WANADA Board and Staff

Neil has extensive leadership experience in a range of Board, executive and CEO roles in public and highly competitive private sector and not-for-profit environments.

Emma is the Chief Executive Officer of Palmerston Association, a Board Director of the Western Australian Association for Mental Health (WAAMH) and former Vice Chair of the WA AIDS Council.

Emma is experienced with governance, strategy, risk, and clinical and organisational development. Emma has 20 years experience in the non government, and government sectors. Emma is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. She has a Masters in Applied Social Studies, a Post-Graduate Diploma and a Post Qualifying Award in Social Work, a Bachelors with Hons in Theology, and a Certificate IV in Coaching.

Lorraine Keane is the Chief Executive Officer at Holyoake and Non-Executive Director at Community Arts Network.

Holyoake provides evidence-based programs to support those who are affected by alcohol, other drugs, and mental health issues. Holyoake operates in Victoria Park, Midland and the Wheatbelt.

Lorraine has over 20 years of commercial and not-for-profit experience, having worked across a range of industries such as aged care, disabilities, arts, and mental health. She has held many executive roles over the years that have most recently included Chief Financial Officer at Screenwest and General Manager Corporate Services at Holyoake. Her areas of expertise are strategy, leadership, governance, and finance.

Lorraine is passionate about connection and believes as humans we are all hard wired for connection. Her work at Holyoake enables her to realise her passion as the team experiences connection daily through the delivery of its services. 

Merinda is an experienced Chief Executive Officer with extensive management history within the hospital, health, community and not-for-profit sectors. Merinda has strong leadership skills with a passion for collective leadership and social impact.

Merinda’s previous roles and experience include Chief Executive Officer at Coolibah Care, Executive Manager Strategic Development at 360 Health + Community and General Manager Health Services, 360 Health + Community. Merinda holds a Bachelor of Applied Psychology and a Bachelor of Counselling from the University of Notre Dame, Australia.

Andrew is Chief Executive Officer of Milliya Rumurra Aboriginal Corporation. Milliya Rumurra is an alcohol and drug service based in Broome. Programs provided include residential rehabilitation, a sobering-up shelter, community based prevention and treatment. 

Milliya Rumurra primarily offers treatment services for Indigenous residents, however, non-Indigenous people are also eligible to access services.

Michael has nearly three decades of experience managing alcohol and other drug services and other social programs across three countries.

He proactively works for societal change, having served on several advisory and governance bodies including the Victorian Alcohol and Drug Association (VAADA) and community organisations in Taiwan, Western Australia, and Victoria. He campaigned for the adoption of Victoria’s first safe injecting centre and, whilst national leader of The Salvation Army in Taiwan, campaigned against the institutionalised discrimination of homeless persons in that country.

In Australia, he headed up The Salvation Army’s alcohol and other drug services across five states and territories and led that organisation’s large and diverse range of social programs across the state of Victoria.

Michael highly values and promotes good management practice and skilling-up leaders for the NGO sector. He has judged the Institute of Managers and Leaders (IML) excellence awards and been a mentor to emerging leaders through the IML Mentor Programme.

Paul Dessauer is the CEO of Peer Based Harm Reduction WA (PBHRWA), a not-for-profit non-government organisation and the state’s only peer-based alcohol and other drug service delivery agency. PBHRWA provides non-judgmental peer-based support, information and education, advocacy, overdose prevention programs, testing and treatment for blood-borne viruses (BBVs) and sexually transmitted infections, and a range of health and harm reduction services aimed at reducing the transmission of BBVs and reducing the incidence of other harms associated with drug use in communities throughout Western Australia.

Paul has worked at PBHRWA for more than 23 years, with his previous roles involving delivering and coordinating outreach health and harm reduction services, overdose prevention, take-home-naloxone, and peer education projects, and providing consultancy, training, and workforce development for other agencies. Paul has also worked as a Drug and Alcohol Officer for the State-wide Specialist Aboriginal Mental Health Service; as an educator and consultant for the Transnational Institute (in China and Myanmar); and as a trainer for the Burnet Institute for Public Health. In 2002 Paul was awarded an Alcohol & Drug Council of Australia (ADCA) Australia Day Medal. 

Jill has been the Chief Executive Officer of the Western Australian Network of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies (WANADA) since 2000. Jill is passionate about supporting sector quality, strategies that promote equitable access to services by marginalised peoples, and enabling the translation of evidence into policy and practice. Jill's work involves advocacy for systems reform that promotes alcohol and other drug use as a health issue. 

Jill graduated from the University of Western Australia with first class honours in Anthropology with a thesis on women and drug use. She developed the WA AOD Sector Quality Framework in 2004. This has now been developed by WANADA into an international accreditation standard for the alcohol and other drug service sector.

Mary-Louise works part-time for WANADA and is currently on long service leave until September 2023. Mary-Louise also works part-time for Milliya Rumurra Aboriginal Corporation. Previous to this, Mary-Louise worked as the National Finance Manager at the Native Title Tribunal. Mary-Louise particularly enjoys working with organisations as they grow and develop.

Susan has a strong background in projects and administration across the private and not-for-profit sectors and was previously at WANADA from 2004-2008. Most recently she was engaged at ConnectGroups in a sector capacity building role running a small grants pilot program for the community sector.

At WANADA, Susan works to scope and develop systems that support the communication, coordination, data and reporting needs of the alcohol and other drug sector.

Rochelle has recently returned to the alcohol and other drug sector, following a career that has focused on strategic and organisational transformation spanning multiple human service sectors. Rochelle has worked to improve outcomes for vulnerable people through systemic change, and organisation, function, and program re-design and development. Building effective and trusted relationships with key stakeholders is pivotal to Rochelle’s approach and is essential in her new role at WANADA, focusing on supporting sector quality and expanding access to AOD services with the Aboriginal Community Controlled sector.

Rochelle graduated with Honours in Psychology and Politics and is passionate about working strategically and in partnership to improve outcomes for WA’s most vulnerable people.

Originally from Austria, Stefanie moved to Perth in 2016. She has a background in management consulting and employment law. Through her collaboration with stakeholders and customers across the world, Stefanie has developed a sound understanding of economic relations and organisational coherence. With a keen interest in the human service sector, Stefanie is well-placed to support WANADA's ongoing development.

After taking a year off to travel Australia, Charli returned to WANADA in July 2022. She has six years’ experience working in administration for the alcohol and other drug sector whilst completing a Bachelor of Science and Master of Strategic Communication at UWA, from which she graduated in 2019. Prior to joining the WANADA team, Charli worked in journalism as a Content Coordinator at a boutique media firm. She is particularly interested in policy and public perception of alcohol and other drug use and is keen to expand her knowledge and apply her skills in this new role.

Deanne is from the south west of WA and came to the city to study and later to work. Deanne has maintained a keen interest in not-for-profit communications since finishing her studies at Murdoch University, where she completed a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Communication Studies and a Graduate Diploma in Journalism. She enjoys working with the diversity of people in the alcohol and other drug sector and sharing the needs, concerns and successes of agencies and consumers with the wider community.

Matt holds a Bachelor of Arts and Science degree in Behavioural Science. He has recently worked in various roles at community- and prison-based residential AOD therapeutic communities and has volunteered his time to contribute to the development of a peak alcohol and other drug consumer-led organisation. He is eager to apply his skillset and support the sector to implement policies that provide principles of self-determination, promoting the voice of consumers to influence effective service planning and delivery.

Carlia has a background in disability, mental health and the community services sector. Carlia supports WANADA members through the Childcare Access Program (CAP), the Interpreter Access Program (IAP), and the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Carlia provides administrative support to the team at WANADA and is looking forward to further developing her skills.