Festival City Adelaide (FCA), the peak body for festivals and events in South Australia, has appointed industry veteran Glyn Roberts as its next Chief Executive Officer.
Roberts replaces Justyna Jochym, who has moved to take up the position of CEO at the History Trust of South Australia, and he will start at the beginning of October.
Roberts is currently the Team Manager Creative Communities at Townsville City Council, providing strategic leadership for arts and major and community events across Townsville. He has been the Festival Director and CEO of the Castlemaine State Festival and has worked in the arts and cultural sector for the past two decades.
Having worked in and around festivals his entire career, Roberts said he was honoured to be given the opportunity to lead Festival City Adelaide. “To be able to work with and advocate for the greatest festivals this country has to offer the world is thrilling,” he said.
Festival City Adelaide board chair Govert Mellink said they had conducted an extensive search for the right person to lead FCA’s next phase of growth. “We are confident we have found the right person in Glyn to grab the opportunities we have built at FCA and develop them into world-leading programs,” said Mellink.
The FCA is developing initiatives that will see Adelaide become the epicentre of festival and event education and training, as well as bringing all the different people and skills essential to running festivals and events into a shared service.
Roberts said these programs will further cement Adelaide’s title of the festival capital of Australia and “remove any question that we are global leaders in the festival industry and set the pace for innovation in this space.”
“We will be doing this across so many important areas, such as education and training, workforce management, sustainability, cultural diplomacy, regional engagement and much more,” he said.
Roberts said he is looking forward to the move to Adelaide because of the festival work and the state’s amazing lifestyle. “Aside from being an epicentre for festivals in Australia, Adelaide is exactly what me and my small family were looking for a place to put down roots,” he said. “It’s vibrant with a great sense of community, enviable lifestyle, great food and culture and pretty beaches.”
Roberts said one of his first tasks was to ensure the FCA membership was properly represented. “I’ll advocate for their collective needs to government and industry to secure the most fertile environment in which these incredible festivals can thrive and give back to South Australia many times over,” he said.
For more information about Festival City Adelaide, visit: www.festivalcityadelaide.com.au for details.
Image: Glyn Roberts (supplied)