Angela Derks

22/01/2026

Spending time with the team at Byron Bay Wildlife Hospital is genuinely heart-filling.

The care shown—to injured and vulnerable wildlife, and to one another—runs deep. This work can be emotionally demanding, which is why it’s so encouraging to see the hospital investing in mental health and wellbeing training (made possible through a secured grant) to support their volunteers and ensure no one carries the load alone.

Caring for the carers really matters, and this team truly understands that.
Australasian Sustainable Wellness Academy

31/12/2025

As the year comes to a close, I’ve been reflecting — and I feel incredibly hopeful about the future of our workplaces.

Not because the challenges have disappeared (they haven’t), but because I’ve seen a real shift in how leaders are thinking about wellbeing, culture, and performance.

This year, ASWA welcomed the largest number of participants ever into our Diploma of Wellness Leadership since it launched in 2017. Over 30% came from the health sector, with growing numbers from mental health, wellness, and education.

We also saw a 400% increase in Psychosocial Safety Officer certifications, particularly from Safety and HR professionals, including Return to Work Coordinators. That tells me people are moving from awareness to action.

Disappointingly, the public sector continues to lag behind the private sector. Australian government agencies must catch up by developing leadership capabilities in strategic wellness. In particular, the health and education departments need wellbeing capabilities that enable front-line workers to effectively care for our community members and shift the needle on our country's mental health and wellbeing statistics in the right direction. Our future generations need us to leave a healthier legacy.

One of the greatest privileges of my work is seeing the wellbeing strategies our students develop — and then feeling the impact of that work during mentoring sessions. These change-makers are based across Australia and around the world, including Europe, Africa, Asia, and the UAE.

I’m especially proud to see the Angela Derks Workplace Wellness Framework (2022) being implemented exactly as it was designed, as a prevention-focussed, practical and relevant solution to enable organisations to effectively support their people to adapt, deliver, grow and thrive.

Looking toward 2026, we’re excited to be launching new courses that build capability in key wellness principles, designed to complement and strengthen our strategic and systemic wellbeing programs.

Change takes time. But it’s happening — and that gives me so much hope.

Thank you to everyone who has been part of this journey. I’m very much looking forward to 2026 💚

22/11/2025

The Productivity Commission review of the current National Mental Health and Su***de Prevention Agreement has found essentially, that it is not fit for purpose.

This comes as no surprise to those if us in the wellness sector as very little focus has ever been on illness prevention and mental health promotion but rather to the provision of reactive and crisis driven services.

Services will always be required but the only way to reduce the demand on services will be to reduce the need by promoting mental health initiatives and improving the social and emotional well being of the population and in particular promoting wellness skills in parents and workplaces, for us adults to be enabled to support and guide our children.

This can't be addressed in a 5 year or a 10 year plan but will require generational change in the way we improve the strength of our communities and this requires longer term commitment and not election cycles for results to be evident.

The review found the Agreement is not effective and a new policy architecture is needed to articulate the collective actions that will deliver changes to the mental health and su***de prevention system and improve outcomes.

09/11/2025

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗲 𝗮 𝗕𝗜𝗚 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸: 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲!
Thanks to The OT Toolbox for another excellent post!

Breaking down a task means looking at the underlying areas. The process of thinking through a multi-step task (like a bigger homework assignment) and mentally ordering the steps to completion can be the breakdown area for some kids.

(Get out the backpack. Find the right folder. Gather the papers, books, pencil. Find the page number. Organise thoughts. Filter out distractions. Create mental responses. Organise and problem solve. Recall what was mentioned in class. Put answers to paper.)

That ability to identify high priority tasks and rate them compared to low priority tasks can be quite difficult.

Prioritisation is the process of figuring out what parts of a task or activity are the most important and what is the first thing that needs to be done and what is the most important part of the project that needs to be completed. Prioritisation is the ability to identify tasks in an order that makes sense!

Prioritisation is an executive functioning skill that requires several other executive functions.

🧠Initiation
🧠Planning
🧠Sustained Attention
🧠Working Memory
🧠Task Completion

Read more & find tips to support this area of EF:
https://www.theottoolbox.com/tips-to-improve-prioritization/

15/10/2025

Feeling a bit like a proud mumma bear today 💚

Back in 2020, in the thick of COVID, I met an inspiring woman named Daria Andrievskaya — full of heart, ambition, and a deep desire to make a difference in her industry. She joined my ASWA Diploma of Wellness Leadership qualification program as a part-scholarship recipient, determined to bring wellbeing and human-centred leadership into hospitality and tourism management.

Fast-forward to today, and Daria is doing exactly that. Her new article, “The Hidden Cost of Ignoring Wellbeing in Management Roles,” is a must-read for anyone in leadership.

Daria beautifully captures what so many of us know to be true:

“Wellbeing isn’t the opposite of ambition — it’s the fuel that makes ambition sustainable.”

I couldn’t be prouder of the ripple effect she’s creating — leading change, supporting others, and showing that ambitious managers can thrive without burning out.

📖 Read Daria’s full article here: https://aswa.net.au/the-hidden-costs-of-ignoring-wellbeing-in-management-roles/

Australasian Sustainable Wellness Academy

Wellbeing isn’t the opposite of ambition — it’s the fuel that makes ambition sustainable. Today's workforce has a new definition of success and ambition.

10/10/2025

How does culture influence health and wellbeing? 🌿

That was the inspiring question explored at this morning’s Robina Alliance Breakfast at TAFE Robina — a vibrant gathering of educators, business leaders, and community partners.

Beautifully led by Ben Weeks, Principal of Robina State High School, whose humour and heart set the tone for meaningful connection, we heard powerful insights from two remarkable speakers:
💫 Matthew Levy OAM, Paralympian, who reminded us that resilience and perspective are shaped by the environments we grow in.
🧠 Dr Libby Sander, Professor at Bond University, who shared research on how culture — from leadership to physical environments — directly impacts our mental health, performance, and sense of belonging.

At the Australasian Sustainable Wellness Academy (ASWA), we see this every day: culture isn’t something that “happens” — it’s something we consciously create. A culture that values, supports and enables wellbeing empowers people to bring their most engaged selves to work and life.

It was inspiring to see the Robina community coming together to learn, connect, and explore what it truly means to thrive — individually and collectively. 🌱

16/09/2025

Management is doing things right. Leadership is doing the right things.

In wellness leadership, doing the right things means going beyond quick fixes, fads, or ticking compliance boxes.

Too often, workplaces focus only on the popular dimensions of wellness — like mental health campaigns or environmental/work design for psychosocial risk. While important, they are just pieces of a bigger puzzle.

✨ True wellness leadership means recognising that there are eight essential dimensions of wellness:
🌿 Mental
🌿 Physical
🌿 Social
🌿 Intellectual
🌿 Occupational
🌿 Environmental
🌿 Spiritual
🌿 Financial

When leaders cherry-pick just one or two, they don’t create wellness — they create a patchy, crummy outcome that serves no one.

But when all eight are considered, integrated, and supported, something powerful happens:
💚 People flourish
💚 Teams thrive
💚 Workplaces succeed — sustainably

That’s the real difference between managing wellbeing for compliance… and leading wellness for impact.

Australasian Sustainable Wellness Academy

10/09/2025

It’s often the colleague who looks “fine.”
The parent who keeps showing up.
The friend who makes everyone laugh the loudest.

Su***de rarely looks like the stereotype we imagine. More often, it’s quiet. It hides behind “I’m just tired” or “I’ve just got a lot on.” Sometimes, it’s in the silence when someone begins to slowly pull away.

We don’t talk about it enough — because it feels heavy. But silence doesn’t protect people. Connection does.

Every one of us has the power to make a difference. Not by fixing everything, but by noticing small shifts, asking gentle questions, and reminding someone they’re not alone.

✨ Here’s a story many of us will recognise:
A manager once noticed that a usually engaged team member had gone quiet in meetings. No drama, no outburst — just withdrawal. She almost let it pass, thinking he was just busy. But her gut told her to check in. When she did, he admitted he’d been feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, and close to breaking. That one conversation encouraged him to seek professional help. She doesn’t call herself a hero — she just asked.

💡 Su***de prevention isn’t only about crisis response. It’s about creating cultures where it feels safe to say, “I’m not doing okay,” and knowing that the response will be empathy and support.

And if you, or someone you know, needs immediate help:
📞 Lifeline 13 11 14 — available 24/7 across Australia.

Because sometimes, one check-in.
One question.
One moment of courage.
Can change a life.

***dePrevention

05/09/2025

This week I had the privilege of attending the MHFA Instructor Summit. These gatherings always remind me of the deep impact that Mental Health First Aid has—not just in workplaces, but in families, communities, and everyday life.

Connecting with fellow instructors is powerful, but what inspires me most is remembering the human lives that mental wellness truly enriches. Every skill we learn, every conversation we open up, and every piece of stigma we dismantle creates ripples of safety and compassion.

As leaders, parents, colleagues and friends, we don’t need to have all the answers. But we do need to be aware and to equip ourselves with practical tools to prepare and respond with confidence and care.

This is exactly why we developed the accredited 11047NAT Diploma of Wellness Leadership at ASWA—to ensure those in management and leadership positions are not only supporting performance, but also building environments where people can thrive, sustainably.

When mental health and wellbeing are embedded into leadership, we move beyond reaction—we create cultures of care, resilience, and sustainable success.

I left the summit feeling deeply grateful for the work of Betty Kitchener, the Mental Health First Aid Australia community, and the ripple effect of every MHFAider who shows up in someone’s moment of need. Together, we’re changing the way the world sees—and supports—mental health.


Australasian Sustainable Wellness Academy

29/08/2025

Boundaries are essential for wellbeing.This is an interesting perspective from Parks Victoria. Have you reviewed your boundaries recently? Could you tweak them to better support wellbeing - of self and/or those around you?

Even trees can understand boundaries 🤷‍♀️

Crown shyness is a phenomenon where trees 'sense' their neighbours and avoid touching.

We aren't quite sure why it happens, but it's likely to help them share resources (like light) to stay healthy.

Trees might release chemical signals or detect mechanical stimuli from neighbouring branches and inhibit growth in those directions.

How cool is nature?

📷: IG/.bolton.photo

📍 Great Otway National Park is part of an Aboriginal cultural landscape that includes traditional Country of the Eastern Maar and Wadawurrung Peoples.

29/08/2025

📚 Wellbeing + Leadership Book Reflections #1

I once watched my friend, a senior operations director, step off an early evening flight and rush straight to the supermarket because her kids needed lunches by morning—while her male colleague on the same flight simply texted his “wife” to say he’d be home soon to a warm dinner.

That invisible split is at the heart of Annabel Crabb’s The Wife Drought. This book peels back the polite silence around who really keeps families—and careers—afloat.

Crabb’s first lesson is piercing: having a “wife”—someone who shoulders the domestic load—is often the hidden advantage behind uninterrupted careers. For generations, many men have quietly depended on unpaid, unacknowledged labour at home: someone to remember birthdays, manage sick days, organise holidays, and carry the daily mental load. When women step into high-powered jobs, they rarely inherit this same support structure.

This isn’t about blaming men or fuelling a gender war. It’s about understanding history, so we can do better—at home, in our communities, and in our workplaces.

As leaders, we need to ask:
✨ How can we better support capacity and capabilities in our teams?
✨ How can we create workplaces where invisible labour is acknowledged, balanced, and not a barrier to wellbeing or leadership opportunities?

I recommend this book to all team leaders—it’s a powerful lens on equity, wellbeing, and the structures that shape how we work and live.

💭 Have you read this one? What’s your biggest takeaway?

26/08/2025

Support for Men 🌿

You don’t have to keep it all inside. Talking can help more than you think.

MensLine provides free, confidential support for men any time, day or night.

Call 1300 78 99 78 or visit MensLine.org.au