“ACCELERATE gets your fire, concentrates it and directs it towards your goal”
– Jacob Boehme, 2014 ACCELERATE participant

Six outstanding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts professionals have been announced tonight at Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre (Melbourne Museum) as the 2016 participants of British Council and Australia Council for the Arts’ annual leadership skills development programme, ACCELERATE. The participants will undergo tailored leadership programs in Australia and each will also travel to the United Kingdom for professional placements and mentoring to develop their chosen creative vocation.

The Australia Council for Arts is a founding partner of the initiative and continues its support in 2016, with the program now in its seventh successful year. ACCELERATE provides Indigenous Australians working within the creative industries with the skills and networks to generate, take up and excel in leadership positions. The programme is aimed at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders from across Australia who have at least five years’ experience in the creative industries and can demonstrate a bold vision for where they want to take their career and their community.

This year, the selection panel has identified six mid-career professionals ready to move in to senior leadership roles across the arts and creative industries. The 2016 ACCELERATE programme participants are:

•       Jilda Andrews – a curator and singer from Australian Capital Territory
•       Kamarra Bell Wykes – an arts manager and playwright from Victoria
•       Travis De Vries – an arts manager and writer from New South Wales
•       Glenn Iseger-Pilkington – a museums and galleries curator from Western Australia
•       Francoise Lane – a designer from Queensland
•       Jonathon Saunders – an illustrator and arts worker from Northern Territory