Meet
Mandy
Real experience. Practical learning. Stronger transport.
I’m Mandy Solar, a heavy vehicle driver, trainer and assessor, learning designer, and passionate advocate for a safer, stronger and more resilient transport industry.
My career has taken me from behind the wheel to the training room, giving me a practical understanding of the realities drivers face and the systems, workplaces and learning experiences that shape their performance.
Roads & Resilience brings those worlds together. It is where operational experience meets thoughtful learning design, industry research and a genuine belief in the capability of people.
My Journey
I didn’t build my career from the sidelines. I built it on the road.
I have worked across pickup and delivery, linehaul operations, heavy vehicle training and assessment, workforce development and learning design. Holding licences through to MC has allowed me to understand transport not only as an educator, but as someone who has experienced the responsibility, pressure and pride of the work firsthand.
Over time, my focus has grown beyond teaching people how to complete a task. I have become increasingly interested in how organisations build capability, respond to incidents, support their people and create learning that leads to meaningful change.
That experience now informs everything I create - from practical safety resources and driver-development programs to research exploring human factors, psychosocial safety and the future of learning in transport.
My Philosophy...
BUILD TRUST BEFORE YOU TEACH.
DESIGN LEARNING WITH PEOPLE, NOT TO THEM.
LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT SHOULDN’T JUST DELIVER TRAINING—IT SHOULD BUILD ORGANISATIONAL CAPABILITY.
Why Resilience?
Resilience is woven through transport. It is found in the people who adapt, learn and keep moving when the road ahead is difficult—but resilience should never mean simply expecting people to endure more.
To me, genuine resilience is built through capable people, supportive systems, practical learning and organisations willing to listen and improve.
Roads & Resilience was created to share real-world insight, challenge conventional thinking and develop resources that strengthen people and the industry around them. It also creates space to recognise the voices and experiences that transport has not always seen clearly -particularly women, emerging professionals and those finding a new path into the industry.
The name reflects both the roads we travel and the strength we develop along the way.