Our Board of Directors brings diverse expertise and deep commitment to guiding Red Nose’s strategic direction, ensuring strong governance and accountability in all that we do.
Our board members bring together backgrounds in healthcare, governance, community services, research, and lived experience — united by a shared commitment to saving little lives and supporting Australian families navigating through grief and loss.
Nick Xerakias
Nick is a Partner at Public Affairs firm GRACosway. He has broad ranging political experience, particularly in strategy and policy advice.
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Earlier in his career, Nick worked at senior levels for the Federal Opposition and Government across a number of portfolios including Employment, Family and Community Services, Health, Resources and Energy portfolios, and has experience in both federal and state political campaign management.
Nick is based in Victoria and is a bereaved father.
Nick was formerly a Board Member of Sands Australia and joined the Red Nose Board in November 2020 when the organisations merged.
Ian Burgess
Ian is an experienced director and CEO, with a varied career in both not-for-profit and commercial organisations. Ian is currently CEO of the Medical Technology Association of Australia, the peak industry body representing manufacturers and suppliers of medical technology.
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Ian has been a director on a range of boards, including healthcare businesses, an EFT payments gateway, transport and education sectors.
Ian’s previous CEO roles have included the Australian Dental Association (NSW), the Australian Orthopaedic Association and a private equity-backed healthcare business. Ian also has a strong background in governance, having held senior executive positions with the Governance Institute of Australia.
Arthur Dimitropoulos
Arthur has over 30 years’ experience inclusive of finance, strategy, acquisitions, analytics, and organisational performance.
Arthur’s Executive career includes Non-Executive Directorships, CFO, Company Secretary, CIO, governance committees and other senior engagements in listed, as well as private, not-for-profit and government organisations across a broad range of industries including international experience.
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Arthur brings a balance of financial performance leadership, governance, strategy, analytics and commercial intellect in healthcare, disability, retail, logistics, and professional services. Arthur’s extensive experience is also coupled with experience as a Non-Executive Director within education, healthcare, disability, and social enterprises.
Arthur’s qualifications include a Master of Business Administration (MBA), is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (MAICD).
Professor Craig Pennell
Professor Craig Pennell is passionate about improving outcomes for mothers and babies. He is Chair in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Professor of Maternal Fetal Medicine and Co-Director of the Mothers and Babies Research Centre at the University of Newcastle. Further, he is the Pregnancy and Birth Theme Lead within the Reproduction and Family Health Research Program at Hunter Medical Research Institute. In addition to his academic work, he is a Senior Staff Specialist in Maternal Fetal Medicine at John Hunter Hospital.
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Craig combines his clinical expertise with a strong commitment to research and education. His work focuses on personalised medicine in perinatal health and understanding how early life events shape lifelong health. He is leading research into predicting preterm birth, preventing stillbirth, reducing maternal mortality in low- and middle-income countries, and exploring the role of genetics in pregnancy and adult disease.
With an outstanding global record in obstetrics, gynaecology, and maternal fetal medicine, Craig is dedicated to making pregnancy safer for families everywhere. He is also an ex officio member of the National Stillbirth Advisory Group (NSAG), helping guide national strategies to reduce stillbirth. Through his work, Craig shares Red Nose’s commitment to saving little lives and supporting families through every stage of pregnancy and beyond.
Diana Jans
With a qualification in teaching, I have taught all throughout Cape York as well as doing some time in mainstream schools in Cairns. I love teaching,, and every day you go home with a happy story of a student.
I also hold a Master of Social Work, where most of my practice has seen me working in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island maternal child health, grief and loss and bereavement, and trauma-informed practice.
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I am a member of the Indigenous Advisory Group with the Stillbirth CRE and have supported this position since 2017. It was from here that we designed the stillbirth stories in the Cape York project – this is nearly ready for publication.
I also sit on the Royal Australian New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Mental Health Committee since 2015. My time as a cultural advisor and support person has seen me engaging in several areas, events and media forms that have come through the committee. I have gained a lot of knowledge from my time with the College, and I respect all the work being done in mental health and psychiatry.
I believe that nurturing wisdom and knowledge through a culturally sensitive practice of education is one of the most important things for a person to have in life as a professional, for financial wellbeing and to secure a healthy lifestyle.
I also hold qualifications as a Narrative Therapist, a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, a Perinatal Infant Mental Health Therapist, and a Qld Justice of the Peace. I have a registered private practice where I serve as a counsellor and consultant for professional and clinical supervision.
One of my biggest achievements is being a mum to my beautiful young son, who was born at 32 weeks prem. Giving birth to a prem bubba, and a single mum at 25 years was something I hold dear in my thoughts and makes me more empathetic to parents with high-risk pregnancies. I know the medical complications, experience the inequity of conscious and unconscious racism within that specific health service, the emotional distress and worry of all that goes with a pre-term pregnancy, and the anxiety of being a first mum, and then the wonderful pleasure of having a beautiful, healthy bub and watching him grow. I also know the hardship of loss.
After working with families and communities experiencing trauma and grief for most of my 35-year career, I am now working with mob and am blessed to be here on beautiful Narrm country. I acknowledge the Kulin Nation and pay my respect to the people’s elders, past, present and emerging.
Andrea Pearman
Currently Chief Executive Officer of Netball Victoria and Melbourne Vixens, Andrea has held executive leadership roles in some of Australia’s leading organisations, including Inclusive Australia, Australia Post, National Australia Bank, Fosters and Telstra, for over 20 years.
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She has experience in brand and reputation management, stakeholder relations, marketing, corporate social responsibility, and community investment practices across a broad spectrum of industries and sectors, such as the government, corporate and not-for-profit sectors.
Andrea is passionate about improving diversity and inclusion both within organisations and across the wider community, and at Australia Post, she co-founded Inclusive Australia, alongside BehaviourWorks at Monash University. Inclusive Australia aims to reduce prejudice and discrimination within society using a data and behavioural science approach and working in collaboration.
Lyndy Bowden
Lyndy is a Lactation Consultant working closely with the Aboriginal community of Tasmania, and holds several other roles including with PSANZ (Perinatal Society of Australia & New Zealand) Consumer Advisory Panel and the PSANZ Perinatal Palliative Care Special Interest Group.
Learn more about Lyndy
Lyndy joined the Red Nose Board in November 2020 following the merger of Red Nose and Sands.
Based in Hobart, Lyndy has a long history with Sands and the bereaved parent community. After her son Thomas’ death in 1997, Lyndy became involved as a peer supporter and held a number of governance roles within Sands Tasmania. In 2014 she was appointed Chair of Sands Australia until its national unification in 2018.
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