Short Black with Sandra Sully

Australia's Best Interview podcast will be back in 2023

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Natassia Nicolao is a young woman who’s making waves – without water.

Natassia is the winner of this year’s Australian Women’s Weekly Women Of The Future award and the founder and director of Conserving Beauty, Australia’s first waterless beauty brand. She is using her background in science to generate less waste and reduce the beauty industry’s water footprint. With most beauty products currently made up of 70-90 per cent water, that’s no small task.

Conserving Beauty creates products that use no water and leave no waste and the company has recently launched the world’s first disposable make-up wipes. Natassia has also formed Australia’s first all-female board of directors, and counts Elle MacPherson as one of her closest friends. And she’s only 28!

You can find out more about Natassia’s vision here: https://www.conservingbeauty.com

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Bruna Papandrea is an Australian success story. From humble beginnings in South Australia, her love of telling stories has seen her become one of the most successful producers in Hollywood today. She is a master of adaption and, with her production company Made Up Stories, has brought us hits including Penguin Bloom, Anatomy Of A Scandal and Nine Perfect Strangers.

Always on the lookout for something different, Bruna recently made her first foray into unscripted television with the reality show Undressed.

So what did she learn about herself along the way?

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Professor Veena Sahajwalla is the queen of recycling. The 2022 NSW Australian of the Year pioneers research into waste destined for landfill, literally turning trash into treasure. Her revolutionary green steel and green ceramics are being used in building and construction developments around Australia and overseas.

A materials scientist, engineer and inventor, Professor Veena also developed the world’s first e-waste micro factory. She is the founding director of the Sustainable Materials Research & Technology (SMaRT) Centre at the University of New South Wales.

You can find out more about Professor Veena’s work and the SMaRT Centre here: https://www.smart.unsw.edu.au

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Erica Berchtold moved from the bricks and mortar world of fashion to take over the reins as CEO of one of Australia’s top online retailers, The Iconic.

In the few short years Erica has been there, The Iconic has dealt with covid and doubled the size of its business. She talks to Sandra about the importance of customer service, and why curiosity plays a big part in progress.

You can find out more about The Iconic here: https://www.theiconic.com.au/playbook/story

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Dr Rebecca Johnson is one of Australia’s most valuable exports. A scientist whose passions include STEM and wildlife conservation, Rebecca was the first woman to hold the Chief Scientist role at the Australian Museum.

She is currently Chief Scientist and Associate Director of Science at The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. The Smithsonian is the largest museum of natural history in the world and houses an incredible 148 million specimens and objects.

So how did a girl from South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula end in up Washington DC?

You can find out more about Rebecca here: https://www.drrebeccaj.com

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Nicole Livingstone is one of Australia’s most decorated swimmers, winning the 50m, 100m and 200m Australian long-course backstroke titles when she was only 15. She has represented Australia at three Olympic Games and also won a record-breaking 10 consecutive 100m backstroke titles between 1987 and 1996.

After retiring from competitive swimming Nicole moved into commentating and sports administration, and in 2017 she was appointed General Manager of Women’s Football (AFLW). She is the first woman to lead the sport and in five years it has grown from eight teams to a record 18 this year, making it currently the single biggest employer of professional female athletes in the country.

As she says, AFLW is turning the dream of women playing elite football into a reality.

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Anita Jacoby is one of Australia’s top TV producers. From producing iconic shows including 60 Minutes, Enough Rope, Weekend Sydney, Today and The Gruen Transfer to heading up ITV Studios in Australia, she has been exposing the truth about other people for more than 30 years.

A born storyteller, Anita had the surprise of her life to find the most fascinating tale she’d ever heard was actually her own father’s.

This episode contains mention of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, please reach out to Lifeline on 13 11 14

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TV presenter and radio host Myf Warhurst is arguably one of the most respected music experts in Australia and is probably best known for her role as team captain on the much-loved music quiz show Spicks and Specks, but her voice can also be heard in an iconic animated children’s series.

From regional Victoria to Eurovision, she opens up to Sandra about her illustrious career, her love of architecture and how she recently discovered she was very nearly related to the singer John Farnham.

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Stacy Jane is an incredibly inspiring and courageous woman. Moving countries after fleeing an abusive relationship, she used her experiences to help others by founding Escabags.

Escabags provides ‘escape bags’, handmade tote bags containing essential items that a victim and his or her children would need when first leaving a dangerous or abusive situation.

In two short years, about 5,000 escape bags have been collected. Escabags are now available in 1,000 locations around Australia, a figure that’s growing by the week.

Stacy talks openly about her experiences, and how what began as therapeutic sewing to help her PTSD turned into a successful charity.

You can find about more about Escabags and how you can help here: www.escabags.org

CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses domestic violence. We acknowledge this can be triggering for some listeners. If you are in Australia and need support, please reach out to any of the following:

1800Respect - 1800 737 732 / 1800respect.org.au

Lifeline - 13 11 14 / lifeline.org.au

Beyond Blue - 1300 22 4637 / beyondblue.org.au

In an emergency, or if you are not feeling safe, call the police on 000.

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