Our Approach
Through collaborative co-design, collective advocacy and care-filled facilitation,we create safe spaces for our clients to learn, share and implement accessible and inclusive practices in their work.
Tailored approach
Understanding our clients needs and being responsive through sensitive and consultative practices is important when at the beginning of any new relationship. Throughout our partnership, we offer regular check-ins and a flexible and open approach to the evolving needs of your project.
Collaboration
Specialising in access, diversity, equity and inclusion (ADEI) and arts know-how, we approach our work through collaborative consultation. We work with a small (but mighty!) team of trusted freelance associates and collaborators to help inform and strengthen the projects we deliver. With diverse knowledge, skills and different types of lived experience, we can help connect you with the best people to do the work.
Positive change
We are dedicated to driving real change in the diversity, access, equity, and inclusion space across the creative industries and more broadly. In the context of social change, catalysing change involves actively and intentionally creating opportunities for change and inspiring others to take action towards a common goal. Our clients are not just clients but also our allies, advocates, and catalysts for enabling wide-spread systemic change. By addressing barriers to change, creating new ideas and solutions together, and by mobilising communities we can all work together to creative a more inclusive future.
“Morwenna Collett is one of the country's foremost disability, inclusion and equity consultants, and we at Back to Back Theatre have greatly benefited from her enthusiastic and rigorous approach. She is always proactive and positive, and realistic about deadlines and re-setting them accordingly. Morwenna’s experience across the Australian arts sector as well as in screen, and other not for profit and government arenas is extensive. I recommend her and her work without reservation or hesitation.”
Tim Stitz, Executive Producer & Co-CEO, Back to Back Theatre
Meet our team of collaborators
Director: Morwenna Collett GAICD CF (she/her)
Located on Gadigal Country in Sydney
Skills in access consultancy, facilitation, consultation, strategy, planning
You can find Morwenna playing the flute or with her cheeky monkey child
An accomplished leader, consultant and facilitator with 15 years’ experience in the arts, government, not-for-profit and university sectors, Morwenna has worn the hats of CEO, Board Director, project manager, lecturer, researcher, trainer and advisor. She currently works as a leading arts consultant specialising in diversity, access and inclusion, and is passionate about helping arts and cultural organisations to include everyone in their work.
Morwenna is the Chair of the Sydney Festival's Access Committee and helped establish committees for Perth Festival, Sydney Fringe and Sydney WorldPride. She is also a member of the Contemporary Music Board at Create NSW. Recent consulting clients include the Sydney Opera House, QMusic, Opera Queensland, the Australia Council, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, the National Gallery and Taronga Zoo.
She has previously been the CEO of Accessible Arts, the Chair of the Sydney Arts Managers Advisory Group and has held various management roles at the Australia Council. In 2020, she completed a Churchill Fellowship, exploring inclusive music programs, venues and festivals which actively engage disabled people across the USA, UK and Ireland. Her work is influenced by her own lived experience as a musician with disability.
Gill Nicol (she/her)
Located on Dharug and Gundungarra Country in the Blue Mountains
Skills in public speaking, writing, creative thinking
You can find Gill tending with love her 100 yr old garden
Gill Nicol is positioned as one of the most respected voices around audience engagement within the global museum and gallery sector. With over 30 years’ experience working with contemporary art and audiences, in 2015 she moved from the UK to Sydney to work at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), as Director of Audience Engagement, taking a leadership role in shaping an Australia that values art and artists. Since then, Gill has worked with a vision to embed the MCA as a leader with its approach to access, diversity and inclusion, along with a focus on research and evaluation, making sure that the impact of such work can be articulated and therefore valued.
Gill left the MCA in May 2023, to set up her own business to support the cultural sector across Australia, offering training, mentoring and consulting in contemporary art, visitor experience, interpretation, access and inclusion, audience engagement and development, and creativity and wellbeing. Her approach is one of care, kindness, empathy and respect.
She identifies as hard of hearing, attuned to the requirements of those with disability. In 2019 she was granted a Distinguished Talent visa to enable her to continue to work within Australia; and recently has been awarded citizenship.
Frances Robinson (she/her)
Located on Wurundjeri Country in Naarm (Melbourne)
Skills in writing, program development, producing
You can find Frances biking and brunching around the city.
Frances is an experienced Producer who has worked across leading cultural institutions, including the Tate Galleries, Biennale of Sydney and Australia Council for the Arts.
Frances’ practice is driven by an unwavering commitment to fairness and societal equity, particularly for/with d/Deaf and disabled artists and leaders. She sees her role as a connector and space-creator and is dedicated to supporting the development of others.
As former Manager of Industry Initiatives at Australia Council, Frances was instrumental in expanding the Leadership Programs, establishing an international alumni network and developing strategic partnership programs to upskill the sector in advocacy, stakeholder engagement and community organising.
Cultivating care as a form of advocacy is embedded across her work and relationships. Frances is interested in creating pathways within our sector that imagine new collective futures that prioritise reciprocity, generosity and equity.
Mallika Macleod (she/her)
Located on Noongar Nation, Wadjuk boodja; the lands of the Wadjuk people of the Swan River region (Perth)
Skills in NDIS, Advocacy, Workforce development, Project Management, Disability Access & Inclusion Plans, Diversity & Inclusion, Conciliation, Policy development, Arts management, governance
You can find Mallika painting or deconstructing clothes and jewellery to breathe new life into the pieces. Her favourite job has been aunty, spending time with her niece and helping to raise a future leader is a privilege.
Mallika has worked in the community development, arts management, disability and health services her entire career, with the last near 10 years spent managing and directing the largest NDIS provider of arts services in the country. Working with over 600 artists per year across all disciplines, Mallika is an industry leader in support for people seeking to access the NDIS and those going through NDIS Plan reviews who need support to ensure their arts practice is acknowledged in their goals and plans.
Mallika is a seasoned board Director and Chair, having Chaired Arts Access Australia and was awarded Lifetime Membership; she is the current Chair of the Health Consumers' Council in WA. Mallika has supported several artists around Australia with their NDIS access, and makes herself available to participants as they develop their plans over time.
Irene Zhong (they/them)
Located on Wurundjeri and Bunurong Country (Melbourne)
Skills in writing, research, advocacy, songwriting
You can find Irene trying out a new textile artform, out on a jog, or plugged into a video game.
Irene has worked as a songwriter, teacher, and cultural advocate in Melbourne’s arts sector for the past five years. Through Irene’s personal experiences with disability, queerness, and cultural diaspora, Irene’s practice is driven by their passion and connection to marginalised communities and where they intersect.
Irene spoke about music-making as a queer, disabled, CALD artist with Music Victoria, Arts Access Victoria, and Midsumma Festival. Irene brought their experience in teaching to the co-design sessions for a National Songwriting Program for d/Deaf and disabled songwriters, in collaboration with Accessible Arts, Arts Access Victoria, and APRA AMCOS. Irene was a research assistant for the National Arts and Disability Needs Analysis and Audit in 2023.
Right now, Irene is working on Protest Songs, an ethnomusicological, mutual-aid initiative aiming to fundraise for local social justice causes and marginalised communities, funded by AAV’s ‘Nurture’ grant.
Dr Dan Pash (he/him)
Located on Gadigal Country in Sydney
Skills in Research and Data Analysis, Writing, Teaching/Lecturing, Performance
You can find Dan Strolling through Ashfield with his Partner and son, swimming in Ashfield pool, and wherever there are books.
Dan completed a PhD in Philosophy in 2021. In 2022-23 he was an Anderson Research Fellow in the Philosophy department at the University of Sydney, where he writes and teaches in Aesthetics, Ethics, Epistemology, and the Philosophy of Language. As a researcher and writer, Dan is particularly interested in the ethical and conceptual questions raised by issues of access and inclusion in relation to d/Deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists. On a practical level, Dan has worked as a data analyst and contributor to several large-scale reports on service provision and needs for d/d/n artists across Australia.
In addition, Dan is a small 'd' deaf musician, songwriter and performer. He holds degrees in classical music performance and orchestral studies and was a founding member of the rock group Leader Cheetah. While with the band, he co-wrote and recorded two critically acclaimed albums (one of which was a Triple-J feature album, and was also long-listed for the Australian Music Prize). Dan’s next musical project, Reality Instructors, was created to explore the possibility of writing, recording and performing music while being almost totally deaf. Dan is a passionate advocate for creating greater opportunities for musicians who identify as d/Deaf or disabled and has appeared on various podcasts and radio programs as a way of furthering the important conversation surrounding these issues. In 2019, Dan underwent cochlear implant surgery and is now exploring the musical possibilities that such technology might afford.
Julia Lörsch (she/her)
Located on Gubbi Gubbi/Kabi Kabi Country (Sunshine Coast QLD)
Skills in video producing, facilitation, project management
You can find Julia hiking in the bush, dancing at a festival or in the ocean.
Julia is a documentary film and illustration producer, director and story facilitator.
Julia cares deeply about creating safe spaces for unheard stories and voices to emerge, and centering the experiences of underrepresented talent. With a strong conviction that documentary presents a unique intersection of art, science and education, Julia is passionate about its ability to expand perspectives and create connection.
Most recently Julia's short was a finalist for the Sustainable Futures Award at the Sydney Film Festival 2023 and aired on the ABC. Julia has produced impact and educational content and taught story leadership with many NFP clients, including First Nations communities, government agencies, and the Centre for Gross National Happiness in Bhutan.
With her multilingual and international experience, she brings a particular interest and quality to working with diverse stories and communities.
Gillian Ramsay (she/her)
Located on Gadigal Country in Sydney
Skills in conducting and managing social and media research projects, data analyst, storyteller and presenter, management, and strategic leadership.
You can find Gillian enjoying cultural events, reading books, and exploring new parts of Australia on long walks.
Gillian has more than 20 years of experience as a Social and Media Research & Insights Leader identifying key insights, evaluating impacts, and delivering recommendations to determine and influence brand and content strategies which deliver increased reach and audience engagement. As an Insights Manager at the ABC, she worked across iconic media brands such as ABC TV, ABC iview, ABC Kids, ABC Radio, and ABC News. She is a highly effective communicator and presenter of complex data and insights to drive policy, business and marketing decision making.
Gillian is a member of The Research Society and is accomplished in conducting and managing qualitative and quantitative research projects, designing data measurement strategies, and implementing research tools. Gillian pursued a career in social research as she is passionate about understanding the attitudes, motivations, and behaviour of Australians in relation to social issues.
She is excited to work on research and policy projects which drive positive social change and which support organisations to embed a culture of diversity, access, and inclusion.