feel that their actions can also contribute to the global movement for change.

In a recent event at the Centre for Stories Reuben spoke about his passion for a more sustainable future, he said; "We, as children, are the leaders of tomorrow - so we have a right to actually know what the problems are, in order to have any chance of solving them". He believes every word of that to be true and is very excited to be part of TEDxYouth@Perth!

Katie is an experiential marketer with 14 years experience. Currently employed as Events and Sponsorship Manager at Synergy, Katie manages a program of strategic partnerships, customer experiences and brand activations. Previously, Katie delivered the City of Mandurah’s major events program and worked as a Corporate Events Manager in the UK for five years.

She has won several awards including a Tourism Council Gold Award for best Major Event & Festival, a Gold Skull from the Perth Advertising & Design Council for best Digital Installation and Best Experiential Campaign at the PR Institute of Australia. Katie has a Bachelor of Commerce (majoring Marketing, Management), an MBA (majoring in Innovation and Entrepreneurship) and is qualified in CX, Prince2 and Agile Product Ownership.

Katie has volunteered as the Production Director for TEDxPerth since May 2018.

Financial planner by day, food enthusiast by night. Kabir works in his own financial planning busines, is highly active in volunteer roles and is known to organise food events. Kabir is ecstatic to be apart of the TEDxPerth team.

After graduating from her master’s in marketing, communication and the media, Olivia's passion for the Seventh Art quickly led her to work on the production of many short films, features and TV commercials in Paris.

With over 10 years' experience as a casting director both in France and Australia, Olivia has recently been dedicating her time and energy to support community-based and not-for-profit projects, campaigns and events, big or small, for local and international organisations, while raising her two children.

Olivia is passionate about bringing people, talents and aspirations together and feels privileged to have met unique emerging artists and inspirational leaders through her eclectic experience in Perth.



She is thrilled to be joining the TEDxPerth Production Team this year.

In her spare time, Parul enjoys reading, playing board games and spending time with her two boys.

Benjamin studied lighting design at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, during which he worked with the Australian Ballet on the Royal Birmingham production of the Nutcracker.

After graduation Benjamin worked as a freelance engineer working with a variety of different arts organisations around Australia, including ballet, opera, rock and roll, and dance.

In 2009 he moved to Mauritius to be Lighting Designer and Consultant for theatre, dance, corporate and Presidential events. His work involved large scale dance concerts, corporate entities, such as HSBC, Air Mauritius, The Shaolin Monks and events for the President and Prime Minister.

Returning to Australia in 2010, Benjamin became Head of Lighting at West Australian Ballet, working with the company for two years and including a lot of regional touring. Subsequently he moved to London to work with White Light, the leading production supplier of lighting and AV services to the entertainment and corporate event industries.

Returning to Perth, Benjamin established his own company What Noiz, specialising in design, installation and production management for corporate events and theatre. He has been Lighting Designer for the West Australian Ballet and offered technical solutions for a large range of companies, including Toyota and the Perth Arena, in space activation and live streaming events such as the UFC Romero and Rockhold Fight at The Perth Arena.

Laura is an experienced professional in the not-for-profit sector, specialising in arts administration, education and project management. She has held several positions with cultural and educational institutions, including the Royal Ontario Museum and Royal Conservatory of Music in Canada, and the University of Western Australia.

Growing up in Canada as the daughter of a museum curator, Laura was immersed in scientific and cultural programming from an early age. This fostered a lifelong fascination with literature, history, ecology, music and the performing arts. She completed degrees in piano performance and music history as well as her Associateship with the Royal Conservatory of Music in Canada. She has dedicated her personal and professional lives to advocating for the arts and is committed to fostering community engagement through dynamic cultural programming and storytelling.

Laura moved to Perth in 2015 and quickly fell in love with the city. Since then she has been an active participant in its vibrant cultural scene as a patron and a community volunteer. She is delighted to take up a role within the TEDxPerth team and hopes to put her skills and passions to use in showcasing Western Australia’s most creative, impactful and inspiring individuals.

As a professional geospatial analyst, Samantha is passionate about why things are where they are and where they should be. Sam has studied and worked across Australia and has recently moved to Perth for a new role. Whilst pursuing her love of all things geospatial, Sam is a representative for her workplace community group and enjoys donating her time and energy to community based events. Sam believes sparking conversation is the start of change, and cannot wait to contribute to ideas worth spreading at TEDxPerth.
 
Samantha is excited to be a part of the TEDxPerth team for the first time in 2019.

Shivani graduated in law from London in 2013 and has three years experience as an Operations and Creative Manager with a Nepalese movie production and distribution company.

Shivani moved to Perth in 2018 and joined the TEDxPerth team in 2019.

Alice is a Research and Communications Officer at the Committee for Perth. With a background in Anthropology and Sociology, she is passionate about research, advocacy and creating positive social change.

While completing her undergraduate and postgraduate degrees Alice was fortunate to be able to volunteer across a number of areas, including education, media and communications. She also had the opportunity to work as an Anthropologist in remote Aboriginal communities both in the Kimberley and the Central Desert, and has conducted research within her own Jewish community of Perth. Committed to fostering dialogue and sustainable change around social issues, Alice is a member of the WA Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) for the Australian Red Cross. She has a great love for the arts and continues to advocate for a diverse and vibrant cultural sector.

Alice is very excited to enter the new decade as a part of the TEDxPerth team in 2020.

Capucine has over 20 years marketing manager, communication and event experience across various sectors and internationally.

Capucine arrived in Perth in 2013. Wanting to contribute more, she is also working for other not-profit-institutions, such as Australian Red Cross as Vice President of the Bindaring Unit.

Born and raised in Perth, Blake always felt connected to the strong sense of community and history Perth has to offer. Blake is a Graphic Designer by trade with a strong focus on Identity and UI/UX design. He grew up with a love for local cinema and most certainly will talk your ear off about how underrated The Grand Budapest Hotel is. He is beyond excited to be part of the TEDxPerth Core Team after having volunteerd as a Day Volunteer for the last three years.

Record hoarder, typography aficionado, good manners enthusiast and freelance designer. Working at the intersection of simplicity and modernism to craft compelling brand narratives that challenge convention. Fuelled by considerable amounts of coffee and Gyoza. Kept up at night by bad kerning and double spaces.

www.danieljackson.design

Gaby is a sports nutritionist with a passion to promote healthy eating and physical activity among the population. She migrated to Perth in 2016 to pursuit a Master of Health Science at UWA. Upon completion of her master degree, she joined the Department of Health workforce and is currently working as a Program Officer within the Health Networks team.

Her work as a nutritionist allows her to understand individual needs and influence positive behaviour change in a one on one approach. Working in the public health system has given her the opportunity to work on strategies that can have a positive and sustainable impact at the population level.

In her spare time, Gaby enjoys triathlon. She uses it as an opportunity to catch up with her friends while spending quality time outdoors. Bike rides that finish at the coffee shop are her favourite training sessions.

Cindy is a multi-faceted human behavioural coach and consultant who helps her clients become seen and heard as leaders within their communities and organisations. With a background in film, television and theatre Cindy has produced documentary and cultural awareness festivals, master classes for the Banff International Television Festival and worked in primetime television drama. Her passion for story morphed into teaching the art of storytelling to speakers and leaders. A professional speaker herself, she currently sits on the leadership team for Professional Speakers Australia WA Chapter and is thrilled to join the 2018 TEDxPerth team as Speaker Coach.

Karen is a professional speaker who loves sharing ideas and knowledge, particularly around neuroscience of leadership. She is enthusiastic about creating ‘brain-smarter’ leaders. She is the co-developer of the Diploma of Neuropresenting, a presentation diploma which incorporates the neuroscience of learning.

Lisa Evans is the Director of Speaking Savvy and Founder of Stories From The Heart. She is an international speaker, author, member of Professional Speakers Australia, World Class Certified Speaking and Storytelling Coach, speechwriter and business storytelling expert. Lisa has been a TEDxPerth Speaker Coach since 2014.

Sophie is a Body Language Specialist and Founder of My Alcomy. Driven by a passion for helping people achieve goals, Sophie works with clients to improve the way they interact and communicate. With over twenty years of experience in training and presenting, to people of all ages and abilities, her diverse background combined with an inherent creative flair enables her to create engaging, insightful presentations. Sophie shares this insight, along with science-based body language secrets, to inspire and empower people to use the power of non-verbal communication to deliver their message with impact.

Former head of marketing for Festival of Perth and ScreenWest. Co-founder of Greenwich Productions, a venue management company and leader in programming philosophy and event webcasting. Co-founder/Managing Director of Synergy Group Ltd, event management agency working with events such as Cartier Polo and London Fashion Week.

In 2003, Adil co-founded the global suncare brand INVISIBLE ZINC, wallpaper* magazine’s World’s Best Beauty Product (2006).

Co-finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year (2012). Adil continues to develop innovative natural cosmetics, food supplements and healthcare consumer brands. In 2014, Adil launched, with Andrea Bux and Elle Macpherson, WelleCo a global wellness and supplements company.

After leaving WelleCo, Adil launched his NUUT Bar cafe chain and in late 2018 is set to launch the NUUT Meal Replacement business in the UK.

Keith joined the board and was appointed Treasurer in April 2019.

During his career in arts management, Simon has been the CEO of two capital city performing arts centres, Canberra Theatre Centre and the Perth Theatre Trust. He was appointed a Life Member of APACA (a national performing arts organisation) for helping create that organisation and advocating successfully for the Commonwealth Government to start Playing Australia, which has improved access to the performing arts through support for national and regional touring. He was appointed the inaugural Chair. Simon has since engaged in economic, social and climate change policy in the Department of the Premier and Cabinet and created a think tank, EcoCarbon. Simon is now a director of the Oil Mallee Association, an advocacy group for carbon farming and bioenergy in the WA Wheatbelt. He is also engaged in a PhD on sustainability and bioenergy.

Simon chaired the board of TEDxPerth from its inception in 2012 for seven years. He proudly continues his association with this expert, principled and professional organisation, confident that TEDxPerth will continue as an organisation of national significance, bringing attention to great ideas from WA.