When Gillian Hicks lost her legs in a terrorist attack, she didn't think she'd live, let alone end up reaching out to extremists.
The former designer, who was injured in the 2005 London bombings, says everything she has done and achieved since is not just her work - it's her life.
After adjusting to life with prosthetics, Ms Hicks used her anger for good and founded M.A.D (Make a Difference) For Peace in the UK.
The program, which reaches out to people who have become radicalised, is also being extended into Australia.
"It's not my work. It's my life," Adelaide-based Ms Hicks, who has been named a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Australia Day honours, told AAP.
"I have to make this make sense because it was a very senseless act.
"I don't want a single other person, either in this country or in any other country, to know the trauma of going through a terrorist attack."
Ms Hicks said Australia - with its smaller population and track record of successful multiculturalism - was well-equipped to combat the changing face of extremism.
"No longer are we only talking about disenfranchised youth but we're also talking about university-educated professionals," she said.
"That changing profile is an area of great concern because we have to address what is the effectiveness of the pull to extremism."
