Siarn Rakic
CRE HiPP Consumer Advocate Coordinator

Siarn Rakic is a health promotion professional, with 8 years experience implementing primary prevention strategies at the local level. With the overarching aim of reducing the prevalence of obesity, Siarn has supported community settings such as early childhood services, schools, workplaces and sporting clubs, helping to create healthier environments and opportunities for people to live healthier lifestyles. She is passionate about ensuring community voice is ingrained from beginning to end of health promotion strategies, to ensure local needs are understood and met.

Siarn has recent experience of preconception and pregnancy, welcoming her first baby in 2020 and expecting her second in 2022. Siarn enjoys spending time in nature, which includes reading a book in the shade, going for bush walks and tending to her veggie garden.

Razia Ali
Community Development Worker, Monash Health

Razia Ali is a welfare and community support worker with over 10 years of experience in supporting Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) and refugee communities. She has also worked as a researcher with Monash University on projects addressing mental health, family planning, and postnatal depression among refugees. Razia has also represented the viewpoint of culturally diverse women on several advisory committees.

Razia likes making her inner connection each day more effective with her creator, and likes going for walks on the green grass.

Jacquiline Bowden
Fertility Advocate and Dog Behaviourist

Jacquiline Bowden was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) in her early 20s, which – left untreated – led to three long years battling fertility issues before falling pregnant. Throughout her pregnancy journey, Jacqui proactively connected with other women and sought to empower them with the knowledge she had gained. She sees her triumph over infertility as one of her greatest accomplishments and wishes to continue sharing her experience and knowledge in the hope that it will support other women, including those who are pregnant or trying, to be happy and healthy.

Jacqui has made a career out of her love (obsession!) for dogs, using her qualifications in dog behaviour and training to support owners in addressing canine behavioural problems. She lives in Melbourne with her husband, dog Alfie and baby Bowden.

Tatiana Corrales
Researcher, Monash University/Monash Health

Dr Tatiana Corrales is a Research Fellow in the Health and Social Care Unit at Monash University/Monash Health. She has 10 years of experience as a researcher in both academic and non-academic settings. Her research areas include child protection, child and family welfare, and the criminal justice system. Tatiana’s current research is centred on the needs and experiences of child protection and criminal justice-involved mothers, particularly during pregnancy and following infant removal. She has also led projects with vulnerable populations such as young people leaving the out-of-home care system, and has undertaken research across Victorian prisons, with a focus on violent and sexual offender rehabilitation programs.

Zoe Jacks
Community Health Nurse, Monash Health

Zoe Jacks is a Community Health Nurse with Monash Health, working with clients affected by sexual assault and family violence trauma. Zoe has a background in midwifery and paediatric nursing, and also works in Maternal Child Health with Frankston Council. Her main areas of interest are community health, working with families of childbearing age, and clients who have complex needs.

Zoe loves cooking, eating and Fridays.

Jacynta Krakouer
Researcher and First Nations Advocate

Jacynta Krakouer (she/her) is a Noongar woman and researcher who lives and works on Wurundjeri Country in Naarm. She is a Research Fellow in the Health and Social Care Unit (HSCU) at Monash University, having previously worked as a lecturer in the Department of Social Work at the University of Melbourne, where she taught subjects in child and family welfare and social work practice with First Nations peoples. Jacynta is also a final year PhD student, undertaking doctoral research in the topic of cultural connection for First Nations children and young people in out-of-home care (OOHC) contexts in Victoria. A social worker by background, prior to commencing her research and academic career, Jacynta worked as a case worker in the child and family welfare field, predominantly with First Nations families, children, young people and their carers at the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA). She is also a formal respite carer, and has been an informal kinship carer for her own family members who have been involved in child protection and OOHC systems.

Georgia McLaughlin
University Student

Georgia Mclaughlin is a university student, currently studying a Bachelor of Science majoring in Immunology at the University of Melbourne. She is passionate about raising awareness for and educating about women’s health issues, and supporting those struggling in the community.

Eva Moore
Solicitor

Eva Moore is a solicitor at Corrs Chambers Westgarth. She practises primarily in litigation, employment and labour law. She holds a Bachelor of Arts/Law (Hons) from Monash University. During her studies she gained experience in personal injury and medical negligence law, while working as a paralegal and barristers’ assistant.

Yvonne Sun
Kindergarten Teacher and Research Assistant, Monash University

Yvonne Sun is a registered kindergarten teacher and a research assistant at Monash University’s Health and Social Care Unit (HSCU). Drawing on her sociological, educational, and psychological background, her current research interests are quality of early childhood education, early childhood intervention, and teacher education in supporting these. She is also passionate about advocating for the health and wellbeing of women in their preconception, pregnancy, and postpartum stages, and of young children and their families.

Yvonne enjoys working out outdoors, sharing her expertise and knowledge of early childhood evidence-based teaching on social media (she has nearly 8000 followers now), meditating, and spending time with her family and friends.

Jasmine Taylor
Young Mother

Jasmine Taylor is a young single mother with a 2½ year old son, Noah. Jasmine grew up in Oakleigh, was an accomplished dancer as a teen and completed year 12 in 2016. Jasmine and Noah live not far from where she grew up, and they enjoy playing games, going to the park and exploring new things together! She is passionate about mental health, especially in children and young adults, and is excited to contribute to CRE HiPP from a young mums perspective.

Louisa Whettam
Consultant and First Nations Advocate

Louisa Whettam is a proud descendent of the Wiradjuri people from New South Wales, Australia. As a First Nations woman of Australia, Louisa attended the Salzburg Global Seminar 2019 program, titled Halting the Childhood Obesity Epidemic: Identifying Decisive Interventions in Complex Systems. Louisa is Director of Ngiyambalgarra Consultancy, a Salzburg Fellow, and has produced a cartoon depicting the impact colonisation and forced removal from families has had on childhood obesity in Aboriginal Communities. She was the first ever First Nations Person of Australia to be invited to attend the Salzburg Global Seminar.