Gemma Baxter
Pilot and Trial Coordinator, Smart City Incubator, City of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Design and design research
- Service and systems design
- Communication design
- Innovation and trialling new technologies
Who are the mentors?
To find out more about the experts and mentors see the 'who's listening' tab or feature grid below.
How do I book a 1:1 session?
You can book a 1:1 session with a mentor by clicking on their calendly link and selecting one of the available timeslots. These sessions are designed to assist your understanding of the issues and considerations of the competition before completing your submission.
How do I get in touch?
If you have a general question about the competition, you can ask us using the forum below.
Closed
Mentors and experts
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Heather Sherlock
Knowledge Bank Lead, City of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Qualitative research and data analysis
- Demography and understanding populations
- Data communication & storytelling
- Life as an international student
Roberto Daniele
Senior Programmer, StartSpace + Founder & Director, Changemakers’ Lab
Specialty areas for questions:
- Social Impact/ Social Enterprises
- Business Models
- Marketing
- Community building
Domenic Saporito
Founder & Director, InternMatch & MentorMatch
Specialty areas for questions:
- Early-stage venture validation
- Pitching
- Leveraging Technology
- Capital Raising
Dickie Currer
Head of Partnerships, Startup Australia
Specialty areas for questions:- Strategic Partnerships
- Building a Community/Ecosystem
- Funding options for Startups
- Go to Market strategies
Kennie Kurniawan
Future Founders Program Manager, Start Space
Specialty areas for questions:
- International students insights
- Marketing strategy
- Market research
- Idea validation
Rei Chin
Neighbourhood Partner, City of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Community development (facilitating community connection and empowering people to lead their own change)
- Project development, management and evaluation
- Community engagement practices
Vishek Batra
Engineering Maintenace Officer, Victorian Chemicals
Specialty areas for questions:
- Product development (prototyping to manufacturing)
- Project Management
- Networking & people management
- IP and patents
Prachi Tyagi
Digital Content Specialist, IDP Australia
Specialty areas for questions:
- Personal Branding
- Content Strategy
- Marketing
- Brand Building
Layana Franco
Startup founder & Marketing manager, Swap-a-Porter
Specialty areas for questions:
- Design thinking + UX/UI design
- Market research + Validation of solutions/ideas
- Social and environmental impact
- Pitching
Emily O’Callaghan
Recruitment Operations Manager, University of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Partnerships/ Stakeholder relations
- External relations
- Project Management / Governance
- International Education / Student Experience
Rory McNeice
Velocity Program Manager, Melbourne Accelerator Program
Specialty areas for questions:
- Customer Discovery
- Value Proposition
Anita Van Rooyen
Founder and Chief Confidence Hacker, Confidence Hackers
Specialty areas for questions:
- Founder mindset
- Confidence
- Pitch confidence
Usman Iftikhar
Co-founder and CEO, Catalysr
Specialty areas for questions:
- Building a team & culture
- Pitching & Storytelling
- Fundraising
Hope Dolino
Work Experience Guru / International Education Specialist
Specialty areas for questions:
- Community Engagement and Capacity Building
- Events / Program Management
- Work Integrated Learning / Internships / Careers
- Volunteering, Networking, Mentoring
Kara Barnett
Senior Policy Officer Inclusion and Diversity, City of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Community Development
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Project Management
- Local Government
Belle Lim
Founder & CEO, Future Forte; Analyst, Deloitte Access Economics
Specialty areas for questions:
- International student experience & international education
- Social impact initiatives
- Data collection & analysis
- Community building
Nas Mohamud
Neighbourhood Partner – Carlton and Parkville, City of Melbourne
Specialty areas for questions:
- Community Development and Engagement
- Program and Stakeholder Management
- Diversity and Inclusion
- Advocacy and networking
Elijah D’Souza
Founding Director, Uncommon Collective
Specialty areas for questions:
- Alternative culturally accessible employment pathways for creatives, changemakers, and leaders
- Culturally accessible community building
- Selling without selling through curiosity and empathy
- Helping internationals make money for what they love
Open Innovation Competition
Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners
The City of Melbourne respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land we govern, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin and pays respect to their Elders past and present. We acknowledge and honour the unbroken spiritual, cultural and political connection they have maintained to this unique place for more than 2000 generations.
We accept the invitation in the Uluru Statement from the Heart and are committed to walking together to build a better future.
