Polly has worked with youth from a range of cultural backgrounds and in various international settings over the past 16 years. Polly has extensive understanding of youth development issues, homelessness, substance use, blood borne virus prevention, harm reduction and mental health and has extensive experience in program development, implementation and management.
Polly has worked for United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in Vietnam as Youth Program Officer and The Australian Government’s International AID Program (Aus AID) in FIJI as a Training Manager. She has presented at the International Harm Reduction Conference in Thailand the International Drugs & Young People Conference, in Australia and the 2015 National Alliance to End Homelessness Conference in Washington DC. Recently, Polly co-authored a white paper, The Impact of Internet Access on Homeless Youth, with Dr. Eric Rice from the USC School of Social Work.
Polly has a Post Graduate Diploma in Substance Abuse Studies from Victoria University and a Bachelor of Arts in Youth Studies from Victoria University in her native Australia.