Antoinette Braybrook AM is an Aboriginal woman who was born in Victoria on Wurundjeri country. Antoinette’s grandfather and mother’s line is through the Kuku Yalanji, North Queensland.

Antoinette is the CEO of Djirra, a position she has held since the service was established in 2002.  Djirra is an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation that provides holistic, culturally safe, legal and non-legal support to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who experience family violence – predominantly women. Djirra also designs and delivers important, community-based early intervention and prevention programs and undertakes policy and law reform work to improve access to justice, strengthen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women’s resilience and reduce vulnerability to violence. Djirra finds solutions through Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women sharing their stories, journeys, and experiences.

Antoinette is also Co-Chair of the Change the Record Campaign, Australia’s only national First Nations led justice coalition of legal, health and family violence prevention experts.

Antoinette’s advocacy work includes positions held on advisory groups, expert panels and consultative roles to State and Federal organisations. Antoinette has also received the the following awards:

• 2015   Access to Justice/Pro Bono Award, Law Institute of Victoria
• 2015    Australian Centre for Leadership for Women Award for Sustaining Women’s Empowerment.
• 2016    Harvard Club of Victoria’s Non-Profit Fellowship Program to attend Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management program at Harvard Business School, Boston USA
• 2017     Inspirational Women of Yarra Awards (Victoria)
• 2017     Inducted into the Gender Justice Legacy Wall launched at the UN New York
• 2018     Human Rights Award  – Human Rights Medal Finalist
• 2018    Future Justice Award for driving projects to advance future justice
• 2019     Elle Magazine – Not for Profit Persuader
• 2020    Inductee into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women
• 2021     CEO Magazine  – One of the 16 most influential women in leadership for 2021
• 2022     Australian Awards of Excellence in Women’s Leadership (Victorian recipient)
• 2022   The ‘Local Women Paving the Way’ group honoured Antoinette’s work and contribution to the Melton community, engraving her name on a paver alongside other prominent women
• 2022   City of Melbourne Awards Melburnian of the Year
• 2023  King’s Birthday 2023 Honours List – Member Order of Australia Medal

As a highly regarded public speaker, who seeks to give a voice to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have experienced family violence, Antoinette was honoured to jointly present with Special Rapporteur Rashida Manjo at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women Conference in New York, March 2013. Antoinette has also been honoured on the Gender Justice Legacy wall in recognition for her contribution to advances in the gender justice field in celebration of 15 years of the ICC and 20 years since the adoption of the Rome Statute.

Attendance at the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva in July 2019 provided Antoinette with the opportunity to advocate internationally on issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and their children.