Our team: expertise and experience.
Ian Seal.
Ian Seal (B.Ed (Sec); M.Soc.Sci) has worked in the fields of capacity building, community development and health promotion for vulnerable children and young people, for more than two decades. He has extensive experience working in complex and disadvantaged communities, such as Australian Aboriginal communities, urban injecting drug users (Australia and the Philippines), island communities in remote areas of Indonesia, LGBTQI+ groups, and with orphans and street children in Uganda, Indonesia and the Philippines. His focus is on strengthening the abilities of children and young people in disadvantaged communities to meet their own needs and maximise their health and wellbeing, and on building the resources and skills of families and communities for children and young people's health.
Ian has worked as a consultant to UNICEF (in the Philippines and Nepal), UNFPA (in Nepal), Youth House in Vietnam, the Victorian Commissioner for Children and Young People, Aboriginal and mainstream community organisations, philanthropic organisations, and the Victorian Education and Human Services Departments. He managed a number of projects for the Centre for Adolescent Health (Royal Children’s Hospital and the University of Melbourne) and has lectured in community development, public health, international development, youth work and child and adolescent health at the University of Melbourne, Deakin University, RMIT and Victoria University. He was awarded a Certificate of Merit in the Australian Heads of Government Violence Prevention Awards for his work in developing and delivering sexual abuse prevention programs to young men in Victorian schools; a Centenary Medal with a citation that reads “For service to improving sexual health outcomes for rural and marginalised youth”, a Certificate of Outstanding Achievement from the Australian Principal’s Association Professional Development Council and a Certificate of Outstanding Achievement from the Victorian Minister for Community Services.
Rosie Wheen.
After getting a Bachelor of Education from University of Canberra Rosie followed her passion for travel and adventure and spend 4 formative years as an Australian Volunteer International (AVI) in Kupang and Rote in Indonesia.
This experience set Rosie on a community development career path. On returning to Australia she completed her Masters in Community and International Development at Deakin university. During this time she worked in a range of paid and volunteer roles such as a policy officer at ACFID, and in a range of education and community development projects in Indonesia and Timor-Leste. She was then privileged to be part of the NTT Primary Education Program phase 1 in Flores, Indonesia. She and her husband spent a wonderful 2 years living and working in Bajawa. Rosie then started at WaterAid Australia in 2004, where she is now the Executive Director.
Rosie strives to blend into her life her passion for community, social justice, health in different ways such as through her engagement with her soccer team - the Brunswick Zebras - and her local community in Eltham. Rosie is the proud mum of two gorgeous boys.
Jayke Clayden.
I am a Bachelor of Arts International Studies graduate with a deep commitment to human rights and sustainable community development. I have been involved with THREE since the early days and I’ve spent time working with each of our partner organisations in the Philippines, Australia, Indonesia and Uganda. After a year studying in Indonesia in 2011/12, my commitment to social justice was further galvanised and I returned to Australia to intern at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, where I would eventually become an Education Advisor for the next 3 years.
Following the completion of my degree, I began working in disability services, and also took up the position of Volunteer Coordinator at the Darfur Australia Network, where I would go on to serve as the Executive Secretary. Following some time traveling and working on THREE for All projects in the Philippines and Indonesia, I took up a role in London working in partnership development as Partner Projects Coordinator at Frontier: The Society for Environmental Exploration. Recently I have returned to the Southern Hemisphere and I’m currently based in Kupang as the Indonesia Projects Coordinator for the THREE for All Foundation.
Manu Kailom
I joined Many Coloured Sky as a member in early 2019. I am a blogger and passionate about working with youths from Asylum seeker background and previously involved with ASRC Youth Empowerment groups. I was also with Amnesty International Melbourne LQBTIQ+ board and their volunteer writer on LGBTIQ issues in the Pacific Region.
I moved to Melbourne almost 2 years ago as a person seeking asylum. Having lived around Australia the challenges I faced in accessing, social, economic and psychological support myself has driven me to work along supporting my peers today in marginalised youth groups of various backgrounds living in Victoria.
Prior to moving to Australia, I worked in Tourism Developments projects in Papua New Guinea with private organisations and also wrote a private blog Pacific Tourism Insights. I believed tourism can be used as a tool of development to help young people who drop out of school and also using tourism to build community foundations and help the local villages generate income.
Through my study of psychology and politics in the University of Papua New Guinea I realised my eagerness and interest to help vulnerable people often neglected by the very institutions that they believe to support them. This had driven me to get more involved in working with people and advocate for change in systems.
In Many Coloured Sky, I am excited to work in an organisation who believe in empowering and bring change. Working here is a way of showing my passion and dedicating my life to causes I believe in to help change someone life using the experiences I endured through my own journey.
Helen Butler.
Beginning her working life as a teacher and student welfare coordinator in secondary schools, Helen has pursued her passion for social justice and adolescent health through teaching, research and school-based projects. She has also participated over many years as a volunteer in community organisations including playgroups, community music, health promotion and sporting groups.
For 11 years at the Centre for Adolescent Health, she led the development of materials and professional learning for promoting connectedness and emotional wellbeing in school communities. She has shared this work extensively through collaborations, presentations and publications nationally and internationally.
From 2008, Helen worked as Senior lecturer in education, focused on student wellbeing and inclusive schooling, at the Australian Catholic University’s Melbourne campus. This has been a great opportunity to further develop and share her interest areas with preservice, inservice and postgraduate teachers, as well as with other sectors. Helen learned much from collaboration with school communities and the Catholic Education Office Melbourne on areas including restorative practices, family-school-community partnerships, improving access to education and addressing experiences of disadvantage and trauma. She is currently completing a PhD on how educators understand and engage with student wellbeing.
In 2015, Helen took up a position as National Education Advisor with headspace School Support, helping to build the capacity of school communities to prepare for, respond to, and recover from youth suicide.
