As a Founding Director of Yalari, Waverley knows about the power of education and has worked tirelessly over the past 14 years to turn his dream of Yalari into a reality.  Waverley has worked extensively throughout Queensland as an Indigenous Support Officer for Education Queensland. More recently he has presented and facilitated leadership and education workshops and conferences for Indigenous people throughout Australia. Waverley is a graduate of the Australian Rural Leadership Program for 2005-2006 and also a recipient of the prestigious Churchill Fellowship in 2013. In 2019, Waverley was appointed as a Member (AM) of the Order of Australia for his ‘signifcant service to the Indigenous community thorough support for education’.

Llew’s working life has taken her from her home town of Sydney, to Alice Springs and up to the Gold Coast Hinterland. A musician, writer, painter, business manager and owner with the heart of a humanitarian and social justice advocator, Llew’s experience and qualifications in business, financial management and organisation, mentoring and many years working in the social welfare and counselling areas, saw her well positioned to assist Waverley when he shared his idea of Yalari with her in 2004.

16 years later, and now the Managing Director of Yalari, Llew draws on a wealth of knowledge and vast life experiences to manage the operations of a medium sized not-for-profit company — a position she is honoured and proud to hold.

Bruce holds degrees in Law and Commerce from the University of Queensland and was formerly a partner in a leading commercial law firm. He specialised in international business and conducted business development activities throughout Asia. Bruce has spent the last 20 years with Davidson Recruitment and in his current role as the Davidson Group CEO, he leads a talented team across Australia and New Zealand dedicated to enhancing workplace performance for clients. He has also been invited to consult to boards and senior executives, to act as a mentor, and speak on both formal and informal occasions.  Bruce has previously held the role of Regional Councillor for Finsia.

With over 26 years of experience, Chris uses his skills to develop strategies for clients with complex legal, tax and commercial needs. Chris focuses on providing his clients with the competitive advantage they need to succeed in local and international business.

As a Partner for Business Services at BDO Sydney, Chris specialises in the High Net Worth Individual (HNWI) and Superannuation advisory market.

In addition, Chris is a part of BDO’s China Advisory team, and can provide extensive multi-cultural knowledge of both the Australian and Chinese markets.

John has a wealth of investment management experience, having spent more than 24 years in a variety of roles within the industry. Prior to founding Avoca Investment Management, John spent six years at UBS where he was Managing Director / Portfolio Manager of the UBS Australian Small Companies Fund, which was awarded the Australian Fund Managers’ Best Small Cap Fund Manager of the Year in 2009. John joined UBS in 2004 from Credit Suisse First Boston where he was a Director of Equity Research Sales. He has worked in a broad range of roles within the industry including equity analysis, trading and sales at various financial institutions including Maple-Brown Abbott, Bankers Trust Australia and JP Morgan Private. Prior to working in financial markets, John was employed as an auditor with Price Waterhouse.