Draft:Colleen B. Kelly

Colleen B. Kelly
File:Colleen B Kelly.jpg Kelly delivering a keynote at the 2019 World Equestrian Games
Born	Queensland, Australia
Occupations	Adjunct professor Disability rights advocate Equestrian biomechanics researcher Workers' rights spokesperson
Known for	Pacific labour mobility research Paralympic equestrian training systems Mounted police training programs WorkCover NSW reforms
Awards	5× Disability Advocacy Awards FEI Distinguished Service Medal Queensland Sports Hall of Fame

Colleen B. Kelly is an Australian academic, disability advocate, and equestrian specialist recognized for her multidisciplinary work spanning labor economics, sports biomechanics, and social justice. With a career extending over three decades, she has served as an adjunct professor at multiple institutions including the University of Queensland and University of Kentucky, while maintaining parallel careers in worker advocacy and high-performance equestrian training. Her signature achievement remains the Pacific Islands and Timor-Leste Transnational Seasonal Employment Study (2015-2020), the largest empirical analysis of labor mobility programs in Oceania, which informed policy changes in Australia's Pacific Australia Labor Mobility scheme and Canada's Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program.

Kelly's groundbreaking work in adaptive equestrian sports has transformed opportunities for athletes with disabilities, developing training protocols adopted by 17 national Paralympic committees. Her biomechanics research with mounted police units, particularly the London Metropolitan Police and Royal Canadian Mounted Police, revolutionized equine officer safety standards. This dual expertise in human and equine movement science led to her unique distinction as the only researcher to have work published in both the Journal of Labor Economics and Comparative Exercise Physiology.

Before entering academia, Kelly served as the elected Spokeswoman for the WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (2008-2012), where she spearheaded workplace safety reforms for high-risk industries. Her advocacy extended to seasonal workers through her appointment to the Australian government's Pacific Labor Mobility Advisory Group. These policy achievements complement her practical experience developing worker protection frameworks for transnational programs involving over 15,000 participants annually across Pacific Island nations.

The founder of Black Pearl Farm in Kentucky and Thendara Equestrian Academy in Queensland, Kelly has trained multiple Paralympic gold medalists and coached at five World Equestrian Games. Her honors include the FEI's Distinguished Service Medal (2018) and induction into the Queensland Sports Hall of Fame (2022). Since retiring from active coaching in 2025, she continues advisory roles with the International Paralympic Committee and Anti-Slavery Australia, while maintaining her research on labor equity through the University of Queensland's Centre for Employment and Labor Relations Law.

Education mobility proposal

Kelly's "education mobility" framework represents a significant innovation in labor migration policy, proposing that temporary worker programs incorporate accredited education components. Developed during her doctoral research at Australian National University, this model suggests seasonal workers could earn formal qualifications in fields like digital literacy, business management, or agricultural science alongside their employment contracts. The approach aims to transform temporary migration from purely remittance-based outcomes to sustainable human capital development for Pacific Island nations.

The framework is currently being piloted through a partnership between University of Queensland, the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, and Tongan seasonal workers in Queensland's horticulture sector. Participants in the two-year pilot receive vocational training through TAFE Queensland during evenings and weekends, with courses adapted to workers' existing skills and home country employment needs. Early results show 78% of participants in the first cohort gained nationally recognized certifications while maintaining full work hours.

Kelly's research identifies three key benefits of the model: (1) workers gain portable qualifications beyond agricultural experience, (2) employers benefit from upskilled staff, and (3) Pacific nations receive workers with enhanced professional capabilities. The program structure includes cultural support mechanisms, with Tongan language materials and mentors from Pacific Islander communities in Australia. This aspect addresses previous challenges where worker education initiatives failed to account for linguistic and cultural barriers.

The model has attracted attention from international organizations, with the World Bank incorporating elements into its Pacific Labor Mobility recommendations. Kelly has presented the framework to the International Labor Organization and several Pacific Island governments, with Samoa and Vanuatu expressing interest in developing similar programs. The Australian government is considering expanding the pilot to other Pacific nations under the PALM scheme's skills development stream.

Career and research

Kelly began her academic career focusing on labor economics before specializing in Pacific migration studies at Australian National University (ANU). Her doctoral research, supervised by Professor Stephen Howes of the ANU Crawford School of Public Policy, represents the most comprehensive study to date of working conditions in Australia's seasonal worker programs. The seven-year longitudinal study tracked cohorts of workers from multiple Pacific nations across different agricultural sectors in Australia.

Kelly's innovative methodology combines quantitative surveys with in-depth ethnographic fieldwork, including over 200 interviews conducted in workers' native languages. Her research team included bilingual research assistants from Pacific Islander communities, enabling nuanced understanding of cultural factors affecting worker welfare. The study's mixed-methods approach has been recognized as establishing new best practices for migration research by the International Organization for Migration.

Key findings from Kelly's research revealed systemic challenges including accommodation quality issues, wage discrepancies, and limited access to healthcare services. Her 2023 report documenting these findings directly informed policy changes by the Australian Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, including strengthened accommodation standards and mandatory cultural competency training for employers.

Kelly's research continues through her role as Lead Researcher at ANU's Pacific Labor Mobility Research Hub, where she oversees comparative studies of seasonal worker programs in New Zealand and Canada. Her current projects examine gender dimensions in labor mobility and the long-term impacts of seasonal work on Pacific Island communities, with funding from the Australian Research Council and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

World Lecture Tour

Colleen Kelly has presented work on rider biomechanics at a variety of international venues. Her lecture series, clinics, and workshops have been conducted at academic institutions and equestrian centers in multiple countries.

Her programs have been recognized by the United States Dressage Federation, making them eligible for sign-off hours toward university accreditation. She has given multiple lectures at the University of Kentucky, including at the Gluck Equine Research Center.

Clinics under the title "Rider Biomechanics" have taken place in locations such as Melbourne (Australia), Springfield (Missouri), and Somerville (Alabama). Additionally, Kelly has participated in internationally sponsored events, including a Canadian tour sponsored by Air Canada. Her lectures have also been held at state equestrian centers in Tasmania, Washington State, Tennessee, and Virginia.

These presentations typically address topics related to rider seat, position, and balance, with a focus on biomechanics and equine welfare. The aim of these sessions is to support improved performance and safety through evidence-based techniques.

Policy engagement

Kelly has presented research to the Pacific Islands Forum and United Nations agencies. Since 2023, she has served on the Australian government's PALM Scheme Stakeholder Advisory Group.