3rd Host - Victoria Police
3rd World LGBTIQ+ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals
January 31 - February 3, 2024
Better Together is the theme for the Melbourne conference.
What does Better Together look like?
We are Better Together when:
- Criminal justice organisations involve the LGBTIQ+ community in decisions that matter to them;
- LGBTIQ+ employees and allies work together to create organisational cultures where diversity is nurtured and valued;
- LGBTIQ+ diversity and inclusion is understood through the lens of intersectionality, and where we acknowledge and celebrate our whole selves; and
- LGBTIQ+ criminal justice professionals work towards common goals by connecting across disciplines, jurisdictions and borders.
In August of 2016, the Dutch National Police held the 1st World LGBTQ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals. The conference was well attended by members of police organizations, public prosecution services and departments of justice from 26 countries and six continents. The Toronto Police Service hosted the 2nd World LGBTQ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals in 2019 which built upon the success created by the Dutch. At the 2019 conference, Victoria Police (Melbourne, Australia) was announced as the host of the 2023, 3rd World LGBTQ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals. Victoria Police looks forward to welcoming you to Melbourne for another fantastic conference!
The conference will focus on building on the relationships that criminal justice professionals and their organisations have with LGBTIQ+ communities, both external and internal to their organisations. The conference will provide an opportunity for criminal justice professionals from around the world to communicate with each other through various workshops, panel discussions, case studies and lectures to facilitate the sharing of new ideas, strategies and best practices to ensure that we grow the relationships we have with LGBTIQ+ communities.
The conference will help to establish best practice techniques and training necessary for the purpose of decreasing homophobia, transphobia and biphobia while increasing cultural diversity awareness in the workplace.
The purpose of the conference is to educate criminal justice professionals through dialogue as well as various programs and services that in turn result in policies, opportunities, practices and benefits in the workplace regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression.
Facilitating the conference is a tremendous undertaking. We are hoping you will consider supporting this very worthwhile event.
Melbourne Organizing Committee Bios
Neil Paterson APM
Deputy Commissioner Capability Portfolio Victoria Police
Preferred Pronouns: He/Him
Neil was appointed to the role of Deputy Commissioner Capability in July 2020. His current responsibilities include oversight and management of
- Capability Department
- Media, Communications and Engagement Department (MCED)
- People Development Command (PDC)
- Professional Standards Command (PSC)
- Service Delivery Transformation Command
Neil’s role is to provide a safe community for all Victorians, and strengthen ethical health and culture with Victoria Police, through education and training. Neil is responsible for the organisation’s work with Government ensuring policies and legislation is contemporary to police needs so that they can deliver the best possible outcomes of the community. He alsoleads a service delivery transformation program to ensure police continue to evolve to meetthe expectations of the communities they serve.
Mark Keen APM
Inspector, Capability Department
Preferred Pronouns: He/Him
Mark Keen is an Inspector in Priority & Safer Communities Division within the Capability Department. His diverse policing background spans over 36 years and includes operational policing, prosecutions, sexual offences and child abuse investigations, as well as a variety of roles with a diversity & inclusion and human rights focus. Mark has a long history of LGBTIQ+ advocacy and in 1995, was a founding member of the Gay and Lesbian Police Employees’ Network (GALPEN). In 2018, Mark developed the Victoria Police LGBTI Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan 2018-2021. He is currently the Deputy Chair of the LGBTIQ+ Employee Network (VP PRIDE) and is also Victoria Police’s representative on the Victorian Public Sector Pride Network Council.
Tom O'Dwyer
Acting Senior Sergeant
Preferred Pronouns: He/They
Tom has been with Victoria Police for 11 years, having worked at a range of areas and locations, including general duties, public order, and intelligence. Tom is the current secretary of the Victoria Police LGBTIQ+ employee network ‘VP Pride’, and is an LGBTIQ+ Liaison officer. Tom’s presently seconded to the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, assisting with the coordination of the 2023 World LGBTIQ+ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals.
Amanda Bowden
Inspector - North West Metro Support Services Division
Preferred Pronouns: She/Her
Amanda joined Victoria Police in October 2007 and has worked in general duties policing in regional and metropolitan areas, as well as specialist roles in Critical Incident Response Team, and Chemical Biological Radiological/Disaster Victim Identification Unit. Amanda was promoted to sergeant in 2016 at Transit Safety Division, and promoted to Senior Sergeant in 2019 at Road Policing Command. In 2021 Amanda transferred to Footscray Police Station in Melbourne’s busy western suburbs and performed the role of Officer in Charge and Municipal Emergency Response Coordinator. She was promoted in September 2022 to her current role as North West Metro Region Training Inspector.
Amanda is a LGBTIQ Liaison Officer, a committee member for Victoria Police LGBTIQ employee network VP Pride, as well as its Rainbow Families sub-committee, and has established LGBTIQ Networks in her three most recent workplaces. In 2019, Amanda was selected to undertake a LGBTIQ Leadership Program through Leadership Victoria, leveraging the connections from this program to assist in the redevelopment of LGBTIQ Liaison Officer training for Victoria Police.
Jo Warwick
Sergeant
Preferred Pronouns: Jo
Sgt. Jo is currently working in the Priority & Safer Community Division, as part of the LGBTIQ+ Portfolios Team. Jo' usual position is at Transit Safety Division. Jo maintains a high level of activity within the LGBTIQ+ space, both internally and externally facing, by being a committee member of the Victoria Police’s Employee Network (VP Pride), as the Transit and Public Safety Command LGBTIQ+ (LLO) Network co-ordinator, and as member of the newly formed Transgender and Gender Diverse Employee Network (TAGDEN).
Jo assist's by driving a lot of the LGBTIQ+ Days of significance events, I provide information and education for our members by holding sessions with key guest speakers. These events include IDAHOBIT, Transgender Day of Remembrance, and Wear it Purple Day. I have made it my mission to light up key iconic structures around Melbourne in purple, for Wear it Purple Day, over the past 4 years! I also facilitate key training & information programs, such as the LGBTIQ+ Liaison Officers (LLO) information sessions. I have also been working closely with our union, (The Police Association Victoria) looking at the new EBA and advocating for better Gender Affirmation Leave.
Clare O'Donnell
Creative Services Manager, Media Communications and Engagement Department (MCED)
Preferred Pronouns: She/Her
Clare has been working as a media and content specialist in the public service sector for the past 10 years. Having worked in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, she has worked with a variety of government departments and police jurisdictions. Clare started with Victoria Police in 2019 as a videographer for the Media Communications and Engagement Department (MCED), and has since become the manager of the Creative Services Team in MCED. Over the last 4 years, Clare has been involved in documenting significant milestones of the relationship with Victoria Police and the LGBTIQ+ Community. Clare is passionate about covering honest stories about the past trauma, and the present capabilities and progress into future that will strengthen trust and respect between Victoria Police and the LGBTIQ+ Community. Clare has been assisting with the coordination of strategic media and communications support for the 2023 World LGBTIQ+ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals.
Kris Hamilton
Acting Inspector
Preferred Pronouns: He/Him
Kris currently works as unit manager, Victoria Police Monitoring and Assessment Centre where a team of sworn and public servants provide real-time intelligence and communication to the front-line and Command to help better inform policing responses. Kris has been with Victoria Police for 17 years and is actively involved in all things LGBTIQ+ related. Kris is passionate about promoting Victoria Police as a employer of choice for the LGBTIQ+ community and hopes to improve the organisation through increased recruitment in this space. Kris and his partner are proudly owned by their border collie Chase, and two standard dachshunds George & Theodore.
Carlee Botefuhr
Senior Sergeant, Capability Department
Carlee is a Senior Sergeant in the Priority and Safer Communities Division of the Capability Department. Carlee’s current position is within the LGBTIQ+ communities portfolio, working with LGBTIQ+ stakeholder groups and community members to improve organisational service delivery. Carlee co-ordinates the state -wide LGBTIQ+ Liaison Officer program and participates in the Victoria Police LGBTIQ+ employee network (VP Pride Council) in that capacity. Carlee is an LGBTIQ+ Liaison Officer herself, and has been involved in the co-ordination and management of various LGBTIQ+ community events and days of significance.
Melbourne Speaker Bios
Christine Nixon AO.APM.
Christine was the 19th Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police leading 14,000 staff, operating across more than 500 locations, and overseeing an annual budget of $1.7 billion. She joined Victoria Police in April 2001, after serving with the New South Wales Police from 1972 and became the first Female Assistant Commissioner in 1994. She led the Victorian Bushfire Recovery and Reconstruction Agency after to 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires.
Christine is a Fellow of ANZSOG, The Australian Institute of Police Management, The Australian Institute of Management, and a National Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration Australia.
Currently Christine is the Chair of Leadership Victoria, was the Chair of the Board of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. She was a Council member and Deputy Chancellor of Monash University from 2009- 2020, Chair of Monash College Pty Ltd 2011-2020 and Chair of Good Shepherd Microfinance 2011-2019.
Christine has a long history of supporting women, children, and vulnerable communities.
Christine teaches and is a sought-after speaker on diversity, corruption, resilience, risk, crisis management and leadership.
Co-author with Jo Chandler “Fair Cop”, MUP 2011
Co-author with Amanda Sinclair “Women Leading” MUP 2017.
Dr. Todd Fernando
Dr Todd Fernando is a descendant of the Kalarie peoples of the Wiradjuri nation and identifies as queer with pronouns he/him. Todd is the Victorian Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities - the second person to fill this ground-breaking position. In this role, Todd provides high-level strategic advice to the Victorian Government on the development and implementation of policies, services, and programs to meet the needs of LGBTIQ+ communities. Todd completed his PhD in Medical Anthropology with the University of Melbourne and is a leading expert in reforming social policy and cultural safety frameworks in public and private sectors across Australia. Todd is recognised as a strategic thought leader, with a commitment to improving outcomes and opportunities for all Australians.
Honourable Virginia Bell AC SC
Virginia Bell served on the High Court of Australia for 12 years from February 2009. The High Court is the ultimate appellate court in Australia. At the date of her appointment, she was a judge of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. After graduating in law, she practiced as a solicitor for seven years with the Redfern Legal Centre, the first community law centre to be established in New South Wales. She acted for many of those who were arrested at the first Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Sydney in 1978. She was admitted to the Bar in 1984 and was appointed Senior Counsel in 1997. Between 1994 and 1997 she was a Counsel Assisting the Royal Commission into the Police Service. She was appointed to the Supreme Court of New South Wales in March 1999. She served as President of the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration between 2006 and 2008. She was made a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2012 for eminent service to the judiciary and the law through judicial administration, and as an advocate for the economically and socially disadvantaged.
Rodney Croome
Rodney Croome is a long-time advocate for LGBTIQA+ equality. He led the successful campaign to decriminalise homosexuality in Tasmania, was the national director of Australian Marriage Equality and has advocated for a wide range of reforms including discrimination protections, parenting equality, hate speech laws, gender recognition laws, gay blood donation, LGBTIQA+ inclusive schools, improved mental health services and better human rights protections. After being arrested four times at Hobart's Salamanca Market in 1988, in defence of a gay law reform stall, Rodney began working with Tasmanian Police to improve its relationship with the LGBTIQA+ community. He has delivered recruit and liaison officer training, was a founding member of the TasPol LGBTIQA+ reference group, and continues to work on issues such as LGBTIQA+ police recruitment and prejudice-motivated crime. Rodney's work has been recognised by a Centenary Medal and an Order of Australia. He was named Tasmanian Australian of the Year in 2015.