00:00Hi, my name's Shan and I'm the creator and founder of Sober in the Country.
00:04We're here today as finalists in the wellbeing and safety category and that is extremely meaningful and very humbling to
00:12me on a personal level because
00:15I needed someone to be having the conversation.
00:17We're driving through this charity now when I was an 18 year old on a cattle station in my gap
00:23year as a baby jillaroo, chasing adventure and chasing my dream.
00:27But unfortunately, because of a very toxic culture that existed where I landed around alcohol, things didn't go that way
00:34at all.
00:35And in fact, I experienced the worst trauma of my life in my gap year.
00:39And that in turn led me turning to alcohol as a way to drown out the head noise, fit in,
00:46find a bit of courage, feel like I belonged.
00:49But of course, 20 years down the track, it almost cost me my life because that's how alcohol addiction worked
00:55for me.
00:57My story is not unique and it's not uncommon and it's still playing out today.
01:01And that is why I don't think I'll be able to rest until the whole of Outback Australia stands up
01:07and gets around and gets behind the message that it's OK to say no to booze.
01:12Whether you're a drinker, a social drinker or like me, a non-drinker, we need to really, truly, meaningfully take
01:18care of all of our mates, no matter what's in their glass.
01:21Because when we do that, lives are being changed and saved.
01:25And in fact, in the year 2026, I look back on where we've come from.
01:29People often say to me, how do you quantify your social impact?
01:33And my answer is, I don't, I can't, we cannot anymore.
01:37It's unquantifiable.
01:38It's massive.
01:40And that's an extremely humbling and beautiful thing to be a part of.
01:44So that's our call to arms, you guys.
01:46Let's take care of each other, no matter what's in our glass, always, because it is indeed changing and saving
01:52lives.
01:52And it's allowing people the space to be whatever they need to be to live their best lives.
01:57It's very, very user-friendly.
01:59It's not about judgment.
02:00It's not about prohibition.
02:01It's about being the kind of mates we say we are.
02:04So thank you for allowing us to be a finalist in this award.
02:09And thank you for us, for allowing us to be part of going upstream and getting in front of so
02:13many issues that are common to the rural space by tackling this number one that sits at the base of
02:19all of them.
02:19It is a great privilege.
02:22Good luck, everyone.
Comments