Our Board

As an investment banker Peter Hunt AM advised local and multi-national companies and governments in Australia for nearly 35 years.  He co-founded one of Australia’s leading investment banking advisory firms, Caliburn Partnership and was Executive Chairman of Greenhill Australia. Peter was a member of the Advisory Panel of ASIC and chaired the Vincent Fairfax Family Office.

Peter is an active philanthropist involved in funding, developing and scaling social sector organisations which seek to create a better and fairer world.  He is Chairman of Mind Medicine Australia which he established with his wife, Tania de Jong, in 2018. He regularly presents to Governments, regulators, clinicians, philanthropists and the general public on psychedelic-assisted therapies and the legal and ethical frameworks needed to ensure these treatments can be made accessible and affordable. He was the lead author of Mind Medicine Australia’s successful rescheduling applications for MDMA and psilocybin, which made Australia the first country in the world to reschedule these medicines.

He founded Women’s Community Shelters in 2011. Peter is a Director of The Umbrella Foundation. Peter also acts as a pro bono adviser to Creativity Australia.  He was formerly Chairman of So They Can, Grameen Australia and Grameen Australia Philippines.

Peter was made a member of the General Division of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 2010 for services to the philanthropic sector.

Tania de Jong AM is the co-Founder and Executive Director of Mind Medicine Australia. She regularly presents on psychedelic-assisted therapies, mental health and wellbeing at major conferences and events around the world and to Governments, regulators, clinicians, philanthropists and the general public.

Tania is one of Australia’s most successful female entrepreneurs and innovators developing 6 businesses and 4 charities including Creative Universe, Creativity Australia and With One Voice, Umbrella Foundation, Creative Innovation Global, Pot-Pourri and The Song Room.

Tania was named in the 100 Women of Influence, the 100 Australian Most Influential Entrepreneurs and named as one of the 100 most influential people in psychedelics globally in 2021. Tania’s TED Talk has sparked international interest. Tania has garnered an international reputation as a performer, speaker, entrepreneur and a passionate leader for social change. Her mission is to change the world, one voice at a time!

Eli is a consultant psychiatrist and psychodynamic psychotherapist. He is the Medical Director of Malvern Private Hospital, an addiction and trauma hospital in Melbourne. Eli completed the inaugural CPAT course, and has since been on its faculty. He was appointed as the course’s Australian Course Director in 2023.

As a psychiatric trainee, Eli was awarded the Royal College of Psychiatrists Trainee Prize for his Scholarly Project on Depression, as well as a Research Committee Trainee award for his work on Philosophy of Mind. As an adjunct lecturer at Monash University, he oversees medical students on their addiction medicine rotation, and sneaks in lectures on Philosophy of Mind, Psychodynamic Psychiatry and Psychedelic Assisted Therapies (PAT). He has been invited as a key-note speaker by the RANZCP and International Psychoanalytic Association to lecture on PAT. He has been invited by the Victorian Government to design new addiction programs and works with the AFL players association.

Eli is an Associate Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators, and is a member of the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs. He also has extensive research experience with novel therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. He sits on the Victorian Medical Panels, and is an expert witness in historical abuse cases.

Clinically, Eli works in a psychodynamic framework, and attempts to help his patients find freedom from their addictions and trauma through relational experiences, and experiential self-awareness. He is actively treating patients in Australia with MDMA-assisted therapy.

Mono Ray is a corporate advisor and former PwC Tax and Legal Partner turned Change Agent. He has advised national and global companies across industries for 30 years on innovations including the privatisation of energy, establishing electronic and foreign banking and many significant deals. With a love of helping people achieve difficult things, he’s also the Managing Director and co-founder of ConnectAlex, a platform that gives people ways to build savings faster, and a non-executive director of Kidney Health Australia.

Mono served on industry bodies including the Financial Services Council, Property Council of Australia and the Australian Financial Centre Forum Reference Group. He consulted with state and federal regulators to design policy and legislation.

He has a B.Sc. (Neuropsychology), LL.B, LL.M (Investor Protection & Tax), and postgraduate qualifications in business and is a Solicitor of the High Court of Australia and the NSW Supreme Court.  Mono has a passion for driving change for the better in business and society through technology, evolutionary approaches and resetting boundaries.

Until his recent retirement from politics, Andrew Robb was Australia’s Minister for Trade, Investment and Tourism.
In this role Mr Robb negotiated Free Trade Agreements with South Korea, Japan and China, as well as the 12 country Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement and the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with Singapore.

Mr Robb is currently Executive Chairman of The Robb Group (A corporate and investment advisory company), a Board Member of the Kidman cattle enterprise, Chair of Asialink and pharmacogenetics company, CNSDose, and strategic advisor to Seafarms Ltd as well as a range of national and international businesses.

In 2003, Mr Robb was awarded the office of the Order of Australia (AO) for his service to agriculture, politics and the community. As well, Mr Robb is the author of “Black Dog Daze: Public Life, Private Demons” (Melbourne University Publishing).

Mr Robb has qualifications in Agricultural Science and a first-class Honours Degree in Economics, and lives in Sydney with his wife Maureen and has three adult children Tom, Joe and Pip.

Nicholas Smedley is an experienced Investment Banker and M&A Advisor, with 14 years’ experience at UBS and KPMG. He has worked on M&A transactions in the UK, Hong Kong, China, and Australia with transactions ranging from the A$9bn defence of WMC Resources through to the investment of $65m into Catch.com.au. Has previously supported Mental Health charities with 6 years on the Haven Foundation Board. During Nicholas’ time at the Haven Foundation he helped deliver its first on balance sheet housing project in Frankston with a strong financial benefit to the Foundation. Nicholas currently oversees investments in the Property, Aged care, Technology and Medical Technology space and is Chairman of Respiri Limited (ASX: RSH). Key areas of expertise include M&A, Debt structuring, Corporate governance and innovation. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Monash University.

Annalise Jennings, a seasoned business strategist with over 25 years of experience in Corporate Banking, is renowned for her expertise in large-scale transformation projects, emphasizing risk ownership, and ethical behaviour. Winner of the SAI Global Business Excellence Award, she founded Dynamic Exchange in 2010 to empower communities. Her TEDx Talk, ‘The SHIFT from Paternalism, Prohibition and Penalty,’ highlighted her work in remote Indigenous communities, focusing on community growth and social change. A Banksia Foundation Awards finalist and invitee of the Oslo Nobel Peace Prize Awards, Annalise now collaborates with Los Angeles-based institutions, concentrating on cultural transformation and leadership development. Integrating timeless principles of belonging, she fosters pragmatic, strategically oriented cultures globally. With a blend of corporate process, empathy, and indigenous insights, she contributes significantly to organizations, envisioning a more unified humanity and deepening dedication to societal cohesion.

Rita Chowdhury is the founder and principal of Integrate Legal, a leading Australian law firm providing specialised expertise in Australian Immigration law.

During her lengthy career, Rita has worked across the administrative law spectrum including working for the Federal Government, large corporate law firms, and in refugee and human rights law.

While completing her Bachelor of Laws degree, Rita was awarded a scholarship to undertake a student exchange at the University of California, Berkeley.  It was during this time that she learned of the history of psychedelic psychiatry and its potential benefits.

Rita has a particular interest in policy reform, education, and advocacy in relation to MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD.