About a month ago GLASS EMPTY founder Jonathan Hart sat down with his local Federal Parliament representative Rebekha Sharkie, the member for Mayo, to discuss his and fellow Aldinga Whisperer Team member's work for suicide prevention within the Aldinga (South Australia) area.

The 10-minute chat drew a favourable response from the elected member and her team, so much so, that a few weeks later she introduced the GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team initiative to her fellow politicians and Australians.

Watch the video above or read the transcript of her speech below: "With World Suicide Prevention Day a week ago, I want to talk about my recent meeting with Aldinga Beach man Jonathan Hart. Jonathan, who has experienced suicide distress, wanted to assist others in similar situations. An estimated 65,000 Australians make a suicide attempt each year. Tragically, it's the leading cause of premature death for those aged 15 to 49. But the vast majority of those who report suicide ideation or distress do not seek professional or clinical help. In a 2020 report, almost 25 per cent of adult men said they would not seek help, and 80 per cent said they would be unlikely to seek help from a phone line.

Recognising this, Jonathan started a community mental health awareness and peer support initiative called Glass Empty. Glass Empty describes how someone in suicide distress feels. Their glass is no longer half full or half empty; it is drained. Glass Empty does not do the work of a crisis counselling or clinical treatment service. It's about helping peers feel more confident to say, 'Are you okay?' and people to feel safer to say, 'I'm not OK.' Jonathan started Glass Empty to help build human connection by making it easier to start that conversation.

In participating local venues, posters and coasters publicise the Glass Empty message. Black Dog Institute trained staff and customers to look out for an upturned glass with a Glass Empty coaster on it—a sign that somebody needs to have a conversation. It creates an opportunity for brave conversations. It's brave to let someone know that you need help and to be a mate to help someone in distress. There are 15 venues in regional South Australia, as well as in other regions that are trialling Glass Empty, and I'm keen to see the outcomes of this grassroots initiative.

I'd really like to say thank you to Jonathan Hart and to acknowledge his work. To come from that place of being in suicide distress himself, and thinking about others and thinking about how we can do something different and better—you are a great Australian, Jonathan, and it was an absolute privilege and pleasure to meet you.
If you'd like to know more, visit glassempty.org. And don't forget, if you are feeling distress, Lifeline 131114, if you need to talk to someone."
More can be found here: www.openaustralia.org.au/debate/?id=2026-09-17.127.2

This week, GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team founder Jono Hart, was invited to speak at the Parliamentary Friends of Men's Wellbeing Forum, organised by Family First representative and Member of the Legislative Council of South Australia, Sarah Game and her team.

Jono shared the mic with Thomas Docking from Dads Group (www.dadsgroup.org) who is doing amazing work supporting the mental health and positive parenting of father's across the country.

Jono's talk centred on how we, as members of society, and as part of local communities, can each play a role in assisting those who are struggling with suicide distress with a simple way to check-in and notice when someone's not at their best.

Jono discussed how getting involved with a local group of helpers, a Whisperer Team in their own area, people would no longer need to be spectators to the stats and could play a more active role in suicide prevention in their community.

Jono addressed the 2020 statistic which found that almost 25% of Aussie men who take their own life don't reach for help to anyone.

Jono told the crowd of around 50 politicians and distinguished guests how a simple signal could help lower that stat.

Jono reflected on the fact that the suicide rate rose from 8 to 9 people a day on average in Australia in 2019 and despite many campaigns encouraging people to reach out to a mate who they think may be struggling, as well as campaigns dispelling the myth it's weak to speak up when someone's in distress, the stats have not lowered in those past 8 years.

Jono drew on his experience from the 12-month Aldinga trial of GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team, and asked his audience the question: could a simple suicide prevention signal/coaster and teams of helpers (Whisperers) be introduced to communities across the country? And by doing so could it make a dent on those statistics?

Because by encouraging those who wouldn't normally seek help, to reach out to someone in their community that they trust or are willing to be vulnerable with, using a quiet suicide prevention signal/coaster in the places they go for connection, it could be a way forward to address the statistic that tells us almost 25% of men who suicide choose suicide above seeking any sort of support.

View the video of Jono's talk below.

To the 20 or so people who showed up for Thursday night's launch of You Are The Medicine: The GLASS EMPTY Story at the Aldinga Hotel... Thank you.

Your presence was felt. And support truly valued. And yes, that is the main message of the book.

Your presence in someone's life makes a difference, especially when someone is struggling with suicide distress and you offer genuine support.

Thursday night's event starts the next chapter of the story: building on what's been created in Aldinga and the surrounding area over the past 12 months.

If you haven't downloaded the book yet, you can do that at www.glassempty.org/the-book

Download the GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team Aldinga case study at www.glassempty.org/case-study

#glassempty #thewhispererteam #suicideprevention #mentalhealthawareness #youarethemedicine

JORDAN DAWSON’S CALL FOR “SAFE PLACES” PROMPTS SOUTH AUSTRALIAN CAMPAIGNER TO ASK: COULD YOUR LOCAL PUB BE ONE?
 
On World Suicide Prevention Day, Jono Hart launches You Are The Medicine: The GLASS EMPTY Story, documenting a grassroots attempt to make everyday community spaces places where people feel safer to talk.
 
10 September 2026 — World Suicide Prevention Day
Just days after Adelaide Crows captain Jordan Dawson spoke publicly about the importance of creating safe places to talk about mental health, South Australian community campaigner Jono Hart is asking a provocative question:
Could your local pub be one?
 
After accepting the AFL Players Association’s Most Courageous Player Award, Dawson spoke openly about his own struggles and the importance of having supportive people around him.
 
“For me it was about creating a safe place within the footy club, within home.”
 
He also spoke about understanding that there would be times when he struggled, that it was OK to feel a certain way, and the importance of talking to people close to him and maintaining ongoing conversations.
 
For Hart, Dawson’s words capture the philosophy behind his own grassroots suicide-prevention initiative, GLASS EMPTY.
 
And on World Suicide Prevention Day, Hart is launching You Are The Medicine: The GLASS EMPTY Story - the book documenting how a simple idea developed into a community experiment aimed at creating more opportunities for human connection.
 
WHAT IF THE PUB COULD BE A SAFE PLACE?
Hart believes Australians already have places where connection happens naturally.
 
The pub is one of them.
 
People sit beside strangers.
They talk.
They share stories.
They notice when someone isn't themselves.
 
But Hart says there is an opportunity to make those ordinary moments of connection more intentional.
 
“Jordan’s words about creating a safe place really struck me,” Hart says. “Because that’s what I’ve been exploring with GLASS EMPTY.”
 
“What would happen if our pubs became places where people felt safer having a real conversation when life wasn’t going so well?”
 
That question led Hart to create the GLASS EMPTY signal: an upturned empty glass with a square orange GLASS EMPTY coaster placed on top.
 
It is designed to create an opportunity for someone to notice another person and start a conversation.
 
Not to diagnose.
Not to fix.
Not to replace professional support.
 
Simply to create an opportunity to notice, ask, listen and connect.
 
FROM A SIMPLE SIGNAL TO A COMMUNITY EXPERIMENT
The new book tells the story of how GLASS EMPTY developed into a grassroots trial across multiple hospitality venues in Aldinga, South Australia involving hospitality venues, thousands of GLASS EMPTY coasters and community members who stepped forward to become Whisperers – providing an opportunity to test whether a simple visual signal could help create more conversations in ordinary community spaces.
 
Whisperers aren't counsellors or psychologists.
 
They're everyday community members prepared to notice when someone may be struggling, listen without judgement and help connect them with appropriate support when needed.
 
“We’re not asking people to become mental-health professionals,” Hart says. “We’re asking them to become more comfortable with being human.”
 
“You don’t need to have all the answers. Sometimes you just need to be brave enough to start the conversation.”
 
WHY A PUB?
Hart says the pub is significant because it is already a place where Australians gather.
 
“We spend a lot of time talking about where people can go when they’re in crisis,” Hart says. “But I’d like us to also think about where people can feel connected before they reach crisis.”
 
“A pub won’t replace a mental-health service. GLASS EMPTY isn’t trying to do that. We’re asking whether the places people already go can become better places for people to notice and support one another.”
 
YOU ARE THE MEDICINE
The title of Hart’s book reflects the philosophy at the heart of GLASS EMPTY.
You Are The Medicine.
 
It doesn’t mean one person can cure another person’s problems.
It means that human connection matters.
A conversation can interrupt isolation.
Being noticed can make someone feel seen.
Listening can create space for someone to speak honestly.
 
And staying connected can help someone take the next step towards appropriate support.
 
Dawson’s message this week - that people need safe places, supportive people and ongoing conversations - has brought that idea into sharp focus for Hart.
 
CHANGING THE NARRATIVE
World Suicide Prevention Day provides an opportunity to challenge the silence and stigma surrounding suicide and encourage communities to have more open conversations with this year’s World Suicide Prevention Day theme being “Changing the Narrative on Suicide” with the call to action “Start the Conversation”.
 
GLASS EMPTY is an attempt to put that message into practice in one of the places Australians already gather – the local pub.
 
Hart believes those conversations shouldn’t happen only in clinical settings.
 
They can happen:
At home.
At the footy club.
At work.
At the local café.
And at the pub.
 
“You don’t have to wait until someone is in crisis before you care about them,” Hart says.
 
“You don’t need to be an expert. You can simply notice someone, ask how they’re going, genuinely listen to the answer and help them connect with support if they need it.”
 
A BOOK LAUNCH WITH A BIGGER PURPOSE
Hart’s World Suicide Prevention Day launch of You Are The Medicine: The GLASS EMPTY Story will take place at the Aldinga Hotel’s beer garden, bringing together people involved in the GLASS EMPTY journey, community members and supporters.
 
The event will explore a simple question:
What would our communities look like if more places felt safe enough for people to talk?
 
For Hart, the answer begins with something remarkably ordinary.
One person noticing another person.
 
“Jordan Dawson reminded us this week how important it is to have somewhere safe to talk,” Hart says. “I want to see more of those places in everyday life.”
 
“Maybe your local pub can be one of them.”
 
BOOK LAUNCH
Aldinga Hotel (beer garden), Aldinga, South Australia
Thursday, September 10, 2026
7pm
Media welcome. Interviews and photographs available.

This week I was interviewed on ABC Radio Adelaide's Drive Show with host Nikolai Beilharz and roving reporter Troy Sincock.

It was an opportunity to share the journey with ABC listeners. We were joined by Mick, one of the Community Whisperers at the Aldinga Whisperer Team too.

We were interviewed in the bistro of the Aldinga Hotel and it gave us a chance to spread our message about how people within communities can be the change and reduce suicide rates by volunteering their time should someone participate at a participating GLASS EMPTY Venue with suicide distress.

Hear a portion of the chat at https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/adelaide-drive/glass-empty/106967284

To get involved contact us here.

In April 2025 I was interviewed by Mark Neugebauer from South Australian in Focus, a podcast/vodcast taking a look at the real issues affecting Adelaide, and unapologetically calling those in the halls of power to account.

Here's a link to the recording: https://markneugebauer.substack.com/p/mark-is-joined-by-jonathan-hart-from

with Lisa, Nick, Kym and Ed. Recorded, September 2025: here.

On Friday I met up with my local MP, the newly-elected Jenni Mitton member for Mawson, and the Premier's Advocate for Suicide Prevention, Erin Thompson.

I was joined by my fellow Aldinga Whisperer Team member Robyn and we spent around an hour discussing the GLASS EMPTY &The Whisperer Team initiatives.

It was well received and hopefully it can receive some funding to save lives, reduce stigma around speaking up about experiencing suicide distress and bring community together to support people when they're struggling.

At it's heart, it's a people-centric movement that reminds us of the inherent goodness within us all. One that relaxes any judgement when someone indicates they're struggling and bravely steps forward to ask "are you ok?" And if the answer is "no", it's then "are you thinking of suicide".

From there they can be heard, a problem shared can potentially be a problem halved, and they can start seeking and getting the support they need, knowing it's ok, to not be ok.

Helping someone speak up when they're in distress can be life saving.

Between 2020 and 2022, 1 in 6 Australians suffered with suicidal thoughts. The suicide rates rose from, on average, 8 to 9 a day and they remain there, and suicide continues to be the biggest taker of life for men aged 15 to 65 in Australia.

An Australian study presented in 2021 found, on average, 26.9% of those who had completed suicide, had alcohol in their system.

Perhaps, the need to be "deviating from the norm" for progress, as Frank Zappa put it, is a return to strengthening the community.

Perhaps we've become so disconnected by mobile phones and social media, that community and connecting in with it, is becoming a forgotten art...

By having GLASS EMPTY coasters in a local pub, club, cafe, bar or brewery, and a Whisperer Team to support the staff having the conversations and also the patrons who are in distress, we can actively return to community connection and compassion for those doing it tough.

Because, who knows, maybe you might need this type of support too one day?

Over the past 12 months, across 6 venues locally, we've been building something pretty special in the area.

It's a suicide prevention initiative we call GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team.

A signal, education, community connection and people willing to show up for each other.

It's a movement bridging the gap between someone in distress and a caring local.

Why? Because suicide rates continue climbing globally and we believe compassion can literally save lives.

This Tuesday night our team, "The Aldinga Whisperer Team", is doing something new. We'll be at the Aldinga Hotel's front bar, from 6.30pm, for anyone who needs a conversation around their distress or just wants to catch up for some connection.

Just look out for the guy in the Akubra hat. Then come and say g'day.

It's something we're calling "A Seat at the Table".

Because nobody should have to sit alone.

If you're in distress, you can present a GLASS EMPTY Signal coaster to have a confidential conversation around what you're experiencing.

If you're feeling alone, and in need of some company, you can join us as well, and beat some of these winter blues with a beverage and/or meal and a chat

GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team isn't just another suicide prevention program. It's a people-centric movement powered by the inherent goodness in us all.

If you're someone who naturally extends kindness to others, we want you as part of our team.

Get in touch at www.glassempty.org/contact

See you Tuesday night!

This week I met up with the wonderful Allison Emerson, Community Development Officer, from the Christie Downs Community House.

She's a woman who instinctively gets the vision behind GLASS EMPTY & The Whisperer Team.

Understands the mission and sees what it takes to move it forward.

She's a woman with a huge heart for community, to say the least.

So she was excited to purchase a GLASS EMPTY Venue Starter Kit for the Community House, making the Christies Downs' premises the first Community Centre to introduce the GLASS EMPTY Signal coaster.

She says, its so she can pick up on the cues easier, and for someone in suicide distress to be able to communicate they need help or a conversation a little easier, if the words are hard to find.

She left me some beautiful words to reflect on and they're going straight into the case study ...

"Your initiative is going to be as big as you can recruit to make it big.

"Its a people-centric idea heavily reliant on people and the goodness in people.

"When staff don their Pub Whisperer badge or volunteers put on their Community Whisperer badge, it's a reminder that this initiative is happening."

Get involved by messaging us here.

#glassempty #thewhispererteam #thepubwhisperer #suicideprevention #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealth #australia