iyarn yarns

iyarn

Connecting people, yarning through stories. Hosted by Lockie Cooke, founder and CEO of iYARN, this podcast brings together powerful conversations with changemakers, community leaders, researchers, and innovators across Australia and beyond. Each episode explores how culture, technology, and community insight intersect to drive meaningful change — particularly in health, wellbeing, and social innovation. Lockie is a non-Indigenous Australian who has worked in partnership with First Nations organisations for over 20 years. Through these long-standing relationships — and his connection with his cultural;ly adopted Aboriginal family in Ardiyooloon community in the North West of Western Australia — Lockie approaches each yarn with deep respect, cultural humility, and a shared commitment to strengthening self-determination and data sovereignty across Australia. Whether discussing Indigenous data sovereignty, wearable tech in remote communities, mental health, or creative grassroots initiatives, iyarn Yarns invites listeners into grounded and thoughtful conversations about connection, belonging, and purpose.

  1. 15 Apr

    The Cost of Bullying & Why Evidence Matters | Friendly Schools Podcast Ep. 1 with Prof. Donna Cross AM

    The Cost of Bullying & Why Evidence Matters | Friendly Schools Podcast Ep. 1 with Prof. Donna Cross AM Lockie Cooke sits down with Professor Donna Cross AM, one of the world's most cited researchers in bullying prevention, for the first episode of the Friendly Schools Podcast. In this conversation, Donna shares 30 years of research into what actually works to reduce bullying in schools — including why punishment alone makes things worse, which popular approaches can cause harm, and what a whole school approach really looks like in practice. Topics covered: The $2.2 billion per year cost of bullying in Australia Which students are most vulnerable and why location matters The traffic light mapping exercise schools can use tomorrow Why "evidence-based" doesn't always mean what you think The problem with Restorative Techniques (capital R, capital T) Why mindfulness can be harmful for primary school children The LATE model: Listen, Acknowledge, Talk options, End with encouragement AI, deepfakes, and the swimming pool analogy for online safety Australia's social media ban: the positives and the risks Friendly Schools is Australia's leading evidence-based bullying prevention program, developed over 30 years of research and accessed by over 4,000 schools. It is the only program to achieve a four-star rating on the Be You evidence ratings. Recorded on Noongar Whadjuk Boodja at Studio Scotch, Scotch College, Perth, Western Australia. Learn more: friendlyschools.com.au | iyarn.com Friendly Schools is distributed by iyarn.

    1hr 16min

  2. 08/10/2025

    Bridging the Health Gap with Wearable Technology - ABC Radio Sydney interview

    In this special ABC Radio Sydney interview, Lockie Cooke, founder and CEO of iYARN, joins host Craig Reucassel to discuss how wearable technology is transforming healthcare access in remote Aboriginal communities across Australia. Lockie shares how iYARN’s culturally informed digital platform is empowering researchers and healthcare professionals to collect real-time health data seamlessly — from heart rate and ECG scans to wellbeing check-ins — all while upholding data sovereignty and community ownership. The conversation dives into: How projects with the Djurali Aboriginal Heart Research Centre are improving early detection of atrial fibrillation (AF). The critical role of telehealth and wearables in improving access to care in remote regions. Why data security and sovereignty are essential to ensure First Nations health data stays protected and locally managed. What’s next for iYARN’s collaboration with the Digital Health CRC, to be showcased at SXSW Sydney 2025. Tune in to explore how technology, culture, and community collaboration are helping bridge the health gap facing Indigenous Australians.

    5 min

  3. 06/07/2020

    #20 Joris Cuesta - The Plateau Hacker - Thought Leader

    As a reformed rat racer, start-up survivor and private company workaholic, Joris Cuesta is referred to as the Plateau Hacker. With more than 15 years’ experience working within marketing, branding and management teams, Joris knows how to get leaders unstuck in their careers, redefine their edge and re-ignite the fire behind their performance. Joris is obsessed with helping leaders in organisations overcome disconnection, isolation, and stagnation, so they can reconnect with the career they love and thrive.  Do you feel like you have hit a plateau in your career? As though there is no clear way forward? Joris delves deeply into what matters to you, enabling you to drive your unique style of leadership, bring greater innovation to your organisation, and genuinely connect with your people and customers. Joris’s work creates immense clarity that energises executive teams, empowers managers and excites teams. He has collaborated with companies across various industries, including Fitstop Fitness, DHL Express, MyBudget, Teacher Mutual Bank, UniBank, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Quicksilver, Grey Goose, Chivas and more. Joris is a passionate and sought-after trainer, mentor and keynote speaker. His clients refer to his infectious energy as a true gift that pushes them the extra mile so they can take their careers to the next level. He works with senior leaders, companies, agencies and individuals looking to make a difference in their lives and, as a result, the lives of their teams and clients.

    42 min

  4. 09/06/2020

    #19 Tommaso D'Orsogna - Olympic Medalist, 8 X Australian Senior Swimming team member, final year medical Student

    Tommaso D'Orsogna is an Australian swimmer and Olympic medallist from Perth, WA. He spent 8 years on the Australian swim team, competing at four World Championships, four World Short Course Championships, two Pan Pacific Championships, two Commonwealth Games and an Olympic Games in 2012. He spent nearly five years at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra moulding himself physically and mentally for peak performance. Whilst aspiring and achieving his dreams in the pool, outside of it, Tommaso has also pursued his dream of being a doctor. Now a final year medical student at Notre Dame University, Tommaso is still actively involved in swimming, not just as an athlete. He is also a Director on the Board of Swimming WA and a part of their High-Performance committee. He is passionate about developing and encouraging future champions both in and out of the pool. iyarn can be found here:  iyarn facebook iyarn instagram iyarn website iyarn app

    43 min

  5. 12/05/2020

    #18: Nick Hudson - The Push Up Challenge Founder, taking his challenge viral with 55 million ways to raise mental health awareness

    Nick is the founder of The Push-Up Challenge and is known for his decisive and personable leadership style and his track record of motivating teams, workplaces and communities to deliver results. Building The Push-Up Challenge from its humble origins, Nick has led the event to attract around 50,000 participants and raise $2.5M for mental health in 2019. He has significant experience in organisational strategy, project delivery and public speaking across a number of industries. Nick is involved in various community groups including his local surf life saving club where he has received multiple service awards including club person of the year. Nick is driven by his motto of ‘bring people together for better’ and achieves this using a community heart and an analytical head.  This year's Push Up Challenge could push over 100,000 members, its not too late to join here: https://www.thepushupchallenge.com.au/ https://www.facebook.com/pushforbetter iyarn socials here:  iyarn facebook iyarn website iyarn app

    33 min

  6. 18/04/2020

    #17: Josh Fergus, Musician, Educator, Surfer & Rites of Passage facilitator talking about alternative education and becoming a Man

    Josh Fergus (BSc Anthropology/Psych, Post Grad Education) is a teacher, musician, surfer, and meditator. With interests stemming from breath work to psychology, Steiner education, permaculture and alternative approaches to living, Josh lives from the heart and has been steering his many life skills and experiences in more recent times towards rites of passage work. He hails from Western Australia, spent years living and playing music in Sydney, and now resides in Port Macquarie, NSW working as a mentor to Indigenous boys in high school.    Ferg’s favourite quote is; “We don’t see things as they are; we see them as we are.” (Anaïs Nin)   iyarn can be found here:  iyarn facebook iyarn instagram iyarn website iyarn app

    37 min

  7. 14/04/2020

    #16; Troy Douglas; Nexba CEO and Co-Founder CEO, growing the countries largest naturally sugar free food and beverage business, managing COVID & growing up

    Troy co-founded Nexba with friend Drew Bilbe in 2011. For Nexba's CEO-Global, his favourite thing is turning creative ideas into sustainable businesses. Troy’s experience as a marketing executive and paralegal inspired his interest in strategic brand management. He oversees everything connected with the strategic global expansion of Nexba. Nexba can be found here: https://www.nexba.com/ iyarn can be found here:  iyarn facebook iyarn instagram iyarn website iyarn app

    38 min

  8. 11/04/2020

    #15; Jamie Clough - Entrepreneurial journey and his story with, Honey for Life, the art of making honey in Western Australia

    Jamie Clough is an inspirational entrepreneur. Onto his second business, in honey! He houses 60 million bees in Western Australia and he has a great vision for his business. https://www.honeyforlife.com.au/ iyarn can be found here:  iyarn facebook iyarn instagram iyarn website iyarn app

    33 min
See All (22)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Connecting people, yarning through stories. Hosted by Lockie Cooke, founder and CEO of iYARN, this podcast brings together powerful conversations with changemakers, community leaders, researchers, and innovators across Australia and beyond. Each episode explores how culture, technology, and community insight intersect to drive meaningful change — particularly in health, wellbeing, and social innovation. Lockie is a non-Indigenous Australian who has worked in partnership with First Nations organisations for over 20 years. Through these long-standing relationships — and his connection with his cultural;ly adopted Aboriginal family in Ardiyooloon community in the North West of Western Australia — Lockie approaches each yarn with deep respect, cultural humility, and a shared commitment to strengthening self-determination and data sovereignty across Australia. Whether discussing Indigenous data sovereignty, wearable tech in remote communities, mental health, or creative grassroots initiatives, iyarn Yarns invites listeners into grounded and thoughtful conversations about connection, belonging, and purpose.

Information

  • Creator
    iyarn
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    22
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2020 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    iyarn yarns