Suicide Australia - Member brief

 

MESSAGE FROM THE CEO

World Suicide Prevention Day on Wednesday 10 September is an opportunity to amplify our ambition for the prevention of suicide to the community and decision makers. This year, we have developed a Member MP Engagement Toolkit to help you connect directly with your local MP in the lead up to World Suicide Prevention Day.   Imagine the difference we can make if every member and supporter send a message on the same day? Every federal MP receiving a clear and united call to action: suicide prevention must be a national priority, and it must be backed with funding.  The toolkit is designed to make achieving this easy for you. It includes a template letter, state-by-state data that will help tailor your message specifically for your community, MP contact details, and social media tiles. Our goal is that on 10 September we’ll all “hit send” together and deliver a resounding message of unity to every MP across the country. All you need to do is localise and personalise your letter from the toolkit, then send it on Wednesday 10 September and post across socials.  You’ll find the toolkit and all supporting resources here. I encourage every member to use it and join us in sending a strong, unified message to government this World Suicide Prevention Day. The more messages we send, the greater the impact. Let’s send a message that cannot be ignored.  Lastly, our 2025 State of the Nation in Suicide Prevention report and Community Tracker will be launched at Parliament House in Canberra on Wednesday 3 September. This report provides real-time insights into our sector as well as distress and suicide-related behaviours in Australia. It will be a critical opportunity to put the voices of our sector and communities at the heart of national decision-making.   Best,  Nieves

REMEMBERING LIBBY PROCHAZKA

It is with great sadness that we share the passing of Suicide Prevention Australia and Lived Experience Panel member, Libuska (Libby) Prochazka to cancer last week. Libby lost her son Ben to suicide in 2020, and was a passionate advocate, helping to lead reform to payday lending laws which passed parliament in 2022. She also helped with the development of a series of easy-to-consume financial help resources for people struggling with financial distress, which was shared in an article in Choice magazine here:  https://www.choice.com.au/money/credit-cards-and-loans/personal-loans/articles/mothers-tragedy-financial-help  We are deeply grateful for Libby’s passion, advocacy, and valuable contributions to the suicide prevention space. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Libby’s family during this very sad time.

World Suicide Prevention Day — Share your events Are you hosting a World Suicide Prevention Day event this year? We'd love to hear from you! The global theme for 2025, Change the Narrative, aims to inspire individuals, communities, organisations and governments to engage in open and honest discussions about suicide and suicidal behaviour. By initiating these vital conversations, we can break down barriers, raise awareness and create better cultures of understanding and support. If you have an event planned, please add it to our Events Calendar or send an email to events@suicidepreventionaust.org.

MP Engagement Toolkit This World Suicide Prevention Day, we’re coming together to make suicide prevention a national priority. We’ve created a MP Engagement Toolkit with practical tools, ready-to-use templates and key messages to help you reach out to your local MP.  If we all hit "send" on Wednesday 10 September, we can deliver a powerful, united message to MPs across the country.  DOWNLOAD

Stories of Hope  World Suicide Prevention Day is a time to reflect, connect, and recommit to our shared goal of a world without suicide. In line with this year's theme, two members of Suicide Prevention Australia's Lived Experience Panel share their stories of hope. READ

SUICIDE PREVENTION AUSTRALIA EVENTS

National Suicide Prevention Conference 2026 — Call for Abstracts We invite researchers, practitioners, people with lived experience, policymakers, and community leaders to submit abstracts for the National Suicide Prevention Conference 2026 (NSPC26). If you would like to present a paper or poster or host a workshop or panel-style discussion at NSPC26, submitting an abstract is the first step. Oral abstract submissions close on Sunday, 28 September 2025. REGISTER NOW AI & Digital Safety Webinar Monday, 22 September 2025 Join us for a lively discussion on our AI and Digital Safety report with experts in suicide prevention, young people, social media and emerging AI technologies. This session covers the findings of the report which examines both the benefits and risks of AI and digital spaces in the context of suicide prevention, and the need for regulation of AI and digital platforms. This webinar follows on from one of our most popular panel discussions at the National Suicide Prevention Conference 2025. REGISTER NOW

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Suicide Prevention Australia & Wesley Mission on COVID-19 - SSPAN

Click here for the White Paper Reducing the distress on COVID-19 from Sucide Prevention Australia & Wesley Mission

This has been shared by the Shoalhaven Suicide Prevention & Awareness Network

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