Co-Founder & Executive Director of Wayapa Wuurrk Aboriginal Wellness Foundation
Jamie Marloo Thomas is a respected senior cultural knowledge-holder for his Peek Whurrung Gunditjmara and GunnaiKurnai communities. Together with his partner Sara Jones, in 2013 he founded Wayapa Wuurrk P/L, which translates into “Connect Country”, to provide an Indigenous alternative in the emerging Wellness Industry.
Combining 23 years of vast professional experience in Men’s Health, Well-being, Drug and Alcohol Support, Family Violence Prevention, Indigenous Youth Mentoring, Cultural Heritage and Ancestral Remains Repatriation, with his personal connection practice rooted in Aboriginal Dance and Ceremony, Jamie created Wayapa™ in consultation with Elders and community. Wayapa™ is an Indigenous Wellness & Earth Connection Practice that focuses on healing the planet as the starting point for healing and taking care of ourselves. Combining earth mindfulness, narrative meditation and movement, Wayapa™ is the only known Aboriginal Wellness Practice that has been certified as a modality by the International Institute for Complementary Therapists.
Ultimately Jamie’s work is about helping people reconnect to Earth, Spirit and their true selves, so they can experience the wellness secrets that Indigenous people have known for 80,000 years that are embedded in taking care of Country.
Jamie also holds a Post Graduate Certificate in Family Therapy from Latrobe University and has been culturally mentoring Aboriginal boys for over 20 years, which he continues to do through the Wayapa Wuurrk Aboriginal Wellness Foundation.