Ms Dani Grigoriev

Founder and Director
Project 1in70
Australia

Dani Grigoriev is a community support worker, advocate, student and founder of Project1in70. Dani’s background was never in social justice, her passion was ignited after the 2021 arrest of her brother who lives with a range of mental health and neurodivergent conditions. Together, Dani and her brother were faced with many stigmatisms and harmful language surrounding his autism and mental health from not only CJS agencies such as the police and courts but also the legal defence team, the media, and the wider community. Although only in its infancy, Dani’s formation of Project1in70 aims to highlight, educate, inform, and challenge governments, stakeholders, professionals, and the community on important issues and needs of those living with autism, mental health and disabilities who connect with the CJS. As a mother of a 10-year-old daughter, Dani wants to ensure the needs of future generations with these conditions are at the forefront of policymakers’ decision-making. Dani threw herself into research on current legislation, policies and procedures and gained qualifications in community services and advocacy to ensure she could be best placed to take on this challenging and demanding role. In addition to advocating for the most vulnerable in our community, Dani continues to educate herself through her research and continuous study. Dani uses her person-centred, comprehensive approach to recognise and respond to individual needs and believes that knowledge is a powerful tool and hopes to be able to connect with more individuals who have lived experience to help improve the frameworks within the CJS.