Cassandra's Compass Awards

“Cassandra's Compass is honoured to welcome Dr Marianne Coleman into our Hall of Fame — a researcher whose pioneering work is changing what it means to see the world with dementia.

An orthoptist and clinical eyecare researcher, Marianne saw something much of the health system had overlooked: that people living with dementia can have sight problems that go unnoticed, and that an ordinary eye test can feel overwhelming, frightening, or simply impossible when your world is changing. Where others saw barriers, Marianne saw a pathway — and she has spent her career building it, guided at every stage by people living with dementia and their carers. Her research has been funded by the UK Royal Society of Medicine and Fight for Sight, and here in Australia by the Dementia Australia Research Foundation.

Because of Marianne's work, people can now seek dementia-friendly eyecare at more than 300 optometry practices across Australia. She led the team that created a comprehensive training course for optometrists in dementia-friendly eyecare, and has delivered professional development training to eyecare teams across Australia and the UK — so that a dementia diagnosis no longer means going without the gift of good vision.

In 2025, Marianne was awarded the prestigious Professor Henry Brodaty Mid-Career Research Fellowship — a $400,000 commitment through the Dementia Australia Research Foundation. With it, she is now designing the first dementia-friendly eyecare pathway for residential aged care: the DEF-EYE project, helping people with dementia 'see well, to live well' in the place they call home. Her work has also earned the Dementia Advocates Award.

Marianne's influence now reaches far beyond our shores. Her dementia-friendly eyecare resources are now listed on the World Health Organization's Global Dementia Observatory Knowledge Exchange Platform, carrying Australian expertise onto the world stage and helping ensure that people with dementia everywhere are seen — truly seen.

Dr Coleman, on behalf of every person living with dementia whose world is clearer, brighter, and more dignified because of your work — thank you. You are a true dementia hero, and it is our profound honour to place your name in our Hall of Fame.”

“Cassandra's Compass is proud to induct our very first Hall of Fame honouree: Professor Henry Brodaty AO, named 2026 Senior Australian of the Year — a national honour.

Professor Brodaty's father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 1972, at the age of 52. Dementia was little understood then, and families had few places to turn. It shaped a career that has helped transform the lives of many people living with dementia and the families who love them, in Australia and around the world.

In 2012 he co-founded the Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing at UNSW, a hub for research on dementia risk and prevention. His Maintain Your Brain trial, published in Nature Medicine in 2025, found that an online lifestyle program improved cognition in older adults at risk of cognitive decline. He founded the Dementia Australia Research Foundation and chaired it for over two decades, and serves as Honorary Vice-President of Alzheimer's Disease International, carrying Australian leadership onto the world stage.

He continues to push forward — advocating for a national brain-health movement, in his own words, 'the Slip, Slop, Slap of brain health.' He is a leader who has reshaped dementia care from every single angle, navigating us all toward a future where dementia is better understood, better treated, and better prevented.

Professor Brodaty, on behalf of every family carer, nurse, student, and person living with dementia who will benefit from your life's work — thank you. You are a true dementia hero, and it is our profound honour to have you as the first name in our Hall of Fame.”