Meet our team
The change makers that are the soul of SouLab
We have an amazing team of analysts, consultants and specialists with deep expertise in the health and human services sector. For every project, we put together the best team with a mix of technical excellence in economics and management in the health and human services sector together with expertise of working directly with vulnerable communities.
This combination ensures that project outcomes are underpinned by a deep understanding of the complexities associated with achieving outcomes in the human services sector and in turn project deliverables that meet the needs of our clients.
But perhaps most importantly, our team are passionate, kind and down-to-earth people who are all involved in social change and community work outside of their professional lives too.
Nazia Ahmed (she/her)
Founder, CEO and Economist
Nazia is a leading economist in the human services sector with over 15 years experience in management consulting and government. Prior to starting SOULAB, Nazia was Chief Economist of NSW Government's human services portfolio.
Dr. Rebecca Reeve (she/her)
Senior Economist
Bec is an economist committed to helping improve wellbeing and social justice through evidence-based research and evaluation. She is SouLab's Senior Economist and a Senior Research Fellow with Yuwaya Ngarra-li at UNSW. She has expertise using linked data for longitudinal analyses relating to health, education, and criminology and has a number of publications outlining her research in the health and human services sector. Bec dedicates her spare time to connecting with and assisting refugees and asylum seekers.
Kristina Popova Livrinski (she/her)
Social Impact Consultant
Kristina has a background in economics, finance and statistics with over eight years of experience across private and public sectors. At SouLab, Kristina leads economic analysis and research, process reviews and qualitative data collection and analysis. Prior to joining SouLab, Kristina worked for a big four consulting firm and was chief of staff to the Macedonian Finance Minister.
Annie Brett (she/they)
Social Impact Officer
Annie is an all rounder with a key strength in synthesising complex information and presenting it simply. Annie's expertise is in developing social impact assessment frameworks and working alongside NGOs in implementing these frameworks. Their academic background is in International Relations and Security, focusing on human rights.
They provide project management, business development, and research and analysis support across SOULAB projects. Annie also manages the operations of SouLab's social enterprise Her Kitchen Table.
Annie is passionate about diversity mainstreaming and capacity building. She has experience in conducting DEI initiatives through her work with the Asia-Pacific Refugee Rights Network and Canberra Roller Derby League.
Dr. Sally Curtis (she/her)
Business and social change expert
Sally is a lecturer and researcher at the ANU’s Research School of Management and a specialist consultant with SouLab. Sally’s research is focused on how leaders and organisations bring about positive social change. At SouLab, Sally specialises in undertaking scalability analysis of not for profit and social enterprises. Sally grew up in regional Australia and has a deep understanding of social issues as well as opportunities in regional and rural settings.
Hana Zaarour (she/her)
Psychologist
Hana is Principal psychologist and founder of Signature Psychology and Consultancy Services and a specialist consultant with SouLab. She has extensive experience working directly with children in foster care, domestic violence survivors and individuals with challenging behaviours. Hana advises on projects in relation to mental health and also ensures that trauma-informed approaches are applied when working with vulnerable communities.
Dr. Jananie William (she/her)
Actuary
Jananie is a lecturer in Actuarial Studies at the ANU and a specialist consultant with SouLab. Jananie has significant experience working with Australian health data and undertook her PhD thesis on identifying maternal health system costs of adverse birth outcomes. Her expertise lies in using actuarial techniques to inform social policy.
Danny Mikati (he/him)
Practitioner specialist
Danny is the Director and founder of Insight Community services and a specialist consultant with SouLab. Danny brings a unique combination of direct frontline experience with strong consulting skills. Danny is a former Sergeant in the NSW Police Force where he led the Bankstown and Canterbury Domestic Violence response team for eight years. Danny is also the CEO of AusRelief.
Julia Lessing (she/her)
Actuary
Julia is an actuary specialising in the health and human services sector. She is the Founder and Director of Guardian Actuarial and a specialist consultant with SouLab.
Dr. Bhanu Bhatia (she/her)
Economist
Bhanu is a lecturer in economics at Charles Darwin University and a specialist consultant with SOULAB. Using the framework of economic sociology, Bhanu’s work considers the embeddedness of economic action in the broader social space combining rational choice theory and relational dimensions of choices. She has previously analysed health programs in Bangladesh, child protection in Cambodia and Fair Trade in Asia.
