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Julia Whitford - Chief Executive Officer, AIHS
Julia brings over 25 year's knowledge and experience from membership-based organisations, primarily in the not-for-profit sector. She previously held the position of Chief Operating Officer at the Australian HR Institute (AHRI). Julia has demonstrated significant achievements in member experience and loyalty, commercial growth, and customer and stakeholder relationships.
She has built and executed business strategy and provides the leadership and vision necessary to effectively grow organisations to ensure their financial strength. Julia holds an MBA from the Australian Institute of Business. |
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Chris White - Chief Executive Officer, WorkCover WA
Chris White has over 40 years' experience in workers compensation and work health and safety policy. Prior to his appointment as CEO, WorkCover WA in 2019, Chris held senior policy and management roles at both WorkCover WA and WorkSafe WA.
Chris has been a member of the WorkCover WA Board since 2017 and plays an important role in framing the state agenda.
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Sally North - WorkSafe Commissioner, WorkSafe WA
Sally North is the WorkSafe Commissioner for Western Australia, leading the state’s work health and safety regulator with a strong focus on prevention, integrity, and community impact. With a background in chemistry, OSH, occupational hygiene, and business administration, she brings deep knowledge and practical experience from both industry and regulatory roles. Sally is a passionate advocate for evidence-based decision-making and values-driven leadership to create safer, healthier workplaces.
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Owen Whittle - Chairperson, Work Health and Safety Commission
Owen was appointed as Chairperson of the Work Health and Safety Commission in June 2025, prior to this he was a member of the Commission for nearly a decade, a member of of the Ministerial Advisory Panel into Work Health and Safety Reform and Non-Executive Director of WorkCover WA.
As Secretary and Assistant Secretary of UnionsWA between 2012-2020 he campaigned extensively for workplace safety reform, spearheading the union movements campaigning to establish protections for psychosocial safety, industrial manslaughter and improved resourcing for safety regulators.
He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of West Australian Music (WAM) the peak advocacy body for contemporary and live music, and is a member of the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal, the independent statutory authority that sets the pay for judges, politicians and senior public officials.
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Celia Antonovsky - AIHS Deputy Chair
Celia Antonovsky is a fervent health and safety professional with a career spanning several industries including oil and gas, mining, construction and transport. In recent years she has been responsible for the worker and passenger safety outcomes for a large public transport contract in Western Australia. She has volunteered for the last four years with the WA Branch of the Australian Institute of Health and Safety (AIHS). During that time she has held the roles of Branch Secretary, Young Safety Professionals Coordinator and recently assumed the role of Branch Chair.
She advocates for the health and safety profession through a number of forums including coordinating AIHS submissions to government on draft legislation, representing industry interests in the development of university courses and hosts education and networking events. Her passion for progressing safety performance led her to join the Australian Institute of Health and Safety as a WA Committee member in 2016.
Since then, she has held the role of Young Safety Professional Coordinator, Branch Secretary, Deputy Chair and for the past four years Chair of the WA Branch. Concurrently she was also elected to the national board in the role of Non-Executive Director and is in her second term. Fundamentally she believes in evidence-based practice and the value of strong and cohesive peer networks. Through a motivated and engaged WA Committee she has overseen the delivery of monthly safety sundowners, quarterly BOK breakfasts and an annual safety symposium. Her goal is to foster a thriving safety community in Western Australia.
She has a Bachelor of Psychology and a Masters in Occupational Health and Safety. She is currently a Fellow of the AIHS. |
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Partick Benetti - Registered Psychologist, UWA School of Psychological Science
Patrick Benetti is currently completing his combined PhD and Master of Industrial and Organisational Psychology at the School of Psychological Science at UWA and is a provisional psychologist. Patrick’s PhD research investigates leaders’ use of storytelling as a tool for effective safety communications. His primary focus is on establishing the characteristics of these stories and their delivery that make them effective in impacting worker safety-related outcomes. |
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Prof Marcus Cattani - Associate Professor Occupational Health and Safety, Edith Cowan University
Dr Marcus Cattani is an Associate Professor in Occupational Health and Safety, and, Deputy Director of the MARS Centre. Marcus has worked as an academic, occupational hygienist, HSE Manager and consultant in the mining, oil and gas, chemical, manufacturing, and engineering industries for over 30 years. Marcus's teaching and research focusses on improving the management of injury risk to an acceptable level, and assisting organisations develop the risk management partnerships required to achieve this. In 2025 Marcus is focusing on safety in the agriculture industry, in particular, translating some of the injury prevention techniques used in other industries.
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Jason Jenkin - Safety and Wellbeing Team Leader, Silver Chain Group
Jason Jenkin is a seasoned professional in occupational health and safety, currently leading the Health, Safety, and Wellbeing Team at Silver Chain Group. With a robust educational background, including a Master of Occupational Health and Safety and dual Bachelors in Health and Safety as well as Health Promotion, Jason brings a comprehensive understanding of workplace safety and health promotion strategies.
Since joining Silver Chain Group in 2022, Jason has been instrumental in enhancing safety protocols and promoting wellbeing within the organization. He has led initiatives such as the introduction and hosting of Communications Forums and the national standardization of policies and procedures, improving the health, safety, and wellbeing of workers.
Prior to his current role, Jason successfully implemented safety programs in various settings, earning recognition for his innovative approaches. He is also actively involved in research, currently working on a project aimed at developing strategies to reduce workplace injuries in the healthcare sector. Jason's passion for creating safer work environments extends beyond his professional life, as he is an advocate for mental health awareness in the workplace. |
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Alastair Milne - Behavioural Consultant / Director, Curam Consulting
Alastair's mission is to create safer spaces for health, learning and growth.
He creates psychologically safer spaces to facilitate learning in mental health, safety, leadership and life skills. A compassionate critical thinker, he uses lived experience of mental health crisis to promote credible supports which develop caring and professional workplaces.
A wannabe 'pracademic', Alastair holds a diverse mix of qualifications from environmental and analytical sciences to business psychology, safety, entrepreneurship and currently education. He is a certified practitioner in OHS, change and psychological safety, ICF coaching member, Mental Health First Aid and meditation instructor.
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Jamie Mallinder - Global Leader – Content & Industry Expertise and Suicide Prevention Ambassador, Forwood Safety and R U OK?
Jamie Mallinder is a multiple-award-winning health and safety leader, speaker, and consultant with deep expertise in psychosocial risk management, critical risk management, and workplace culture. Currently serving as Leader - Content & Industry Expertise at Forwood Safety, he is responsible for developing global industry-leading content, including bowtie analyses, critical control standards, and verification processes for high-risk sectors such as mining, energy, and construction.
Jamie’s career was shaped by a personal experience of losing a close friend to suicide, which led him to dedicate his life to improving workplace health, safety, and wellbeing. He has since partnered with Fortune 500 and ASX 200 companies, global insurers, and SMEs to design and implement evidence-based frameworks that bridge psychology, neuroscience, and safety science. Jamie is also a Master Licensed Mental Health First Aid Instructor and an active ambassador for suicide prevention initiatives, including R U OK?. His thought leadership focuses on moving beyond compliance to create safer, healthier, and more human-centred workplaces. |
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Lucinda Iles - Global Leader – Research Fellow, Future of Work Institue, Curtin University
Dr Lucinda Iles is an Organisational Psychology Registrar at the Future of Work Institute at Curtin University. She obtained her PhD from Curtin University investigating organisational strategies to retain and engage mature workers and optimise age diverse teams. Currently, her research focuses on exploring the relationship between work design and employee wellbeing outcomes, with a focus on practical strategies to redesign work to improve organisational and employee outcomes. Most recently she was the Lead Research Fellow on the Design for Care project, using a participatory work redesign approach to improve work design in the NSW healthcare and social assistance industry to prevent psychological injury. Lucinda is passionate about collaborating with organisations to conduct practical and impactful applied research to improve outcomes for employees and organisations. |
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Dr Neil Preston - Organisational Psychologist - PsyOpus
For the past 25 years, Dr Preston has provided highly specialised consulting services to both public and private sector organisations. With a blend of experience and strong foundational training in organisational psychology, Dr Preston examines how people interact with each other in such a way that enables or disables peak performance. He has published well over 40 international peer reviewed papers in psychiatry, psychology and mental health, and specialises in team and leadership coaching and alignment services.
Dr Preston's area of interest and practice as an Organisational Psychologist concerns how collective or collaborative intelligence can be increased by improving the conditions of high team performance. Using the very latest research in psychology, neuroscience, anthropology and group research, Dr Preston has coached numerous peak performing teams in highly complex collaborative contracting infrastructure projects. As a scientist-practioner, Dr Preston ensures that the intervention and alignment services he provides are evidence based and supported by sound social and psychological science. This ensures that the teams and leaders that Dr Preston coaches have the most up to date skills in collaborative leadership skills and complex problem solving techniques. |
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Cam Stevens - Safety Innovation Consultant, Pocketknife Group
Cam Stevens is a Chartered Health and Safety Professional, technologist and CEO of Pocketknife Group, Australia’s leading safety innovation consultancy. Recognised globally as a leader in safety innovation, Cam advises organisations on reimagining work design and leveraging data, technology, and AI to improve workplace health, safety and wellbeing. His expertise spans physical and psychosocial risk, critical risk management and digital transformation. With deep operational experience and a human-centred approach, Cam is a trusted strategist and thought leader on the future of safety and work. |
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Kirsten Borgas - Sacyr H&S Manager as part of the alliance with Water Corporation (SSWA), Southern Seawater Alliance – Sacyr Water Australia Pty Ltd
Kirsten Borgas is the Sacyr H&S Manager, working as part of an Alliance with Water Corporation on the Southern Seawater Alliance, where she leads health and safety strategy and supports other projects. A Certified OHS Professional (COHSProf) and Fellow of the Australian Institute of Health & Safety (AIHS), she also serves on the WA Branch Committee as Regional Southwest Liaison.
Holding a Graduate Diploma in OHS and an Advanced Diploma in Neuroscience of Leadership, Kirsten combines regulatory expertise with insights from behavioural science and neuroscience. She is building a body of work on how neuroscience can strengthen WHS practice, particularly in risk perception, decision-making and leadership.
Self-taught in AI, she is passionate about applying emerging technologies responsibly to improve safety outcomes. Kirsten sees technology and diversity, equity and inclusion as interconnected drivers of safer, more innovative workplaces. Harnessing diverse perspectives ensures that new tools and systems are designed with fairness, accessibility and real-world impact in mind. She champions “brain-friendly,” forward-thinking approaches to WHS, working at the intersection of human judgment, accountability, technological innovation and inclusive leadership. |
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Bradley Hobson - WA Branch Chair
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