From a young boy who was ostracised and ridiculed because he was different, Canberra's own Francis Owusu is now a leader in his community and spearheading a potential revolution in schools across Australia.
He found acceptance, resilience and freedom through dance and movement, and now he's encouraging the next generations to do the same.
The Tuggeranong-based founder and chief executive of Kulture Break is the force behind Unstoppable 24, which launches in schools around Australia in September.
It's a free, week-long movement challenge encouraging school kids to move for just 24 minutes a day to improve focus and resilience and strengthen physical and mental wellbeing.
From September 7 to 11, kids and teachers are encouraged to move for 24 minutes a day and raise $24 each to help Kulture Break deliver evidence-based wellbeing programs in schools.
Schools can register to take part in the challenge via unstoppable24mc.com.
Francis, who was the 2013 ACT Local Hero in the Australian of the Year Awards, believes the challenge offers schools a simple, uplifting way to support students at a time when many are feeling stretched and disconnected.
His vision is to empower 1 million "unstoppable" students across Australia by 2030 to prioritise their wellbeing, stay active together and build lasting resilience habits.
"Unstoppable 24 is about more than exercise, it's about giving students a daily anchor in a world that's moving faster than they are," Francis said.
"When young people build a habit of movement, even for 24 minutes, we see shifts in connection, confidence, and resilience. It's a simple intervention with a profound ripple effect across classrooms, families and communities."
The Unstoppable program has been endorsed by Chief Minister Andrew Barr and has celebrity fitness expert Michelle Bridges on board as an ambassador.
The program is also an effort to reduce the time young people are spending on screens, while also boosting focus, confidence and wellbeing among students.
Research from Macquarie University shows Australian primary and secondary school children are now spending 6.34 recreational hours a day on screens - up from 4.24 hours in 2017.
"There's some really quick stark and shocking evidence around inactivity," Francis said.
"For kids aged two to 17, 70 per cent aren't making the minimum recommended movement, which is 30 to 60 minutes a day of moderate to rigorous exercise.
"So, we're seeing a generation who is moving less. I think after COVID, we saw kids were on screens more, people were indoors more and not moving as much as my generation did.
"At the same time, we're seeing a rise in bullying, with one in four students reporting experiencing bullying online or in person.
"And when you're looking at the mental health aspect, early intervention is key. Statistics are showing by the age of 18, 50 per cent of all mental health conditions and issues are established in a young person and 75 per cent by the age of 24. So, the idea is, we've got to get in early."
The Unstoppable program was chosen to last 24 minutes a day for a reason.
"I guess every 24 hours, a young person feels isolated, loses hope, struggles to find a purpose and existence in life," Francis said.
"And, so, the idea of '24' was the fact that this was happening every day and that's what we're highlighting with the 24 minutes.
"With the Unstoppable program, we're trying to build a level of resilience in young people that makes them feel unstoppable."
Francis' whole professional life has been about making sure everyone is included and everyone has the chance to reach their potential.
Establishing dance-for-wellbeing organisation Kulture Break in 2002 in Canberra, Francis has seen "the power of movement and moving together". That philosophy has led to his creation of the Unstoppable program.
"It will get kids to do team activities, walk and talk, dance and do body circuit," Francis said.
"We're getting kids to do different things together, in movement."
The son of diplomats from Ghana, Francis has lived in Canberra for 35 years. He and wife Suzy have three children and live in Tuggeranong.
Growing up in Canberra, Francis says he felt inferior and was stuck "in a cycle of unhealthy habits and negative thoughts". He suffered from a stutter and would avoid catching the bus home to avoid confrontation. He felt like he didn't belong.
"When I came to Canberra, back in the early days, there weren't many people with dark skin like me, so I'd stand out," he said.
"People would leave me out of groups or ostracise me at school or in the community, just because I was different. And that, as a young 14, 15-year-old really dented my self-esteem and my confidence.
"So, I was very apprehensive about being around people, being in groups. What changed it was getting involved in what was known as the Rock Eisteddfod back in the day."
Francis, now 50, was a student at St Edmund's College when he helped to change the culture of that school.
"Back in those days, Eddies was not known for dance. You played rugby," he said.
"Guys prancing around dancing was not cool in those days. But I saw a group of young boys that were doing it and having fun, so I joined in. And that year, St Edmund's came second [in the Rock Eisteddfod] in the ACT and that changed everything.
"We got on stage and the First XV captain was so proud to announce that the boys had come second. It changed the culture of the school and it changed our lives forever."
The Canberra Cannons basketball team soon got Francis and his mates to perform at half-time at their games because US-born star player Herb McEachin had seen them and told them "you remind me of some guys back home in the States".
"That started my journey to being in a boy band for 15 years and from that Kulture Break was born," he said.
Kulture Break is based in Tuggeranong, its headquarters in Wanniassa, near Erindale College. The not-for-profit dance-for-wellbeing organisation has helped more than 100,000 local youth over the last nearly 25 years.
Everyone is encouraged to have a go at Kulture Break. Everyone is included. The organisation has just added a podcast studio to its facilities. Francis chats to people in Everyday Convos "about their lives, the challenges, the lessons learned".
Francis says not everything has changed in his nearly four decades in Canberra. Things are better for his three kids. But they do face "casual racism". Francis has had to intervene, at times, to let people know it's not on.
"I mean, Canberra, generally, because of all the embassies, we do have a lot of nationalities here, and a lot of cultures here, but they [the kids] do unfortunately still experience it [racism]," Francis said.
Today, Francis radiates positivity. His smile is infectious. His energy for change undeniable.
It all came from one shy, shoved-aside teenager being brave enough to get up and dance and move.
"It's really transformed my life," he said.
"Dance and movement has given me the confidence where I can go and speak. I can be a listening ear on this podcast. I'm just grateful, that movement did that for me."
