Tara J Lal

Tara J Lal is a professional firefighter, published author, and doctoral student.

Her memoir ‘Standing on My Brother’s Shoulders – Making peace with Grief and Suicide’ tracks her journey through a traumatic, grief filled childhood, to find a life of purpose and meaning. It has now been published internationally and includes a guide to post traumatic growth.

Tara’s doctoral research focusses on understanding the impact of suicide on firefighters. She combines her own lived experiences with her research to help people understand how to make meaning from the most challenging events in their lives.

In January 2022, as part of the Australia Day Honours, Tara was awarded the Australian Fire Service Medal (AFSM) in recognition of her significant and distinguished contribution to improvement and innovation in the area of suicide prevention, mental health and wellbeing within fire services and the community.

Tara grew up in London and now lives in Sydney, Australia with her dog Nelson. She is an avid adventurer and food lover!