Straddling multiple cultures of his native Malaysia, enriched by his 30 years resident in Melbourne, K.C. lives and works diversity in his personal and professional life. Drawing from his experience as editor of a bimonthly business magazine in Malaysia and as editor of a news daily, K.C. brings managerial and additional line perspectives as a former journalist at The Age to his role in MDA Victoria. A student of politics and culture from Monash University, K.C. is writing freelance out of Melbourne for The Malaysian Insight portal.

Zena is a journalist, filmmaker and documentary producer who fell in love with storytelling after spending time in the Middle East and learning about her heritage. She is a fluent Arabic speaker and has worked as a journalist at the ABC, the Australian Associated Press (AAP) and as a TV reporter and producer at Network 10 and The Project.

Akashika is an experienced media, communications and advocacy professional with public relations expertise. Multifaceted Akashika has given PR elevation by running campaigns for multicultural communities. With her boutique Media & Advisory platform, Akashika’s journalism broadcasts contemporary Australia and is the voice in International Affairs spanning India & Australia.

Akashika heads the PR & advocacy for a BetterLaws4Safer Qld Advocacy Coalition for Queensland Human Rights Commission. She is passionate about politics, people & policy.

Faith has worked in radio and television newsrooms both in Australia and internationally. She started in radio in Brisbane before joining the AFN network as a video journalist and television news the producer and presenter  for ‘The Wire’. After a stint as Media Director at the Media Center in Tokyo, she returned to Australia to work for ABC local radio. She was the a producer and presenter for The Wire and a senior producer for ‘Mornings on 4BC’.

Lisa is a multi-award-winning author and public speaker. She is exploring how news professionals can better represent disability — drawing on her own first-hand experience — and the positive ways it can impact other areas of popular culture. For years she has strategically and creatively achieved visibility for her clients’ messaging and is now helping to ensure more authentic visibility for disability.

Aarti Betigeri is currently the media advisor for ACFID, the peak body for international aid organisations in Australia. She is also the Canberra correspondent for Monocle magazine, and writes regularly for the Lowy Institute’s The Interpreter website. She spent almost a decade in India, covering South Asia as a freelancer for a wide range of international media outlets. Prior to this, she worked for the ABC and SBS as a television news presenter, reporter and producer, as well as in radio news and current affairs. She is one of the MEAA’s ACT vice presidents, a member of the MEAA’s freelance committee.

Amy Remeikis is a political reporter with the Guardian, and author of the best selling On Reckoning. She is a regular contributor to The Project, The Drum, Insiders and ABC Radio.

I’m a cadet journalist with The Canberra Times, who has previously worked for The Guardian Australia, 2ser radio and city news Sydney. I am also a UTS journalism alumni. Being a Pakistani- Australian I feel very passionately about amplifying the voices of cultural and linguistically diverse Australians.

Saad Khalid is the Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Woroni (ANU Student Media Inc.). He has previously worked with the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia to highlight ethnocultural footprint in colonial Australia.

Of Pakistani-origin and a current Board Director with the National and Ethnic Multicultural Broadcasters’ Council, and the Canberra Multicultural Service – his work looks to alleviates youth participation in community media.

Julia Kanapathippillai is a journalist covering local news across Canberra and Queanbeyan for News Corp. They cover court and crime, ACT Assembly, and community focused stories.

Toby Vue joined The Canberra Times in April 2021 and is a court reporter after covering the round in NSW and Queensland. He has also reported on regional and rural affairs, local government and sport with other Australian Community Media and News Corp titles. He was a Sunday Canberra Times reporter before covering the ACT and Federal courts.

Rashna is a freelance writer, producer and photographer. Her work spans across topics like politics, internet and youth culture, music and food, but is always rooted in culture. She is a 2022 recipient of the prestigious Our Watch Walkley Foundation fellowship.

Jessica has 20 years combined experience in media and communications incorporating radio, TV and digital — internationally and domestically — with both the public broadcaster and commercial networks.  Presently working with Network Ten as Producer and Fact Checker on the award-winning daily news/current affairs program, The Project, the scope of her news and current affairs experience however, includes a specialisation in Islam/West relations (MA ANU 2013) and communications consulting in the private sector.

In early 2022 Jessica was awarded a Graduate Diploma in Legal Studies (Monash) and is currently undertaking a Doctor of Law – Juris Doctor (ANU 2024).

Prior to her current role with NetworkTen, she has worked with ABC KTVXNews4 Utah, Arabian Radio Network (Dubai), Dubai Media Incorporated, and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Wenlei Ma is an experienced TV and film critic, writer, broadcaster and commentator, working across digital, print, radio and TV. She has written for and appeared on prominent Australian media outlets including news.com.au, ABC, The Guardian Australia, The Sunday Telegraph and The Sydney Morning Herald. Wenlei is a weekly contributor on RN Breakfast, regularly appears on ABC TV’s China Tonight and has hosted RN’s pop culture program, Stop Everything. A Rotten Tomatoes-approved Top Critic, Wenlei has also been a panellist or moderator at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas, the Sydney Writers Festival and the AACTA Screenfest.

Kamin Gock is an award-winning journalist with the ABC Sydney News team. Kamin joined the public broadcaster in 2021 after working as a television reporter at Nine News in Perth, Albury and Orange. He was Western Australian Young Journalist of the Year in 2020 and the recipient of the national Brian White Scholarship in 2018. He has also worked across several Sydney radio newsrooms. He was born and raised in Western Sydney and once upon a time (back when he was fit) dreamed of completing an Iron Man triathlon.

Flip works in content and audience development strategy for ABC News. She currently has a leading role in developing and implementing new technology for collaborative investigative journalism, which includes training teams across News and Investigations in best practices for this work. She’s the driving force behind a new ABC-wide database aimed at improving the diversity of contacts and case studies available for content makers across the ABC, and she’s been a key part of the ABC’s 5050 Equality Project team, which aims to achieve gender equality in coverage and improve representation of Indigenous Australians, people with a disability, and other culturally diverse Australians. She has also developed new models for community outreach, taking deep dives into topics including domestic violence and CALD community engagement.

Briana Blackett is a senior journalist with extensive global news experience. She was a founding member of Al Jazeera English, spending eight years in the Middle East. Prior to that, she worked in London for one of the world’s biggest news agencies — Associated Press Television News (APTN) — covering global affairs and specialising in coverage of Asia and the Middle East. Briana has had blink-and-you-missed-it stints in Federal Politics in Australia and with Greenpeace International in Amsterdam. Briana is the mother of two children with disability and currently works with families in the autism community.

Madeline is a Gomeroi Yinarr (woman) and award-winning Indigenous affairs, journalist. Currently freelance, she has worked across both Indigenous and commercial media, including Fairfax Media, Deadly Vibe Magazine, SBS/NITV, and 10 News First Melbourne.

Madeline is a passionate advocate for diversity in the media, especially the representation of First Nations communities and voices.