Good Things Australia is pleased to announce that Lesley Podesta has been appointed Chair of the Board, succeeding Jo Cavanagh OAM, who has stepped down as Chair after seven years of leadership.
Jo will continue as a Director on the Good Things Australia Board, supporting Lesley, the Board and organisation through the leadership transition and continuing to contribute her deep experience and commitment to digital inclusion.
Jo became Chair in August 2019, at a formative time for Good Things Australia. Since then, she has helped guide the organisation through extraordinary change, from the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to significant growth in our programs, partnerships and national influence, and most recently our transition to independent Australian governance.
Throughout her time as Chair, Jo has remained deeply committed to the people and communities we support and to ensuring no one is left behind in our digital world.
Leading through change and growth
When Jo became Chair, Good Things Australia was still in its early years. The foundations had been laid, but there was enormous opportunity ahead.
Within months, Australia and the world were facing the COVID-19 pandemic. As essential services, health information and everyday connection rapidly moved online, digital inclusion became more important than ever.
Jo’s leadership helped Good Things navigate this period with purpose and resilience. As Chair, she consistently focused on the importance of targeted action so rapid digital transformation did not leave people further behind, while maintaining a strong Board focus on strategy, risk, sustainability and high quality program delivery.
By 2022, Good Things Australia had reached more than one million people with digital skills and support. That impact has continued to grow.
Today, Good Things Australia has reached more than 3 million people through Be Connected and other digital skills programs, distributed more than $30 million in grants to community organisations and built a national network of more than 4,000 Network Partners working in communities across Australia.
Expanding who we reach
One of the defining changes during Jo’s time as Chair has been the expansion of Good Things Australia’s work.
Building on the success of Be Connected and our work supporting older Australians, Good Things has developed programs with and for people who face some of the greatest barriers to digital inclusion, including migrant and refugee women and people with intellectual disability.
Programs including Digital Sisters, Digital Champions, Games for Good and our growing work in AI literacy have strengthened our ability to respond as technology and the digital divide evolve.
This growth has remained grounded in a community led approach. Throughout her chairship, Jo has consistently recognised that Good Things’ impact is only possible because of the trusted community organisations and Digital Mentors who support people to build their skills and confidence in ways that work for them.
Building evidence and influence
Jo has also helped oversee Good Things Australia’s evolution into an increasingly influential national voice on digital inclusion.
During her time as Chair, Good Things has strengthened its research, advocacy and partnerships across government, industry, academia and the community sector. Our research has helped build the evidence for action, including work examining Australians’ attitudes to getting online, AI literacy and the economic benefits of overcoming digital exclusion.
We have advocated for digital inclusion to be recognised as essential to full social and economic participation and increasingly brought the voices and experiences of people affected by digital exclusion directly into conversations with decision makers.
Jo has long understood that closing the digital divide cannot be achieved by one organisation alone. Partnership and collaboration across sectors have been consistent themes of her leadership.
Guiding Good Things into a new era
One of the most significant milestones during Jo’s time as Chair came in 2025, when Good Things Australia transitioned to independent Australian governance.
Jo helped oversee a governance structure designed to provide strong oversight, clear accountability and a sustainable foundation for Good Things Australia’s future, while maintaining our close relationship and shared purpose with colleagues at Good Things Foundation in the UK.
It marked an important new chapter in Good Things Australia’s evolution and created strong foundations for the next phase of our work.
Reflecting on her time as Chair, Jo said, “I was delighted to join Good Things Australia as an emerging social impact organisation and have had the privilege of working with the best people on the Board and within the organisation. I am incredibly proud of the life-changing outcomes achieved and the wonderful stories behind our evidence of impact.
Jess Wilson has been such a pleasure to support and work with as she has grown her leadership for change across our nation. Lesley Podesta is an excellent appointment as Chair and I know the organisation continues in expert and safe hands, finding a wise and caring path through turbulent times where digital technology and AI bring both opportunities and risks for all Australians.
I am very grateful for the opportunity to serve as Chair and proud of all that we have achieved together.”
Thank you for your leadership, Jo
Jo brought to the Chair role extensive experience in social change, governance and community leadership. Her career has been characterised by a commitment to social justice and strengthening outcomes for people and communities experiencing disadvantage. She has served on Boards and Australian Government ministerial councils, is a Churchill Fellow and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2013.
At Good Things Australia, she has brought that experience together with a strong belief in collaboration, community leadership and ambitious social change. She has been a generous supporter of our people, a trusted partner to our CEO and leadership team and a passionate advocate for digital inclusion.
A particular focus of Jo’s leadership has been supporting and developing Good Things Australia’s people, including our CEO and leadership team. She has seen an important part of her role as Chair as creating the conditions for others to use their talents and capabilities to lead, grow and deliver impact.
Good Things Australia CEO Jess Wilson said, “Jo has been an incredible Chair and a wonderful support to me personally as CEO. Her wisdom, encouragement and consistent focus on impact have helped shape Good Things Australia into the organisation it is today. She has always understood that our impact comes through people and partnerships and has created the space for us to be ambitious and grow while keeping the focus on what really matters.
I am enormously grateful for Jo’s leadership and everything I have learned from working alongside her. While this marks the end of her time as Chair, I’m delighted it isn’t a farewell. Having Jo continue on the Board will bring valuable continuity, experience and support as Lesley takes on the Chair role and we move into our next chapter.”
Welcoming our new Chair, Lesley Podesta
We are delighted to welcome Lesley Podesta as Chair of Good Things Australia.
Lesley joined the Good Things Australia Board in 2024 and brings extensive leadership experience spanning government, the not for profit sector, public policy, advocacy, organisational development and digital rights.
She is the founder of social impact consultancy Red Mitten and CEO of Kilfinan Australia, which connects senior leaders with CEOs across Australia’s social impact sector through executive mentoring.
Lesley’s career has included senior leadership roles in both the Victorian and Australian governments, including leadership across Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, ageing and aged care, national immunisation policy and major national health responses.
She has also led Global Partnerships at The Fred Hollows Foundation and served as CEO of the Alannah & Madeline Foundation from 2016 to 2021.
Lesley brings substantial governance experience, including as Chair of the Young & Resilient Research Centre Advisory Board and through Board roles with UNICEF Australia and the World Congress on Family Law and Children’s Rights.
This combination of experience is particularly valuable as Good Things Australia enters its next chapter.
Digital inclusion is no longer only about being able to access and use the internet. AI, rapidly changing digital services, online safety, affordability and access to devices are creating new opportunities and new risks.
Lesley’s experience in public policy, social impact leadership, digital rights, organisational growth, partnerships and advocacy will strengthen Good Things Australia’s leadership as we respond to these challenges.
Speaking about her appointment as Chair, Lesley said, “No one should be locked out of essential services, work or connection with the people they love simply because the digital world has moved faster than they have. That’s the problem Good Things Australia exists to solve, and it’s a privilege to take on the Chair role at such a pivotal moment — with AI, online safety and affordability reshaping what digital inclusion even means. I want to thank Jo for the extraordinary foundation she’s built, and I’m looking forward to working alongside her, Jess and the whole team to keep pushing this work forward.
With Jo continuing on the Board and Lesley stepping into the Chair role, Good Things Australia enters this transition with strong continuity, deep governance experience and a shared commitment to ensuring no one is left behind in the digital world.