Menslink Midweekers

This episode comes from our 2024 Business Breakfast speaker, Senator David Pocock. Having migrated from Zimbabwe with his family as a teenager, David went on to captain the Wallabies and Vice-Captain the Brumbies as part of a stellar rugby career in which he has been awarded for leadership on and off the field. With a Masters in Sustainable Agriculture, David also has a track record as a powerful advocate on issues ranging from climate to marriage equality. He has been involved in multiple small businesses and has co-founded numerous not-for-profit community initiatives in Australia and overseas, including with his wife Emma. In 2021, David attended the COP26 climate summit and led The Cool Down campaign that saw over 470 Australian athletes from 40+ sports call on the Australian Government to lift its ambition on climate change. Upon returning home, he announced his run as the community-endorsed Independent Senate candidate for the ACT. After campaigning on a platform of integrity, doing politics differently and making Canberra count, David was successfully elected at the 21 May 2022 Federal Election. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in August 2024, we heard from Andy Friend who has over 30 years of experience in the high-performance world of professional coaching, having a demonstrated history of achieving success, working with both teams and individuals to maximise their potential. His roles have included Director of Rugby for Irish province Connacht, the Australia Sevens team, the Brumbies in Super Rugby, English club Harlequins, and Canon Eagles & Suntory Sungoliath in the Japanese Rugby Union Top League. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in June 2024, we heard from Omar Muscat, a well-known face in Canberra’s hospitality scene. Omar is the owner of some of Canberra’s favourite venues including Urban Pantry Manuka, Double Shot & Locale Pizzeria in Deakin, and Little Sutton Bakehouse. After more than 30 years in the game, Omar knows how to fuel hungry Canberrans with great hospitality experiences. He is passionate about providing exceptional customer experiences and building communities around the fun and warm atmosphere of his cafés and restaurants. No matter how much Omar has on his plate you’ll still find him behind the coffee machine hustling in peak hour.  Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in April 2024, we heard from Peter Gordon, CEO of Hands Across Canberra. At the time, Peter had been with the Foundation since its inception providing valuable leadership and using his extensive network to create change in the community sector. Over the years, Peter has established a reputation for assisting organisations to grow, prosper and achieve value for their stakeholders. As a Senior Public Servant and consultant, Peter has had a career in economic and business development, entrepreneurship and community engagement. Peter has been an important part of the Menslink journey, so it was great to welcome him to speak at a Midweeker. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we share a special moment from our annual Menslink Big Night Out, where Duncan Brede spoke. Duncan is a well-known Canberran. He is currently CEO of his family business, National Capital Motors Group, and he also represented the ACT in Cricket for many years in the 90s and 2000s. Duncan was invited to speak at the Big Night Out to share the tragic story of his brother's suicide in 2023 and reflect on how Menslink's work can help young guys in their darkest times. Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in February 2024, we heard from Ben Gathercole, Menlink CEO. Ben has a long history in sport – both as a competitor and coach. His journey has taken him through swimming, triathalon, rugby, and motorsport. Ben is also an author, his first book Better Than Winning is the story of his personal and public journey taking his athlete Simon Thompson to the 2004 Athens Olympics and it was published in 2012 and became a best-seller. A quote and lesson from the book, says, that 'core values like honesty, passion, drive, commitment, sense of fair play, loyalty, mateship, pride in yourself, your team and your country can and need to be displayed daily and from the heart'. At Menslink, we couldn’t agree more! Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode is a little different in that we aren’t bringing you our latest Menslink Midweeker speaker. Instead, we are going to share an episode from another podcast, Viking Talks, hosted by Bjarne  Kragh, who is Danish, a true Viking. We are sharing the episode here because, recently, Mark Wadie, Menslink’s Education Program Manager, sat down with Bjarne to discuss the work Menslink does for young men in Canberra. It really is a great chat and provides some great insights and stories into our work and the impact it has. In the chat, Bjarne and Mark talk about Menslink’s PRIDE program. Please note that we’ve rebranded our PRIDE program as TRIBE (Trust, Resilience, Independence, Bravery, and Empathy). Plus, we also have a new program for 2024, Unplugged. If you are interested in learning more about TRIBE or Unplugged, please visit www.menslink.org.au Bjarne's goal with Viking Talks is to increase public knowledge related to wellness so that everyone can live longer and happier lives. The podcast covers some really great topics and we’d encourage you to check it out. You can find it on the Southside Physio website, at southsidephysio.com.au, or search for ‘Viking Talks’ in your favourite podcast app. Please have a listen and support Bjarne’s show, because, not only is it a great initiative, but Bjarne is such an amazing supporter of Menslink and that helps us make an impact in the community. We hope you enjoy the episode as much as we did. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in November 2023, we heard from Wally Rao from Deakin & Me. Wally is the “accidental mentor” who helps more young people daily than he cares to admit. His booming hello of “Hey champion” is a hallmark of a visit to his cafe, Deakin & Me. Wally’s coffee and cafe journey started with his parents owning and operating one of the original cafes in Petrie Plaza in the mid 60’s called the “chuck wagon”. Wally learned from his immigrant parents the value of hard work and a friendly smile. The big step in Wally’s cafe journey was moving into his own venue starting at the University of Canberra and recently he onward to EQ in Deakin, and is now back in the business at Deakin & Me. Wally’s personality and kind spirit have enabled him to help many young blokes either in their first job or just a friendly greeting.  Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in October 2023, we heard from Francis Owusu from Kutlure Break. Francis has used his love of dance to stimulate others to build their confidence and self-belief, as it did for him. A child of Ghanaian parents, Francis grew up in Victoria where he endured racism born of ignorance which almost propelled him towards a life of crime. Moving to Canberra he turned his life around through dance, going on to study finance banking at university by day and exploding on stage by night as a member of the band 925. He has worked with major recording artists Marcia Hines, Jon Stevens, and Guy Sebastian during his career. Driven by a determination to share his good fortune, he organised after-school dance classes for children. And so, over the past decade, Francis and Kulture Break have performed with thousands of children in schools, community centres, and jails, inspiring and motivating them. For Francis, Kulture Break is a reflection of his belief that life is not characterised by what you have received but what you can give. You can find out more about Kulture Break's awesome work at kulturebreak.com Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Coutts-Trotter was our keynote speaker at the 2023 Menslink Business Breakfast.  Earlier in 2023, Michael was confirmed as the Secretary of NSW Treasury to the new Chris Minns NSW Government. Michael’s past has been written and spoken about extensively.  Arriving from England as a young guy, he lost his father to cancer at a young age. He then fell into the trap of drugs and dealing, which led to a stint in jail and rehab.   His self-determination and the support around him led to his famed redemption and a path back into professional life with the NSW Government.  Michael’s journey is about resilience, strength, courage, and being given a second chance.  EnjoyHelp support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in September 2023, we heard from Chris Dutton. Chris has been a journalist for the past 15 years after graduating from the University of Canberra with a sports media degree. During his career, he has covered a wide variety of sports and competitions and is now the sports editor at The Canberra Times. He has covered the Olympic Games as part of a team of journalists from The Canberra Times, the Sydney Morning Herald, and the Age, as well as rugby union, cricket, rugby league, and soccer World Cups and the NRL, AFL, WNBL and A-League Women’s competitions. Recently he spent 12 months as the news director at The Canberra Times before moving back into the sport section. Amongst all those stories, over the past 15 years, Chris has heard from many local, national, and international sporting stars. While he gets to share their success, he also shares the challenges they have endured and how they overcame those challenges during their career and in retirement. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this Midweeker, held in August 2023, we heard from Ben Alexander. Ben is a well-known Canberra figure, having played hundreds of matches in the front-row for the Wallabies, Brumbies, Vikings, and Owls. When Ben retired, he was a 72-Test Wallaby and all-time games record holder for the Brumbies, with 154 caps. Today Ben is co-founder of the app, Alfred, a weight management platform, co-owner of The Dock, on Kingston Foreshore, co-founder of Running For Resilience, and a Brumbies Rugby Board Member. When Ben retired in 2018, he faced many of the challenges professional athletes face in retirement, losing the identity through which he'd defined his entire life and the structure that made that life what it was. Enjoy.Help support Menslink: https://menslink.org.au/donate/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.