Current Australian government responses to suicide include support for around 160 community-based Suicide Prevention Networks (SPNs) operating in communities around Australia. Around 130 of these are supported through the national Wesley Mission LifeForce program. Another 30 or so in South Australia are supported by Preventive Health SA. SPNs are primarily run by volunteers and operate within localised spaces such as urban regions within major cities, regional cities, and rural or remote towns and communities. Our current MRFF-funded research has investigated the nature and scope of work of SPNs through a) thematic analysis of online information on 103 individual networks drawn from Facebook pages and websites, and b) in-depth interviews with 14 key stakeholders and SPN members. Although SPNs work does include support for people experiencing suicidal ideation or bereaved by suicide, we found that it also includes a range of broader mental health promotion strategies offered to whole communities or groups defined by criteria such as gender, age, employment, Indigeneity, or ethnicity. We present our findings on the variety of mental health promotion work undertaken by SPNs, the population groups toward whom such strategies are directed, and the extent to which these strategies address social determinants of suicide risk or target known, higher-risk groups. We also present findings on key factors enabling SPNs to function effectively and remain durable over time. Based on these findings we discuss suitable policy and organisational actions to improve and expand the mental health promotion work of SPNs within their respective communities.

Preventing mental health problems requires a systemic shift towards addressing upstream drivers of distress—trauma, disconnection, and environments that erode wellbeing. This presentation argues that embedding trauma-informed assessments and nature-based interventions into public health strategies can strengthen protective factors across populations. Evidence shows that time in natural environments reduces stress, builds community connection, and supports nervous system regulation. When combined with trauma-informed assessments such as the TIWSA, these approaches provide not only early detection of risk but also pathways for strengthening resilience and community capacity. Case studies will illustrate how schools, workplaces, and community services can integrate nature-based and trauma-informed approaches into their prevention strategies. Attendees will gain practical ideas for low-cost, scalable interventions that can promote population-level wellbeing and reduce the burden of mental illness.

Mental health challenges affect everyone, yet workplaces often focus on outcomes rather than the wellbeing of the people who drive them. Stress, vicarious strain, and everyday pressures can reduce resilience, engagement, and connection, impacting both individuals and the broader environment. Supporting mental health proactively through practical prevention and coping strategies, benefiting both individuals and organisations.
Drawing on lived experience of profound grief and recovery, Benn developed the RISE framework (Recognise, Invite, Separate, Engage) as a practical approach to supporting mental health. RISE equips individuals to notice early signs of strain, invite supportive connections, create healthy boundaries, and engage in positive coping practices that strengthen resilience.
Delivered through keynotes and interactive workshops, RISE helps teams and individuals reduce stigma, normalise help-seeking, and build a culture of mutual support. Participants leave empowered and prepared to take practical steps for their wellbeing, maintain connection with peers, and apply strategies that prevent stress from escalating.
Embedding resilience-building approaches like RISE across workplaces and communities promotes mental health at individual, team, and organisational levels. By empowering people with a practical toolkit, we can create environments where everyone is equipped to thrive, contribute fully, and sustain their wellbeing in a changing world.

A seventeen year wellbeing research programme in New Zealand has produced breakthroughs in evidence based, multidisciplinary, and authentically holistic conceptions of wellbeing. The research programme addressed four core questions: What is wellbeing? How is wellbeing influenced? How can wellbeing be measured? How can wellbeing be improved over time? From this work emerged the Universal Wellbeing Model, a testable definition of Universal Wellbeing, the Determinants of Universal Wellbeing, a Universal Wellbeing Evaluation Tool, and the Prevention Universal Wellbeing Charter.
The research was initially motivated by a pressing challenge recently highlighted in the 2024 Accord: to lift higher education programme completion rates. As the investigation progressed, researchers repeatedly encountered international evidence of entrenched poor wellbeing and its cascading consequences. Although the specific profile of poor wellbeing varied between countries, two constant barriers to progress identified were practitioner burnout and rising costs. In New Zealand, entrenched poor wellbeing manifests in child and adult suicide, addictions, chronic disease, low school attendance and achievement, mental health problems, family violence, crime, inadequate housing, and declining social cohesion. Each year the call for more funding to respond to crises—“more ambulances at the bottom of the cliff”—repeats and grows louder.
In response to these findings, the FREEDOM Wellbeing Institute convened a national conference, The Prevention Imperative: Universal Wellbeing, there the Prevention Universal Wellbeing Charter was introduced and opened for consultation. The Charter aims to empower individuals and communities by reallocating a greater portion of thinking, effort, and resources toward preventing poor wellbeing at its roots rather than primarily funding downstream responses. This presentation shares the Charter, the consultation outcomes, and subsequent developments advancing a primordial Prevention Universal Wellbeing, and systems level approach.

What is the problem/issue that requires action?
Rates of help-seeking for suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, and mental disorders are low among children and adolescents. Parents are often the facilitators of care for young people, yet they may not have sufficient knowledge and skills to identify mental health needs or suicide risk in their child or facilitate their access to services. The aim of this study is to test the effect of a new mental health and suicide gatekeeper resource for parents and caregivers on participant self-efficacy, knowledge, stigma and help-seeking.

What do we know or have we learned to address this problem/issue, and how has this finding been derived?
The “Recognise, Respond and Support – A Parent’s Guide to Youth Mental Health” resource was developed around the needs and experiences of Australian parents/caregivers. Parents and caregivers with a child aged 5-17 years participated in a two-arm randomised controlled trial (n=509) comparing the new online resource to a wait-list control condition. At post-intervention, there was a significant effect of the intervention on mental health self-efficacy, suicide and self-harm self-efficacy, perceived mental health and suicide knowledge, suicide stigma and literacy, and barriers to help-seeking.

How has this been used in practice?
The Recognise, Respond and Support – A Parent’s Guide to Youth Mental Health is an effective and accessible resource that addresses a clear unmet need for parents and caregivers.

What actions should we take in the future to address the problem/issue?
Providing parents and caregivers with the knowledge and skills to support the mental health of their children is likely to facilitate more timely and effective care for young people experiencing distress.

This presentation will provide an overview of batyr’s Program Evolution project, an innovative approach to designing mental health prevention programs in secondary schools and universities in Australia. batyr’s development process breaks the mould of mental health education by first asking what young people truly need to support their mental health and that of their community. This translates into evidence-based programs that centre peer-to-peer engagement and lived experience storytelling.
Since 2011, batyr has reached over 330,000 young people with mental health education and training programs that reduce stigma and improve help-seeking. batyr’s collaborative approach with young people, service partners and educators has been creating pathways for young people to better inform support structures around them to meet their needs.


The batyr team will share with conference delegates how the Program Evolution project embedded youth participation and lived experience within the design process, whilst also greatly improving capacity to scale nationally and creating fewer barriers for young people across Australia to access their programs. The presenters will share the research design and key findings that led to the development of the new program structure. Finally, the batyr team will present the initial pilot insights and their relevance to the mental health education sector.


We look forward to talking action with delegates and leaving the audience with the following key learnings:
1 - Ways stakeholders can move from listening to youth insights to taking actionable steps for change.
2 - How youth insights can be embedded in research design for program development.
3 - Practical ways to ensure program adaptability in responding to the evolving needs of young people.

Eating disorders are a major, preventable cause of mental distress, physical illness and death, yet public health systems often overlook their determinants. Policies, programs, and messages about health, food, minds and bodies can unintentionally increase risk. Shifting these systems is essential to achieving genuine, equitable health promotion and harm prevention.
Since their launch in 2024, the Eating Disorder Safe (ED Safe) principles have influenced conversations and practices in relation to health, food, mind and body across a diverse range of contexts, including healthcare, public policy, education settings, sports settings, and workplaces. Early indications suggest that collective uptake of these approaches to eating disorder prevention and harm minimisation is both possible and already in progress.
To build on this momentum, ongoing support from early adopters is essential. The next phase of this work depends on people and communities using ED Safe principles and approaches to help expand their impact by embedding them into everyday practice, contributing to implementation efforts, and helping others to understand and apply them in their own contexts.
This presentation will equip attendees to become “ED Safe Champions”, with tools and knowledge to support the broader adoption of ED Safe principles and approaches in their own fields and wider spheres of influence. It will explore strategies for integrating the principles into policy development, research design and interdisciplinary practice. Participants will also consider how to evaluate impact, contribute to evidence-informed refinement of the implementation plan, and influence systems change through knowledge translation and thought leadership.
The goal is to strengthen and expand the use of the ED Safe principles so that safe, inclusive practices become standard across all settings. By focusing on what works and building networks of support, we can help foster a culture where safe and supported relationships with health, food, mind and body become the norm.