00:02The past few months have been a chance for Shane Rattenbury to re-energise after retiring
00:08as the ACT Greens leader in May.
00:10I've enjoyed not setting the alarm clock, having a different pace of life, doing some
00:15gardening, catching up with friends and family.
00:17He will now take on the role of Lifeline Canberra's Chief Executive, drawing on his experience
00:22as the Territory's first dedicated mental health minister.
00:25He says stigma has decreased since then, but support can still be improved.
00:29Lifeline obviously sits there at the crisis end of that spectrum, but thinking about how
00:33the system as a whole works is really important and how we can particularly improve people's
00:38resilience, their ability to create coping tools.
00:43Hello, this is Lifeline, may we help you.
00:45Lifeline Canberra recorded a 61% increase in calls for help in the 2025-26 financial year.
00:52That is a really concerning increase.
00:55It's great that Lifeline is there to take those calls, but it points to the fact that there
00:59is need in the community.
01:00And so we need to make sure that we've got a great team of volunteers ready to take those
01:05calls.
01:06Lifeline's chair says the rise in demand is unsurprising.
01:09The last 12 months have been unsettling for, not just for Canberrans, but for Australians,
01:15and I think we're starting to see the impact of that.
01:18But he's confident Mr Rattenbury is up for the challenge.
01:21He understands Canberra.
01:23He also understands how important Lifeline is to, not just to Canberra, but to Australia.
01:29He's got a real passion for looking at ways that we might be able to increase our impact
01:34on people in crisis.
01:36A helping hand for Canberra's most vulnerable.
01:38Be more calm.
01:39Have a great day.
01:40Be more comfortable.
01:41Be more comfortable.
01:44You
Comments