Award-winning social worker, national advisor, and PhD researcher Michael Elwan presents on lived experience leadership in academia at the Service Users in Academia Symposium (SUAS) 2025.

Supervision is never neutral; it either sees us or silences us. For social workers from culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD)  backgrounds, supervision can be a place of validation - or invisibility. That’s why I’m inviting social work supervisors, managers, and allied professionals across Australia to join Supervision That Sees Me: Culturally Responsive Supervision for CaLD Social Workers , a national live online workshop presented by the Australian Association of Soc

I am delighted to announce a new course I have co-created with my colleague Almudena for the WA Recovery College Alliance (WARCA) . This free, community-based program invites people from every walk of life to explore recovery as a journey of learning, connection, and hope. WA Recovery College courses are co-designed by people with lived and professional experience, offering a unique space where knowledge is shared rather than prescribed, and where participants are partners in

I’m honoured to be joining the Black Dog Institute’s Suicide Prevention Network Community of Practice  this September, where the focus is on suicide prevention in culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) communities. This theme is close to my heart. As someone who migrated from Egypt to Australia and carries lived experiences of caregiving, migration stress, and suicide bereavement, I know how deeply culture shapes the way we understand distress, healing, and belonging. C

There are moments in our professional journey that feel deeply personal - where lived experience, cultural identity, and social work practice meet at the heart of transformation. Delivering a national webinar through the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW)  is one such moment; an opportunity to explore CALD men’s mental health in Australia  and strengthen how social workers engage with culture, masculinity, and wellbeing. From Silence to Strength: Supporting Menta

I’m deeply honoured to announce that I will be presenting at this year’s National Suicide Prevention Conference (NSPC25)  in Perth - Australia’s flagship gathering of lived experience leaders, researchers, policymakers, and frontline advocates. My presentation is titled: Building Bridges: Fostering Intergenerational Dialogue on Mental Health and Suicide in CaLD Families 📍 Poster Session 2 | Tuesday 20 May, 5:30 PM | Poster #159 This presentation is more than a professional m

I’m honoured to share that I’ll be speaking at Perspectives 2025 , a national Lived Experience e-Symposium hosted by the Finding North Network  in partnership with the Mental Illness Fellowship of Australia (MIFA) . My presentation will explore CaLD mental health transformation  through lived experience leadership and culturally grounded systems change. This event is a powerful annual gathering of lived experience leaders, truth-tellers, advocates, and allies from across the

Today, I stand humbled and honoured to share a moment that marks both a personal and professional milestone. My abstract, "Building Bridges: Fostering Intergenerational Dialogue on Mental Health and Suicide in CaLD Families" , has been accepted for presentation at the 2025 National Suicide Prevention Conference (NSPC) , right here in my beloved home city of Perth . This is more than an acceptance - it’s the culmination of a deeply personal journey. Mental health was rarely sp

Award-winning social worker, national advisor, and PhD researcher Michael Elwan reflects on his WAPSN Conference 2024 presentation on lived experience leadership and peer workforce reform.