OLI Wellbeing pays their respects to the Indigenous peoples of the land and sea we live, work and play on, globally.

We acknowledge Indigenous peoples ancient connection and stewardship of our planet and the ongoing systemic oppression they continue to endure.

We endeavour to walk alongside all Traditional Custodians of the land and sea with respect, reciprocity and right relations. How this looks will be different with every place and community, but we are committed to our ongoing exploration and relationships.

We also, pay our respects to the ancestors in our own bloodlines who honoured the land and seas of their own lineages in their own ways.

We all come from the Earth and when we all connect back to the Earth, hold much gratitude for this beautiful earth, we then can to start to heal ourselves, the Earth, our relationships and each other.

Created by Anna Durward, OLI Wellbeing is the expression of a lifelong commitment to the health of the planet and People.

OLI Wellbeing weaves together a career in systems transformation and strategic operational leadership with decades of learning alongside diverse communities and cultures.

~~~

At the heart of Anna’s work is a passion for bringing different people, places and ways of being, doing and knowing together into a shared understanding that enables co-creative change for the health of the planet and people.

Anna is particularly interested in holding space for our remembering and restoring Public health and community care.

As a white Australian woman with blood ties to England, Scotland and the Netherlands, Anna recognizes and acknowledges the complexities of practicing her work on land she visits and or was born and raised upon, but one which is not her ancestral home.

As such, Anna is grounded in exploring different ways of being, doing and learning, always listening to and collaborating with Traditional Custodians in all the work she does in each place.

How this looks, and will look, in practice is an ongoing journey – one which we are all wholeheartedly committed to.

A Letter from Anna

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter, I’m deeply grateful you’re here.

OLI Wellbeing was born out of a lifelong curiosity about people, place, culture, health and the many ways we learn and care for the living world and one another.

I grew up with a strong connection to nature, adventure and different cultures. Much of my life has been shaped by travel, surfing, creativity and the privilege of learning alongside people with different ways of seeing, knowing, being and doing.

My professional path has been equally varied.

I began in the design and the built environment, before moving into community development, climate and environmental justice, systems change and strategic operations and now public health, mental health and Indigenous health. Over the past 17 years, I have worked alongside organisations, communities and leaders navigating complex social, environmental and organisational change.

These experiences taught me something I continue to return to:

Health is never just individual.

Our health is shaped by our relationships, our families, our workplaces, our communities, our cultures, our environments and the systems around us.

It also taught me that meaningful change rarely happens through one discipline or one way of knowing.

This is what eventually led me into public health and Indigenous health, alongside continued learning in systems change, sustainability, strategic leadership, facilitation, mental wellbeing and regenerative practice.

OLI Wellbeing is where these threads meet.

I created this space to explore what becomes possible when we bring different perspectives together, including evidence and lived experience, strategy and relationship, systems and people, health and environment.

Today, I work with individuals and organisations navigating periods of transition, complexity and change.

Sometimes that work is quiet and personal.

Sometimes it is strategic and organisational.

Sometimes it is simply creating enough space to stop, listen and see what has been difficult to see from inside the system.

Across all of it, the intention is the same:

to create greater clarity, connection and coherence in the way we live, work and care.

I don’t have all the answers, and I don’t believe anyone does.

I am more interested in asking better questions, listening carefully, connecting what may appear separate and creating the conditions for people and systems to find their own way forward.

OLI Wellbeing continues to evolve as I do.

There are many things I am curious about, many ideas I hope to explore, and many people I hope to collaborate with along the way.

For now, this is the work I feel called to hold.

GIVE BACK

Whilst I have you. Having walked alongside diverse communities, I now invite you to meet them and, if you feel called, to give back. Please explore the “Give Back” section on our website to learn how you can support these communities whose stories resonate with you.

This is a humble, decolonized journey, non-linear, never ending and demanding of presence and inner and collective healing. Yet I believe that when we come together, we rise together. We are never truly separate.

I’m grateful to have met so many kindred spirits in recent years, and I look forward to collaborating on these efforts. I’ll be in touch soon with more stories and updates, please feel free to reach out with any questions.

With love and gratitude,

Anna