A boot with a blue ribbon and a photograph at the Canberra remembrance display, with Parliament House behind it.
Community Events

2500 Shoes Display | Sydney, It’s Your Turn.

From Phillip Precinct, The Domain, Sydney

A shoe, a person, a life. The shoes will be there, and you can be too.

We’re joining Zero Suicide at The Domain in Sydney on Thursday 22 October 2026 to remember lives lost and put the human cost of suicide in front of the people making policy.

Join us at The Domain

When
Thursday 22 October 2026
Where
Phillip Precinct, The Domain, Sydney
Parliamentary gathering
9:30 am to 11:00 am
Community program
Continues until 3:00 pm

All times are Sydney local time (AEDT). The public, members of parliament and parliamentary staff are welcome.

Find the Phillip Precinct

Bring a shoe. Or just bring yourself.

Bring a shoe or a pair of shoes for someone you’ve lost: a brother, sister, partner, parent or mate. Lay them in remembrance, walk the display, tie a ribbon to a boot or shoe, or stand alongside others who understand.

You don’t need to bring anything to be part of it.

Shoes and boots laid across the grass outside Parliament House at the Canberra event.
The Canberra display outside Parliament House. Sydney will bring that same act of remembrance to The Domain.

We did it in Canberra. Now it’s Sydney’s turn.

We’re losing around seven Australian men a day to suicide. Each one leaves people behind who know exactly what that loss means. We need to do more.

Last time, in Canberra, we put 15 million eyeballs on the epidemic facing Aussie men. We plan to do it all again, bringing the lives behind the numbers into view and asking the people making policy to pay attention.

What’s happening on the day

  • 9:30 am: Public shoe-laying and remarks by organiser Paul Withall.
  • 9:55 am: National Anthem, followed by the opening at 10:00 am.
  • 10:05 am to 10:30 am: Parliamentary speakers.
  • 10:30 am to 3:00 pm: Ribbon tying, guest speakers, education talks and family members’ stories.

The event is hosted by Roy Butler MP, Member for Barwon, and organised by Paul Withall, President and Founder of the Zero Suicide Community Awareness Program.

People gathered under a tree listening to a speaker at the Canberra remembrance event.
People coming together at the Canberra event to remember, listen and stand alongside each other.

For you, or a mate. Here’s where to start.

If you don’t know where to start with what you or a mate is going through, our Get Help page puts the next steps in one place.

  • Someone to talk to. Crisis support and counselling contacts, including support for people worried about someone else or living with a loss.
  • Help getting professional support. A plain English guide to mental health care plans, from booking a GP appointment to referrals, costs and finding someone you can talk to.
Visit our Get Help page

The shoes will be there. You can be too.
Thursday 22 October. Phillip Precinct, The Domain, Sydney. Join us from 9:30 am.