Dr Farnaz Sabet is an academic General Practitioner with global health expertise. She is Vice President (MENA) of the International Association for Adolescent Health and is a Global Health Fellow at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. She has worked extensively in global health and policy including for the United National High Commission on Refugees, the International Rescue Committee and Prime Minister and Cabinet in Australia. Farnaz received her medical degree from Monash University, a Masters in Global Health Science from Oxford University and a PhD from The University of Melbourne which was awarded the Chanceller’s Prize. Her PhD was on adolescent maternal and newborn health with a focus on participatory women’s groups in India and their effectiveness for pregnant adolescents. Her work has helped bring global attention to the needs of pregnant girls.

Professor Simon Denny, M.P.H., Ph.D., FRACP is an internationally recognised Adolescent and Young Adult Physician, researcher, and health system leader with over two decades of experience advancing youth-appropriate healthcare. He is the Director of the Mater Young Adult Health Centre and a Professor at the University of Queensland, where his work focuses on improving health outcomes for adolescents and young adults, particularly within adult hospital settings. Professor Denny is a leading advocate for youth-centred models of care that extend beyond traditional paediatric–adult transitions, embedding developmentally appropriate, multidisciplinary services within adult health systems. His clinical and research interests include chronic disease management, mental health, health risk behaviours, and healthcare accessibility for young people. A prolific researcher, he has authored nearly 100 peer-reviewed publications and has led major population-level studies, including as Principal Investigator of Youth’07, New Zealand’s National Youth Health and Wellbeing Survey. His highly cited work on the social determinants of adolescent health, published in The Lancet, has shaped international policy and practice. Professor Denny is the Chair of the Youth Appropriate Health Care Working Group at the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. He has held senior governance roles across hospital and health systems. His work continues to influence youth health policy, clinical practice, and professional education globally.

My name is Dominique, and I am a 21-year-old advocate and student studying psychology and philosophy. I chose these subject areas because I am incredibly passionate about the importance of mental health & wellbeing and, more generally, advocating for accessible health services. My advocacy work is fuelled by the understanding that we must create significant systemic and grassroots change to ensure the most vulnerable in society are served within the healthcare system, and at large. I also believe that health research can mitigate the divide by influencing policymakers to redirect resources to underfunded sectors and services. Some of the other causes I have a deep passion for include youth homelessness, advocacy for survivors of domestic violence, accessible structures for neurodivergent young people, and young carers' awareness and support. I have engaged with these causes in other forums, such as my current role as a youth advisory board member with The Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, and my previous work as a member of the Wellways Youth Advisory Council (young carer advocacy), I also served a one year term as the Australian youth ambassador for the Mental Health Foundation. My personal lived experience inspires me to continue to advocate for these causes, and I hope to contribute in a meaningful and impactful way.

Grace McGowan is a fourth-year Occupational Therapy student and Senior Youth Ambassador for International Adolescent Health Week. As a member of the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network (SCHN) Youth Council, she integrates lived experience with chronic illness into research, co-design, and youth-led teaching to advance equitable, youth-centred health and education systems.

Fiona is a passionate youth advocate with a strong commitment to improving health equity and amplifying young people’s voices in decision-making spaces. With experience spanning research, health promotion, and community initiatives, Fiona works towards healthier, more inclusive communities through evidence informed solutions that are co-designed with young people. Fiona is particularly passionate about mental and digital health, preventative care, and cultural safety, and they believe that meaningful change happens when young people and decision makers work in genuine partnership to reimagine systems together. As Youth Co-Convenor, Fiona is excited to create a collaborative environment centred on peer leadership, curiosity and intergenerational dialogue.

My name is Georgia and I'm a passionate Youth Convenor dedicated to raising awareness and support for adolescents within the medical system. With firsthand experience navigating a chronic illness within the medical industry, I hope to utilise my insights and perspectives to collaborate with others on how we can better the lives of young people and their overall wellbeing.

When Ella was 16, she suffered a spinal injury while competing in an international-grade sailing regatta. Over the following weeks, she slowly lost motor function beginning with her neck and was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). After three weeks at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, she regained use of her arms, but it took a further seven months of intensive therapy before she had the slightest movement in her legs. Ella had no choice but to return to school in a wheelchair, in severe pain and heavily medicated. Her altered brain state also made concentration and learning difficult. With reduced school attendance of just 2-3 hours per day—and only on days she could manage—it was a dramatic change from her previous fast-paced elite training routine. Watching her teammates compete without her was heartbreaking, yet it inspired her determination to return to the sport she loved.