Michael Costello is Arrente of the Central Australian Arrente Nation; his family’s country is Titjikarla. He was raised in Alice Springs; however, he has spent most of his adult life living in the city with his partner Corey and 3 dogs. Michael still has very strong connections to his country and returns regularly. Michael’s involvement with the Anwernekenhe movement began in 1998 at Anwernekenhe 2, where he was elected to the Anwernekenhe Steering Committee. Soon after Michael accepted a position with the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations (AFAO), in the role of Senior Policy and Programs Officer with the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander HIV/AIDS Project, a position he held until December 2011. In December 2011, Michael was extremely honoured to take on the role of Executive Officer of the ANA with an 18 month contract. As Executive Officer Michael was charged with securing ongoing funding for the ANA, development and implementation of our first ever strategic plan and establishing our secretariat office. Michael upholds a strong commitment to self-determination for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, ensuring that we maintain and continue to build an effective community response to HIV.