The Manna Institute is a virtual research institute dedicated to improving mental health and wellbeing in rural, regional and remote Australia. The Institute held its first symposium in Sydney 4-6 December 2024, which focused on how collaborative research benefits rural and regional Australia. The two-day event brought together researchers, community leaders and local members to share ideas and knowledge. It highlighted the importance of resilience, teamwork and culturally safe practices, which are key to the Manna Institute’s mission to improve lives and build community capacity.
The symposium showcased the Manna Institute’s cooperative approach. Luke Lindsay, CEO of Lifeline Direct, praised the strong collaboration among researchers from different universities:
“I have never seen a group of researchers from different universities work together in such a collaborative way. It blows my mind. There is a real openness and desire to ask, ‘where are we needed?’"
Dr Jaelea Skehan OAM, Director of Everymind, spoke about Manna Institute’s various roles:
“Manna people are contributing in quiet and loud ways – as lived experience leaders, agitators, service deliverers and researchers. We are leaning into the hard stuff and encouraging others to lean into it, too.”
Key moments from the symposium included:
- Indira Naidoo discussing grief and growth
- A Welcome to Country by Uncle Michael West
- Honest evaluations from state and national panelists
- Tara Lal’s talk on turning struggles into strengths
- The launch of Manna Institute’s First Nations strategy
- Bursaries awarded to Higher Degree by Research students, Erin Harcourt and Michael Elwan.
Throughout the symposium, themes of resilience, collaboration and knowledge sharing emerged. Kisani Upward from the First Nations Advisory Group emphasised the connections between Country, story and community and the need for culturally safe spaces that include Indigenous knowledge within research.
Manna Institute’s impact was also highlighted, with a return of $2.29 for every dollar invested over the last three years, showing its positive influence on the community. Learn more about the research institute's work.
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