Meet the Team

Introducing Ben Cork: Champion of Inclusion and LGBTQ Advocate. Ben has been involved in Gymnastics over 30 years as an athlete, coach and administrator with more than a decade of experience as a coach and committee member at a national level. He is also a founding gymsport Chairperson for Oceania Gymnastics Union and a current Commission Member for the International Gymnastics Federation. Ben has authored several Sporting Schools programs and worked extensively in the development of participation and inclusion programs in NSW and Australia. Ben brings over 20 years of experience in media and government to the Pride in Sport team.

Chris Keely brings a wealth of experience to Pride in Diversity, having held senior roles across media, telecommunications, and government. His career has spanned major content corporations such as Paramount International, SingTel Optus, and SBS Australia, where he worked as a commercial and media lawyer. He has also served as an advisor to Federal and State Ministers and held leadership positions in the NSW public sector. His work has taken him across the Asia Pacific, with roles in Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore.

A passionate advocate for LGBTQ+ inclusion, Chris co-founded SBS Pride and Allies, the organisation’s Employee Resource Network, and was a founding member of SBS’s Diversity Council. His commitment to diversity and inclusion has been recognised through several accolades, including being named one of Deloitte’s 2020 Outstanding 50 LGBTI+ Leaders and a member of the Australian Pride Power List in 2019. He has also contributed to the Australian Press Council’s Round Table on the reporting of LGBTQ+ people and issues.

With his extensive expertise and dedication to fostering inclusive workplaces, Chris plays a key role in supporting Pride in Diversity’s mission to drive meaningful change for LGBTQ+ inclusion across Australian workplaces.

Chris Nelson is a senior Human Resources leader with over 20 years’ experience in the finance and insurance industry across both specialist and generalist areas, including talent management, succession planning, remuneration strategy, engagement, leadership, change and building diverse and inclusive businesses.

Chris was a foundation committee member of the Commonwealth Bank’s LGBTQ network, Unity.

Prior to his career in Human Resources, Chris worked in various leadership business operations roles and as a project manager. He is also an experienced executive coach and LGBTQ counsellor.

Chris is a Certified Member of the Australian Human Resources Institute (CAHRI), a member of the Australian Institute of Management, a member of the Ethics Centre, and has been a NFP Board Director. Chris has a Bachelor of Theology, a Graduate Certificate in Adult Education and an MBA from Macquarie Graduate School of Management.

Chris is known for his ability to keep Human Resources practical and human-centred. He has a strong corporate background and has a great passion for coaching executives to influence not only their leadership capability, but also to impact the business more broadly by changing the thinking on employee engagement and building the sort of culture that supports a great business.

Colin has extensive operations, project management, communications and administrative experience gained across the corporate, government and not-for-profit sectors. After a 14-year management operations career in the motor industry in the UK with Peugeot and Mercedes-Benz, he retrained and became a tourism and events marketing professional. On relocating to Australia in 2009 he further broadened his experience working for local government before moving into the not-for-profit sector, initially in education and more recently in mental health research as the Volunteer Coordinator for Black Dog Institute’s flagship Future Proofing Study. He joined the Pride Inclusion Programs Team in November 2021. He lives in Sydney with his husband and is a keen Sydney Swans supporter being a founding member of their LGBTQ+ supporters’ group, the Rainbow Swans.

Dawn Emsen-Hough is the Director of ACON’s Pride Inclusion Programs, overseeing Pride in Diversity, Pride in Sport, Pride in Health + Wellbeing, and Pride Training. These programs provide comprehensive support for LGBTQ+ inclusion across workplaces, sport, and health services.

Dawn joined ACON in 2009 to develop and establish the Pride in Diversity program and the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI), now recognised as the national benchmark for LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion. Under her leadership, the program has grown significantly, earning an international reputation for its leading practice and gold-standard benchmarking.

Now heading a team of 45+ specialists, Dawn has expanded the division to include dedicated teams focused exclusively on LGBTQ+ workplace, sport, and health inclusion, along with a bespoke training team delivering tailored education across industries. In 2022, she established a specialist team dedicated to data, research, and academic publications to further enhance evidence-based best practices.

Dawn is a respected international speaker on LGBTQ+ inclusion, contributing to global discussions and corporate diversity boards. She has co-authored academic papers and written five publications on LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion. Dawn lives in Sydney’s inner city with her partner of 40+ years, Judy, and their beloved border collies.

Nicki Elkin brings over 15 years of experience in commercial roles across diverse sectors in both the UK and Australia. With a strong corporate background, Nicki has expertise in developing and implementing sales and marketing strategies, fostering relationships with key industry leaders, and driving stakeholder engagement to achieve mutual goals.

A passionate advocate for inclusion and diversity, Nicki was a founding member of the Medtronic LGBTQ network, Pride, demonstrating their commitment to fostering inclusive workplaces. Their strategic approach to stakeholder engagement and project delivery ensures meaningful outcomes for organisations seeking to enhance their LGBTQ inclusion efforts.

Nicki holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Leeds, an MBA from Leeds University Business School, and a Master of Marketing Communication from the University of Canberra. Their extensive experience in strategy development and project execution will bring valuable insights and support to Pride Inclusion Programs’ members.

Tidge brings a wealth of experience as an advocate, consultant, and trainer, with lived experience as a gender diverse, neurodiverse, and sexuality diverse individual. Their passion for equity and inclusion has shaped their ability to engage with organisations, building awareness, capability, and empathy while critically examining systemic barriers to inclusion.

Before joining ACON’s Pride Inclusion Programs, Tidge worked in NSW Health, where they played a key role in driving LGBTQ+ inclusion. Their achievements at Northern Sydney Local Health District include: planning and hosting the inaugural LGBTIQ+ Health Symposium during World Pride 2023, leading the organisation through the Australian Workplace Equality Index, co-chairing the Pride+ Employee Network, and contributing to the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging strategy.

Tidge has studied Diversity & Inclusion with The Culture Ministry and brings a confident, professional, and adaptable approach to their work. They are committed to supporting, respecting, and empowering individuals and organisations to create safe, inclusive, and affirming environments for all.

Bringing a strong background in administrative and operational management, event coordination, community engagement and creative production, Chris is passionate about creating inclusive, engaging spaces that celebrate and support LGBTQ+ communities.

Over the past 10 years, Chris has worked as a specialised gym manager, creative all-rounder and professional circus artist. He has been actively involved in both private and community, with a particular interest in projects that centre storytelling, creativity and authentic representation. Chris brings a collaborative and detail-oriented approach to his work and is committed to helping create impactful experiences that support organisations in building safer, more inclusive environments for everyone.

Outside of the office Chris can usually be found doing something creative, whether it’s coaching or performing aerial acrobatics, designing and making fabulous fashion, or dancing the weekends away with his friends.

Suzie grew up in the Shoalhaven, and went to uni in Wollongong where she completed a Bachelor of Creative Arts (Hons). She moved to Sydney with her partner in 2022, and they now live on Bidjigal land with a beloved and spoilt cat, Mika.

Suzie has worked across many fields, with a background in publishing, customer service and pet care – she has even been a puppy trainer!
Her working background reflects her hobbies. Suzie is an animal lover through-and-through, and she loves making and consuming Creative Arts, as she enjoys reading, painting, drawing, playing some instruments, and video games.

Suzie is passionate about raising awareness of the needs of LGBTQ+ communities and elevating queer voices, and is a proud member of community herself.

A word from Suzie:
“I absolutely love my role at Pride Inclusion Programs and feel privileged to work with my amazing team to help educate and raise awareness for our communities, and ultimately create safer, more inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ folks.”

Dr Oliver Alexander (he/they) is the Instructional Design and Training Manager at ACON’s Pride Inclusion Programs, leading training across Pride in Diversity, Pride in Health + Wellbeing, Pride in Sport, and Pride Training. With over 15 years in adult education and a background as a lecturer in sociology and gender studies, Oliver brings expertise in instructional design, inclusive content development, and strategic learning. They’ve spearheaded innovative approaches to online, hybrid, and team-based learning. Driven by a belief in education’s transformative power, Oliver designs tailored programs that foster engagement, boost retention, and deliver lasting impact for individuals and organisations.

Paco has a background in applied quantitative Sociology and holds an undergraduate degree in Sociology from London Metropolitan University, a Masters degree in Sociology and Panel Data Analysis from the University of Essex, and a PhD in Social and Economic Research from the Institute for Social and Economic Research. His methodological expertise is on the analysis of complex survey and administrative datasets, and he has worked extensively using the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI) Employee Surveys.

Paco has a long-standing track record of academic work in the space of gender and sexuality. He has developed and taught courses on gender and sexuality and has led large-scale projects in this space. This includes a prestigious Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award on ‘Sexual Orientation and Life Chances in Contemporary Australia’. Paco’s research on gender and sexuality is recurrently published in leading international scientific journals. Amongst others, he has developed research on topics such as:

• The role of ally groups and diversity training in enhancing the workplace wellbeing of LGTBQ+ employees.
• How correct pronoun use matters for gender-diverse employees.
• How prejudice and stigma drive health disparities by sexual orientation.
• Differences in wellbeing across subgroups within the LGBTQ+ umbrella.
• The outcomes of children raised in same-sex-parented families.
• The biological origins of sexual orientation and individuals’ experiences of sexual-identity change.
• The value of administrative data to advance research on LGBTQ+ issues.
• The family lives of sexuality- and gender-diverse people.
• Which socio-demographic factors that predict support for equality and diversity amongst the general public.

Paco’s research has been featured in media outlets across the globe and incorporated into policy documents by national and international government agencies.

Kristie is a strong community and social services professional with a passion for social justice, advocacy and building community capacity. 

After a parenting break, she retrained gaining a Diploma of Public Relations and Diploma of Community Services (focused in AOD/Mental Health), which led to working with a number of Community Services peak bodies and non-profits, in a variety of project and administrative roles. 

Her internal data nerd surfaced, discovering the power of using data to prove the effectiveness of change, leading to in developing and building reporting tools and interactive excel dashboards, to make data insights accessible to the broader organisation.

Kristie develops and manages the various Surveys across the three membership program Indices, and utilises the considerable data to build capacity and drive change for Inclusion.  

In her spare time, she volunteers with the NSW State Emergency Service.

Bringing a wealth of experience from diverse roles and industries in roles ranging from events management, office administration, executive support, team leadership, fundraising, sales, and beyond, Will initially joined the team as a versatile asset. Swiftly, he discovered his niche covering both the Index Submissions and Survey analysis. In his present role, he plays a crucial role in supporting the growth of APIP, specifically overseeing all aspects concerning Index Submissions. This involved both operational and strategic aspects, including the integral part of their design, development and continuous improvement; shaping the core elements of the team’s work.

Will’s fervent commitment to equality and equity is matched only by his dedication, efficiency, kindness, and sense of humour.

In the wild, you’ll spot Will in the midst of domestic adventures, gracefully managing a household, parenting a young child, and wrangling three dogs — keeping a cup of coffee close at hand.