Our People
VALS is an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation and is governed by a Board of Directors.
VALS Executive Leadership group comprises CEO, Deputy CEO, Directors and Principal Managing Lawyers for each of
our legal teams.
Crystal McKinnon
Associate Professor in History, Law and Justice at the University of Melbourne
Chairperson
Dr Crystal McKinnon is a Yamatji person and is an Associate Professor in History, Law and Justice at the University of Melbourne. Crystal is an extensively published academic and expert speaker and presenter on subjects related to critical Indigenous studies, Indigenous People’s histories, social movements, sovereignty and justice. Crystal is a member of various academic bodies and is involved in academic administration, university governance and wider participation in the Boards and steering committees of various not-for-profit and community organisations.
Cienan Muir
Founder of INDIGINERD
Deputy Chair
Cienan Muir is a Yorta Yorta, Taungurung and Ngarrindjeri man who grew up in Northcote, Echuca, Moama and Mooroopna.
Cienan has held numerous roles within the Victorian Government from Department of Justice to Homes Victoria, stepping away temporarily to work at the Koorie Youth Council in advocating for our young peoples voices, a time he is most proud of. He now works in the natural resource management space of the Victorian Government as a policy officer. Cienan has completed the Company Directors Course through the Australia Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and completed a similar course through the Institute of Company Directors Australia (ICDA).
Cienan delivered Australia’s first ever Indigenous Comic Con in 2019, founded his company INDIGINERD, creating space for Indigenous representation across the popular culture area and has written for the Australian Centre for the Moving Images (ACMI).
Apryl Day
Executive Director and Founder of Dhadjowa Foundation
Secretary
Apryl Day is a proud Yorta Yorta, Wemba Wemba and Barapa Barapa woman. She is a community organiser and campaigner, and a member of both Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance Victoria and Pay the Rent. She is the daughter of Tanya Day – a proud Yorta Yorta woman who died in custody in 2017.
Apryl and her family successfully led the campaign to end the criminalisation of public drunkenness in Victoria and is at the forefront of the fight for police accountability and justice matters. Apryl is the Executive Officer and Founder of the Dhadjowa Foundation which provides culturally safe and strategic guidance and support to families whose loved ones have died in custody in hopes to amplify the campaigning of families and end Aboriginal deaths in custody.
Sarina Gentile
Treasurer
Sarina Gentile is a proud Aboriginal woman from the Wollithiga clan of the Yorta Yorta Nation. She brings over two decades of leadership and advocacy experience across government and community sectors. Her career has been grounded in a strong commitment to justice reform, culturally informed practice, and the empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Sarina has held senior roles in both government and community-led organisations, where she has led initiatives focused on improving justice outcomes, building culturally safe systems, and strengthening accountability to Aboriginal communities.
Her work spans policy development, program design, and strategic leadership — all with a focus on addressing the systemic challenges faced by Aboriginal people within the justice system.
With a proven ability to influence change at both operational and strategic levels, Sarina is deeply committed to building partnerships, embedding cultural integrity, and promoting long-term, community-led solutions. Her appointment to the Board of VALS reflects her enduring dedication to equity, justice, and self-determination.
Holly Charles
Member
Holly Charles is a Yorta Yorta and Gunai woman who grew up on Waddawurrung country and spent several years living in Geelong and Melbourne before recently returning to Yorta Yorta country. She is a Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne and has worked across government, education and community advocacy roles. Holly previously worked as a lawyer in Commonwealth agencies and now focusses on community-led research and justice reform. Her work centres on race and the law, and the role of First Nations knowledges in challenging colonial systems and creating self-determined futures.
Tiana Koehrer
Member
Tiana is a proud Yorta Yorta and Wurundjeri woman. Born and raised in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Tiana has actively contributed to her community through volunteer work and advocacy.
Tiana has worked for several years in a number of high-level roles across the health, Treaty and justice spaces.
She also has a wealth of governance experience though past and current board member opportunities.
Currently working as a Manager in the Justice sector, Tiana is passion about ensuring all Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Victorian’s have access to culturally space supports and services, especially those in contact with the justice system. She is passionate about working with young, incarcerated mob to build tools with then to ensure they do not return to custody.
Bobby Nicholls
Member
Bobby Nicholls is a proud Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, and Wadjabalok man and the nephew of Sir Douglas Nicholls.
He is the Chairperson of Yorta Yorta Nations Aboriginal Corporation YYNAC. Bobby was a Director of VACCA for 10 years, first joining in 1981. Bobby has worked in community run organisations such as the Aborigines Advancement League, Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency, and the Aboriginal Housing Board of Victoria.
Bobby is one of the founding members of Yarnin’ Pictures, formed by his passion to document Elders stories whilst training Aboriginal youth in the art of filmmaking. To this end, he helped create an App called “Yalinguth” a Woi-wurrung word meaning ‘yesterday’ which echoes the sentiments of many Elders that “we need to go back, before we can go forwards”.
Tarneen Onus Williams
Member
Tarneen Onus Williams is a proud Gunditjmara, Yorta Yorta person through their mother and Bindal and Meriam person through their father. Tarneen is living on the unceded land of the Wurundjeri peoples.
Tarneen is a community organising lead at Australian Progress, previously VALS community legal educator, a community organiser for Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance working on Invasion Day, Black Deaths in Custody and Black Lives Matter. They’re also a writer and filmmaker that has been published in IndigenousX, The Urban List, Crikey, NITV and RightNow. Tarneen’s film “young mob questioning treaty” has been screened internationally at ImagineNATIVE in Toronto and Tampere Film Festival in Finland.
Travis Lovett
Member
Travis Lovett is a Kerrupmara, Gunditjmara and Boandik man. He is the Executive Director of the Centre for Truth Telling and Dialogue at the University of Melbourne, leading transformative work to embed truth‑telling, cultural authority, and systemic reform across institutions.
Travis previously served as Deputy Chair and Commissioner at the Yoorrook Justice Commission, where he helped deliver Australia’s first formal truth‑telling inquiry. His leadership enabled and influenced landmark reports that shaped Treaty negotiations and advanced justice reform. He has also held senior roles across government, including in First Peoples State Relations, Aboriginal Victoria, and the Department of Justice, where he lead reform of the Koori Courts, water law, and built cultural safety frameworks.
Travis led the historic Walk for Truth from Portland to Parliament, a 513‑kilometre journey that carried the voices and authority of First Peoples across Country and into the heart of political power. Recognised internationally as a keynote speaker and advisor, Travis continues to mentor Aboriginal leaders and guide institutions to embed First Peoples’ priorities into governance and strategy.
Nerita Waight
Chief Executive Officer
Nerita Waight is a proud Yorta Yorta and Narrandjeri woman with Taungurung connections. She is CEO of VALS, and is an experienced solicitor with a demonstrated history of working in the legal and community services industry. Prior to becoming CEO, Nerita had experience across several teams in the organisation including family and children’s law, as well as policy and advocacy. In 2017, Nerita established Balit Ngulu, a specialist legal service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young peoples.
As CEO, Nerita has overseen the establishment of our dedicated youth legal practice Balit Ngulu and our Wirraway Police and Prison Accountability Practice which has supported clients on several high-profile Coronial Inquests, alongside the strengthening of VALS’ advocacy.
Nerita is also Deputy Chair of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services (NATSILS), elected member of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria for Metropolitan Melbourne, Treaty Negotiator and Treaty Co-Convenor. She is an independent member of the Justice Policy Partnership (established under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap) and Victorian Representative on the Joint Council. She has served on the boards of several organisations including Elizabeth Morgan House, Bubup Wilam, and the Australia Community Support Organisation.
Trevor Plowman
Chief Financial Officer
Trevor Plowman has extensive experience in financial services delivery and administration and leads the VALS finance unit, encompassing all key financial and risk management review. Prior to working with VALS, Trevor worked with the Department of Justice, EPA Victoria, the Bureau of Meteorology, and Domain Caravans, within senior financial management roles. He served as the CFO of the Bureau and EPA, and Finance Director of Domain Caravans.
Amanda Dunstall
Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Amanda is a Gunditjmara woman. Amanda is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer at VALS, until recently, Amanda served as a Director on the VALS board of Directors for ten years. Amanda has extensive experience working with Aboriginal communities, particularly within the Child, Family and Welfare sectors, with a strong focus on best practice and building workforce capability. Amanda has, through her tireless work, shown she is passionate about social justice for Koori people.
Ali Besiroglu
Director of Legal Services
Ali is the Director of Legal Services at the VALS. He worked at VALS for 7 years in criminal and civil law before moving to Robinson Gill, where he practised in civil litigation against the State of Victoria. Ali has represented many First Nations families in coronial inquests into deaths in custody. He is a current Board Member of the Eastern Community Legal Centre and received the LIV’s Stephen Myall award in 2024 for outstanding contribution to social justice.
Emily Chauvel
Director of Policy, Communications and Strategy
Emily has an Engligh settler and migrant background, and was born and raised in Naarm and Indonesia. Emily has almost fifteen years experience working in the ACCO sector in Victoria. She is currently pursuing a Juris Doctor at RMIT, and holds a Master of Social Science (Policy and Human Services).
Marie Mitchell
Director of Community Justice Programs
A proud Yorta Yorta woman, Marie completed her studies in Bachelor and Masters in Social Work in 2012, returning in 2022 to complete her Graduate Certificate in Family Therapy: First Nations.
Prior to working with VALS, Marie has worked in the community sector for nearly 15 years, across Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCO) and within Court Services Victoria, primarily in the Family Division of the Childrens’ Court, working to support the growth of the Marram-Ngala Ganbu Koori Family Hearing Day. Marie has extensive board experience in a voluntary capacity, including with the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS), Bubup Wilam and Kirrip Aboriginal Corporation across the last 10 years.
Amanda Jones
Director of Research & Evidence Development
Amanda has over 30 years’ experience in community-based research and evaluation in the child and family welfare sector. Amanda is a registered psychologist, and has a Master of Evaluation (Research) from the Centre for Program Evaluation, University of Melbourne. Amanda has previously worked in research and evaluation senior management for The Salvation Army, Berry Street, and more recently, VACCA. Amanda has also worked as a research officer in the Victorian Parliament, as a research associate in a private government relations consultancy, and as a managing psychologist for a community-based problem gambling counselling service. Amanda is passionate about supporting evidence and knowledge building by Community for transformational change.
Juergen Kaehne
Principal Managing Lawyer, Aboriginal Families Law
Raagini Vijaykumar
Principal Managing Lawyer, Wirraway
Grace Buschgens
Principal Managing Lawyer, Criminal Law
Siobhan Doyle
Principal Managing Lawyer, Civil and Human Rights
Negar Panahi
Principal Managing Lawyer, Balit Ngulu
Negar Panahi is the Principal Managing Lawyer of Balit Ngulu Practice. Negar started her legal career at VALS as a volunteer in 2017. Since then Negar has worked as a criminal secretary, paralegal and a solicitor with the Criminal Law Practice. During her time with the Criminal Law Practice, Negar developed a strong passion for assisting youth in the criminal justice system and developed her youth crime expertise. Negar transitioned to the Balit Ngulu Practice as senior lawyer and assisted with the program’s relaunch in September 2021.