Shelley is a social science researcher with appointments at Burnet Institute and the National Drug Research Institute (Curtin University). Shelley is a recent recipient of an ARC Discovery Early Career Research Award, focused on the young people and experiences of police custody detention. She has a background in nursing, community development, youth work and international development. Shelley has extensive experience in qualitative research in both Australia and internationally. Her work is aimed at understanding people’s experiences of drug use, incarceration, and criminal justice involvement, to inform policies and practices that improve their health and wellbeing. Shelley is passionate about human rights and social justice issues and the translation of research into outcomes for the empowerment of disadvantaged, marginalised and vulnerable communities.