Cathy Hunt

Background

About Cathy Hunt

I am a mission driven leader, change maker and business woman in the cultural, creative and community sectors with significant experience in the interaction between these sectors, the corporate world and government. I believe cultural and creative activity allows us to shine as human beings and in applying creative thinking to solving wicked problems. If something isn’t working I enjoy finding a new way to fix it – if there is a gap in provision, searching new models to fill it, utilising innovation, team building, strategic thinking and planning to deliver impact. As a co-founder of consultancy Positive Solutions in the UK, then in Australia in 1997, I have developed specialisms in strategic planning, organisational development, feasibility studies for new cultural facilities and policy development. Through management of projects in the UK, Asia, Australia and New Zealand my work has involved extensive engagement and listening deeply to concerns, ideas and solutions across many cultures and communities. My passion for change making has led to a number of outputs all with professional and community outcomes; an M.Phil in how we better design facilities for the performing arts; the creation and production of two significant cultural initiatives; Festival of Comedy in Liverpool UK and establishing the WOW (Women of the World) movement in Australia; leading research into new forms of financing and better ways of utilising existing resources in the cultural sector and trialling models to deliver change – The QuickstART microloan fund for artists and Arts Business Innovation Fund for the Queensland Government and Tim Fairfax Family Foundation. Woven throughout my work has been a total commitment to equity and inclusion, moving beyond tokensim, to create genuine drivers for change within institutions and in policy making. My work has been recognised in a Reconciliation Queensland award in 2021 for WOW. With significant experience in governance, I have worked with the boards of many cultural and community health organisations at different scales and have been a Director on two Government Boards, Events Queensland (2009-12) and currently Screen Queensland since 2017. I am also a member of the Advisory Committee for the Queensland Government Women's Strategy and in January 2023 was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant services to arts and culture and women.