The NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner, Dr James Cockayne, has announced the appointment of an Advisory Panel for FY 2024-2025. Twenty of the initial cohort of 29 experts involved in FY 2023-2024 return to the panel. They are joined by an additional 13 leading specialists committed to enhancing the Commissioner’s initiatives to combat modern slavery in NSW.
The 2024-2025 Advisory Panel boasts a diverse array of professionals from fields such as sustainable finance, procurement, environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG), research, policy making, law, migration, humanitarian assistance, disability support, healthcare, unions, business, community support services, and survivor advocacy.
The Advisory Panel is at the centre of the emerging community of purpose driving NSW’s anti-slavery efforts. Panel members serve in a personal capacity. They provide important, confidential advice to the Commissioner, supporting the sustainable and inclusive implementation of his Strategic Plan 2023-2026: Working Together for Real Freedom.
"I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the outgoing Advisory Panel members for their outstanding contributions to NSW’s anti-slavery efforts in 2023/2024. I look forward to working with the newly formed group of experts and leveraging their extensive knowledge to further enhance my Office’s strategic projects and reinforce NSW’s leadership in the fight against modern slavery," said Dr Cockayne.
All members of the Advisory Panel are entitled to be paid for their time and expertise and have access to counselling and other supports. They serve in a personal capacity and commit to the confidentiality of the Panel's deliberations and engagement with the Commissioner and his team.
In line with the Commissioner's commitment to centring survivors in policy, program design and delivery, the Panel includes numerous members with both declared and undeclared experience of modern slavery. Additionally, over half of the panel members are actively engaged with people with lived experience and at-risk populations, focusing on the prevention, response, and remediation of modern slavery harms.
The new members of the NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner's Advisory Panel are (in alphabetical order):
- Yoness Blackmore is an experienced lawyer with extensive experience in employment and industrial law. Drawing on her commercial, policy and legal expertise, her specialty lies in developing effective, realistic, and targeted measures that enable organisations (and persons) to manage risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains.
- Måns Carlsson OAM is Head of ESG at Ausbil Investment Management Limited, chairs the Human Rights Working Group of RIAA (Responsible Investment Association Australasia), and is on the steering committee of IAST-APAC (Investors Against Slavery and Trafficking – Asia-Pacific). Måns has engaged with corporates about modern slavery for over a decade, and during that time he has undertaken several research field trips focused on labour rights and other human rights in South-East Asia. He was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for contribution to the responsible investment industry in 2022.
- Ro Coroneos’ expertise and passion lie in the ‘S’ in ESG, ranging from business responses to respecting human rights, to measuring social impact and value. Creative, practical, and compassionate, Ro is known for innovating social sustainability in the property industry and building consensus to drive systemic change in businesses tackling modern slavery risk. Ro received the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Business Award in 2016 for her ‘Design for Dignity’ guidelines for accessible design principles in urban spaces.
- Alan Dayeh is a Corporate Sustainability practitioner with over 25 years experience, including in Business and Human Rights. His contribution to the Advisory Panel will focus on improving business practices to reduce the risks of slavery and improving levels of support for newly arrived and culturally and linguistically diverse communities of NSW that are exposed to slavery practices.
- Biba Honnet is a social impact expert and advocate who has worked in the field in South East Asia and Australia since 2008. Her focus has been improving the environments and systems that adversely affect vulnerable groups, with particular attention to forced migration & settlement, labour exploitation, and human rights. She currently leads Settlement & Migrant support work for the St Vincent de Paul Society NSW as the Manager of North Coast Settlement Service.
- Lisa Ira is a qualified lawyer and works as a Senior Policy Officer at People with Disability Australia, specialising in international law and human rights. Lisa’s expertise lies in the intersection between disability and modern slavery, particularly the application of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the context of modern slavery.
- Blake Loaney leads the operations of A21 in Australia, developing and implementing prevention and awareness programs to equip people to understand, identify and reduce the risk of human trafficking. With nearly a decade of experience in anti-trafficking efforts, Blake is passionate about mobilising individuals to take action, believing everyone has a role in ending slavery.
- Dr Darian McBain is a globally experienced Chief Sustainability Officer, advisor and board member. She is a world recognised expert, speaker and author on sustainability, ESG, supply chains, ocean economy, business human rights and sustainable finance. She was named a UN SDG Pioneer for a Sustainable Ocean Economy in 2021, a Fast Company Most Creative People in Business in 2020, and one of Asia's Top Sustainability Superwomen
- Kim Miller a social worker, educator, learner, and ocean swimmer who is on a mission to see the end of human trafficking. Working with Blue Dragon Children's Foundation in Vietnam, Kim has gained both a local and international perspective on modern slavery.
- Kara Nicholls is the Founder of Impact Governance Pty Ltd, established in 2021, to partner with clients seeking fit-for-purpose, scalable, impactful, and meaningful social and governance initiatives with ESG frameworks. Impact Governance also trades as Governance on Purpose to provide support to NFP and social enterprises. Until 2021, Kara spent over 27 years in executive governance roles spanning across large ASX listed, unlisted entities, NFPs, and start up entities. She brings extensive knowledge of enterprise-wide governance, risk, and company compliance, with broad industry experience across financial services (banking and investment banking), retail, property, higher education, industrial (oil, mining and manufacturing), NFPs, and at the Australian Securities Exchange (primary and secondary capital markets).
- Robyn Ormerod has worked within the humanitarian sector for close to 15 years. Currently based in Sydney, Robyn works with the International Organization for Migration (UN Migration Agency) as the Focal Point for Modern Slavery and Counter Trafficking for IOM Australia, linked with Asia Pacific. She provides guidance to Government, industry associations and private sector entities to enhance human rights of migrants, aiming to ensure ethical recruitment practices, fair and inclusive conduct working with migrant workers across operations and supply chains, and prevention of exploitive practices.
- Siobhan Toohill has been a corporate sustainability professional for 20 years, most recently as the first Chief Sustainability Officer at a major Australian bank, leading policy and action in climate change, natural capital, human rights (including modern slavery) and a range of social impact programs. In this role, Siobhan established a significant remedy program in response to the bank's connection to online child exploitation through the misuse of a financial product.
- Mabel Wong has over 15 years of experience in social justice, human rights and ESG, working for development agencies, consulting firms, and corporate entities, both internationally and in Australia.
