I am a creative leader and systems thinker whose work moves between the arts, purpose-led business, and climate action. I work from the conviction that culture can reshape systems, and that when people come together — in a space designed with imagination and care — they become catalysts for transformation.

Through roles with Next Wave, Sydney WorldPride, Theatre Network Australia, and B Lab AANZ, I have brought a creative lens to spaces beyond art, weaving story, strategy, and community into forms that invite people to act differently. At Next Wave I commissioned Ritual—sixteen public sunset ceremonies across Melbourne that reimagined the city as a site of collective belonging. As director of Assembly 2025, I have been called to convene activists, artists, and business leaders to confront the realities of climate change, transform the structures we live within, and open new conversations across difference.

Speaking and provocation run alongside this leadership. My APAX address Only Castles Burning resonated widely across the arts, urging peers to resist despair and imagine new narratives with clarity and bravery. Shared almost 2,000 times worldwide, it continues to spark dialogue across the sector. At the launch of Creative Climate, my opening address —Unimaginable. Unprecedented. Apocalyptic.— wove lived experience of bushfire and loss into a meditation on crisis, connection, and renewal through creativity.

Across facilitation, lecturing, and mentoring, I creates spaces that are both safe enough to share and brave enough to act. What connects all of my work is a commitment to reimagining systems—arts, economy, climate, community—so they can hold more justice, care, and imagination for the futures yet to come.

Institutional Practice

Creative Director – Assembly 2025, B Lab Australia & Aotearoa New Zealand
2025

• Directing the creative vision for Assembly 2025, B Lab AANZ’s flagship gathering of the global B Corp community.

• Designing frameworks that centre climate, equity, and regenerative business.

• Convening creatives, activists, artists, and business leaders in transformative dialogue.

Co-CEO – Theatre Network Australia
2024–2025

• Led the national peak body for the independent performing arts sector through a time of leadership and governance transition.

• Provided sector-wide support and advocacy during a period of uncertainty and change.

Producer (Special Projects) – Melbourne Fringe
2023

• Delivered a suite of international and signature events/productions for the festival.

• Supported staff and artists navigating the Voice to Parliament referendum through facilitated dialogue and care.

• Mentored emerging First Nations producers delivering the Deadly Fringe program.

First Nations Creative Producer – Sydney WorldPride
2022–2023

• In collaboration with the First Nations Creative Director and production company Dplr brought to life Marri Madung Butbut (Many Brave Hearts), a six-day First Nations LGBTQIA+SB program that transformed Carriageworks into a vibrant and welcoming site of celebration, solidarity, and visibility.

• Produced the largest program of its kind globally, foregrounding First Nations leadership in a landmark international event.

Delivery Producer – Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM)
2020–2021

• Collaborated on the conception and delivery of the Melbourne, Adelaide, and Darwin editions of APAM.

• Designed a culturally safe professional development and empowerment process for First Nations delegates.

• Hosted and convened panels and discussions across themes of equity, practice, and international collaboration.

• Brokered connections across Australian and international performing arts sectors, strengthening networks between artists, organisations, and presenters.

Special Projects Producer – Darwin Festival
2019

• Delivered multiple high-impact projects including:

• Shifting Realities — VR360 exhibition exploring immersive technology and new storytelling.

• Parade Days — community consultation and outreach for a 40th anniversary retrospective, featuring community stories and artefacts from the orginal Bougainvillea Parade.

• Drumming Up the Storm — a Papua New Guinean cultural revival project culminating in a public performance with traditional log drums crafted with wood from trees felled during Cyclone Marcus.

Creative Producer – Next Wave
2016–2019

• Curated the most diverse Next Wave Festival in the organisation’s history.

• Established the Next Wave X national commissioning partnerships to deepen collaboration across the country.

• Conceived and produced Ritual, a festival keynote commissioning 16 artists to lead 16 public sunset rituals across Melbourne.

• Increased attendance and critical acclaim.

• The Age praised the 2018 Festival as “the most rewardingly diverse the festival has ever been; a sharp rebuke to the top-down culture that attempts to divide the arts into ‘excellence’ and ‘accessibility.’”

Programme Manager – ACCELERATE, British Council (SYD)
2015–2016

• Delivered the British Council’s flagship leadership program for First Nations creative professionals, supporting tailored professional development in the UK.

• Coordinated international partnerships including with the Australian High Commission in London.

Foundational Producing and Creative Roles – Multiple Employers including: Sydney Opera House, Sydney Festival and Performing Lines
2009–2014

• Supported major works including Luminous - now Vivid Live (Sydney Opera House, curated by Brian Eno) and I Am Eora (Sydney Festival, directed by Wesley Enoch).

• Developed equity, diversity, advocacy and legacy building in practice while navigating employment as the first or only First Nations person in most organisations.

• Built expertise in producing, project management, technical delivery, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Independent Practice

Speaking & Provocation

I am increasingly recognised as a leading public voice in arts, climate, and systems change. My speaking practice combines provocation, storytelling, and facilitation to spark clarity and courage in audiences.

• APAX Provocation — Only Castles Burning (Don’t Let It Bring You Down) (2025)
  Widely read and shared internationally (nearly 2,000 times), this address urged the performing arts sector to resist despair and imagine new narratives of resilience and transformation.

• Creative Climate Launch — Unimaginable. Unprecedented. Apocalyptic. (2025)
  Opened the national launch of Creative Climate with a meditation on bushfire grief, crisis, and creative renewal.

• The Unconformity Keynote — DOUBLE EARTH SIGN (2025)
  Invited to deliver a keynote for one of Australia’s most adventurous regional arts festivals, weaving systems thinking with grounded creative practice.

• Lectureships
  Guest Lecturer in Arts and Cultural Management at University of Melbourne (2025), and RMIT (2021–present).

• Panels and Facilitation
  Speaking engagements with Small Giants Academy (Meditations in an Emergency: Everyday Spirituality as Survival), The Wheeler Centre (Meaning, Mysticism and Manifestation), APAM, and Sustainable Theatres Australia.

Creative Producing & Experience Design

• Producer/Mentor — YIRRAMBOI Festival (2021)
  Supported the premiere seasons of Birrpai (Ngioka Bunda-Heath) and Soul of Possum (Brodie Murray), mentoring emerging First Nations artists and leaders.

• Strategic Producer — GUTS Dance // Central Australia (2020–2023)
  Provided producing, strategic, and grant-writing support to one of Australia’s most important regional contemporary dance companies.

• Devisor — The Circle Never Ends (APAM, 2021)
  Explored multigenerational approaches to creative practice within a major international marketplace for contemporary performance.

• Facilitator and program design — Transmitter: Darwin x Delhi (International online collaboration, 2021)
  Cross-continental digital development between Darwin Festival, Serendipity Arts Festival (India), and the Australia Council for the Arts.

Consulting & Advisory

I am sought after for my insight into climate-conscious leadership, equity, and regenerative cultural practice.

• Advisor — Climate Action Services EOI, Creative Australia (2024).

• Advisor — Arts Wellbeing Collective, Arts Centre Melbourne (2022–2024).

• Mentor/Coach — The Festivals Academy, Europe (2019).

• Peer assessor — Creative Australia, Creative Victoria, Arts NSW (2014–present).

• Cultural Advisor for projects by Deborah Kelly (Creation), Mish Grigor (Exit Strategies), and Sarah Aitken & Bec Jensen (WAISTD).

Governance & Advisory

• La Mama Theatre Inc. — Committee of Management (2023–2024)

• Theatre Network Australia — Chair, Deputy Chair & Non-Executive Director (2017–2023)

• ILBIJERRI Theatre Company — Non-Executive Director (2018–2021)

• Arts Wellbeing Collective — Lived Experience Advisory Group (2022–2024)

• City of Darwin — Arts and Cultural Development Advisory Group (2020–2021)

• Australian Arts Amidst COVID-19 — Steering Group (2020–2021)

Awards & Recognition

• Green Room Award for Innovation in Curation and Programming (2019)
  For Ritual, Next Wave Festival 2018 — 16 public sunset rituals across Melbourne.

• George Fairfax Memorial Award for Excellence (2017)
  Supported research into programming and career development initiatives for diverse artists in UK festivals and live art.

• Global Leadership Foundation Scholarship (2024)
  Awarded for leadership potential to support study at Small Giants Academy.

Education

Small Giants Academy — Mastery of Business and Empathy (MBE)
2024 | Melbourne

• Completed a ten-month leadership program reimagining the MBA through the lens of empathy, purpose, and regenerative futures.

• Engaged with global thought-leaders across disciplines in collaborative learning and practice.

• Developed tools, strategies, and philosophies to lead purposeful organisations and articulate hopeful visions for systemic change.

University of Melbourne — Victorian College of the Arts (VCA), Bachelor of Fine Arts (Production)
2008 | Melbourne

• Specialist training in design, production, and arts management within Australia’s leading performing arts school.

• Held student leadership role as Women’s Officer, VCA Student Union (2007).

• Established a foundation in collaborative practice, technical production, and interdisciplinary creation.

Professional Development

MIT Learn x U School for Transformation — u-lab: Leading From the Emerging Future (2025)
Undertaking an 8-week MIT-certified program on Theory U, integrating systems thinking, wisdom traditions, and civic action through applied practice.

U School for Transformation — The Presencing Series (2025)
Introductory program in global systems transformation, convening changemakers around collective leadership and regenerative action.

Loretta J. Ross — Calling In: Creating Change Without Cancel Culture (Foundation & Advanced) (2024)
Intensive training in accountability, compassion, and justice frameworks for dismantling oppressive structures and building equity-driven cultures.

Small Giants Academy — Climate Leadership Accelerator: Into the Arena (2024)
Immersive program deepening systems-level understanding of the climate crisis. Developed a personal framework for climate leadership and regenerative futures.

Asian Producers’ Platform — Bangkok & Chiang Mai, Thailand (2023)
Peer-to-peer international exchange for independent producers across Asia. Research focus: integrating climate action and environmental awareness into creative practice.

First Nations Global Dialogues — Lenapehoking/New York, USA (2019)
Participated in international arts gatherings to establish networks of collaboration between First Nations peoples from the United States, Mexico, Canada, Australia, and Aotearoa New Zealand.