What Mental Illness Education ACT does

Mental Illness Education ACT (MIEACT) is an incorporated non-profit association headquartered in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, founded in 1998 (with some sources citing 1993) and governed by a volunteer Board of Directors under CEO Prudence Slaughter. The organization delivers evidence-informed mental health education programs to schools (Year 3 through Year 12), workplaces, and community groups across the ACT region, using trained Lived Experience Volunteer Educators who share personal stories of mental illness and recovery in face-to-face and online settings. Programs are mapped to the Australian Curriculum and aligned with WHS psychosocial risk principles, with strong reported outcomes including 97-100% participant recommendation rates.

MIEACT's core intellectual property is the DoNOHarm Framework, a trauma-informed, recovery-oriented communication methodology developed in 2011 that comprises six guiding principles (Context and Purpose, Recovery Emphasis, Safe Talking, Limits to Helping, Respectful and Inclusive Language, and Self-Care). The framework governs how lived experience is shared safely and has been packaged into a national training product launched in September 2025 at the National Museum of Australia, available in-person or online for workplaces, government agencies, and community organizations. Supporting programs include Thriving Minds (Year 3), Stress and Me (Years 5-6), Know Stress and Mental Health and Me (Years 7-8), Mental Health 201 and Stress Better (Years 10-12), Mental Health 101 for adults, the My Mind My Voice CALD initiative, and delivery of the Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) suicide prevention program in ACT high schools.

Revenue is diversified across ACT Government grants (over $9.4M committed over four years in the 2025-26 Budget), corporate partnerships (Aspen Medical Foundation as Bronze Partner and Parbery as Silver Partner), individual donations under DGR endorsement, annual memberships ($15 with $5 joining fee), and event-driven fundraising. ACT school programs are delivered free of charge, while workplace and community programs use a quote-based pricing model with sessions capped at 30 participants. The organization employs 11-50 staff and operates from a single Canberra office at the Griffin Centre.

Name

Mental Illness Education ACT

Legal name

Mental Illness Education ACT Inc.

Website

https://mieact.org.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mental Illness Education ACT is a Canberra-based non-profit that delivers lived-experience mental health education programs to schools (Year 3 to Year 12), workplaces, and community groups in the ACT, anchored by its proprietary DoNOHarm Framework.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mental Health Education Services

NAICS

All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Trauma-Informed Care & Crisis Response (School-Based) (EDAKAMAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Staff Training, Coaching & Professional Development (SEL/Mental Health) (EDAKAMAL), Therapeutic & Behavioral Health School Programs (Day Treatment) (EDAJAEAE)

Keywords

• Mental health education
• Lived experience training
• Psychosocial safety training
• School mental health programs
• Suicide prevention workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Canberra

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. ACT Government Funding: MIEACT receives ongoing government funding from the ACT Government, including over $9.4 million allocated over four years (2025-26 Budget) to support community-led programs including the Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) program in high schools.
2. Corporate Partnerships: Corporate partners including Aspen Medical Foundation (Bronze Partner) and Parbery (Silver Partner) provide financial support and sponsorship to enable program delivery throughout the ACT.
3. Individual Donations: MIEACT is endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), making donations over $2 tax deductible. The organization conducts fundraising campaigns including gala events and community appeals.
4. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees of $15 with a $5 joining fee, providing members voting rights and invitation to Annual General Meetings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

MIEACT delivers evidence-informed mental health education programs using trained Lived Experience Volunteer Educators who share personal stories of mental illness and recovery in schools, workplaces, and community settings across the ACT. All programs are guided by the DoNOHarm Framework, a proprietary trauma-informed communication model with six principles developed by MIEACT in 2011. Programs include school workshops (Thriving Minds through Mental Health 201), workplace sessions (Mental Health 101), the YAM suicide prevention program, the My Mind My Voice CALD initiative, and nationally delivered DoNOHarm Communication Training.

Product overview

Mental Illness Education ACT (MIEACT) operates as a multi-program mental health education provider offering evidence-based programs across schools (Years 3-12), workplaces and community groups in the ACT region. The core offering centers on the DoNOHarm Framework, a trauma-informed communication model developed in 2011 that guides all lived-experience education. Youth programs include Thriving Minds (Year 3), Stress and Me (Years 5-6), Know Stress (Years 7-8), Mental Health and Me (Years 7-8), Mental Health 201 (Years 10-12), Stress Better (Years 10-12), and Youth Aware of Mental Health YAM (Year 9). Adult and workplace offerings include Mental Health 101 for Adults and DoNOHarm Communication Training. Community programs include My Mind My Voice providing culturally and linguistically diverse mental health education. All programs use volunteer educators sharing personal stories of mental illness and recovery guided by the DoNOHarm Framework principles.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DoNOHarm: MIEACT's practical training framework that equips teams to discuss mental ill-health and lived experience safely. Grounded in six principles (Context & Purpose, Recovery Emphasis, Safe Talking, Limits to Helping, Respectful & Inclusive Language, Self-Care), it builds respectful language and boundaries, reduces stigma, and provides tools for immediate use. Delivered in person or online for workplaces, community organizations, and government agencies. Now delivered nationally as a communication training program.

Products and services

• DoNOHarm Communication Training Practical training delivered in person or online that equips teams to discuss mental ill-health, trauma, identity and complex topics with clarity, confidence and compassion. Built on the proprietary DoNOHarm Framework and now delivered nationally to workplaces, government agencies, and community organisations.
• DoNOHarm Taster Sessions Practical introduction sessions that walk participants through the six DoNOHarm principles, helping organisations determine whether DoNOHarm training is the right fit for their team.
• Thriving Minds (Year 3) Two 60-minute sessions using stories, games and guided conversations to help Year 3 students build emotional awareness and practice tools to navigate feelings and seek help with confidence.
• Stress and Me (Years 5-6) Single 60-minute session equipping Year 5 and 6 students with practical strategies to understand and manage everyday stress and know where to seek help. Mapped to the Australian Curriculum.
• Know Stress (Years 7-8) Single 60-minute session helping Years 7-8 students build a stronger understanding of stress with age-appropriate strategies and tools to manage it effectively. Linked to Australian Curriculum outcomes.
• Mental Health and Me (Years 7-8) Single 60-minute session providing foundational understanding of mental health through lived-experience storytelling, addressing common mental illnesses, signs, strategies and help-seeking for Years 7-8 students.
• Mental Health 201 (Years 10-12) MIEACT's flagship 60-minute session addressing stigma and promoting help-seeking through lived experience story sharing. Delivered for over 25 years, with 130+ sessions annually to ACT Secondary Schools and Colleges.
• Stress Better (Years 10-12) Single 60-minute session providing senior students a comprehensive understanding of stress, including underlying scientific principles, acute versus chronic stress, and management strategies.
• Mental Health 101 for Adults One-hour session using two lived-experience stories to address stigma, explore recovery, and provide practical help-seeking examples for adult audiences. Delivers 80 sessions annually to workplaces and community groups (maximum 30 participants per session), priced on a quote basis.
• My Mind My Voice (MMMV) Mental health and wellbeing awareness initiative providing culturally and linguistically relevant education within Canberra's diverse communities, including podcasts, videos and resources developed by lived-experience volunteers from diverse backgrounds.
• Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) Evidence-based suicide prevention program delivered in ACT high schools to Year 9 students, empowering them with tools and language to talk about mental health, seek help, and support peers. Funded by the ACT Government as part of over AUD 9.4 million allocated over four years (2025-26 Budget).

Quantifiable outcome

• 97% of student participants would recommend the Mental Health 201 session
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ACT GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2025ACT Government provides over $9.4 million over four years (2025-26 Budget) to support community-led mental health programs including YAM (Youth Aware of Mental Health) in ACT high schools. The partnership also includes funding for other mental health initiatives like MindMap, WOKE, Stepping Stones, and the ACT Child and Youth Mental Health Alliance.
• National Museum of AustraliaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 July 2022The National Museum of Australia hosted MIEACT's inaugural fundraising gala where nearly 300 companies and individuals contributed over $124,000 for the Thriving Minds program.
• Altina DrinksminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 July 2022Altina Drinks, a non-alcoholic beverage company, supported the fundraising gala event as an in-kind partner.
• Hands Across CanberraminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 July 2022Hands Across Canberra brings together the Canberra Day Appeal and Fun Run, an event that raised over $4,000 for MIEACT's mental health education programs.
• Kate Miller-HeidkeminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 July 2022Singer and mental health advocate Kate Miller-Heidke headlined the inaugural fundraising gala event, helping raise awareness and funds for the Thriving Minds program.
• Aspen Medical FoundationcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAspen Medical Foundation is MIEACT's Bronze Partner. Aspen Medical is an Australian and veteran-owned global healthcare solutions provider operating in Australia, Indo-Pacific, US, Europe, Middle East and Africa. The partnership supports MIEACT's mental health education programs throughout the ACT.
• ParberycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerParbery is a local Canberra-based management consulting firm and MIEACT's Silver Partner. They have worked extensively with Commonwealth Government agencies including Department of Finance, Defence, Immigration and Border Protection, and Australian Taxation Office. The partnership provides corporate sponsorship support.
• Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) PartnershipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMIEACT delivers the YAM evidence-based suicide prevention program in ACT high schools in partnership with the ACT Government. YAM is one of five key initiatives receiving government funding for young people's mental health.
• SiTara's StoryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through which volunteer educator Fahmida joined MIEACT, contributing to the My Mind My Voice initiative for culturally diverse communities.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• headspace: National youth mental health foundation running school and community programs. Comparable youth-segment focus and government funding profile, though headspace operates clinical services in addition to education.
• beyondblue: Australia's largest mental health awareness organization with school and workplace programs. A scaled incumbent with overlapping workplace psychosocial training offerings; broader portfolio than MIEACT's ACT-focused model.
• RU OK?: National suicide prevention charity focused on workplace and community conversation skills. Comparable in promoting safe mental-health conversations and workplace training, but operates at national scale with a single-message focus.
• SANE Australia: National mental health organization with a strong lived-experience focus and stigma reduction mandate. Broader than MIEACT (advocacy, helpline, research) but the most direct incumbent analog on lived-experience-led education.

Direct peers

• Batyr: Australia-based nonprofit that runs lived-experience mental health education programs in schools and universities. Most directly comparable peer: similar school delivery model, lived-experience storyteller network, and stigma-reduction mission, though operating at national scale across multiple states.
• Roses in the Ocean: Australian lived-experience-led organization focused on peer workforce development and suicide prevention training. Comparable in its lived-experience training methodology and emphasis on safe storytelling, overlapping with DoNOHarm's framework.
• ReachOut Australia: Digital mental health organization delivering education and support to young people in schools and online. Comparable audience (youth/schools) and educational content model, though delivery is primarily digital rather than face-to-face.
• Mental Health Foundation Australia: Australian mental health promotion charity delivering community education and stigma reduction programs. Similar nonprofit, education-led model focused on community mental health literacy.

Others

• Black Dog Institute: Australian mental health research and clinical translation institute with school-based digital programs (e.g., MoodGYM). Comparable school/youth audience and evidence-based education, but research-led rather than lived-experience-led.
• Lifeline Australia: National crisis support and suicide prevention charity. Comparable in mental health mission and Australian footprint, but primarily delivers crisis services and training rather than school-based lived-experience education.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/MIEACT
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mieact
• Instagraminstagram.com/mentalillnesseducation
• Xx.com/MIEACT_CBR

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Mental Illness Education ACT