Kristie Walker (she/her)
Licensed InstructorKristie is a licensed Mental Health First Aid instructor, ontological coach with training in healing psychotherapy, and a Master of Business whose practice draws on more than 25 years working at the intersection of people, organisations and complex systems. She brings to her facilitation a rare combination of strategic leadership experience and deep personal commitment to supporting people through life's most challenging moments - as a carer, coach, colleague and friend.
Kristie's background spans health promotion, psychological safety, organisational performance and strategic facilitation across some of Australia's most demanding environments - from bushfire recovery and emergency management to large-scale events and First Nations partnership development. It is this experience of high-stakes, high-care environments that shapes the way she facilitates Mental Health First Aid training.
Participants describe Kristie's style as warm, welcoming and disarming. Her facilitation is grounded in Shane Snow's insight that the conditions for real growth are at the intersection of safety and discomfort - she creates environments where people can engage with what's difficult, and feel supported to stay with it long enough to learn and make progress.
Phil Cousins
Phil is an accredited Mental Health First Aid instructor and counsellor whose practice is grounded in both professional training and extensive lived experience of mental health challenges. He has worked across hospitality, construction, the events industry and peer support - industries where mental health is rarely spoken about openly - and this informs his deep commitment to reducing stigma and building practical skills in the people and communities around him.
Phil facilitates with genuine compassion and authenticity. His courses resonate because he speaks from the reality of living with a mental health problem while working, raising a family and navigating everyday life - not from a clinical distance. Participants consistently find his approach accessible, honest and relevant to their own experience.
Based in regional Victoria, Phil has spent 25 years building community through organisations spanning arts, film and men's health advocacy. He has a particular focus on mental health in rural and regional communities, where access to support is limited and the need for skilled, confident first aiders is greatest.
Licensed Instructor