Conference keynote speakers announced

Elder Abuse Action Australia (EAAA) and co-host Aged Rights Advocacy Service (ARAS) have announced the keynote speakers for the highly anticipated 2024 Australian elder abuse conference, Turn Up The Volume!

This gathering of leading experts, advocates, professionals and community members will be held from 22-24 July 2024 and will provide a pivotal platform for discussions on ending the abuse of older people and promoting their well-being and safety.

Jane Caro, AM

Jane is a Walkley Award-winning Australian columnist, author, feminist and public education activist. With an illustrious career spanning advertising, academia and the literary world, she brings a wealth of rich experiences to our event.

With 13 published books under her belt, Jane continues to contribute valuable insights through her columns for Nine Media, The Big Smoke and articles for The Saturday Paper and The Guardian.

Beyond her literary pursuits, Jane enthusiastically takes on diverse projects, including writer’s festivals, speaking engagements and developing a TV series. Her versatility and dedication make her the perfect keynote speaker for our conference.

Tracey Curro

Tracey Curro is a former 60 Minutes reporter with over 20 years’ experience as a journalist, producer and presenter in mainstream media.

In 2023, following the death of her father, Tracey shared publicly the harrowing story of her elderly father’s neglect and abuse as an ex-partner and relatives sought to wrest control of his affairs from his daughters in a two-year battle through the legal and administrative systems.

Her distinguished career on flagship news and public affairs programs combined with her lived experience makes Tracey uniquely placed to provide a powerful personal narrative.

Robert Fitzgerald AM

Recently appointed as Age Discrimination Commissioner, a role he will take up in April 2024, Mr Fitzgerald has been the NSW Ageing and Disability Commissioner since 2019.

He served as a Commissioner on the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, and as a Commissioner at the Productivity Commission for over ten years. In that latter role he conducted multiple inquiries including into the Care for Older Australians, National Disability Agreement and Australia’s Health Workforce.

Commissioner Fitzgerald has dedicated much of his adult life to promoting the rights of all Australians, especially those most vulnerable. He has been a dedicated advocate of universal, enforceable and practical rights embedded in high quality public policy, legislation, service systems, and the community. He has actively pursued the rights of older people and those with disability to live free of discrimination and abuse in every aspect of their lives.

Anne Burgess AM

Anne Burgess has a long history at Executive level in Government as the Director of Mental Health, Director Office for Women and Acting Commissioner for Equal Opportunity.  She is Chair of the Aged Care Council Of Elders, Deputy Chair of Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) and Chair of its network member in South Australia, Aged Rights Advocacy Service (ARAS).

Anne is also Deputy-President of COTA SA and Chair of their Policy Council. Anne also sits on the Northern Adelaide Health Board and the Legal Practitioner’s Conduct Tribunal.

In 2021 Anne was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for her significant service to mental health, gender equality, and older people.

Bev Lange, EAAA’s Executive Officer and Carolanne Barkla, Chief Executive of ARAS released this statement:

We’re delighted at the inclusion of such high-quality keynote speakers. Each of them brings a wealth of knowledge, passion and dedication to the cause of preventing elder abuse. These speakers, together with the excellent program we’re curating, reflect the commitment of EAAA and ARAS to fostering meaningful conversations, driving change and advancing the mission of eliminating the abuse of older people at Turn Up The Volume! We urge everyone to join us as we amplify our voices in creating a future where older people live with dignity and free from the threat of abuse”.

Registrations are available for both in-person and online participation on the Conference website.

Media enquiries:

Diane Lyons, Communications Manager, EAAA diane@eaaa.org.au or phone 1800 960 026
Carolanne Barkla, Chief Executive, ARAS carolanneb@agedrights.asn.au

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