I’m a lover. A father. And a highly sensitive person (HSP). I feel deeply and tend to move through the world with a strong awareness of fairness, connection and the way people affect one another.

I started working in the early 2000s in media and communications, but over time I found myself wanting to do work that felt more meaningful. I started volunteering in emergency services and eventually moved into emergency management.

For almost 15 years I have helped organisations and communities prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters. I have done everything from pulling people out of cars to being part of central command for government-level response and recovery efforts.

But emergency work eventually led me somewhere unexpected.

I began by responding to fires, floods, storms and crises. Over time I realised the hazard isn’t the whole story.

Disasters reveal something about us.

They reveal inequality, vulnerability and the forces that bind society together. They show which communities are protected, which are exposed, and how we treat one another when things fall apart.

After seeing so much, I gradually came to a fairly simple conclusion: how we treat ourselves and each other might be the most important thing in the universe.

That idea now sits at the centre of almost everything I do.

These days I am pursuing applied ethics and exploring questions that sit somewhere between philosophy, psychology, culture and everyday life.

Why do we repeat patterns we know are not working? Why do we tolerate systems that harm us? What would happen if we treated ourselves and each other differently?

Outside work I remain deeply connected to community life.

I coach a youth representative football team and spend a lot of time thinking about the small ways we shape how young people come to see themselves and others. I am also involved in men's wellbeing and community spaces that create room for men to speak honestly about life, responsibility and what it means to grow.

I love swimming in the ocean, fishing, and spending time with friends and family.

Mostly, I’m just trying to understand people and what happens if we treat ourselves and each other a little better.