About
Intersection by John F. Gerrard
At the intersection where your gifts, talents, and abilities meet a human need; therein you will discover your purpose.
—Aristotle (allegedly)
A global first: the International Peer Leadership Network
We are a group of peer support leaders from across the globe who come together to connect, share, learn, shape the future of peer leadership* and to drive it forward.
As peer support continues to grow in the community and in clinical systems, there is a desire to see the role evolve to be a profession in its own right, and have opportunities for career progression that other roles enjoy. While we believe that peer support can be offered as a voluntary activity, we also believe that there should be the opportunity for growth into the strategic and decision making levels, and not just through co-production and advisory positions. We do not see leadership just as a role or qualification though. We believe leadership can and should show up in different parts of systems and communities and that leadership happens outside of these structures.
As such, we develop initiatives to continue the spread and adoption of peer practice and provide opportunities for you to develop your leadership skills to mobilise change.
Peer support is now an internationally recognised model of service delivery and community change. As a proven method that achieves lasting improvement in overall health and wellbeing, we want to see it utilised more and continue to grow its legitimacy as a key profession. However, there is a lack of international co-operation and leadership skill development. We aim to close this gap by bringing together people, developing opportunities for engagement and skill mobilisation, and learning from different perspectives. We want the forum to be ambitious and to aim high..
Who is the network for?
The IPLN is for practising Peer Supporters in frontline roles looking to develop their leadership skills, and peer support leaders looking to connect, share and learn from other leaders to enhance their peer leadership practice. Whether you are a peer supporter in physical or mental health, or support people around substance use, sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, autism, or disabilities, you are welcome in our network. We believe that through our collective network and skills, your thoughts, ideas and practices can help make peer support even better, in the services, systems and communities where we provide it.
*Practising Peer Supporter: A person who uses their personal life experiences to support others in a paid or voluntary capacity (may have formal or informal training).
*Peer leadership: A Peer Supporter who uses their experiences and has developed skills to successfully guide, shape, and build the future of peer working.
Our goals
Leadership development
Develop personally and professionally through a co-curated programme of initiatives and activities
Develop your leadership skills and have access to professional development opportunities
Sharing country specific knowledge
Learn fresh ideas and more about global peer support initiatives
Learn what peer leadership can look like
Identify and spread good practice and innovation
Build collaborations
Forge lasting relationships
Increase the availability and types of peer support offered
Create a community of practice
Join a global network of professional peer supporters
Be part of a global movement that builds collective power for peer supporters
Democratising leadership
Leadership is not just about a role, position or certificate. We believe peers have the ability to be leaders in any setting. We promote this style of leadership
Our Values
Authentic
We create a safe and trusted space where people can be genuine, open and authentic. We believe that this is vital to strengthening the peer leadership movement.
Collaborative
We host spaces that promote and foster collaboration. No one peer can do this work alone. The challenges we face exist beyond borders. We work together to identify, share and collaborate on problems and solutions to achieve change.
Future Focused
We believe that we are creating the future every day. We do this through every conversation, decision and action. While we look forward, we are informed and guided by decisions of the past.
Belonging
Having a space to connect enables us to build a community. Our community feels understood, supported and connected in a way that enables them to reach out to one another outside of the network.
Inclusive
We support our peer community to find their path, celebrate unique contributions and respect people’s different approaches and ideas.
Who are we?
The International Peer Leadership Network is powered by Habitus Collective and currently facilitated by Debbie Wiebe, Lisa Androulidakis and Callum Ross. We operate a shared leadership model which means that members are encouraged and regularly participate in the development and facilitation of meetings, learning events and topic areas for discussion. Our membership is comprised of over 500 peer leaders across 15 different countries.
Our Facilitators
Debbie Wiebe
Debbie brings over 30 years of experience working in peer support roles, and has spent much of that time shaping what good peer support looks like at a national level. She is a Certified Peer Supporter and Peer Support Mentor with Peer Support Canada, and worked to develop Canadian standards and competencies of practice, a practice framework for peer supporters to work within, and the peer support and peer mentorship certification now used across Canada.
Debbie was one of the architects of the Canadian national peer support guidelines with the Mental Health Commission of Canada: “Guidelines for the Practice and Training of Peer Support” and worked directly with the Commission as part of an international team to create the recommendation report "Making the Case for Peer Support" two documents that continue to shape how peer support is practised, trained and championed. She is now Vice President of the Western Canada Peer Training Society, and currently supports organisations including The Alex Community Health Centre in Calgary and the Canadian Mental Health Association Alberta Division to implement peer support and peer mentorship.
Much of her work happens at the community and grassroots level, growing peer support while keeping its authenticity at the centre, and supporting people to find options both within and outside of formal systems. She also facilitates communities of practice across the globe and co-facilitates the International Peer Leadership Network alongside Lisa and Callum.
Lisa Androulidakis
Lisa brings over 15 years of experience working in and around peer roles and organisations across the mental health, harm reduction, public health and homelessness sectors. She is co-founder of Habitus Collective, a lived experience-led consultancy, and co-founded the International Peer Leadership Network. Her experience in grassroots-led lived experience projects and organisations has meant that she has seen first hand how leadership from peers can happen at all levels and can thrive if given the opportunity.
Lisa has developed, funded and managed peer support programmes internationally, including Recovery College development and scaling across Canada, and peer workforce development in NHS, third sector and government contexts. She supported in the development of the 2025 WHO/Europe Roadmap on integrating lived experience practitioners into mental health systems, and is currently working with governments and organisations across the UK, Europe and North America on peer support strategy, participatory research and evaluation. Through the Peer Research Academy, she works to build the conditions peer researchers need to thrive, so that lived experience shapes research rather than sitting at its edges.
What Lisa brings to the incubator is the practical craft of turning an idea into something funded, evidenced and adopted: she helps participants shape compelling proposals, think through how they will show their impact, and navigate the systems their projects need to move through, and she is passionate about making sure the voices of lived experience are leading conversations, design, policy and strategy along the way.
Callum Ross
Callum has worked in mental health for over 20 years, across roles spanning mental health, youth, community and crisis settings. He is co-founder of Habitus Collective and co-founded the International Peer Leadership Network. As an international leader in peer support, he mentors Peer Supporters and Peer Researchers across multiple projects and countries, and provides personalised coaching to incubator participants as they develop their ideas.
Callum serves on the Board of EUCOMS, the European Community-based Mental Health Service Providers Network, which connects service providers, service user organisations and health authorities across 20 countries to strengthen community mental health care. He works with the Global Leadership Exchange on developing international standards for peer leadership, and co-designed and delivered peer leadership exchanges at the Global Leadership Exchange in both the Netherlands and Canada. Through the collaboration of the Peer Research Academy, he is helping to share learning of supporting peer researchers to grow their practice, their confidence and their influence. He has experience of working with and implementing different leadership models across sectors, and led the largest active alumni network of Social Workers in Europe, using the power of networks, organising and innovation to improve the lives of children and families. Callum was also instrumental in designing a first of its kind Innovation Lab for Social Workers, where practitioners connected their own ideas for change directly with government, trusts and foundations for the first time.
That Innovation Lab experience sits at the heart of what Callum brings to the incubator: he has spent years helping practitioners take an idea they care about and build the confidence, plan and connections to make it real.
What our members say
“Peer leadership is still a new and rising concept and profession, it can feel quite isolating at times depending where you are. This community gives you a space where you can feel connected with other people from around the world.”
“Knowing that I have a band of friends and a support network to lean on and bounce ideas off of is reassuring, validating, motivating and exciting.”
Our International Network
Join us!
Come and connect with peer supporters and peer leaders at one of our community of practices, a space where you can spark meaningful conversations, connect with others, and talk in a space where other people understand the successes and challenges of our work and the impact we want to have. Come and connect with peer supporters and peer leaders at one of our Community of Practice meetings, held on the fourth Wednesday of each month. It is a space to spark meaningful conversations, connect with others, and talk with people who understand the successes and challenges of our work and the impact we want to have.