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Looking to hear incredible stories of resilience and empowerment in your workplace, school or community? Do you want to take an active part in promoting tolerance and positive change?

Jesuit Social Services’ Just Voices Speakers Program connects with the community in unique and unforgettable ways. We offer inspiring motivational keynote speakers, musicians and story tellers from diverse communities, cultures and lived experiences.

Not only will your event be skilfully delivered by our highly experienced team, but by engaging our services you will be supporting a social change organisation with over 45 years’ experience working at the hard end of social justice.

How does the program help?

Our speakers are social justice advocates who come from diverse backgrounds, communities and cultures.

They’ll share with you their personal experiences of:

  • seeking asylum and refugee settlement in Australia
  • First Nations culture, including dance, didgeridoo and painting
  • East Timorese history and culture
  • global health issues, and much more.

Our speakers open up conversation and reflection by giving voice to the struggles, challenges and joys happening all around us.

With courage and resilience they share their truth, and demonstrate the great humanity within us all.

Speakers and performing artists

Expertly matched to your event, class or gathering, our speakers and performing artists share their stories, culture and artistry to open up conversation in an engaging and unforgettable ways.

Our presentations are different, just like each of our presenters, however all stories come with positive messages of resilience and can be adapted to any age or group size.

Our presenters share their Indigenous culture, whilst others share their experience of being homeless, being engaged in the youth justice system, seeking refuge, fleeing conflict or persecution and finding a new life in Australia.

Many of our presenters are also spoken word poets or musicians. Their high energy hip-hop, drumming or acoustic performances complement their presentation or workshop.

Daniel is a speaker with the just Voices Speakers Program

Jason Lau, Arts Centre, Melbourne


How does the program work?

Our speakers tailor their presentations to their lived experience, and to what you and fellow audience members would like to hear about.

Common themes include resilience, courage, empathy, leadership, empowerment, social justice, diversity and cultural awareness.

And just like our speakers, every presentation is different. Some presentations involve music and poetry. All involve both a personal story and a call to action for each member of the audience to contemplate.

Our speakers can also build in optional activities, like:

  • small group activities
  • workshops
  • live music performances
  • additional reading and research.
  • For schools, Just Voices speakers offer empowering sessions to inspire students to develop social justice messages. All presentations for schools link to the Australian and Victorian curriculum.

For Educators, Corporate and Community Audiences

We work with universities, schools, corporate, government and communities to deliver flexible and creative sessions for:

  • Reflection days/ workshops
  • Assemblies/ key-note addresses
  • Informal classroom or office talks
  • Professional development days/ staff or parent engagement evenings
  • Music performances and workshops
  • Group visits to Jesuit Social Services music and art studios to hear about our work in the community, and much more…..

Our unique sessions are a powerful compliment to corporate community events, school curriculums, cultural awareness sessions or festivals.

Your positive connection and emotional wellbeing underpins all of our sessions.

Sessions are delivered in a safe, welcoming environment.

For schools, the sessions are tailored to the age level and area of study of the students involved.

Sound engineering and equipment hire

Just need sound for your event? The team at the Artful Dodgers music studio have you covered. We have sound engineers, speakers, microphones, mixers and every cable under the sun to make your event pop.

Teambuilding workshops

If you are looking for unique teambuilding experiences, we offer workshops on:

  • Hip Hop/ Rap writing and performing
  • Beatmaking
  • Cultural drumming
  • Storytelling
  • Silk Painting
  • Art for Calm
  • Experience a music studio or art studio for a day

Workshops are led by Artful Dodgers Studio’s highly experienced Community Cultural Development Artists who work with our community’s most vulnerable young people. You will hear about their extraordinary work whilst experiencing the studios for yourself.

Recording studio and art studio hire

Interested in recording a song or creating art with your team? You can hire our fully equipped music recording studio and art workspace in Melbourne’s cultural heartland of Collingwood.

Whether you book a short session or a whole day, you will be fully supported by our Community Cultural Development Artists to guide and assist you.


Where is the program offered?

Our speakers present to a range of groups, including:

  • primary and secondary schools
  • higher education students
  • community groups
  • parishes and church groups
  • workplaces
  • private functions
  • festivals and other public events.

Find out more

The Just Voices Speakers Program is located in Melbourne, Victoria.

Please contact us at justvoices@jss.org.au to see speaker bios, discuss pricing, check on studio availability or how you can sponsor the program.

Artful Dodgers Studios,
Jesuit Social Services,
1 Langridge St (PO Box 1141) Collingwood VIC 3066
(03) 9421 7600

Jesuit Social Services is a social change organisation working to build a just society where all people can live to their full potential. This program is funded by City of Yarra’s Annual Grant 2018 and the O’Brien Foundation. www.jss.org.au

You can also use our contact form below

Contact Just Voices

Contact Just Voices

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