Outdoors NSW & ACT Ambassador, Ky Furneaux, will be co-hosting the Thursday & Friday of the Summit with one of our Pinnacle Leader Graduates. After just returning from overseas for more exciting adventures, Ky is a great example of some of the various career options that skills in the outdoors can take you. 

Lori has been a leader in community development for over 30 years. Awarded the Outstanding Contribution to the Tourism Industry in NSW in 2023, she has contributed thousands of voluntary hours and held positions of influence enabling major community action and tourism infrastructure that has benefited the Sydney and regional areas of NSW.  In late 2023 she was voted in as Chair of the NSW Tourism Industry Council, at a time the tourism industry needed leadership and a voice to encourage collaboration, Lori led the formation of the NSW Tourism Association with 9 other industry leaders to consolidate voice, increase advocacy and securing a better visitor economy in NSW. She is also Chair of Western Sydney Moving which became a Charity in late 2024 and is in her 6th year of leading Outdoors NSW & ACT as the voice for the Outdoor Industry, activating more healthier, resilient and connected communities. In a federal capacity she is the Secretary and Director of the Outdoor Council of Australia.  

Founder and Chief Access Officer, Ryan Smith is a qualified Access Consultant (Dip. ACA793), has a degree in Design and is a widely traveled wheelchair user.

Ryan has presented on accessibility in tourism throughout Australia and globally, including in Melbourne, Sydney (AUS), Bogotá (COL), London (UK), Santiago (CHL), and La Plata (ARG). He has spoken at events for Tourism Australia, World Travel Market, Visit Victoria, Visit Bogotá, The University of Melbourne, and many others. He’s been part of in-person events at Tourism Australia’s Destination Australia, Accessible Inclusive Tourism Conference Asia Pacific (AITCAP), Melbourne University, MPavillion and he conducts sessions with many industry organisations, regions and government including Visit Victoria’s Marketing Excellence Program, Red Cross Australia, and many more.

Ryan is the acting-Chair of a not-for-profit disability organisation, was a judge for the 2023 Victorian Tourism Awards and is an ambassador for Australian Regional Tourism (ART). He has written for Architecture Australia’s Victorian Chapter on the future of accessible hotels and been interviewed on ABC Radio and The Age newspaper.

He is Chief Executive of SportsGrid, an emerging industry leader in the Australian sports club management ecosystem through its flagship product revolutioniseSPORT, a SaaS online membership, competition planning, e-commerce and data analysis platform to national, state and local organisations around Australia, as well as digital strategy consultation and planning and is General Manager, Business Development of the Australian Sports Professionals Association (ASPA).

Alex is a highly motivated, experienced, talented and enthusiastic individual who holds degrees in both Law and Computer Science (UNSW), certificates in Data & Interface design (NYU), as well as being a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. He has worked in the Computing, Law and Sporting industries, and is currently using a mesh of all three to pioneer the way sports manage their digital strategy and design across the Asia Pacific.

Garry has been part of the ACT tourism sector for 30 years, and the Project Leader of the National Capital Educational Tourism Project (NCETP) since 1999. Under his leadership, the NCETP has had a significant impact on the ACT tourism region with educational visitors injecting 140 million economic value to the ACT annually. Previous to this, Garry worked extensively in the ACT attractions sector including running visitor services and public programs at the National Film and Sound Archive and providing electoral education for the National Electoral Education Centre. He has also been a market research consultant, with a speciality in facilitating search conferences.

Garry has been a key part of the National Capital Attractions Association and Canberra Region Tourism Awards (CRTA) for many years. After 10 years as Chair of Judges for the CRTA, in 2016 Garry was appointed the Chair of Judges for the Australian Tourism Awards, concluding at the end of 2018. Garry has been awarded the Canberra Region Tourism Awards, 2001 Outstanding Contribution by an Individual Award and has recently been included as a Member in the Order of Australia (General Division) for his services to tourism.

Dan Waters is an Engagement Advisor at HumanAbility. He has over 25 years’ experience in sport, recreation and higher education environments. Dedicated to community and stakeholder engagement. With experience in local, state, national and tertiary education settings, he is passionate about fostering engagement to shape decisions and guide programs that have a positive influence on the health and well-being of the community.

Sam is the Stakeholder Engagement Manager (Tourism) at Service and Creative Skills Australia, a Jobs and Skills Council. Sam is also the Director of White Sand Events and the South Coast Food & Wine Festival. 

Louise is the Tourism & Partnership Manager at the Forestry Corporation of NSW. She is currently leading a fantastic team managing nature-based visitor experiences in NSW State forests. Partnerships, engagement, forest tourism & events are their bread and butter.

Skilled in policy development; stakeholder relations; brand development; reputational management & social license; social media strategy, marketing & content creation; tourism strategy; grant acquisition & management; and visitor experience development. Louise is also experienced in a range of management roles in local and state government, including health, air quality, resource management, sustainability and forest stewardship.

An award-winning photographic artist, Lousie was awarded finalist berths in the prestigious Bowness Photography Prize (2020) and Head On Photo Awards (2021, 2024) and is a proud member of the WH!P Collective (Women of the Hunter in Photography).

Linda is the Manager of Tourism Partnerships and Events at the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service. She has extensive experience in tourism, major events and economic development in local and state government and is a strategic and innovative thinker with a proven ability to develop and implement tourism and economic development initiatives. 

Linda was also a school teacher in the UK in secondary education.

Debbie is delivering "Adventure Meets Efficiency: Automation and Systems for Growth"

As a small business owner with 20 years’ experience in corporate administration, she understands the tiers of success businesses are aiming for. Her passion is to help you achieve them—well-equipped and hassle-free. She is the efficiency ‘Q’ to your time-poor ‘Bond’, providing nifty solutions that restore capacity and enhance your ability to change the world. And when systemising is made this easy, how far you go is up to you. 

Many small business owners still try to do it all themselves; they work harder than they should, unaware that most day-to-day functions can now be streamlined, automated or outsourced. Debbie helps her clients to regain clarity and time, and eradicates frustration and overwhelm.

Coming soon....

Greg Shallard | Mark Lorenti | Peter Kent | Cathy McInerney | Karen Witt | Cathy Ryan | Trish Gregory | Liz King | SafeWork ACT / NSW | David Marsden | Tracey Dickson |