We must create stories, not statstics.
Caleb Rixon is a major stroke survivor, international advocate, and social entrepreneur whose work redefines what is possible after trauma. Trained at WAAPA and the VCA Film School, he blends performance, storytelling, and system-change to create experiences that move hearts and shift practice.
As Founder and Chief Vision Officer of Genyus Network and Chair of Genyus Foundation, Caleb leads survivor‑led programs and frameworks that build resilience, confidence, and connection for people living with disability after stroke and brain injury. His lived‑experience–informed models help organisations create genuinely safe spaces, optimise engagement with disabled people, and embed lived experience in strategy, research, and education.
A 2025 Westpac Social Change Fellow and Board Director of Occupational Therapy Australia, Caleb is trusted by universities, peak bodies, and corporates alike. He has delivered the closing keynote for the National Allied Health Conference, opened Johnson & Johnson’s HealtheVoices 10th anniversary in the USA, co‑created a peer‑led plenary for the UK Stroke Forum, and spoken for TAC, NDIA, Bupa, NBN, L’Oréal Australia, Health Justice Australia, ASSBI and more. His work has featured across ABC and SBS Insight and in peer‑reviewed research published by Cambridge University Press.
When Caleb steps onto a stage, he brings courageous authenticity, sharp wit, and deep care - reframing lived experience into a powerful catalyst for culture change.
Talking Points
MC & Host
A cheeky, charismatic MC, Cal brings humour, heart, and seamless professionalism to every event, from black‑tie awards and national conferences to fundraisers and community celebrations. He’s hosted major national conferences and ceremonies for organisations including Occupational Therapy Australia, National Disability Services and genU, making audiences feel welcomed, energised and deeply connected as they navigate the occasion together.
MC & Host
The Resilience Myth
A near‑fatal stroke blew Cal’s life off course just as his musical theatre career was taking off - and that was only the first plot twist. In this sharp, fast‑paced keynote, he exposes “being resilient” as a modern myth. He shows how life with invisible disabilities has forced him to practice resilience instead: reinventing, over and over again.The Resilience Myth
Audiences won’t get a tidy hero story; they get a repeatable playbook. Cal leaves people with a simple, memorable framework for practising resilience in real time - when the plan blows up, the diagnosis lands, or the curveball hits - so they can keep moving without pretending to “have it all together”.
Building SAFE Spaces & Trust
Blending sharp wit with raw honesty, Cal shares what it's like to live with invisible disabilities and unexpected oddities after stroke and brain injury, alongside his work building a global survivor‑led community, to reveal what makes a space feel SAFE. SAFE spaces, in his world, are trauma‑informed, consent‑centred and inclusion‑driven: they prioritise psychological safety, informed choice, and genuine access over tick‑box accessibility.Building SAFE Spaces & Trust
Audiences walk away with memorable, easy‑to‑use frameworks for creating emotional safety, inclusive communication and genuine TRUST with people living with disability and trauma. These approaches help teams move beyond assumptions about disability and instead design spaces, conversations and events that are accessible, consent‑aware and inclusive for every body and every brain.
From ICU to “I See You”
This keynote challenges health professionals to move from doing things to patients to working with people with lived experience, co‑creating care that is safer, more inclusive and more accessible. Cal demonstrates how listening for consent, adjusting for access needs, and centring lived experience can turn clinical encounters into “I see you” moments that change systems, not just stories.
From ICU to “I See You”
Video
Caleb Rixon | Stroke Survivor, Inspirational Speaker, Host & MC | Saxton Speakers
In the tapestry of storytellers, Caleb Rixon stands as a luminary. Trained at the distinguished Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) and the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA), he emerged not just as an artist, but as a rare and profound storyteller. Caleb's narrative is woven from threads of triumph over adversity. From the seismic shift of a life-altering stroke at 24 to becoming a global advocate for stroke and brain injury survivors; his journey resonates through esteemed platforms like ABC News, ABC TV, ABC Radio National, ABC Melbourne ‘Homespun’, SBS Insight, and Channel Seven’s House of Wellness. In founding the Genyus Foundation, Caleb constructed a sanctuary for those touched by disability and difference, a testament to his belief that every voice and narrative, deserves not only to be heard, but to be celebrated. As the Chief Vision Officer of the Genyus Network, Caleb embodies the boundless potential within each individual.Caleb Rixon | Keynote Sample
Caleb Rixon |Returning to life after a stroke | ABC Australia
Melbourne man Caleb Rixon suffered a life-changing stroke while at the gym, just days after his 24th birthday. The stage performer battled isolation, spending many years relearning to eat, walk, work, and drive again. He is now highlighting the challenges of returning to everyday life after acquiring a brain injury and living with invisible disabilities through the power found in connecting with community and reinventing yourself rather than returning to your old self. Caleb is telling his story as part of the International Day of People with Disability. From November 19 to December 10, the ABC celebrates the wins, highlights the struggles, and shares the stories of millions of Australians with disability.Caleb Rixon | Should you disclose a disability on a first date? | Caleb Rixon | ABC Australia
Caleb Rixon's experience on a date triggered a reflection on when to disclose a disability to a potential partner. Caleb's stage career was taking off when his life took a sudden and unexpected turn. He went from being a budding actor, singer and dancer to a baby unable to walk, talk or swallow, with permanent double vision and vertigo. Caleb faced a long path to recovery after suffering a catastrophic stroke. In his first date after rehab a comedy-of-errors taught him about his disability and disclosure.Caleb Rixon | ABC Artworks
Caleb (Cal) Rixon is a queer, young stroke survivor with invisible disabilities carrying his own thoughts about feeling obscure and obscuring oneself from society. Naturally he's curious when the opportunity arises to meet the members of Matt Hsu's Obscure Orchestra. He candidly chats with Matt and other orchestra members to uncover what being obscure means to them, how it influences their artistic journeys - individually and collectively, plus how they've created a safe, inclusive, artistic space to take ownership of their obscurity.Caleb talked about our vision, the importance of us coming together and collaborating, and creating S.A.F.E. spaces for each other. ... keep reading Johnson & Johnson
The word 'resilience' kept coming up in your descriptions. I was inspired with your ability to keep going and the authenticity, warmth and humour that you radiate. The audience clearly also felt this and enjoyed your closing plenary, and it was a wonderful round-up to a successful conference. From a personal perspective, I really enjoyed connecting with you, and I hope to have the pleasure of working with you again.
Caleb Rixon talked to us last week about Resilience and Connection. His story and journey were weaved throughout and made his message relatable and meaningful.I know the words resilience and connection will continue to drive what I do and how I interact.
Cal stepped into the MC role seamlessly. We couldn't have hoped for a better MC and panel of speakers.
Caleb's powerful personal keynote address set the programme proper off to an exceptional start from the insider's perspective wisdom and entertainment so skilfully crafted!
Caleb presented one of the most moving accounts of head injury that I have ever heard. He provided remarkable insights into his day to day experiences of recovery and his wider perceptions. Caleb is warm, honest and engaging and he managed to make the audience both laugh out loud and then almost move them to tears. He has a clear message and doesn't pull back any punches with this. His insights are gold dust for clinicians and researchers.
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