The Aurora Team
Jones Jones (They/Them) — Program Manager
Jones is a queer non binary mother of two, with over 15 years experience in business, event management and organising.
With a passion for social justice and community capacity building, they developed and managed the hugely successful Sydney Vegan Market, and Events Program for Vegan NSW, and delivered an Aurora Ball to remember in 2022 as the Associate Director of Events.
Jones joined the Aurora Group in 2021 as the Associate Director of Events. We are so pleased that, after a stringent, public recruitment process, that they will now be taking on the Program Manager Role.
Jones brings extraordinary community connections and understanding, as well as an ability to make everyone feel special, heard and included. Their collaborative and strategic approach is fun and infectious, and they love working with and supporting the LGBTIQ+ communities of Australia.
Elle Thielke (She/They) - Communications and Admin Coordinator
Hailing from Naarm, Elle is a neurodivergent, queer content extraordinaire, with over 6 years experience in digital communications and content creation. Having operated as a successful freelance creator, Elle has worked with a diverse range of industries from fashion to coffee, travel to body piercing, entertainment to fresh produce, and brings a wealth of knowledge with her to the team.
Elle has a fiery passion for social justice, and a specialty focus on LGBTIQ+, sexual health and sex work issues. During her undergraduate studies, Elle also spent time volunteering with a local initiative to combat street based harassment and violence. They are now currently studying for their Master's degree in Sexology (Professional) at Curtin University with plans to become a LGBTQIA+ youth friendly sex educator, and also hopes to use their knowledge to support and improve conditions for queer and sex worker communities.
Elle joined the Aurora Group in 2023 as the Administration Assistance Officer, bringing an extensive skill set and infectious enthusiasm to the team. She prides herself on her adaptive communication style in order to best aid each individual, and loves being able to support LGBTIQ+ communities through her work.
The Aurora Board
Sam Turner (She/Her) -
Director, Chair
Sam joined Aurora in 2018 as Director for Corporate Partnerships, and has chaired the Board since 2019.
Sam Turner is an influential global people, inclusion and cultural reform leader with 25+ years’ experience across the financial services, technology, higher education, arts, community, and natural resources sectors. Sam is known as an innovator, a strategic thinker, and someone who is passionate about community and the power of positive change.
Sam is the Chief People Officer at Allens Linklaters, a leading Australian law firm. She was most recently the Chief of Staff for Microsoft Asia, and previously served as the Head of Inclusion & Diversity for the Westpac Group. Sam has held senior commercial roles at Microsoft, Westpac, NAB, BHP, and Deloitte.
Sam has extensive experience as an independent consultant alongside Elizabeth Broderick, and the Australian Human Rights Commission in their highly respected and public reviews of workplace culture. Sam’s focus is specifically on gender and race equality, LGBTIQ+ inclusion, and cultural transformation. She recently co-led the Australian Music Review into sexual harm and harassment.
Sam was the winner of the 2016 Women of Influence Awards and was named one of Australia’s Outstanding 50 LGBTIQ leaders in the Deloitte/Google 2018 list and is a Churchill Fellow. She is the Chair of The Aurora Group, one of Australia’s largest not for profit LGBTIQ+ Foundations.
Sam holds an Honours degree in Commerce, and a Postgraduate Diploma of Psychology.
Dave Scamell (He/Him) -
Director, Deputy Chair
Dave has more than 19 years’ experience in human rights and public health advocacy, policy, programming and philanthropy, having worked with civil society organisations to advance the rights of marginalised communities in 27 countries across the world.
Dave currently works for the Global Philanthropy Project, a collaboration of 22 of the leading funders of global LGBTIQ+ issues, where he leads the organisation's engagement with the world's major government and multilateral donors in order to increase resources for LGBTIQ+ communities.
He has held management and strategic leadership roles in leading non-government organisations, private foundations, and global networks in New York and Sydney, with strong experience and a passion for working with multiple stakeholders—advocates, service providers, donors, policymakers, thought-leaders—to achieve impactful social change.
Damien Attwood (He/Him) - Director, Treasurer
Damien joined the Aurora board in 2023. Damien is the founder of his boutique outsourced management consultancy company, EMPOWER Agency, and has a finance, insurance and banking background. Along with his team, he helps small to medium-sized businesses grow their profits by implementing his unique and holistic methods, including marketing strategies, software implementation and integration, and change management.
With a passion for regional politics, in 2022, he worked tirelessly as campaign director, with a very close result for the candidate, supporting over 1,500 volunteers whilst raising $900,000+.
Damien advocates for LGBTQI+ and raises awareness in regional Australia, helping support marginalised and vulnerable individuals. He has an active volunteer role with a number of queer groups in his region and works to bring hope to the next generation.
His strengths lie not only in the practical side of the business but also in the people's side. He is a super networker and loves to bring people together to collaborate on projects. In addition, his leadership skills and sense of fun mean he gets groups to work together cohesively to make an impact and drive social change.
Kirsten Shearn (She/Her) - Director of Fundraising, Company Secretary
Kirsten is a strong and active ally based in Perth. She is a visionary and growth-focused leader with 20+ years’ experience in all facets of not for profit, commercial governance, and growth.
Her key strengths are in strategic partnership building, not for profit turn around, social enterprise innovation, strategic business planning and executive leadership.
Kirsten develops and executes on culture-changing projects, advising on best practice, trends and innovations in a way that challenges current paradigms and delivers optimal social impact. She combines emotional intelligence with strong commercial and business acumen, and we are excited to be welcoming her to Aurora.
Arani Ahmed (they/he) - Director of Grants
Arani (they/he) joined Aurora in 2023 as the Grants Director. They have over a decade of experience in human rights and refugee law and most recently in LGBTQ+ health.
Arani is currently Team Leader, Trans Health Equity at ACON, leading programs to progress equity in health information, care and gender affirmation for the trans and gender diverse community.
They have previously worked as an Associate Director in KPMG’s Human Rights and Social Impact team, advising Australian and international businesses on human rights risk and due diligence, social impact, stakeholder engagement and sustainability strategy, ethical sourcing, and corporate social responsibility.
Arani has a Bachelor of Laws (UTS) and a Bachelor of Economic and Social Sciences (University of Sydney).
Jonathon Ellis (He/Him) -
Director
Jonathon Ellis joined the board in June 2021. Jonathon is also a partner at global business law firm Bird and Bird, and has over 15 years’ experience advising multinational companies on strategic corporate governance, litigation and regulatory compliance matters.
He is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in the commercial world having led a global LGBTIQ+ employee network and sitting on gender equity working groups. His past LGBTIQ+ community involvement includes being Captain of Boats at Melbourne Argonauts Queer Rowing Club.
Jonathon has a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) and Bachelor of Arts from Bond University.
Brendan Day (He/Him) - Director of Events
Brendan Day is a marketing, sponsorship, and events professional with more than 15 years of experience delivering projects for world-leading organisations, including the Tate London, Sydney Dance Company and Opera Australia.
Brendan is currently Director, Events and Experiential at CAPITAL-e Marketing & Events where he leads a team responsible for all aspects of event production. He is also a board member and Director of Events at the Aurora Group where he has previously volunteered to support the Aurora Ball and give back to the LGBTQIA+ community.
Brendan brings to both roles a flair for the creative as well as a focus on seamlessly executing the finer details of events. He is also skilled in stakeholder management and business development.
Outside of work, Brendan enjoys art, culture, music, and travelling. He is an avid collector of visual art and multi-talented musician, playing piano and the guitar as well as singing.
Brendan holds a Bachelor in Arts Management from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.
Danielle Yung (she/her)- Director
Danielle is a queer woman, a lawyer and a passionate advocate for LGBTIQ+ rights, with a decade of experience in sectors including law, banking, the not-for-profit sector and the performing arts.
Dani is currently the Legal Policy Advisor at Equality Australia: a national organisation that exists to improve the wellbeing and circumstances of LGBTIQ+ people and their families.
She started her legal career at leading Australian law firm Allens, where she was an Associate in Disputes and Investigations, completed a secondment at Westpac, and co-chaired the firm's national LGBTIQ+ network, ALLin. In 2023, she was also the Project Manager of the award-winning Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference. Outside of work, Dani enjoys theatre, dance and is a visual artist, who loves working with oils and charcoal.
Dani has a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) and a Bachelor of Creative Industries (with Distinction) from QUT, with a minor in Design Thinking from HvA, Amsterdam.
Lily Orecic (She/Her) - Director
Lily is an active member and supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community. She has provided support and leadership to local community groups based in Perth. Encouraging unity, strength and social engagement.
She is a focused and empowered Finance Manager, with over 20 years experience in financial analysis, budgeting and forecasting, gained within the manufacturing and logistics industries.
Lily's strength is business partnering and building relationships, focusing on continuous improvement and optimising performance. She is a member of CPA Australia, and holds a Bachelor of Commerce.
Robbie Robertson (He/Him) - Special Advisor
Robbie is a global, award-winning design & customer experience strategist specialising in the fusion of people, spatial & digital experiences.
With 23 years experience in London, New York, Singapore and throughout SE Asia as well as Australia, he is also an Associate Professor of Design at Swinburn University.
As the Managing partner of the Virtual Office in Australia he leads a team of specialists who help clients with their virtual enablement journey, developing hybrid workplace strategies that bring together tech, space, people & place to deliver exceptional customer & employee experiences.
Design thinking is at the heart of every conversation and projects that Robbie likes to be involved in, with extensive experience with clients such as J&J , Nab, Aristocrat, ANZ, Siam Bank, Novartis, CBA and Link Group.