Run Against Violence

When almost everything designed to help children affected by domestic and family violence is built by adults, for adults, what does support look like through a child's eyes? Ruby Allen knows, because she lived it. At 19, she's the founder of Kids of Purple, a youth-led initiative she started as a Year 10 school assignment, a place where kids affected by family violence can see their experience recognised in their own language and find help that actually makes sense to them. She's the Gold Coast Young Australian of the Year, a law student, and she's already shaping how organisations like Brisbane Catholic Education, the Queensland Department of Housing and the Queensland Victims Commissioner think about what children need. In this episode, Ruby and Kirrily get into why "call a helpline" doesn't work for many kids, the shame children carry and what it does to their sense of who they are, how to have a clear, honest conversation with the young people in your life about what's okay and what isn't, and why young people need to be co-designing the solutions built for them. If anything in this episode feels close to home, 1800RESPECT is there any time, day or night, 1800 737 732. For more resources and information on our events and programs, head to runagainstviolence.com. If this episode got you thinking, don't keep it to yourself, send it to one person in your community who needs to hear it. And if you've got 30 seconds, leave us a review on Apple or Spotify. Every share and every review helps this show reach another community. This podcast was recorded on Gadigal and Wiradjuri land. CREDITS: Host & Producer: Kirrily Dear Executive Producer & Supervising Editor: Pariya Taherzadeh Audio Editor: Graham Hunter The Run Against Violence podcast is independently funded by the Broken Hill to Sydney Team Chase. Every entry and every piece of merch powers the movement to eliminate family violence from our communities.

How many Australian kids are growing up around domestic and family violence? The honest answer is bigger than most of us want to believe, and until we can look at it clearly, we can't change it. To open the season, Kirrily sits down with Professor Tim Moore, Deputy Director of the Australian Catholic University's Institute of Child Protection Studies and one of the researchers behind the Australian Child Maltreatment Study, the first research of its kind to capture how many Australians experienced abuse or family violence growing up. But this conversation is about more than numbers. Professor Moore and Kirrily get into why children so often feel invisible to the adults around them, what it takes to be the adult who actually sees them, why young people want to be part of building the solution, and the small, everyday actions any of us can take to become that person in our own community. If anything in this episode feels close to home, 1800RESPECT is there any time, day or night, 1800 737 732. For more resources and information on our events and programs, head to runagainstviolence.com. If this episode got you thinking, don't keep it to yourself, send it to one person in your community who needs to hear it. And if you've got 30 seconds, leave us a review on Apple or Spotify. Every share and every review helps this show reach another community. This podcast was recorded on Gadigal and Wiradjuri land. CREDITS: Host & Producer: Kirrily Dear Executive Producer & Supervising Editor: Pariya Taherzadeh Audio Editor: Graham Hunter The Run Against Violence podcast is independently funded by the Broken Hill to Sydney Team Chase. Every entry and every piece of merch powers the movement to eliminate family violence from our communities.

Domestic and family violence affects every community in Australia. We know the scale of the problem. We know more about what drives it. And we know prevention is possible. So why haven't we solved it? In Season 4 of the Run Against Violence podcast, founder Kirrily Dear goes beyond the headlines to explore what preventing domestic and family violence actually looks like in practice. Across the season, Kirrily talks with researchers, community leaders and people doing the work on the ground. We'll explore the scale of the problem with researcher Professor Tim Moore, examine the cultural drivers that allow violence to take root, and hear from people like Lou Hayes who are showing what community-led prevention can look like in regional towns, migrant communities and communities right across Australia. Because real change doesn't happen through awareness alone. It happens when communities decide what they will and won't accept, and then start doing something about it. Each episode asks three simple questions: What is the problem? What does the solution look like? And what part can I play? Imagine if one day we could look back on domestic and family violence the way we now look back on smoking in classrooms, on planes and on buses. Imagine being able to say: We don't accept domestic and family violence here anymore. That's the kind of change we're working towards. Season 4 starts Tuesday, 25 August. Follow the Run Against Violence podcast wherever you listen to podcasts, or visit runagainstviolence.com to find out more. One person can start a revolution. What part will you play? CREDITS: Host & Producer: Kirrily Dear Executive Producer & Editor: Pariya Taherzadeh

Patty Kikos interviews Brenton Pobjie, whose life has been shaped by service and resilience. His grandmother found refuge with the Salvation Army when fleeing domestic violence with her 6 children, and his father became a minister, instilling in Brenton the importance of helping others. After his mother tragically passed in a car accident, Brenton dedicated himself to youth work, including time spent in rehabilitation schools. As a Child Protection case worker, Brenton emphasises the power of deep listening and the need to show respect when in someone’s home. He shares practical tools to help children express when they feel unsafe, offering valuable insights for anyone caring for vulnerable young people.

Tarsha Jones is a proud Gomeroi woman who only learned of her Aboriginal heritage when she was a teenager. She opens up to Patty Kikos about how family violence impacted her life when her brother was hit by a drunk driver that caused him to have frontal lobe damage, and was ultimately drug addicted for 25 years. When Tarsha left her emotionally abusive husband who was an alcoholic, she never expected that her life would turn upside down. But that it would then become the right way up after she completed a TAFE course, changed careers, and after much deep listening and unexpected soul searching fro both her and her husband, found their way back to each other - in a much healthier way.

The fabulous Dr Hayley Boxall shines a light on family and partner violence by teaching us about "desistance", and practical ways that we can encourage people to stop choosing to use violence. In this refreshingly down to earth interview with Patty Kikos, Hayley talks about the importance of 'respect' for different cultures, valid reasons people choose to remain in relationships, how violence is not limited to lower socio economic environments and why pressuring someone to 'just leave', won't necessarily solve their problems.

15 years have passed since the tragic event when Brenda Lin’s parents, brothers and aunt were murdered. She is now a criminologist who is completing her PhD, and is one of the co-founders of the Survivor Hub, an organisation that supports, informs & empowers people impacted by sexual assault. Brenda shares her extraordinary story of resilience with Patty Kikos, and how she is still healing after the grief and trauma she has experienced.

Dr Tim Moore is an Associate Professor and the Deputy Director at the Institute of Child Protection Studies. He shares his love of storytelling with Patty Kikos, along with comical cautionary tales of 'what not to do' from the lessons he learned as a youth worker. Tim's passion about empowering adults to have 'uncomfortable conversations', to ensure young people have a voice, inspired him to co author the much anticipated Tuned In training modules, released by NAPCAN. We take a deep dive into all 6 components, which are a wonderful resource for those working with groups of young people, to help them 'be safe and feel safe'.

Tarryn Cherniayeff shares her extraordinary story of empowerment with Patty Kikos. From relinquishing control and access to her own money to uncovering her ex’s gambling addiction and ice pipe. None of that was as shocking as the money he’d stolen or the amount of loans he’d taken out in her name. While the financial fallout is not quite over, Tarryn has found incredible ways to experience freedom, heal, love, thrive, be independent, and live life on her terms.

The party is over. Now that the Run Against Violence Virtual Team Challenge has finished for another year, we look back and reflect on the 2022 challenge and remember why it’s important to continue shining a light on domestic and family violence in our communities. In this episode: meet Colleen from the Tomaree Road Runners in our Team Spotlight, hear return guests Sammy, Mark and Natalie share what they loved and learnt during the 2022 Virtual Challenge, and listen as the co-founder of the Run Against Violence, Kirrily Dear, shares what she has learnt this year and what she is grateful for.

The first Run Against Violence Virtual Team Challenge was held in 2017. 5 years on, we speak with 3 of our original Team Captains, Margie, Ben and Belinda about why they are still passionately involved with the Run Against Violence and how conversations in their community have changed over that time. In this episode: meet Mayor Sharon Cadwallader from Ballina Shire Council, and meet Melanie from the Newcastle Anglican Walk for Change and Peter Stuart, the Anglican Bishop of Newcastle, in our Team Spotlight.

The Katherine Women’s Legal Service (KWILS) is a not-for-profit community legal centre based in Katherine in the Northern Territory that provides free legal services in the Katherine region. In fact, they cover an area the size of Victoria & Tasmania combined! Siobhan Mackay is the CEO of KWILS and has a unique insight into the challenges faced by domestic and family violence victims, and the support services available to them, in remote and regional communities (and our First Nations and Indigenous women in particular). Also in this episode, you'll meet Belinda from the Dead Ringers in our Team Spotlight.

Run Against Violence partners with the National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) to help ensure that every teenager in Australia has the opportunity to learn about what healthy relationships look like for them. Over the last 2 years, the RAV has donated $200,000 to NAPCAN to enhance and expand its Love Bites program (and 100% of funds raised in 2022 will be donated too). Madelene McGrath is the National Stakeholder Manager and NAPCAN and Dr Brenda Dobia is an Adjunct Fellow, with the School of Education at the Western Sydney University and has worked with NAPCAN for many years to adapt, expand and develop Love Bites. Today they join us to talk about Love Bites, including how the money raised by RAV has and will be used to expand and enhance the program. In this episode: meet Mayor Greg Williamson from Mackay Regional Council, and meet Michelle from the Warrandyte Mum Runners Trailblazers and Warrandyte Mum Runners Legends in our Team Spotlight.

The co-founders of Run Against Violence, Kirrily Dear and Brad Smithers, return today to lift the lid and take you behind the scenes of the Run Against Violence. Together they share the financial report for the 2020 - 2021 Financial Year. In this episode: hear Kirrily outline the history of the partnership between the Run Against Violence and the National Association for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) and how RAV has supported their Love Bites program over the last 2 years, hear Brad share the future plans for Run Against Violence meet Mayor Tom Kennedy from Broken Hill City Council, and hear from Renae from BMMC3 in our Team Spotlight

How do we change our way of life, one conversation at a time? Today we’re joined by two women - Kathy Kelly and Jane Caro - who have, in their own ways, played a pivotal role in changing the culture in our community in different ways. Kathy Kelly is mum to Thomas and Stuart Kelly and in 2012 received that phone call every parent dreads. Thomas had been killed after an unprovoked and fatal attack at Sydney's Kings Cross. Four years later their younger son, Stuart, took his own life. Both boys were 18 years old. After Thomas was killed, Kathy and her husband Ralph began speaking started speaking about their experience, which gathered community support leading to widespread changes around alcohol-fuelled violence. Jane Caro is a Walkley Award winning columnist, author, broadcaster, documentary maker, feminist and social commentator. She shares her views on how the language and stories we share need to change if we are to see an end to domestic and family violence in our community. In this episode: hear Kathy share the role that conversations played in changing our culture around alcohol-fuelled violence and why it’s important to talk about difficult topics with and in front of our children Hear Jane explain how the messages we give men and women, as well as young boys and young girls, reinforce our existing culture, hear from Beth from Social Walkers in our Team Spotlight.

Pat Farmer is a multiple world record holder for endurance running. He has run the length of India and Vietnam, through the Middle East, across Australia, around Australia and across America a couple of times. And, wait for it, from the North Pole to the South Pole. In this episode, he helps us celebrate the start of the 2022 Run Against Violence today. Pat shares his advice on how to achieve your goal for the Challenge and what to focus on when times get tough. In this episode: get an update on our plans for the podcast during the 2022 Virtual Challenge, hear from Mayor Des Noll from Millicent, South Australia about how his community is rallying together to prevent domestic and family violence (including the important role you can play in that process), meet Tracey, the Run Against Violence social media coordinator, and meet Dani from Dan’s Army in our Team Spotlight.

The theme of this year’s RAV Virtual Challenge is today’s conversation is tomorrow’s way of life. But how do the conversations we have today shape our community and our lives? We explore this question in this episode. You’ll hear from: Dani who, 12 months ago, shared her story of being a survivor of domestic and family violence for the first time publicly on the Run Against Violence. She returns to share the impact that telling her story has had on her life and the conversations she’s had as a result, journalist, editor and publisher Angela Priestley on the power of conversations, why stories (not stats) have an impact and how the conversations in the media around domestic and family violence have shifted over the last 10 years. Jeannette from Team Jumble Squad in our Team Spotlight.

Sue and Lloyd Clarke became passionate and vocal advocates for the criminalisation of coercive control after their daughter Hannah and Hannah’s 3 children Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey were murdered by Hannah’s estranged husband in February 2020 in a case that shocked and galvanised the nation. Hannah had been a victim of coercive control for many years. Coercive control is a phrase we all recognise but many of us don’t understand what it is. In this episode, Sue and Lloyd explain what coercive control is and Hannah’s experience of it, as well as the status of the laws around the country and the work they now do via the foundation they established, called Small Steps 4 Hannah, to end family and domestic violence in Australia.

Do conversations have the power to create real change to our way of life? Are they the key to ending domestic and family violence within our community? In this special episode, Jen Brown, the host of the 2022 RAV podcast shares her thoughts and reflects on what she’s learnt from the Run Against Violence community about the power of conversations. Also in this episode: Meet Tammy from Not Fast Just Furious in our Team Spotlight, a sneak peek of an upcoming episode featuring a popular return guest.

How do we create real change in our community around family and domestic violence? That’s what we explore in this episode of the Run Against Violence where you’ll meet the dynamic duo of Robyn Harmon and David Harmon. Robyn is a school teacher, Assistant Principal and facilitator of the Love Bites program that Run Against Violence proudly supports. David has led the charge via the Rotary Club in Ballina to change the culture around family and domestic violence in their local community. Also in this episode: Robyn shares why she thinks the Love Bites program run by NAPCAN is so effective, David shares how the Love Bites program can be used as a catalyst to generate conversations and change in the broader community, Meet Laura from the Lalor Running Club in our Team Spotlight.