IN 2014, WE HAD A VISION FOR THE WORLD

WE SAW A WORLD WHERE...

THIS IS HOW WE BECAME BURN BRIGHT

Burn Bright Began

The story of Burn Bright begins with another organisation, Rising Generations. Founded by Bec Heinrich and Tina Cameron, Rising Generations quickly grew to be one of Australia’s top organisations facilitating leadership programs. After 10 years and working with more than 100,000 students, they came to a natural finish in 2013.

Being one of Rising Generations youngest facilitators, Andy Skidmore decided the finish of Rising Generations didn’t have to be the end of its legacy and student leadership journey. In 2014 Andy officially founded Burn Bright with the vision of continuing and growing the legacy. Within a few months Andy and Layton Fraser  set off with the goal of transforming how young people think, feel and act in their lives. They started Burn Bright in a home office, with no clients and no experience of running an organisation, just a vision for what it could be.

Layton and Andy - Co-Founders of Burn Bright

TAKING THE NEXT STEP

By 2015, Burn Bright started gathering momentum with booked programs, a Board and a small team. Facilitating 40 programs in 2015 seemed enormous, but with the momentum growing that number was pretty soon surpassed. In late 2015 the decision was made that Burn Bright was now in a position to carry on the legacy of National Leadership Camp, with a date set for Burn Bright’s first edition of facilitating National Leadership Camp in the 2016 July school holidays. After a mammoth effort and countless hours on the phones making sure we had enough students, Burn Bright successfully ran the 12th National Leadership Camp.

BURN BRIGHT DIGITAL IS LAUNCHED

After two additional years of growing in school programs, more camps and the Burn Bright Team, we decided to tackle the next big challenge – how do we create a digital option that schools or individuals can use as follow-up to our in-person programs or even use as a product if face-to-face isn’t possible. After months of research and work we finally launched our digital products, which to date have had over 22,000 course enrolments.

Facilitator in Laptop Screen

GOING INTERNATIONAL

In 2019, after traveling across the Tasman to facilitate programs in New Zealand, we decided it was time to establish and launch Burn Bright New Zealand. The dream was to have a team in New Zealand, its own board and its own direction to impact the lives of New Zealand Young people. After gaining momentum and establishing some great relationships, the world was unfortunately impacted by Covid-19, which put a pause to our plans. Currently Burn Bright New Zealand has an incredible Board and are actively working on the next steps.

WHERE TO FROM HERE?

As the journey of Burn Bright continues to grow, we continue to expand and grow our relationships with our school partners – innovating our programs whilst growing the Burn Bright team and community to thrive and impact young people. We are innovators, leaders, wellbeing specialists, enthusiasts for leadership and strong believers in and advocates for young people.

MEET OUR TEAM OF FACILITATORS LEADERS CHANGE MAKERS

our TEAM is our CORE

Burn Bright Leaders lead by example. They have demonstrated the capacity, skill sets and personal attributes to inspire their students to embrace the notion and actions required to become leaders themselves.

All Burn Bright programs have a minimum of two leaders irrespective of the size of the group, allowing them to cater to the personalities and learning styles of all students. Every Burn Bright Leader is a strong communicator.  When they talk to students our Leaders use real stories and life experiences that build credibility, rapport and a sense of a shared understanding.

Most importantly, our Leaders are like family. We prioritise building meaningful relationships within our team so when we facilitate in schools, we are able to model authentic and positive relationships 

Meet the personalities of burn bright

our team

Since 2014 We Have GROWN TO

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SCHOOLS WE PARTNER WITH
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STUDENTS WE WORK WITH
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DIGITAL ENROLMENTS

THE FOUNDATION OF OUR PROGRAMS

Burn Bright’s program development and delivery are based upon our theory of change. Our theory of change is an evidence based plan that focuses on a young person’s psychological growth and development. Our theory of change is Burn Bright’s formal plan for its activities that promote the prevention of mental illness in young people within Australia.

Our wellbeing programs specifically target psychological wellbeing based upon risk and protective factors of mental health.  You can see more about our theory of change and evidence we use to build, design and deliver our programs by clicking below.

There is no ‘one size, fits all’ approach, each and every Burn Bright program is highly focused, tailored and adapted to needs of the students and the school. Burn Bright’s curriculum is focused on demonstrating how students can turn theory into action by practising and road-testing skills learnt before applying them in their own lives. To reinforce this, we provide follow-up opportunities to encourage students to make the change last.

LEARN MORE

OUR THEORY OF CHANGE
OUR IMPACT
GET INVOLVED

Where Are We Going?

Who we are and where we’re going all stems back to our values, the things that make our heart beat and our feet keep moving forward. These values shape our interactions with each other, with students, with staff and parents, and shape our future decisions too.

HEART CENTRED
BETTER NEVER STOPS
BE DARING
SERVE OUTSIDE THE SPOTLIGHT
EMBRACE YOUR STORY
CELEBRATE QUIRK, BRING JOY
PUT YOUR RELATIONSHIPS FIRST

We continue to partner with schools and organisations, building connected communities together to grow hope, authenticity, awareness and meaningful relationships in young people.

WANT TO CONTACT US?

GIVE US A CALL, SEND US AN EMAIL OR DROP A MESSAGE IN THE FORM BELOW

(02) 8070 9217

Anytime between 9am and 5pm Mon - Fri

Email: info@burnbright.org.au

STUDENT LEADERSHIP. WELLBEING PROGRAMS. NATIONAL CAMPS.

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Close Marvin's Bio

I found Burn Bright in the midst of studying civil engineering at the University of Wollongong, just as I wanted a richer, deeper, more full experience of life.

Through Burn Bright, I have met many students and volunteers who are all seeking to find their place in the world. When we come together at NLC or SLC, no matter our age, we begin on the same page, of wanting to do good for ourselves, our community, and the world. And then we are thrown into a program that brings us closer to each other, our purpose, and how to bring forth this impact. It’s like having your cake and eating it too.

Volunteering with Burn Bright stoked a fire in me – It helped me feel comfortable in myself and made me realise life isn’t just about work, study, or productivity, but our relationships and how we connect with others along the way.

I have learned skills in videography, worked for a top-tier corporation in marketing, and most recently published a book called “18 and lost? So were we” 

I have a passion for storytelling, bring loads of energy wherever I go, and am dedicated to helping young people move through the initiation of leaving high school and going into the ‘real world’. 

The best part for me is being able to stay connected to the latest generation growing through high school. To see them grow, expand and express more of themselves is like watching an artwork paint itself. It’s magic.

Close Simon's Bio

I am Simon Thurston, a Kiwi based in Perth. I work as an Instructional Designer and in my spare time I enjoy reading, running, and board games.

Since my initial connection to Burn Bright I have been onboard with their mission. Burn Bright’s focus on building the capabilities enables students of all ages to see how they can shape their world through connections with others and their own self discovery.

Seeing others grow, learn, and open up is what keeps me coming back, to help others realise their potential and how they can influence their future and their community is a definite highlight. It’s infectious, the atmosphere when they run a program or camp is welcoming, exciting, emotional, and rewarding all in one.

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Close Kelsie's Bio

Hi, friends! I’m Kelsie, a psychologist from central QLD working in private practice. I got involved with Burn Bright officially in 2016, but the journey started long before that. I attended the National Leadership Camp (now hosted annually by Burn Bright) in 2009. It had such a profound impact on me that I returned as a mentor and volunteer. Those connections ultimately lead me to joining the Burn Bright team as an adult.

When I transitioned from facilitating with the Burn Bright team to working as a psychologist, I was so grateful for an incredible foundation of skills (particularly facilitation, communication and interpersonal skills) along with a strong grounding in positive psychology that Burn Bright integrates into their ethos.

I can’t imagine my life without volunteering for Burn Bright. I have met some of my dearest friends through the Burn Bright crew. I’ve found that volunteering for BB is rewarding, humbling, and often brings as much personal growth for the volunteer as it does for the young person.

From a professional perspective, I love that Burn Bright programs/camps support the adolescent individuation process by providing an exciting and supportive environment for teens to explore their own sense of self, personality, identify and values alongside other young people.

Imagine this POV: you’re back at school wanting to figure everything out and fit in – and you find
yourself in a room with amazing music that uplifts you and hooks you in. You meet the team of
dynamic, interesting, caring facilitators whose own friendships inspire you. Their facilitation skills bring about amazing light-bulb moments and lessons that light a fire inside you… It makes me want to feel that for myself again. The next best thing, for me, is volunteering for the team who passes that on to other young people.

Close Nick's Bio

My start at Burn Bright is one of the best cases of one door closing and another door opening. After losing my job at a local pub while on uni holidays, I started looking for new opportunities that were different and decided to volunteer. Searching for opportunities, I found working bees, community driving and nursing home visits, but the chance to become a National Leadership Camp intern stood out. Over nearly six months, I worked with the team to pull off Burn Bright’s first National Leadership Camp, and had an absolute blast in the process. After camp, I started working for Burn Bright while studying, doing anything and everything — data analysis, hiring strategy and even picking up furniture.

Finishing up working for Burn Bright in 2019, I am still actively involved with the Burn Bright volunteer community. I’ve found that the emphasis placed on investing in your relationships, understanding your values and making an impact allow you to be accepted for you. This has given me the tools needed to make the difficult decisions that life will inevitably throw at you. Besides all that, I’ve had a ton of fun and formed life-long friendships with people I may have never crossed paths with otherwise. “Get involved — you’ll change your life for the better and make life‑long friends in the process”.

Close Lindsey's Bio

I am a health science student from Perth wanting to get into the mental health realm of occupational therapy. In the meantime, I work as a barista and supervisor at a beachside café. In my spare time, I love to play netball, be around my friends and I have just gotten into crocheting. I went to Perth College where I was lucky enough to go to the first Perth College Leadership Camp in 2018 as a student and absolutely loved it. What really drew me in was the atmosphere that was created, the open conversations, and the lasting relationships formed.

Since then I have been a mentor for the Perth College Leadership Camp in 2019, 2020, and 2021 and had the opportunity to go to the National Leadership Camp in 2019. When Burn Bright comes to Perth I also love helping out at their programs as much as I can.

Volunteering for Burn Bright has given me so much that I could never have imagined. I have learned so much about myself and I have so much more confidence in myself and my abilities that I know I wouldn’t have had if I wasn’t exposed to the amazing opportunities volunteering for Burn Bright has given me. Before being involved I would never have seen myself being a mentor, role model, and facilitator to students, but now I can confidently say that I am, and I have made an impact on others that I am proud of. I have also made so many meaningful connections to so many amazing people from all around Australia through Burn Bright. I get asked quite a bit why I keep coming back to my old school to volunteer and it’s simply because I was given this amazing opportunity to be a part of the Burn Bright programs and if I can help facilitate that experience to someone else then why wouldn’t I?

Close Peter's Bio

I was born in Perth and moved to Sydney in my early 20’s to continue work as a youth worker and surfboard maker. This was followed by 30 years working in IT as a computer programmer.

Following retirement in 2016 I searched for an organisation that was aligned with my values of servant leadership and service, especially in the youth space. This search led to Burn Bright where I am now volunteering one day a week and mentoring at the National Leadership Camp. Volunteering with Burn Bright gives me a great deal of hope and confidence in the next generation of leaders. It is a pleasure to be a part of the Burn Bright family.

I have been married to Denise for 41 years and we both very much feel part of the Burn Bright team.

When not at Burn Bright you may find me running along Manly beach, riding my mountain bike or indulging in my passion for photography.

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Close Rosie's Bio

Hi! I’m Rosie, a 20-something full-time public servant, part-time Tassie tourism advocate.

I am passionate about seeing young people succeed, and there’s nothing I enjoy more than watching them become the next generation of change-makers.

I have been a champion of the ethos and work of Burn Bright since its inception in 2014, and consider them to be the leading experts in their field. By delivering impactful leadership and wellbeing programs to students across Australia, they offer the knowledge, skills and engagement to invoke lasting positive change in school communities.

The Burn Bright team are dedicated, inclusive and values-driven, which is why I love working with them.

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