Camilo Demarco is a Uruguayan man living and working on Dja Dja Wurrung Country and currently works in the Family Safety Team at Bendigo District Aboriginal Cooperative. 

He is the co-creator/facilitator of the Merrijig Mooroopook (Healthy Spirits) program, a men’s healing program that works with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men who have used family violence. 

In 2023 Camilo completed a Churchill Fellowship awarded to travel through the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu and Aotearoa looking at programs working with men using violence.

His community work has included working closely with Uncle Rick Nelson, Djaara Elder on numerous projects and is also one of the organizers/facilitators of the Castlemaine ‘Rites of Passage’ program.

He has been participating in and facilitating men’s groups and circles for 15 years and runs a fortnightly group for young teenage fellas with the intention of a safe space to share, reflect and support one another. 

Camilo has previously worked in various sectors including men’s health, Youth Justice and Alcohol and other Drugs for 15 years which has embedded in him a strong belief in a trauma-informed and strength-based approach to working with people. Camilo is passionate about community work and social justice issues and believes that everyone has a story worthy of being heard and shared.