We have invited guest speakers to our conference, who will be presenting their valuable insights on a range of topics that are relevant to our members. So far, the following guest speakers have been confirmed:
2021 Sports Hall of Fame inductee Jana Pittman’s story is a roller coaster of triumph, defeat, failure and success. She will take you on a journey through the peaks and troughs that helped shape her career and build her into who she is today.
Two times World Champion, four times Commonwealth Champion, in the sport of athletics, Jana Pittman personifies resilience and determination. When continued injuries hampered her athletic career and could have signalled retirement, she swapped the track for the ice. Jana joined the Australian Women’s bobsleigh team, to become the first women to represent Australia in both a Summer (2000,2004) and Winter Olympic Games (2014).
Off the track, Jana completed a Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery) and is now a registrar in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. She has completed a Masters of Reproductive Medicine at the University of NSW and has initiated her PhD in Obstetrics (focusing on aspects of uterus transplantation).
Jana was a participant in the gruelling television show SAS Australia on Channel 7 and more recently she joined her 16-year-old son Cornelis on Channel 10’s ‘The Amazing Race-Australia’, raising money for the hospital she works at ‘The Royal Hospital for Women’. Jana recently released her second book ‘Enough’ in early 2023.
Despite her career success, Jana says her greatest achievement is being a mum to her 6 children, following the birth of twins in 2022.
Duncan Taylor is the Founder, Director and former CEO of the Country Universities Centre which has established an affiliated network of 18 community driven and connected Regional University Study Hubs operating through NSW, Queensland and Victoria. He was the inaugural Chair of the original CUC Snowy Monaro Centre from which the network expanded, and now sits on a number of the various CUC Centre governing Boards including at Broken Hill, Griffith, Narrabri/Moree, St George/Dirranbandi, and Cooktown.
Duncan was President of the Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association of New South Wales from 2012 to 2015 and is a Life Member of the Monaro ICPA Branch. On the ICPA NSW State Council he held the Tertiary Portfolio. He has been a Board Member of TAFE NSW from 2015 to 2019, and a Regional Engagement Committee Member for Central Queensland University.
Duncan is a sheep and cattle farmer at Nimmitabel and was the Volunteer of the Year for South Coast and Southern Inland NSW in 2019 for his work in regional education.
