68 Cups of Blueberry Tea

The last time Lauren Amor and I saw each other, we were graduating from St John's College in Dubbo in 2010. Sixteen years later, we sat down for our first real conversation since school—and discovered how one decision made at sixteen quietly shaped an entire life. Lauren is an agricultural educator, a long-standing leader with the Dubbo Show Society, and the recipient of the AgShows NSW Outstandin...

What happens when curiosity about the ocean becomes a life's work? In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , I sit down with Peruvian marine biologist and PhD candidate Adriana González Pestana to talk about sharks, rays, conservation, and the journey that has taken her from Peru to Australia and now into the waters of Timor-Leste. Adriana specialises in sharks and rays and is contributing...

From Ethiopia to Timor-Leste, Etsub Eyaya has built a life driven by purpose, passion, and people. In this episode, sit down with Etsub to explore a remarkable journey that spans continents and careers. An assistant teacher, football coach, and DJ (amongst hundreds of other skills) Etsub shares how each role has shaped her perspective on resilience, leadership, and community. Together, we discuss...

What if the key to protecting the ocean isn’t science alone - but connection? In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , I sit down with Dedy Kayaka, founder of Underwater Cinema, a grassroots movement helping Timorese people reconnect with the ocean through storytelling, education, community action and first-hand experiences beneath the surface. Growing up in the mountains of Balibo, Dedy neve...

What do you do when you arrive in a country that’s been completely rebuilt from the ground up… and nothing you need exists yet? For Jean Vezina, the answer was simple: you build it. In this episode, Jean shares his journey from arriving in Timor-Leste during a time of chaos and reconstruction, to founding Caltech Group - an organisation that grew not from a grand master plan, but from solving one...

In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , Gabrielle sits down with historian Ed Willis to explore a chapter of history that remains largely overlooked - the experience of World War II in Timor-Leste. While Australian forces operated in the region, it was the Timorese people who bore the brunt of the conflict. Through his work, WWII in East Timor , Ed brings to light the stories, sacrifices, an...

What if discomfort is the point? In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , I sit down with Birgit Hermann - leadership coach, author, freediver, and ultramarathoner - to explore why she repeatedly places herself in environments where comfort disappears. From the Sahara desert to arctic ice to high-stakes leadership rooms. Birgit shares what endurance has taught her about clarity, courage, and...

What does it look like to return to the same country - once as a soldier in uniform, and years later as a touring comedian with a microphone? In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , Gabrielle sits down with Australian stand-up comedian Jarryd Goundrey while he’s performing in Dili, Timor-Leste. But this isn’t just a chat about tour life and punchlines. Jarryd spent seven years in the Austral...

The Doulos Hope is a floating library that travels the world, bringing books, stories, and conversation from port to port. While the ship was docked in Dili, Timor-Leste, I sat down with Vale Rios, media and communications lead onboard, to talk about life at sea, the people who choose this path, and what it means to bring stories across the oceans. In this conversation, Vale shares what daily life...

As Season One comes to a close, Gabrielle pauses to reflect. Looking back on the conversations, the common threads of resilience and creativity, and one insight from a guest that lingered: the rare gift of stopping long enough to recognise how far you’ve come. This isn’t an ending - just a moment to breathe. A chance to acknowledge the journey before turning the page.

In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , Gabrielle sits down with Manali Banerjee, a senior Bikram yoga guide whose life and work have been shaped by discipline, tradition, and an unflinching relationship with the mind. Beyond the heat and the postures, this conversation explores what Bikram yoga really teaches: how the mind tries to protect - and sabotage - us, why structure can be deeply gr...

Anna Pixner - Austria’s world-class downhill skateboarder and concrete surfer - joins me to explore what movement teaches us about freedom, bringing people together, facing fear and supporting mental wellbeing. 🛹 From her early days on a bike path to honing speed and focus on winding roads around the world, Anna shares how skating became her meditation, why she’s planning to ride in the Himalayas...

In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , I’m joined by Mark Crosweller AFSM - founder of Ethical Intelligence, former national leader in emergency and disaster management, and author of Compassion in Disaster Management: The Essential Ethic of Relational Leadership . Mark has spent decades leading through crisis - bushfires, disasters, and high-stakes public service - yet his work consistentl...

Not that Paul Hogan - this is the one with the diplomatic passport, the white gloves, and the reality-TV fan following. In this episode of 68 Cups of Blueberry Tea , Gabrielle sits down with Paul Hogan , whose life has zig-zagged through consular service, elite estate management, professional butlering, and unexpected television fame. It’s a journey stitched together by discipline, charm, grit, an...

“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them,” Albert Einstein Enter Zoee Mylordis from Envizia. She doesn’t just capture conversations - she  changes  them. With one live illustration, she turns threads and direction into clarity and helps people see their ideas in a whole new way. In this episode, we chat about how visual storytelling can shift perspectives,...

Historian Graham Wilson OAM has spent a lifetime uncovering the stories behind the names etched in stone — not just soldiers, but families, communities, and generations marked by war. From rural NSW towns to cemeteries in Europe, Graham’s journey reveals why remembrance is not about the past alone, but about how we live today. In this episode, Graham shares how he became “obsessed” with registerin...

Embark on a flavourful journey with Colorado Coffee as they share their inspiring story of bringing specialty Colombian coffee to the Australian outback. In this episode, Paulo and Miranda discuss their unique mobile coffee venture, the challenges they've overcome, and their mission to support Colombian coffee communities.

In essence, Nick Hunter embodies the spirit of dedication, leadership, and community in Australian sports. From his early days at the Australian National University Boat Club to representing Australia at the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games, Nick's passion for rowing has been unwavering.​ Nick shares insights into his transition from athlete to coach, leading the ACT Academy of Sport's rowing pro...

The 2025 Australian of the Year Local Heroes for the ACT are Vanessa Brettell and Hannah Costello, co-founders of Cafe Stepping Stone! “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Cafe Stepping Stone is more than just food and coffee. It is a work integration social enterprise that provides job opportunities for migrant and refugee women, helping them overcome barriers to employment upon arrival...

Just an hour's drive from Queenstown, Wānaka offers incredible landscapes, just waiting to be discovered on happy horses. Saddle up and take a ride with Samantha Goos, founder and owner of Wānaka Horse Trekking. The Netherlands didn’t feel like home for Sam, and she was ready for a new adventure, to bring her inner childhood horsey dream to life in New Zealand! Sam has found such a beautiful p...

Bec Jones made her ParaMatildas debut during the International Federation of Cerebral Palsy Football Women's World Cup 2024 in Spain, winning 6-2 victory against the United States! This is a remarkable victory considering that she is an Autoimmune Encephalitis survivor, thanks only to plasma donors. In early 2020, Bec got sick with Ross River fever, after which she developed post viral fatigue, he...

Lexi Sekuless, the Creative Producer behind the Mill Theatre at Dairy Road, offers a unique opportunity to delve into Canberra's vibrant theatre scene. Lexi is a distinguished Canberra-based actor, director, and producer with over a decade of experience in the performing arts. A graduate of London's Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, she earned first-class honours in their Bachelor of Actin...

Léa Zeestraten has self-published the first book of a four part series, the Daughters of Dael, a heartwarming and exciting exploration of adventure, friendship and self discovery. It has charming characters, thrilling action and I really enjoyed easily visualising each of the scenes. But there is more to Léa than her work as an author.  At the age of 24 she was diagnosed with congenital heart dise...

Delving into the Argentinian Tango scene with an experienced dancer, Jamie, to learn about the cultural elements behind it, the structure of it (or lack thereof!) and insight into the typical accompanying instrument, the Bandoneon.

Katherine Leamy’s travel style is to casually shrug on, a well thought out 5kg backpack (give or take a few hundred grams, for hardcopy novels) and step out with confidence. If this intrigues you, have a listen and start travelling with ease!