This workshop will unpack Why traditional services often miss men and boys, and explore how initiatives such as the Catalyst Peer Mentoring program aims at tackling these issues by increasing social connectivity, and encouraging personal development in a supportive environment, equipping men with the skills to ask for help – ensuring everyday men are engaged in their mental health journey as early as possible. 

As the recipient of the Commissioner for Children and Young People Participate Award and recognised as the 2024 WA Young Person of the Year, Ollie Lim is a passionate youth advocate living with lupus since the age of 18 months. His experience navigating complex healthcare inspires his drive to improve communication and collaboration among care providers. Ollie has raised over $100,000 for Telethon, supports MSK Australia, Arthritis, and Osteoporosis WA, and secured funding for inclusive workshops as part of the City of Melville Youth Advisory Committee. He contributes to pain management research and disability advocacy.

During this workshop, Jarrod, founder of the Growth Hunting Company, will explore how he equips young boys with the tools, essential skills, and mindset to excel in a rapidly changing world. Drawing on years of experience as a teacher, principal, and professional football player, Jarrod will share proven strategies to build emotional intelligence and resilience, this session will explore how early investment in young boys growth will lead to better outcomes, and ensuring future generations aren’t just seen- but heard, and prepared to lead.

Join Dr Vincent Mancini for an engaging session exploring gender-informed frameworks in mental health research, with a focus on boys’ wellbeing. This breakout will examine how gender influences the expression of distress, coping mechanisms, and help-seeking behaviours in boys and young men.

This workshop will focus on challenging cultures and stigmas to help create influential conversations that can save men’s lives. Drawing on his own lived experience, Sean will explore the mental health needs of men and boys, and how he has been tackling the issues where men are at.

Two presentations in one!

Learn how two organisations are addressing challenges boys and men face in accessing and staying engaged with support services.

This dynamic workshop explores how African cultural identity, storytelling, and communal values shape the mental wellbeing of men and boys in Western Australia. Participants will gain insight into the role of cultural diversity in mental health, engage with the work of a local African Men’s Committee, and reflect on inclusive strategies for the sector.

Each year in Australia more than 60,000 men are released from prison and more than 7,000 boys leave the youth justice system, more than half of these having spent time in youth detention. Health outcomes for these boys and men are predictably poor, and rate of premature death due to preventable causes such as suicide, overdose, unintentional injury, and violence are unacceptably high. Discontinuity of care between custody and community contributes to these poor outcomes. In this presentation I will (a) provide an overview of the evidence regarding health outcomes for justice-involved boys and men, (b) explain why (dis)continuity of care is an important driver of these outcomes, and (c) describe a new model of transitional healthcare that is currently undergoing a national co-design process, and will soon be rigorously evaluated in a randomised controlled trial – the HARP trial.