The Council seeks to represent all people with disability, their families and carers. Individual Council members bring knowledge, lived experience and invaluable professional and personal networks to the table.
The Council is vital to providing the Western Australian (WA) Government with advice and perspectives on issues relating to disability in WA informed by lived experience. It engages and influences debate on fundamental issues such as access and inclusion and the employment of people with disability.
Since February 2022, the Council has worked collaboratively with the Disability Services Commission Board in joint meetings known as the WA Disability Advisory Council (WADAC), continuing its role in providing advice to the WA Minister for Disability Services. WADAC also is a key driver and promoter of A Western Australia for Everyone: State Disability Strategy 2020 – 2030 and the action plan.
Council membership
Mr Kane Blackman (Chairperson)
Kane Blackman is the parent of a child with Angelman Syndrome, a rare disease. His passion is working in commercial environments to drive improved outcomes for vulnerable people, which is informed by his experience as a father of a child with a rare disease.
Kane is the Chief Executive Officer of Good Sammy Enterprises, a commercial business providing employment opportunities for people with disability and has 15 years’ experience as a senior executive in financial services, disability care, government service delivery, and the resource sector. His prior role was with the Insurance Commission of Western Australia, where he had executive responsibility for strategy, customer engagement, public relations, governance, and corporate services.
He has a Bachelor of Science, a Master of Business Administration, and a Graduate Diploma of Corporate Governance. Kane is also a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Governance Institute of Australia, and is a chartered company secretary.
Ms Clare Gibellini (Deputy Chairperson)
Clare’s lived experience with disability comes from being an Autistic person, and a parent to her son who is a NDIS participant. She also cares for a family member with a mental health condition and chairs a Microboard for a young woman in the South West who has multiple complex disabilities.
Clare has extensive knowledge and experience in person-centred thinking and planning, as well as individualised service design, demonstrated through earlier roles within the disability sector, as a support worker, staff trainer and lead for several Information, Linkages and Capacity Building projects. Before joining Valued Lives, Clare has worked in various Government and not-for profit organisations within the disability sector. She also served as the Deputy Chair) for the WA Transition Advisory Group, which supported transitioning to the national scheme in Western Australia.
This experience was recognised in May 2023,when Clare was appointed Co-Chair of the National Autism Strategy Oversight Council by the Hon Amanda Rishworth MP. Clare also volunteers with several organisations including People with Disability Australia, Outback Academy Australia and is the Secretary of the Southwest Autism Network.
Dr Siyat Abdi
Siyat has worked in the disability, education and community development sectors for over 25 years in Australia and overseas. He trained as a teacher overseas and then taught/lectured in high schools and tertiary education for many years and later, registered as the first blind teacher in South Australia (SA).
Siyat completed a PhD in Community Rehab (disability studies) at Flinders University and has a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Education specialising in disability and rehabilitation. Siyat has 10 years’ work experience as a systemic advocate at Kin Disability Advocacy (formerly known as Ethnic Disability Advocacy Centre). He is an independent disability consultant, an advocate, and a human rights activist.
Siyat has collaborated extensively with migrant communities in SA and WA, particularly refugees, women, and people with disability. He understands the difficulties and barriers faced by people with disability, migrants and refugee families when trying to navigate their way through difficult pathways, services and processes in their journey accessing services, integrating and settlement in Australia. Siyat continues to be a representative on various diversity groups and advisory committees here in Western Australia.
Ms Chanel Bowen
In 2019, Chanel sustained an Acquired Brain Injury, joining the disability and deaf/hard of hearing communities. She is lucky enough to have learnt to manage her disability within her industry, despite challenges and is now an enthusiastic advocate for disability stories on screen. Since the end of 2020, Chanel has thrown herself into personal research and professional development about disability inclusion in the film industry and how this can be strengthened in Australia.
Chanel is a South West-based film practitioner, who is enthusiastic about community driven films and delivering Australian content to audiences. Chanel began her screen career working on international advertising in China and Thailand, before landing in her position as 3rd Assistant Director on internationally recognised Australian feature films. In 2019, Chanel received funding from Screenwest to travel to the Natalie Miller Brilliant Careers Forum to develop her leadership practices and awareness in the film industry. Chanel’s focus was on gender representation on crews - in every department. She took the forum as a launching platform for further funding from Screenwest, to hold a ‘Gals in Grips, Ladies in Lighting’ series of workshops for female identifying and non-binary practitioners.
Ms Georgia Inglis
Georgia is a student, working towards finishing her Master’s and PhD in Occupational Therapy. Her research focuses specifically on spinal cord injury patients and how to better improve equipment resources.
Georgia immersed herself in the world of adapted sport, learning about different disabilities and how many of her teammates have overcome various challenges to their individual and team success.
Georgia has lived experience of disability with a spinal cord injury resulting from an accident at just 10 years of age. Since then, she has seen the enormous difficulties that come with living with disability. She views her experiences as an opportunity to help those living with a disability as well as being a voice for the disability community. Georgia is well equipped to have some of those hard to have conversations and that may be an important part of someone living with a disability.
She previously worked at the University of Alabama in the United States where she taught undergraduate students the ins and outs of disability and the importance of adapted sport. During this time, Georgia was also able to further learn the various disabilities beyond spinal cord injuries and how one may navigate their specific disability through life.
Dr Rita Kleinfeld-Fowell
Rita has lived experience with disability from being a Deafblind Person and a NDIS participant with a guide dog, Joel. Since birth, Rita has had hearing loss and developing sight impairment since her early twenties. Later, she was formally diagnosed with Usher Syndrome. Rita is the Chair of Valued Lives Partnership and Chair of Deafblind West Australians. Additionally, Rita provides free legal advice and promotes their advocacy services to various organisations in Perth.
Rita has experience managing community services and has previously worked at a Community and Outreach Law Centre in Liverpool, United Kingdom, with its specialisms in Disability, Housing, Employment, Community Care and Consumer Law. Furthermore, Rita has a solid legal and practical understanding of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, having worked as a senior planner / co-ordinator from January 2015 to September 2018, and on various engagement projects within the NDIA in Midland.
In 2023, Rita was appointed as the Western Australian representative on the Australia’s Disability Strategy Advisory Council.
Mrs Apollonia (Nia) Parker
Nia is the mother of an adult child with Down Syndrome and the Chair of the Board of Management of Down Syndrome WA. Through this experience and connection, she has developed consumer and provider knowledge of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and a thorough understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the different jurisdictions to provide for people with disability, including those who are not eligible for the NDIS.
As a physiotherapist with more than 30 years’ experience working in rural and regional areas of Western Australia in both private and government sectors, Nia has a deep understanding of the difficulties faced by people living with a disability outside the metropolitan area to access health care, therapy, play, other social groups, appropriate education and housing, and respite for carers (as just a few examples).
Nia founded RockAbility, a networking group for young adults with an intellectual disability, and their families, to provide increased social opportunities and support within the Rockingham area. She has a special passion about inclusion for people with an intellectual disability as well as those with a physical or emotional impairment.
Mrs Barbara van Reyk
Barbara is a retired Solicitor who gave 25 years of service with the State Solicitor’s Office in Western Australia. Prior to that position she was a legal officer with the Department of Corrections. She advised on issues relating to offenders with a disability who were going through the criminal justice system at all stages, from police involvement to conviction, incarceration and release on parole.
As a community member on the Prisoners Review Board, Barbara used her experience with offenders with a disability to make a valuable contribution to the matters for determination by the Board.
Through these experiences Barbara became aware of the serious disadvantages suffered by those with a disability both physical and intellectual. She was inspired to advocate for change and improved services for this vulnerable group.
In 2004, Barbara was appointed as an advocate for a mature aged woman who lived with intellectual and some physical disability. It was through this experience that she discovered the challenges faced by people with disability in all aspects of their lives. Barbara got to know other residents where her friend lived, and assisted them, wherever possible. This earned Barbara the 2007 Dick Porter Award for Outstanding Contribution to the organisation.
