Right now our society is facing a boy crisis
Right now our society is facing a boy crisis
...but as a parent, you want to create the conditions to help him grow and thrive.
Science tells us that the best way to do this is by diving into your son’s world, and connecting with him in the way he needs.
Our expert lineup
Our 12 raising boys experts bring together their research, study and expertise to guide you through the world of boys, and help you rekindle the connection you both want.
PEGGY ORENSTEIN
✖ Boys & Sex
✖️ New York Times bestselling author, Peggy Orenstein speaks on boys and sex.
✖️ Paul Dillon, Director of DARTA, confronts alcohol, drugs, vaping, and other substance issues.
✖️ Brad Marshall, "The Unplugged Psychologist”, discusses how to cope with internet, screens, and gaming.
✖️ Glen Gerreyn, tackles the big conversations around pornography, sex, honour, and consent.
✖️ Gus Worland helps us explore the connection between masculinity, social isolation, mental health, and suicide.
✖️ Dr Arne Rubinstein, author of The Making of Men, discusses the a boys “rite of passage”.
✖️ Teenage expert Michelle Mitchell, tackles emotional vulnerability and communication.
✖️ Matt Tyler, helps us understand how to undo ‘toxic masculinity’ and gender stereotypes.
✖️ Professor Marc Brackett, Founder of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, helps us reimagine boys and their emotions.
✖️ Bec Sparrow discusses how we can help our boys recognise good relationships and set healthy boundaries.
✖️ Mamamia founder, Mia Freedman, rounds out our discussion with boys growing up (from a Mamamia perspective).
"I felt so ill equipped and now have a wealth of gems, tools and resources to turn to."
Rebekah S.
Mother of 3 boys
Registration $199AUD
Life time recording access included
Transforming relationships every single day...
TAMARA H.
The summit opened my eyes to how much better I could communicate with my teen boys.
I now feel like I'll be able to be brave and open up to some awkward and previously avoided conversations, particularly in areas of concern around sex, drugs, gaming etc.
I love that I can review all the videos to keep getting golden nuggets of strategies as I work through this stage of parenthood.
WYN L.
I am actually a grandparent and retired teacher. I feel much more informed about the challenges facing our children as parents but also ‘the village’.
I feel empowered. I want to share it all with my kids. I feel it provides a platform of help that is non-threatening.
TRISH C.
I feel like the knowledge that has been shared has been like reading 50 parenting books in one day.
I've learned that I can develop to skills to help my son to grow into a caring and empathic teenager, and then man.
I feel energised and so full of wise advice to lead my sons (only 3 and 7 right now) into this world as 2 of the most amazing men people will know.
It’s time to rekindle your connection with your son
The trickiest time to be a boy
Relative to girls, our boys are
struggling at school
struggling with friends
struggling with mental health
struggling with alcohol & other drug abuse
struggling with pornography, sex & intimacy
struggling with emotions, &
struggling with screen addiction.
At the end of the day, they’re struggling with what it means to be a boy.
The trickiest time to be a boy
Relative to girls, our boys are
struggling at school
struggling with friends
struggling with mental health
struggling with alcohol & other drug abuse
struggling with pornography, sex & intimacy
struggling with emotions, &
struggling with screen addiction.
At the end of the day, they’re struggling with what it means to be a boy.
Our boy crisis
The Bringing Up Boys Summit is about one thing: taking you into your son’s world and helping you connect with him in the way he needs you to.
Our boy crisis
The Bringing Up Boys Summit is about one thing:
taking you into your son’s world and helping you connect with him in the way he needs you to.
It’s almost impossible to decode the trouble and turmoil that our boys experience every day. But we can certainly see it bubbling out when they’re frustrated, excited, or angry.
And there’s a good reason for this. The 21st century is throwing a huge array of issues at them – alcohol and drugs, mental health concerns, body image issues, technology and social media, premature or non-consensual intimacy, friendship troubles – and our boys are struggling with who they are, and how they fit.
As parents, we try our hardest to connect with and help our sons. But sometimes our best intentions fail. And instead of helping them, we can end up pushing them further away.
The Bringing up Boys Summit, presented by Happy Families, is about one thing: taking you into your son’s world and helping you connect with him in the way he needs you to.
Our twelve experts understand the different areas that challenge today’s boys: sex, pornography, screens, gaming, friendships, relationships, alcohol and drugs, violence, emotions, and so much more. They’ll reveal the science and the study behind these issues, and what we – as parents and a society – can do about it.
Ultimately, you won’t just find solutions to help your son through friendship breakdowns, the lure of drugs, anxiety and other mental health issues, or even the life-changing process of puberty. You’ll find ways to rekindle the connection you both want… and both need.
Raising boys with care & connection
Raising boys with care & connection
To thrive and grow into a resilient, flourishing man, your son needs a handful of basic but vital things.
At the Bringing Up Boys Summit, you’ll learn how to help him obtain those vital elements, and grow into a strong, caring, open-hearted man.
Understand what’s really happening with your tween or teenage son.
Decode the turmoil that bubbles out when they’re frustrated, excited, or angry.
Solutions to help your son through the trials and struggles of a boy in the 21st century.
The best ways to rekindle your connection and bolster his wellbeing.
"I love that I can review all the videos to keep getting golden nuggets of strategies as I work through this stage of parenthood."
TAMARA H.
Bringing Up Boys participant
Registration $199AUD
Life time recording access included
The lineup
Our 12 raising boys experts bring together their research, study and expertise to guide you through the world of boys, and help you rekindle the connection you both want.
Dr Justin Coulson
► The Boy Crisis
Dr Justin Coulson is the co-host and parenting expert on Channel 9's "Parental Guidance", the founder of Happy Families, and one of Australia’s most trusted parenting experts.
Over the past decade he has helped innumerable families with his six books about raising children, his hundreds of media appearances (including all of Australia’s major news outlets, the Washington Post and the New York Times), and two viral videos that have been viewed a combined 80 million times!
Justin earned his PhD in Psychology from the University of Wollongong. He and his wife Kylie have been married since the late 1990s and are the parents of six daughters.
PEGGY ORENSTEIN
✖ Boys & Sex
Peggy Orenstein is a New York Times bestselling author, award-winning journalist, and internationally recognised speaker on gender issues.
In the Bringing Up Boys Summit, Peggy will be discussing boys and sex, including where challenging sexual behaviours come from, how masculinity impacts on boys’ sexuality, assault, consent, the ‘hook-up’ culture, and pornography. She’ll help us understand how to change our focus from risk and danger to responsibility and joy, so our boys will view sex differently, their partners differently, and make safer, healthier, and wiser choices.
PROF. MARC BRACKETT
◆ Boys & their Emotions
Professor Marc Brackett is the Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and a Professor in the Child Study Center of Yale University. His book, Permission to Feel inspires a new mindset around the power of emotions to transform our lives. He helps people to learn to understand their own emotions and gain strategies for developing emotional intelligence to increase wellbeing.
In our Summit, Matt will take us through a journey of reimagining boys and their emotions. He believes that we can dispel the idea that boys must be tough and hide their emotions. As parents we can give boys permission to feel all their emotions by increasing our own emotional intelligence and becoming a better emotion coach for our boys.
Dr ARNE RUBINSTEIN
+ Rites of Passage in the Making of Men
Dr Arne Rubinstein is an internationally recognised expert on childhood development and the mind behind Rites of Passage. His programs have been attended by over 250,000 people in more than 20 countries around the world and are now a part of over 50 schools around Australia. He is also the author of the best-seller The Making of Men and has won multiple awards for his work including being nominated in 2008 for Australian of the Year for his groundbreaking work with youth.
Dr Rubinstein will be discussing the innate need of boys to undergo a “rite of passage” to prove themselves and become a “man”. We need to provide this to them, or they’ll seek it out themselves. He’ll also discuss the key role of parental respect and acknowledgement as boys grow into men.
Gus worland
● Man Up
When the suicide of his mentor and great mate left him reeling, Gus Worland decided he needed to take action. He had also felt the stigma around masculinity stop him from asking for help when life felt tough. He knew more was needed, so he created a three-part documentary series, Man Up, to explore the connection between masculinity, social isolation, mental health, and suicide.
In his discussion, Gus will discuss suicide prevention, vulnerability, and how to stay mentally fit. And why we must not give in to worrying alone, putting on a mask and pretending that everything is OK.
MIA FREEDMAN
► Boys Growing Up
from a Mamamia's perspective
When our boys grow up, it hurts. The heartbreaking grief that comes as our sons grow up and don’t need us anymore is not spoken of often enough. At the same time, there is an incredible joy that comes from watching them fall in love and take steps to begin their own life. In this important conversation, Dr Justin Coulson and Mia Freedman talk about our boys growing up, how to teach them good principles, and how to let go of them when the time is right.
Mia Freedman is the author of four books including the best-selling Work, Strife, Balance and she hosts two award-winning podcasts. She’s also the founder of Mamamia, a parenting focused digital media company here in Australia.
GLEN GERREYN
+ Men of Honour
Glenn Gerryn is a firm advocate for boys and sharing his hope for boys. As the director and co-founder of the HopeFull Institute, Glenn has created the Men of Honour character development course to help young men develop a greater sense of self-regulation.
In the Summit, Glenn will be highlighting some of the big conversations we need to be having with our boys, including pornography, sex, honour and consent. Justin and Glenn will discuss the importance of making pre-decisions of what kind of man they want to be in each of these areas and the damage that can come from getting it wrong.
REBECCA SPARROW
✖ Boys & their Mates
She's been a travel writer, magazine editor, marketing executive, and radio producer. But today, Rebecca Sparrow's purpose is very different – to help our teenagers tackle the unique challenges they struggle with.
We’ll be privileged to hear Bec and Justin discuss our boys and their mates. We might believe that our beautiful boys aren’t the ones participating in sexist jokes or watching pornography with their mates at school, but that’s perhaps not the full truth. Bec discusses how we can recognise red flags and help our boys develop their identity and morality, recognise good relationships, and set healthy boundaries with their friends.
MATT TYLER
+ Man Box
Matt Tyler is the executive director of The Men’s Project at Jesuit Social Services. The focus of his work is reducing the violence and other harmful behaviours that are so prevalent among boys and men in the 21st century. He also wants to broaden what it means to be a man – and bring out more caring, open men than ever before. Matt helps to do this through his Man Box research.
At the Summit we’ll have a chance to hear Matt discuss those societal beliefs about what it means to be “a real man”. And have a fantastic conversation about how to undo ‘toxic masculinity’, gender stereotypes, and break down “man box” behaviour. The astounding life outcome statistics that result from living in the man box will blow you away.
Michelle mitchell
◆ Connecting with your Boy
Michelle Mitchell has been called the “teenage expert” because of her compassionate, down-to-earth advice on shows like Channel 10 Morning News and the Today Show. She’s also an award-winning speaker, and bestselling parenting author and wrote A Guy’s Guide to Puberty.
In her discussion, Michelle will be tackling the important conversation around emotional vulnerability in boys, such as our expectations of boys, how they connect and communicate (and how to do it better), emotional expressiveness, and handling big emotions.
paul dillon
● Boys, Alcohol & other Drugs
Drugs and alcohol are one of the biggest and scariest risks for teenagers, but especially for boys. Paul Dillon is the Director of DARTA (Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia), an expert on drugs and alcohol and our boys, and has over 25 years experience working in drug education. He’s also written a best-selling book for parents on the topic, and regularly appears on TV to talk about the challenges parents and teenagers face.
In his discussion, Paul will discuss what’s actually happening with our boys around alcohol, drugs, vaping, and other substances in the schoolyard. And ways to bring up the drug and alcohol conversation with our boys so they can learn to make healthy decisions when they are out in the real world.
BRAD MARSHALL
► Boys, Games & Screens
Brad Marshall is best known as "The Unplugged Psychologist”. He is the director of the Screens and Gaming Disorder Clinic at Kidspace and in this role has helped hundreds of families cope with internet, screen and gaming addiction. He has practical and concrete strategies for parents to manage and maintain their children’s tech use.
At the Summit Brad will discuss how much is too much when it comes to screen time (and when it becomes an addiction), good content versus bad content, how to set healthy boundaries collaboratively and much more to enable you to guide their technology use.
"Our boys are stuck in 'the man box' and it does seem almost impossible how to get them to see through it.
But it is not impossible!
As long as the adults in their lives are aware of it, we can definitely help our boys to grow into respectful, responsible young men and develop in them the skills to pass on to their own children."
Kristen H.
Bringing Up Boys participant
Registration $199AUD
Life time recording access included
Frequently asked questions
When is the Bringing Up Boys Summit happening?
The summit is happening right now! You can stream all 12 talks as soon as you register. And you have lifetime access to the recordings.
How much will it cost to register?
Tickets are $199. Happy Families Members receive an additional 20% off.
How long will I have access to the Summit?
You will have lifetime access to the Summit recordings.
Where is the Summit happening?
This is an online event. You can watch it wherever you have internet access.
If I’m a Happy Families member, do I get a special discount?
You sure do! Sign in to your membership and check the “members only offers” sections to claim an extra 20% off your registration.
Will the summit be appropriate to watch with my son?
Most presentations are designed for adults, though some teens may enjoy the content. We do encourage you to invite your son to Rebecca Sparrows event, 'Boys & their Mates'. We invite you to use your best judgement for what will be appropriate for your child.