The Understanding Boys Podcast

Professor Damien Bolton is an academic, a researcher, and a surgeon. He holds numerous positions, as Professor, Head of Department at the Austin Hospital, to an honorary fellow of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research. He’s published hundreds of papers, book chapters, reviews, and supervised many PhD students. He is also the proud dad of three boys and has a focus and a passion for mens’ health. He provides a particular insight, as a specialist in urogenital cancer and urology working with an aspect on which men perceive their identity, on the changing landscape of the discussion around mens’ health. Damien talks about parenting, medicine, and shares his thoughts on the importance of teaching boys to ask for help.

Nathan Lovett-Murray, former AFL footballer and now Indigenous Mentor at Brighton Grammar School, has had an interesting career. He was listed by the Essendon Football Club in 2003 where he helped to establish the first Reconciliation Action Plan for an AFL Club.  He also found the time to launch his own indigenous hip hop label, Payback Records.  Since his retirement from AFL, Nathan has committed himself to improving the lives of people within Victoria’s Indigenous communities. He is an Indigenous Welfare Support/ Development Coach at St Kilda Football Club, producer of a documentary on Nicky Winmar and an educator on raising awareness of racism and its impact on wellbeing. Nathan is the proud father of two sons and his tribal ancestry can be traced back to the Wamba-Wamba and Guditjmara.

Dawn O’Neil AM received her Order of Australia for services to the community and to Mental health. A thought leader, she is currently the Ambassador of the ‘Breathing Space Executive in Mental Health & Wellbeing Program’ at Fisher Leadership. Dawn was the chair and founding member of homelessness social enterprise STREAT, where she created a legacy that has seen many young people at risk feel a deep sense of belonging and connectedness. Previously the CEO of Lifeline Australia, one of Australia’s largest charities, and CEO of BeyondBlue, Dawn’s extensive work in this space saw her receive the Outstanding Contribution Award from Suicide Prevention Australia in 2010. It’s fantastic to have Dawn on the podcast to share her knowledge and experience.

David Leser is well known for being a journalist, feature writer and public interviewer. He’s an Australian author of seven books, most recently ‘Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing’, a twofold investigation following the #MeToo movement, patriarchy and toxic masculinity. David embarked on this journey despite the criticisms and appropriateness of a male responding to a women’s private hurt publicly revealed by the #MeToo movement. He believes that the story of women’s oppression can’t be told without examining men’s role as oppressors.  David is passionate about the injustices of discrimination against women and unearths how men can be part of the solution.

Dr Judy Chu is a lecturer in Human Biology at Stanford University.  At Harvard for her doctorate, she researched boys’ gender socialisation, relationships and development during early childhood and adolescence.  Judy is the co-author of When Boys Become Boys, which offers a new way of thinking about a boy’s development. Her work aims to help foster a healthy resistance in boys against the pressures they face to conform to expected masculine behaviours, and looks at how they cope with identity and their place in society. Judy has a fantastic insight into this area so join us as we delve into masculinity issues that are relevant to all men and boys.

Trevor Hendy AM is a household name. A former Ironman Australia and professional lifesaver, Trevor Hendy AM, is now a life coach, mentor, author and wholistic personal trainer. Trevor's journey from lifesaver to sought after motivational speaker is an interesting one - he has won six Australian Open Ironman titles, is a four-time winner of the Uncle Toby's Super Series and an Australian champion kayak paddler. He was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in 2000 for services to the community and surf lifesaving. Trevor acknowledges that fame came at a price early in his career and is now able to reflect on how that made him a better man today.

Professor Dianne Vella-Brodrick is Head of Research at the Centre for Positive Psychology at The University of Melbourne. Dianne’s research interests include the development and evaluation of wellbeing programs, particularly positive education and performance optimisation.  Dianne’s current project is Bio Dash, a world first program that is being tested with Brighton Grammar students, using biofeedback to improve performance, develop mindfulness and stress-management strategies. Dianne serves on numerous research advisory boards.  Her research has a special focus on young people.  She has worked with not for profit organisations, schools from all sectors, community services and large commercial organisations to assess and promote wellbeing for all. 

In today’s podcast we speak with musician – singer/songwriter Jim Lawrie. For the past decade Jim has made a name for himself as an emerging independent artist. Jim Lawrie’s songs explore a range of ideas and emotions from love, loss to the joy and wonder of life.   Today’s podcast will be a little different to our usual format we’ll explore Jim’s artistry as a young man, talk about growing up and his thoughts on masculinity. 

Michael Reichert is a renowned psychologist and the author of 'How to Raise A Boy.' He discusses how outdated notions of masculinity can hinder boys' emotional development. Michael emphasizes the need for parents and educators to foster emotional literacy from a young age. He shares insights on the critical father-son dynamics and the importance of nurturing relationships. The conversation touches on the challenges boys face in education and the dire consequences of suppressing emotions, advocating for safe spaces where boys can openly express their feelings.

Megan De Beyer is a psychologist, parenting expert and mindfulness coach. Based in Cape Town, Megan travels the globe promoting positive parenting through her parent workshops, in which she guides mothers and helps them to navigate the challenging teenage years.  Megan’s mission is to educate parents in order to foster connected, meaningful relationships with their children.  Her strategies and tips are designed to empower parents through better understanding with the aim of developing boys into strong and caring men.