Place Branding Australia

Alison Page, a descendant of the Dharawal and Yuin people, began her career in architecture and interior design in the late 90s. She co-founded Zakpage in 2015 to create immersive place-based storytelling experiences that blend film and design to awaken the memory of Country and speak to traditional knowledges, ceremony and ritual. Alison is Associate Dean at UTS and a member of several cultural boards including the National Australia Day Council, Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, and the Australian National Maritime Museum. She founded the National Aboriginal Design Agency and has been honoured by the Design Institute of Australia. 

Anita Mitchell has 30 years' experience in executive management, sustainability, social impact and corporate assurance - spanning energy, water, waste, property and construction in both the public and private sectors. In her role as Chief Executive of Placemaking NSW, Anita leads the team managing and enhancing some of the state's most treasured places. Precincts include: The Rocks; Darling Harbour; Luna Park; Pyrmont waterfront; Ballast Point Park and Barangaroo. Most recently, Placemaking NSW led the important remediation and conservation works at White Bay Power State in Rozelle and was appointed as the developer of the Bays West urban renewal precinct. 

Todd Babiak has worked in small places and big places around the world, building brand stories and turning them into economic, social, and cultural development strategies. Of all the places he worked, he was most moved by the Tasmanian brand story. He and his team at Brand Tasmania are in the listening and building business.

Gill Minervini is a festival and event director with over 30 years experience creating impactful and inclusive cultural experiences. As Festival Director for Vivid Sydney (2021-current), she has led the event to unprecedented success, drawing nearly 3.5 million attendees in 2023 and winning 17 international awards. Gill's career highlights include as an Artistic Associate for the Adelaide Festival, producing Dark MOFO's Winter Feast for MONA and leading Sydney's major event programs as the Creative Director for City of Sydney Events. Photo credits are to Nic Walker. 

Originally from Adelaide, Brent is a multi-award winning marketer and leader, and joined Tourism Fiji as CEO in mid 2021. Brent led the incredible effort to reopen Fiji to the world in December 2021, achieving double the visitor arrivals target in 2022 and 4% higher than pre COVID levels in 2023.

Jessica Hamilton leads the global marketing, communication and content teams at Austrade. Through this work she provides direct support to the creation of trade and investment outcomes for Australian businesses.

Geoff Parmenter has 30 years' experience in tourism and events, hospitality, entertainment and sport - in Australia and overseas. From 2007-2011 he was Chief Executive of Events NSW, the pre-cursor to Destination NSW, responsible for developing the first structured annual events calendar for Sydney and New South Wales. They established a number of major bespoke events such as Vivid Sydney and Opera on Sydney Harbour. Geoff then sat on the Group Executive Committee of The Star Entertainment Group where he led the Brand, Tourism, Partnerships, Corporate Affairs and Media and Communication functions. He left The Star in 2018 to focus again on projects in the Olympic Games, sport and events, destinational brand strategy and place-making spheres. He is currently working across these fields with clients in Australia, Canada and Europe. 

Jessica Christiansen-Franks is an urban designer and social entrepreneur who has dedicated her career to understanding the social dynamics of urbanisation. As co-founder of Neighbourlytics, Jessica has side-stepped into the world of big data to build a data platform which tracks the unique local identity of neighbourhoods.

Andy is the principal of place brand and property marketing agency Hoyne. Over the last decade Hoyne have evolved to a core focus on place and property, and today they work with major international asset owners, developers and local councils to create recognisable landmarks and destinations.

Dean is the co-Founder of Town Team Movement and Creator of Placemaking.Education. Dean has been a leader at Town Team Movement for the last 6 years - a social enterprise that is building a movement of positive ‘doers’ around Australia and beyond.

Amy is the Director of Marketing and Communications for New Zealand Story. With proud links to Ngāi Takoto, Te Waiohua and Tainui-Waikato, Amy is passionate about achieving healthcare equity for all New Zealand children, particularly in Māori and Pacific communities.

Josh is a seasoned innovator and transformational specialist with over 15 years experience across a wide range of industries. Driven by a passion to create meaningful change, his approach is grounded in understanding the core needs of stakeholders in order to define narratives that solve real problems for real people.

Jarrod Pickford, a passionate globetrotter, is the visionary behind Storytowns - a travel app born out of his extensive hitchhiking adventures across the planet. Boasting 25 years in audio storytelling, Jarrod and his team have curated and designed over 600 audio guides spanning across Australia.

Jennifer O'Brien boasts over 25 years of experience as a seasoned journalist and editor, specialising in the business and technology sectors. Her blend of professionalism and humour enlivens executive roundtables, panel discussions, and conferences, cementing her status as a sought-after industry figure.

Leading an award-winning independent city marketing agency, Amanda lives and breathes the promotion and activation of the regional city of Launceston, Tasmania.