Chanel Contos founded Teach Us Consent. It started on Instagram, and soon evolved to make mandated consent education a political priority. In order to achieve this, she worked closely with politicians from across the political spectrum, including prime ministers.
Chanel was the recipient of the Australian Human Rights Commission Young People’s Medal in 2021, and in 2023 she was named NSW Young Woman of the Year for her persistent efforts towards eradicating rape culture. Chanel has also been presented with the prestigious Diana Award for her humanitarian work, and in 2022 she was listed as one of the BBC’s 100 inspiring and influential women worldwide.
Chanel has a Masters in Education, Gender and International Development from University College London and was recently appointed by Julia Gillard to chair the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership’s Youth Advisory Committee. She also sits on multiple government reference panels, and consults for multinational companies on violence prevention.
She is the author of Consent Laid Bare: sex, entitlement, and the distortion of desire.
Matt Hübner holds degrees in Commerce and Science from the Australian National University and has extensive marketing, brand strategy, and business development experience across both B2B and B2C brands. He is currently Head of Commercial for EWA, overseeing commercial development and business strategy, as well as freelance pro bono consulting for impact-driven startups.
Holly Rankin is an ARIA nominated artist and strategist (also known as Jack River). Holly uses the power of pop culture to make political change. She has worked with the Uluru Dialogues, Senator David Pocock, Climate 200 and The Australian Recording Industry Association. As an artist, she spearheaded the viral ‘Our Soundtrack Our Stories’ campaign for tv, radio and ads to use more homegrown music.
Adam is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Educating the Future, an Australian government-funded NGO providing quality community-led pre-school education to Timorese children. He completed his BComm (Co-Op) at UNSW Sydney in 2019 and subsequently received a first-class honours degree from the University of Sydney for his research on Gender Equality on Australian Boards in 2020.
James holds degrees in Law and Commerce from the University of Sydney. He was formerly a private practice litigator in Australia, the UK and the UAE, and subsequently a Vice President and Executive Director at Goldman Sachs. He is currently a Director and Senior Legal Counsel at GSR where he structures and negotiates financial instruments.
Sofia is a writer, researcher, activist and advocate for gender equality. Her experience ranges from communications lead for environmental campaigns, administration within the tertiary sector, to policy and governance research centred upon women's rights & liberation.
Kaylyn has over 8 years’ experience as a policy and public impact consultant focussing on supporting key domestic, family and sexual violence sector initiatives. Her skillset includes research, stakeholder engagement and monitoring & evaluation. She has a passion for achieving better outcomes for all communities through promoting equity and inclusivity.
Zoë is passionate about creating content that inspires positive change. She has an extensive background in communications, advocacy, and content management and has worked in diverse organisational settings from international organisations such as the United Nations to start-ups and non-profits with a purpose. Zoë brings a wealth of experience in connecting with a diverse range of audiences, and working in cross-functional teams to produce content with a difference.
Jack has over a decade of experience in content creation and digital communication. As former Executive Creative Director at Sure Studios and a successful advocacy content creator, he specialises in translating complex issues into engaging, shareable content. Jack is committed to leveraging his creative and communication skills to promote consent education and advance social equity.
Tess is an experienced communicator dedicated to fostering positive change. She has half a decade of experience working across start-ups, female-led social enterprises, B-Corps and not-for-profits, as well as consulting social media strategy for purpose-driven individuals. She is committed to using her professional life to create a more equitable and sustainable world.
Lisa is a researcher with expertise in developmental criminology, and developmental and social crime prevention. She has a background in psychology, and a PhD in Criminology (Griffith University), with her doctoral research exploring relationships between disadvantage and youth antisocial behaviours. Her extensive research experience includes studies examining the impact and co-occurrence of childhood adversities on youth harmful sexual behaviours.
Nevo is a social worker and social policy specialist with over 10 years’ experience across policy, research, and advocacy. He has held a number of senior policy and advisory roles in the NSW Government and at the Australian Human Rights Commission with his work primarily focused on addressing violence against women, child abuse and neglect, and youth offending. Nevo holds a Bachelor of Social Work (Honours) from the USYD and a Master of Philosophy in Public Policy from the University of Cambridge.