Health and Safety Conversations

Born, into Mundari Culture in Jayi, a village in Kerchomba, north of Juba in South Sudan, Philip Lako’s childhood was marked by unimaginable hardship. At just 10 years old, he was forcibly taken by the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) under the guise of receiving an education. His parents were given ultimatum, by the rebels group to give away one of their sons. Philip and his elder brother, Wani. Philip became the choice and was taken. He endured a decade of captivity, facing torture, beating, forced labor, sleep and food deprivation, and was subjected to constant threat of death from lack of food, aerial bombardments and attacks from Sudan Government Army. He lived in squalid conditions, often sleeping on the ground with only hessian bags for warmth. In 2000, Philip escaped to Kenya, where he spent four years in the Kakuma and Dadaab Refugee Camps. The camps’ life presented its own challenges—scarce resources, overcrowding, despair, indignity, lack of self-worth, unclear life’s sense of purpose and emotional isolation. Yet, it was here that Philip began to rediscover hope. In 2004, he was granted resettlement in Perth, Western Australia, through the support of the UNHCR and the Australian Government. Philip’s journey in Australia has been nothing short of transformative. He began working in agriculture [Donnybrook], then transitioned into aged care and disability where he worked as a support worker and a Trainer and Assessor. In 2008, he entered the mining industry, after earning a Vocational Education Training qualifications in Geoscience and later a Work Health and Safety Qualification. Currently, Philip is working for a mining company as a Senior Safety Advisor and provides ad hoc Training Services to a Western Australian Registered Training Organisation (RTO) - facilitating the Statutory Position Training, Local Government Industry Regulation Safety Exam Preparations Workshops, Incident Cause Analysis Methodology (ICAM) investigations skills and other Safety Related short courses. Philip volunteered for Mercy Care, St Vincent de Paul and is an active member of the Perth Rotary which is engaged in social program across the state: Passage Youth Hub , Path of Hope, Kimberely Dental Team and many other projects aimed to improve the quality of human lives internationally.   Philip is a passionate advocate for refugees and migrants, using his personal story to inspire and educate others. He has spoken at national conferences, including the Catholic Youth Conference, and has worked closely with government agencies to improve services for CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) communities. One of his most notable contributions was initiating and engaging the then Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan’s Government to consider and fund the Goldfields Migrant Employment Program (GMEP) Kalgoorlie through the Goldfields Community Legal Centre. The project aimed to promote job opportunities and regional living in the Goldfields to metropolitan communities and assist with attracting and retaining employees. The pilot program coordinated by Blessings Masuku, was very successful and although, has officially ended, it continues to attract migrants interstate many of whom now call Kalgoorlie [Goldfields] Home. Philip has spoken across mine sites, corporates offices, Kalgoorlie and city councils, Schools, Australia Home Affairs Office, WA Office of Multicultural Interest etc., where he expressed appreciation to Australia for the life changing opportunity. Philip also uses the opportunity to thank the mainstream Australian for their generosity and invites them to get to know the newly arrived migrants better and not only rely on media for information on refugees and migrants. Philip’s public engagements attracted media outlets including ABC News and Radio Programs, Kalgoorlie Miner, Eastern Reporter, Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA, 6PR Radio, WA Office of Multicultural Interest. Philip thinks, the best way to integrate well and know the mainstream culture is to have a network beyond one’s own culture. Philip’s autobiography, The Ten-Year-Old Man, chronicles his life from child soldier to Australian citizen, offering a powerful testament to resilience, faith, and the human spirit. He continues to mentor youth, advocate for inclusive policies, and build bridges between communities and government agencies. His message is clear: “We are all human.” Through storytelling, service, and leadership, Philip Lako reminds Australia—and the world—of the strength found in compassion and the importance of giving hope to those who need it most.

Dr. Alexander Paselk is a German national whose life and work stretch across continents and, really, across different worlds of thought. He lives in North America now, though much of his work takes him to the Middle East. That mix, the contrast, the constant switching of environments, it’s shaped the way he leads and how he sees people. Over time, it’s become something of a personal compass: learning to read context, to adjust, and to listen first. He didn’t actually start in safety. His early career was in environmental process optimization, where systems and efficiency were the main focus. That’s where he learned the language of performance, such as numbers, flowcharts, and outcomes. Later, he began shifting toward Occupational Health and Safety, drawn by something a little less measurable: the human side of how systems succeed or fail. Since then, his work has expanded across multiple sites and operations at once. He’s led diverse teams, HSE representatives, and contractors spread across complex projects, sometimes hundreds of people moving in different directions, yet expected to perform as one. What ties it all together, at least for him, is balance between compliance and care, data and dialogue, and structure and trust. These days, Dr. Paselk moves between three overlapping spheres: academic research, field operations, and what he calls executive safety leadership. In simpler terms, it means he connects ideas to practice. He takes what’s studied and what’s learned and tries to make it real in the field systems that actually help people, not just look good in reports. As a keynote speaker, doctoral mentor, and published researcher, he often explores emotional intelligence, culture, and human factors, how people’s behavior and their sense of belonging affect safety in high-risk, multicultural environments. He likes to say that safety is less about avoiding failure and more about designing for trust. It’s not a checklist; it’s a relationship between people and systems, always in motion. Maybe that’s what defines his approach: rigorous, yes, but also empathetic. In a way, he stands between two worlds, the measurable and the human, and tries to make them work together, one decision, one conversation at a time.

Today’s guest is Susan Fleming, Managing Director of ACT Australia, a company that’s changing how we learn about safety and leadership through powerful storytelling and live performance. From programs like Hindsight to The Slip, Susan’s work turns real experiences into lessons that help teams lead, reflect, and make safer decisions.   Book here: https://linktr.ee/actaustralia    

Dr Drew Rae is an Associate Professor in the Safety Science Innovation Lab at Griffith University, where he teaches courses on research methods and safety engineering, and manages the lab’s research program. Drew’s own research uses a mix of ethnography, field experiments and theory-building to investigate organisational safety practices. He is particularly interested in understanding the myths, rituals and bad habits that surround the work of managers and safety practitioners, and how this work influences front-line operations. Drew co-hosts the Safety of Work podcast and is on the editorial board of the journal Safety Science.

I consider myself extremely blessed to have had a chat to one of my safety heroes, Dr Sean Brady. Dr Sean Brady is a forensic engineer who investigates engineering failures from a technical and organisational perspective. In 2020, he completed the Brady Review, an investigation into the causes of fatalities in the Queensland mining industry. The review was tabled in parliament and made 11 recommendations to the regulator and mining companies on how to improve safety. In 2024, he completed the technical and organisational investigation into the catastrophic failure of a turbine generator at Callide C Power Station in Queensland, Australia. He also speaks, writes and podcasts on the causes of technical and organisational failure.    

Nathalie Martinek, PhD, helps people build relational leadership capacity and cultivate effective relationships in professional life, while also supporting those who’ve been scapegoated, sidelined, or harmed in environments that protect image over people. As a coach, she works with professionals to shift unhelpful relational patterns and navigate subtle power dynamics. As a group facilitator, she creates spaces for learning, applied reflection, and restoration. As a consultant, she helps individuals make sense of workplace dysfunction and emerge intact, with insight into the system and how to move forward. Her approach draws on years of practice inside and alongside institutions, informed by an early career in developmental biology and cancer research, where she studied how environments shape behavior and how systems enable dysfunction. Nathalie writes and teaches on scapegoating, narcissistic systems, relational leadership, and the emotional forces that shape them. She is the author of The Little Book of Assertiveness, The Scapegoating Playbook at Work, and creator of Hacking Narcissism on Substack.

In this episode Marc and I discuss some of the challenges around trainer PD in the VET sector.    Marc Miles is a career presenter and trainer. He has written a book on Advanced Facilitation Skills, and for over a decade, has taught public speaking skills, and content from the Training and Education Training Package for Australian Vocational Education and Training. During his time in the Vocational Education and Training sector, Marc has taught the TAE package over 500 times to people all around Australia in various industries. He has a been an instructional designer, training manager, and currently works as a senior facilitator for Spec Training. Marc’s students know him as a dynamic and engaging facilitator in both the face-to-face and online environments, believing he has set a new standard for how online delivery can be done. Marc’s book, Creating Transformation: Advanced Training Skills for Workshop Facilitators, was published in 2024.  Marc has a Masters degree in Applied Linguistics, Natural language processing certifications, and has conducted numerous professional development workshops for various audiences across Vocation Education and Training, corporate and entrepreneurial sectors.

Amanda Amaral is a safety professional turned entrepreneur, with over a decade of experience in high-risk industries including Oil & Gas, Maritime, and Transport & Logistics. Throughout her career, she worked hands-on at the frontline, from offshore seismic vessels to logistics hubs, helping organisations reduce risk, improve training, and engage their people in safety outcomes.   In 2025, she co-founded GotSafe Media, a company dedicated to transforming workplace health and safety communications into something that actually connects with people on site. Through innovative videos, tailored safety packs, and leadership messaging, Amanda helps businesses shift safety from a compliance checkbox into a culture of ownership and care. As both a safety communicator and a mum, Amanda brings a deeply human perspective to how safety messages are delivered, ensuring they resonate across every level of the workforce.

Sarah Barnbrook is an award-winning advocate, international speaker, and best-selling author who is passionate about preventing harm in the digital world. She is the Founder of Away From Keyboard (AFK) Inc., a charity that delivers workshops, personalised support, and peer group sessions to help families and communities build safer online experiences. AFK’s work goes beyond advocacy, with Sarah leading policy submissions, government reporting, and initiatives that influence safety frameworks globally. As an accredited United Nations delegate, Sarah has represented civil society at the Commission on the Status of Women in New York, observed the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and attended the Human Rights Council in Geneva. She is also Chief Revenue Officer of Women 4 STEM, where she focuses on creating opportunities for women and girls across the STEM pipeline. Her advocacy is deeply shaped by her lived experience, fuelling a mission to create systemic change. Sarah has spoken at global summits and events, including Geneva Peace Week, delivering thought leadership on technology-facilitated gender-based violence, AI ethics, and digital wellbeing. Her work has been recognised with numerous awards, including Global Volunteer of the Year and Youth Impact Awards, and she has been a finalist in the Women in AI APAC Awards and Australian Women in Security Awards.

Truly honoured to have Sally North grace our podcast, and our home. Unprecedented.  Sally North is the WorkSafe Commissioner in Western Australia, having acted in the role for about a year before being formally appointed in July 2024. In this role she is the work health and safety regulator for the resources and general industries sectors. Commencing as an inspector, Sally has over twenty years’ experience at WorkSafe in operational and leadership roles and previously worked in the private sector in occupational health and safety.