Hey Max, what’s it like being Grace Tame’s partner?
Max Heerey didn’t know what he was getting into when he invited a fellow Hobart (Aust) runner out for a jog late in 2020. As it turned out, he had…
Brett Ashby – a Rolling & Flowing Contemporary Artist
Melbourne based public, performance and contemporary artist, Brett Ashby talks to John McKenna on ‘So…’ podcast about flowing, ‘rolling’, and growth through art, creation, and connection. In his 15-year journey…
How to Lose Friends & Influence White People
Why are all television newsreaders blonde? This is something Antoinette asked herself when she was at the gym almost 4 years ago and confronted with a sea of blonde newsreaders…
The Power of Representation and Role Modelling
International students in the Australian news and media often carry the negative connotations of being “foreign”, “problems” that are “exploited”. Belle Lim is here to challenge that stereotype. Coming from…
Women’s Experiences of Violence Across the Lifespan
CONTENT WARNING: Violence against women and abuse. Violence against women is a major global public health problem. In Australia, one in six women have experienced violence from an intimate partner…
Disability Advocacy & Counselling, Working together
In Australia we live in a world of ‘Royal Commissions’. Currently, the conversations are around the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability (known as…
Shedding leaf light with Trace Balla
Children’s author and illustrator Trace Balla has always had a great fascination with trees and nature. Growing up, if she felt lonely she found companionship and comfort in the tree…
The strength in being vulnerable – Rugare Gomo
In Australia we rely on the Western media to hear about what’s happening across the globe. It shows us filtered versions of important world events and the voices of people…
SHHHH! Can we talk for a moment about turning down the noise?
It may sound like a contradiction, to have a chat about being more quiet. But that’s exactly what John does with Christine Jackman in this podcast. Christine’s 20-year career as…
Danielle Matthews “How do I tell stories?…I sing”
The creative behind I’ve Never BIN to Me (YouTube) joins the So…Podcast to talk about the power of music. After taking inspiration from the viral Facebook page ‘Bin Isolation Outing’,…
Drawing the talk with Simon Kneebone
In this episode John chats with Simon Kneebone – a cartoonist who’s work has been featured in a number of places, including many social and community organisations. Simon had his…
Listening or pretending to?
John and Oscar Trimboli, who is what some might call a professional listener, discuss the finer points of listening. Oscar is an expert in communication whose goal is to create…
Violence against women, walking without fear
Alix Sampson a young, bisexual and socially innovative woman from the inner north of Melbourne, Australia joins the So…Podcast to talk about her community connection project that (literally) walks the…
Take off your clothes, look at your skin
John Mckenna talks to Dr Edward Upjohn MB.BS MMed FACD FACMS, a dermatologist in Melbourne, Australia, about different types of skin cancers and treatments. Dr Edward Upjohn talks about the…
Reclaim, Reform, Restore
When you walk past hard rubbish on the street, what do you see? Meg Renou doesn’t just see a pile of junk, she sees inspiration. She describes herself as a…
It’s Okay to Talk About Suicide
This episode covers a sensitive topic. Before you listen please be aware that we are discussing suicide, the impact of suicide and resources surrounding suicide prevention. John talks with Shayne…
Wake up Aged Care Providers: Technology can help
How can technology keep your loved ones in Aged Care safer and more connected? John O’Callaghan from Acsess Health talks about his game-changing products in Aged Care support. Acsess Health…
Good & bad experiences for International Students in Australia
During the conversation with Philip Liu from Melbourne Australia, who is a strong advocate for international students, we covered the following areas: Conscious and unconscious racist perceptions towards people of Asian…
Collective messages from Disability Service Providers across Australia
“I’m not shaking your hand mate, I don’t care who you are.” This is one of the quotes that stuck in my mind, as I was producing this episode you…
Disability, it’s a joke, for some
Tim Ferguson and I had a funny chat, to be expected, as he is a professional comedian. (From his website cheekymonkeycomedy.com) Tim is a widely acclaimed comedian, writer and producer.…
Supporting those who are missing out on podcast
Christina Canters from Podcast Services Australia and producer and host of ‘Stand Out Get Noticed’ podcast joined me to talk about “Supporting those who are missing out on podcasts” Christina’s…
Social isolation is not new to us
In the spirit of staying connected during these times, the following 12 recordings are from individuals who live with disabilities such as, Schizoaffective disorder, Deaf Blindness, Cerebral palsy, Oculocutaneous Albinism,…
Lawyer lottery, will yours take a risk?
Samantha Lovrich is the co-founder of Legal Tech Helper and legal operations coach. In this interview we talk about the importance of lawyers stepping into the shoes of their clients,…
He sells words because his words sell
Tom Valcanis is a copywriter and journalist that sells words. He writes words for businesses, not-for-profit, and more so they can get their point across as effectively as possible. In…
Deaf and proud
Brent Phillips is a proud third generation deaf Australian. He identifies himself as Culturally and linguistically Deaf. Brent is also an Executive Director – Language, Partnerships & Innovation at Expression…
Is a conscious death a perfect death?
Annie Whitlocke is a Death Elder and Palliative care liaison coordinator at Buddhist Council of Victoria. To be honest, I went into this interview with a sense of discomfort and…
Need more space for a sneaky kiss & cuddle? Try the Accessible Toilet!!
One of Bruce Bromley’s (from Equal Access Group) favourite phrases is “Everyone, Everywhere, Everytime” especially when it comes to addressing accessibility for people with disabilities in Australia. This fascinating interview…
What motivates some people to be on not for profit boards?
You can never over emphasize the importance of compassion and humanity, especially when it’s a not for profit organisation, where outcomes are measured by the quality of people’s lives. Yes,…
Holiday Accessible Accommodation, no longer in the “Too Hard Basket”
The holiday bug will definitely bite you after Kerry Willliams from Accessible Accommodation explains how her business continues to develop a great resource that provides information for people with physical…
Is Divorce a dirty word?
Eliza Tipping talks with me about her book she is writing on the different aspects of divorce, from a personal perspective and her findings after 12 months of research in…
Are children resilient enough or are they being mollycoddled?
It was great getting Terry Laidler’s take on a range of topics ranging from the resilience of children in Australia and the impacts of family breakdowns and the role the…
Inclusive Meaningful Volunteering, goes beyond stuffing envelopes
Camellia Sayed from Volunteering Victoria along with Marnie Higgs talks with me about the Victoria ALIVE project which aims to improve disability Inclusion in the volunteering community sector.We also cover…
Little Bird That’s Fallen From The Nest
Mum, Dad & I talk about their journey as parents of a child with a severe physical disability, which is me 🙂 – 1962 Anchor podcast audio player *Transcript…