The Understanding Boys Podcast

James Tomkins, OAM, is one of Australia’s most established and decorated rowers, having competed in 6 Olympic Games and countless other World Championships and Rowing Cups. He is also the only rower in history to win world titles in every sweep oar event.  In 1997 James received an Order of Australia, was named as the Victorian Father of the Year by the Father’s Day Council of Victoria in 2008 and in 2010, he was inducted as a member of the Rowing Victoria’s Hall of Fame as well as being awarded with the International Rowing Community’s highest award, the Thomas Keller Medal for his outstanding career.   In addition to achieving all of this, James inspired many by holding down full-time employment, studying and working in the Finance sector, as well as being a dedicated husband and father to three daughters. He is now heavily involved in sports administration as a member of the International Olympic Committee and Australian Olympic Committee.   His passions include sport and the benefits that a positive and healthy lifestyle it brings, and with this, he continues to challenge himself in events like Ironman events, ultra-marathons and island crossing in kayaks.   Join us for the next episode of the podcast, where Dr Swann talks to James about what elite sport taught him, how he applies those lessons today, as well as what he thinks about mental health and what he has learnt from being a parent.   We hope you enjoy this week’s episode. 

Dr Matt Englar-Carlson’s work focusses on educating and training professionals about male mental health needs as well as how to work more effectively with boys and men. Matt is a professor of counselling and the Director of the Center for Boys and Men at California State University, Fullerton and a fellow of the American Psychological Association. Dr Englar-Carlson’s scholarly interests are focused on how masculinity influences well-being, interpersonal relationships and self-identity. In particular, his research in this area looks at how men ask and receive assistance in relation to mental health field. In 2007, Dr Englar-Carlson was named the Researcher of the Year by the Society for the Psychological Study of Men and Masculinity. He has over 35 publications and 60 national and international presentations, most of which are focused on men and masculinity. Dr Englar-Carlson is a co-developer of the of Positive Psychology Positive Masculinities model, which adopts a prosocial and strength-based approach of understanding men. In addition to this, he has authored several books, including: In the Room with Men: A Casebook of Therapeutic Change, Counseling Troubled Boys: A Guidebook for Professionals, A Counselor’s Guide to Working with Men, and is co-editor of the 24 volume book series, Theories of Psychotherapy that features the world’s leading authorities on various theoretical approached to psychotherapy. In his role as a clinician, Dr Englar-Carlson has taught and worked with hundreds of children, families, schools/universities and community groups across the United States. He is also a teacher at Esalen Institute in Big Sur, where he leads annual experiential workshops for men focussed on wellness and growth. Join us for the next episode of the podcast, where Dr Swann talks to Matt, about what led him to his work, how he understands men and masculinity, about the profound impact his dad had on him and how in turn he is trying to be a great dad for his kids, as well as what it means to be a good man these days. We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.

Father of three, Daniel Petre, talks about his book ‘Father Time’, an Australian classic. About being a dad and about being mindful as parents, on how to attain balance in a working life, especially as someone who had great success in the corporate world as well philanthropy. Daniel Petre, a philanthropic internet entrepreneur, has been at the forefront of the technology industry in Australia for over 30 years. He is a successful technology executive, and has extensive experience in running large organisations and developing new business models. Daniel was the former lieutenant to Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates, where he spent nine years working at Microsoft, including three as Managing Director for Australia. He is also the co-founder of AirTree Ventures, an early and growth stage venture firm that partners with world-class Australian and Kiwi entrepreneurs. Daniel’s contribution to the not-for-profit sector is also extensive, with positions held on the Area Health Advisory Council for The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, the Advisory Board of HealthInsite and The UNSW Foundation, among many others. He and his wife set up the Petre Foundation in 2000, which has funded research chairs both at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead and the Garvan Institute, as well as a scholarship for University Medallists at UNSW. Daniel has a Doctorate in Business (Honoris Causa), a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Business Administration. He holds a Graduate Diploma in Counselling, is a published author, and was made an Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) in 2005, for distinguished service to Australia. We really hope you enjoy the conversation today.

Dr Monty Badami looks through an anthropological lens to explore how we can help boys find their place in the world and offers some useful tips that you can use at home. Dr Surmant (Monty) Badami holds a PhD in anthropology and is the founder and CEO of Habitus, a social enterprise that uses anthropology, emotional intelligence and educational psychology to re-humanise schools, communities and businesses. Monty works with schools and communities to help teachers, students and parents to connect through stories and learn through play. He works closely with men and boys, running Rites of Passage programs and the Brave Conversations series where he uses his anthropological knowledge to challenge the norms of toxic masculinity and stereotypes of class, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and race. Apart from being a passionate educator, Monty is a jazz singer, martial arts instructor, and an officer in the Australian Army Reserve. He co-hosts The Meaning Of… podcast with philosopher and friend Dr Tim Dean. In this episode Monty offers some useful tips that can be used immediately at home to provide safe spaces to unpack the prejudices and ideas we have set within ourselves. He shares a beautiful story about his own experiences that led him to the work that he does.

Dr Robert Blum is currently managing a global research project looking at the impact of gender and gender norms in society.  In this episode Dr Blum talks about gender norms, the impacts on boys (and girls) while telling some incredible stories from his lifelong experience working with adolescents and paediatric medicine.  Dr Robert Blum (MD, MPH, PhD) is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He has edited two books, and has written nearly 250 journal articles, book chapters and special reports.  In 2006, Dr Blum was made a member of The National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine, and in 2007 was named the Director of the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute. He is also a consultant to The World Bank and UNICEF as well as the World Health Organization where he has served on the Technical Advisory Group of the Child and Adolescent Health Department as well as the Scientific and Technical Advisory Group of the Human Reproductive Program.  We hope you enjoy this week’s episode. 

In this week's episode, we’re joined by psychologist and international parenting expert, Megan De Beyer. Based in Cape Town, Megan travels the globe promoting positive parenting through workshops in which she guides mothers and helps them navigate the challenges of teenage years. Megan’s mission is to educate parents to help foster connected and meaningful relationships with their children. Megan talks about her new book, the role of nature in a post-pandemic world, and some tips about managing your son’s anger. We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.

Dr Arne Rubinstein is an internationally recognised expert in Rites of Passage, adolescent development and parenting. With over 30 years’ experience as a medical doctor, counsellor, mentor, speaker and facilitator, Dr Arne has helped over 100,000 people globally with his program to support young people in making a safe and healthy transition into adulthood. Dr Arne was nominated for Australian of the year in 2008 and is the proud father of two wonderful young men (as well as a mentor to many others). In this episode Dr Swann talks to Dr Arne about the Rites of passage program and some of the elements you can use at home. Dr Swann and Dr Arne share some stories and also talk about the powerful effect of Rites of Passage that Dr Arne has witnessed in the community. We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.

Dr Jacqui True is Professor of International Relations at Monash University where she is Director of the Monash Gender, Peace and Security Centre. She is also a Global Fellow at the Peace Research Institute, Oslo, an Editor of European Journal of International Security, and a former Australian Research Council Future Fellow. Jacqui’s main area of research is focused on the political economy of violence against women, investigating the gender dimensions of violent extremism and terrorism in order to prevent violence, and analysing how to make peace processes more gender-sensitive. During her career, she has worked with multiple NGOs, governments and international organisations.  She has authored 14 books and over 125 articles on gender and international relations. In this episode we speak to Jacqui about her parenting, what she learnt during Melbourne’s Covid lockdown and also a bit about how we can connect our boys into understanding better ways of being for the benefit of all.

Major General Stephen Day, DSC, AM, is a highly decorated soldier who has held senior positions in the Australian Army.   General Day’s established reputation as a distinguished and compassionate leader has seen him formally recognised by the Australian Government, the governments of France and the United States and the Queen, who presented him with the Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership in East Timor. However, General Day says that it is the failures that have most shaped his leadership philosophy. In this episode, Dr Swann talks to General Day about his career as a solider, his current work at PwC and the lessons he has learnt along the way such as, leading with emotion, integrity and reason, how to find moral courage and the importance of humility.

In this episode we are joined by Will Pucovski, a professional cricketer playing at State level and having been selected to the Australian squad. Will chats to Ray about his professional life, his work as a cricketer and what it has taught him. Will also shares four key questions that he wished he knew as a young man.   We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.