Our Committee

Edward Elder (President)
Edward is a secondary school teacher. He has been teaching for the last seven years in the Catholic and Independent school systems. Prior to working in Education, he worked in Human Resources with one of Australia’s larger retailers. He is passionate about spending time with his family, traveling with his partner, and playing hockey.

Mary Appleby (Vice President)

With over 20 years of experience in education and hospitality, I am a dedicated advocate for creating inclusive communities. I hold a Masters in Human Resource Management and am a Certified Professional Member of the Australian Human Resource Institute. As a Senior Executive, I bring extensive leadership expertise and a strong commitment to organisational development and workforce growth.

My passion is advocating for people with disabilities, ensuring they are valued equally and provided with opportunities to contribute meaningfully to society. I believe in fostering collaboration across teams and communities to build inclusive environments where everyone can thrive.

Eddie Clark
I am a member of MEDA’s Committee of Management as well as MEDA’s Consumer Advisory Group.  I am very committed to both roles and want to stand up for people with disability.  I am a big gamer and would like to start up a gaming group.  I am part of MEDA’s Consumer Advisory Group because I represent the Advisory Group members at MEDA’s Committee of Management.

Debbie Orr
My name is Debbie. I have spent over 20 years working in call centres in different sectors assisting people with all types of enquiries.  I have passion for social justice and have completed a Diploma of Community Welfare Work and an Advanced Diploma of Justice.  As someone with a disability, I want everyone with disability to be treated respect fully, not judged and to be given a fair go.

Giulia Fabris

Giulia is a public policy professional with over a decade of experience in government and not-for-profit organisations, specialising in health and First Nations policy. She brings expertise in strategic policy analysis, project management, and governance, with a proven record of managing complex projects and delivering systemic advocacy. Giulia is deeply committed to social justice and equity, values that are reflected throughout her career and volunteer contributions. 

Akanksha Bhatia
Akanksha is passionate about the mental health and disability sector and has worked and volunteered in this space in various roles over the past 5 years. She is excited to support the work of MEDA and its tireless commitment towards advocating for people with a disability. She has moved down from Sydney recently and in her spare time loves exploring this new city with her husband.

Jason Cheung (Treasurer)
Jason has over 20 years of experience in auditing and financial reporting. Jason is a member of Chartered Accountant Australia and New Zealand. After 8 years in the auditing field in which the client base included Local Government, Medium to Large Not-For-Profit Organisations and Listed Companies, he has decided to apply his experience and knowledge in the Commercial Accounting field. In the last ten years, Jason’s focus is to help Not-For-Profit organisation to develop financial sustainability and system control. In the last year, Jason decided to learn other skills other than Accounting such as scouting and Taekwondo. Jason has also started to spend more time on voluntary roles.