Women in Safety Podcast

EPISODE SUMMARY: Eustacia Jennings is possibly one of the longest running supporters of Women in Safety despite living and working in the Bahamas! We met Eustacia in person at the 2023 World Congress and Women in Safety Awards in Sydney and delighted to have her on the podcast for International Women’s Day celebrations. Eustacia is a fierce health and safety advocate in the Bahamas. At present, th...

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE EPISODE: Welcome back to the Women in Safety Podcast! In this episode, we embark on a fascinating journey with Yolanda Oosthuizen, a distinguished senior leader in the energy sector. With a wealth of experience in health, safety, and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), Yolanda's insights are sure to captivate and inspire. Join us as we delve into Yolanda's rem...

EPISODE SUMMARY: Welcome to the Women in Safety podcast, where empowerment meets excellence in the health and safety profession. Michelle is a career safety professional who has worked both internally and for herself consulting in work health and safety. Michelle knows all too well some of the daily struggles of safety professionals and believes collaborating has been a key to her successes. Miche...

In this episode we had the pleasure of interviewing Emma Richards, the Founder and Lead Optometrist for Safety Glasses Online. Emma is an optometrist by trade and was sick of seeing patients injured at work so she started to make change! Emma shared valuable insights into two key areas crucial for better safety outcomes- don’t be ashamed to be yourself and seek to understand people and the problem...

SUMMARY: In the first Topic Tuesday episode of 2024, hosts Chandra and Alanna delve into the dynamic world of leadership, exploring the nuances between safety managers and safety leaders. The central question guiding the conversation is: What sets these roles apart, particularly when it comes to fostering a culture that values imperfect humans? Chandra and Alanna kick off the discussion by dissect...

Summary:  In this episode, Alanna stands firmly on her soap box exploring ways organisations can encourage more females to apply and obtain WHS roles. It was prompted after a discussion with Empowered Members on Slack, “In the end, I now have three males I have added to the team, which has diminished how diverse my team actually is. What are others doing to try and increase the interest of females...

In this episode, we had the privilege of hosting Dr. Sherrilyn Mills, keynote speaker at the 2023 Women in Safety awards. She shared her two-decade journey from a pioneering PhD on psychosocial factors impacting return to work to her current role shaping prevention strategies for organisations. Dr. Mills highlighted three key takeaways: Authenticity Matters: Genuine connections and open conversati...

Welcome to the Women in Safety podcast, where empowerment meets excellence in the health and safety profession. In this episode, host Alana Ball interviews Anna Ila, the winner of the 2023 Women in Safety Leader of the Year award.  Anna shares her journey in the health and safety field, highlighting the unique challenges she faces working in a male-dominated industry in Papua New Guinea. She share...

Now this is an oldie but a goodie. In light of goal setting Alanna believes that everyone should know their personal brand. Check out this replay of episode 3. A quick check in on your personal brand. Have you given it any thought yet this year? How do you define your own personal brand? We love how having a really well defined brand can help you bring your best self to work. Bullet points of key...

Summary Welcome to 2024! In this episode, Alanna reflects on the past year and shares her excitement for the upcoming year. She discusses the refreshed website and the upcoming plans for the Women in Safety podcast in 2024. She highlights the importance of empowering women in the health and safety profession and announces the professional development themes that will be covered throughout the year...

In this episode, Chandra and Alanna explore a pyramid of psychological safety needs at work, drawing parallels to Maslow's hierarchy. They dissect Heidi Pickett's model, delving into its strengths and weaknesses. Alanna and Chandra candidly discuss (think mash potato) the pitfalls inherent in applying such a model in the workplace, shedding light on potential challenges and misinterpretati...

Taking the 2022 Virtual Women in Safety Awards to an in person event in 2023 was no easy feat but Alanna did it! This short, reflective podcast episode is more a brain dump to share the thoughts behind the in person event in Sydney earlier this week but also to start thinking about 2024 Awards and other events. What are you doing to inspire, transform or empower yourself in your career? Be sure to...

In this episode, we had the pleasure of hosting Helen Sadgrove from New Zealand and Kristen Street from Sydney, who are both key figures in sponsoring the upcoming 2023 Women in Safety Awards. Our generous sponsor, HSE Global, is not only supporting the event but also spearheading the networking segment. Tune in as Helen and Kristen share insightful tips and tricks for effective networking, emphas...

Beacon ACT is our 2023 Mentor of the Year Sponsor but Christel’s journey with mentors and being a mentor is a special one. Christel shares her journey from being alone and isolated in a career she didn’t love to being so passionate about her career, her business and adding value to her clients. Join the conversation and hear how she empowers those around her and makes change every day in her work...

How linked should corporate culture be to our safety culture? Are they the same or different? Join us in this Topic Tuesday to chat about our views on organisational culture. We pick apart the eight levers of the Forbes article and link to how we see safety culture.  You can view the article here Be sure to hit follow on Spotify or the + on Apple Podcasts to get the latest episodes. Click here to...

The wonderful thing about the Women in Safety podcast is that we get to have conversations from around the world. In today’s episode we get to have a conversation with Faiza Patel from L’Oreal in India. Our chat with Faiza takes us to chatting about her unique journey into safety and that she has had incredible male leaders supporting her and backing her through that journey. Faiza believes in sha...

Brief summary of the episode:  In this episode, we chat with Chandra on all things, simplifying and making agile health and safety systems. This episode dives into a recent article from EY on creating innovative systems in the energy and utilities sector. We explore some of the suggestions and how people can apply the simple article, regardless of what industry they’re in, and how we have to make...

Susie Betts is the founder and director of Boob Armour, a company that creates polyethylene inserts to protect women's breasts from injury. After finding lumps in her own breasts and learning about the potential impact of trauma on breast health, Susie embarked on a mission to develop a product that could prevent breast injuries. Boob Armour inserts are lightweight, comfortable, and available...

Brief summary of the episode:  This episode is packed with inspiration! Cath Turner started her HSE career by accident in Scotland and got to pick the brains of Lord Cullen (Piper Alpha) in her first year! Upon moving home to Australia Cath continued her health and safety career in construction and mining and was often the only female in the team or on site. Cath has advocated often for herself bu...

Saying yes to opportunity brings new skills and new adventures. This has been Daniele’s motto in her career and in this episode she shares in own journey into WHS and it ‘falling into her lap’. Daniele loves that there are no two days that are the same and that helping others find solutions not adding problems makes her a great collaborator in WHS. Share this episode out so others are inspired to...

Unique WHS journey’s really showcase diversity in skills and our conversation with Andrea was no different. Andrea shares her personal commitment to WHS after working in police, factual investigations and as a solicitor on personal injury claims.  We talk about the ripple effect workplace injuries has on individuals, families and the community. When you hear Andrea talk about her experience and th...

Brief summary of the episode:  Sometimes it takes lived experience to make change and this was the case for Nicole Turnbull when creating Neon Shed. Neon Shed was sparked out of Nicole’s personal experience with bullying and harassment in the workplace and she is here to shine a light and make change on the issues that are often swept under the rug. We talk all things leadership, being brave, and...

In 2022 Trish was named the Women in Safety Leader of the Year and Trish is committed to making change for all who work in these industry sectors and the communities who live near them. Trish strongly believes people have a right to be safe at their work! Trish is a global award winner, speaker and advocate for process safety. This episode goes places!! We chat about platypus and how they shouldn’...

This episode comes with a trigger warning. We discuss the recent case of a former childcare worker sexually assaulting young children. The safety of children must be our number one priority. They are our next generation. Chandra and I discuss what we consider a catastrophic failure of systems when Former childcare worker from Gold Coast was charged with more than 1,600 child sex offences. We talk...

Starting her career as a legal professional left her wanting more. Ingrid found herself looking how she could help people after working in an internal Legal Counsel role. After she loved the Work Health and Safety elements of her role and providing advice Ingrid found her true passion. Ingrid is now the Manager of Network Safety and Risk and is inspiring others to reflect on their own journey into...