Paul Zappa
Violence Prevention Educator
Paul Zappa is the founder and director of NIRODAH, a company that specialises in violence prevention education. Paul and his team deliver anti-violence and bystander education training to schools, community agencies, and sporting clubs. NIRODAH also employs psychologists and social workers to provide counselling to primary and secondary school students, parents, and staff across Victoria.
The NIRODAH philosophy is underpinned by an empathy-based model that draws on research into the impacts of trauma and neglect on neurological and emotional functioning. Paul’s fundamental focus at NIRODAH is on developing communities based around respect and compassion, and focusing on prevention over intervention. A key aspect of NIRODAH education is investigating the role of gender-based language and its influence on shaping attitudes that can lead to both violence and victim blaming.
Paul was engaged by the Victorian Women’s Trust to train leaders to deliver Be The Hero!, a violence prevention program, to young people in their schools. He joins the VWT again to assist with the design and delivery of new initiative Club Respect, a program for sporting clubs to drive the deep cultural change around respect that is required to reduce violence in our communities.
Hear Paul speak in It’s Time We Talk Break Out session, as part of Safety in Numbers.