Our Staff

Liz Martin CEO

With over 25 years of experience in the arts and disability sectors, Liz is a leading expert in disability access and inclusion, an award-winning musician, and a passionate advocate for authentically representative, diverse, and accessible arts and cultural sectors. As CEO of Accessible Arts NSW, Liz also serves on the Create NSW Community and Cultural Development Board and the Sydney Festival Access Committee. She has previously held leadership roles, including Deputy Chair of Arts Access Australia and member of Create NSW’s Contemporary Music Board. In addition to her advocacy, Liz is an accomplished musician, having released six albums, collaborated with a wide range of artists, and performed at prestigious venues such as the Sydney Opera House, Melbourne Recital Hall, and major festivals around the country.

Libby Forsyth Operations Manager

Libby Forsyth is responsible for Access, Finance, Information Technology, Human Resources, Office Management and Operations. This is a strategic role for Accessible Arts focusing on employment, employee wellbeing, organisation strategy and operations. With over 22 years’ experience working in Not for Profits across a variety of industries, Libby brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this newly created role. An experienced senior people and programs manager, Libby’s skills are across all aspects of operations with key areas of interest in Human Resources, Industrial Relations, Work Health and Safety and Systems. Libby is a qualified economist, trainer and assessor who practises pottery in her spare time.

Amy Claire Mills Arts Development Manager

Amy Claire Mills is responsible for developing and delivering a comprehensive program of activities. This vital role enhances opportunities for people with disability to engage in quality creative activities as practitioners and audiences across all art forms. With a broad range of skills, Amy has worked with community and art organisations, local councils and fellow artists to curate exhibitions and events focusing on access, inclusion and representation. Amy is informed by her own practice as a disabled textiles artist, curator and access consultant who focuses on access, inclusion, and representation. Her immersive textile installations explore identity and challenge the narratives surrounding disability, promoting new vocabularies of softness, empathy, and care.

Rachel Musgrove Marketing and Development Manager

Rachel Musgrove, is responsible for overseeing marketing, communications and development functions to promote and diversify audiences for core programs. With more than 20 years’ experience in the arts and culture sector, Rachel manages all channels, developing promotional content, securing funding partnerships and implementing fundraising opportunities to support our strategic goals. Rachel is a playwright and theatre maker, whose diverse writing includes comical children’s books and academic essays and has served as a script editor for a leading play publisher in London. Rachel is proud to be part of the Accessible Arts team, striving for equity within the arts and cultural sector.

Daniel Jaramillo Office Administrator

Daniel Jaramillo is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the office and he manages access needs for training, events and programs. Daniel is a Sydney University graduate in philosophy and cultural studies, and he completed high school at the Australian Institute of Music. Daniel’s skills range from research on all things related to popular culture to writing and thinking critically about topics such as music, news, media, entertainment, politics or sport to ethical and social issues. Daniel has contributed to over 150 reviews of concerts, albums, art, and films to various publications and community radio stations, demonstrating his expertise in critically engaging with popular culture and ethical issues.

Michelle Teear Training and Project Coordinator

Michelle Teear is responsible for the coordination of our training programs including bespoke, in-house and public courses. This role supports our casual trainers who deliver our workshops and trainings. Michelle is an accomplished arts events and project manager, trainer, advisor, disability consultant and a visual artist who is dedicated to enhancing inclusivity and diversity within the arts sector. At the heart of her extensive managerial and educational roles in not-for-profit arts and music events is her commitment to fostering a vibrant and accessible arts community and contributing to an arts sector of greater inclusivity and diversity. Michelle was shortlisted for the Evelyn Chapman award 2020 and completed a residency at Bundanon in 2020.

Bedelia Lowrenčev Project Coordinator, Equip: Leadership Toolkit 2024

Bedelia (they/she) is a groovy disabled actor, dancer, singer, agitator, theatre maker, producer and Access Coordinator, living and working on Wategoro and Wangal Land. Bedelia was Assistant Producer for Raghav Handa’s THE ASSEMBLY at Campbelltown Arts Centre, the recipient of the Performing Lines NSW Producer Platform, Access Coordinator at Performance Space for Liveworks2023 and Griffin Studio Residency.

Our Trainers

Morwenna Collett, Bec Hogan, Eugenie Lee, Bedelia Lowrenčev, Carly Marchment Supple, Bridie McKim, Fiona McMurphy, Amy Claire Mills, Rhiannon Pegler, Kerri Shying, Madeliene Stewart, Michelle Teear, Nat Thomas and Anthea Williams.

Our Advisers

Antoinette Barbouttis, Faye Chamberlain, Marion Conrow, Alex Craig, Emily Dash, Dan Graham, Athena Goard, Gum Guo, Maree Jenner, Christine Johnson, Jessica Kejun Xu, Madeleine Stewart, Sigrid MacDonald, Kate Matairavula, Rebbeca McCormack, Cobie Moore, Laura Osweiler, Marisa Pasicznik Ross, Karen Peacock, Michelle Peat, Allison Reynolds, Keith Rutherford, Natalia Stawyskyi, Stephanie Sullivan, Casey Gray, Randa Magdi, M (Sunny) Sunflower, Danielle Maas, Aaron Matheson, Rebecca Scrioli, Robert Duffield, Marianthe Loucataris, Narelle Whitham, Kyle Goldfinch, Al Azmi, Shawnah Cady, Shelley Clarke, Ben Harris, Casey Heffernan, Lindy Hou, Liz Lea, Gillian Pollack, Aleyn Silva, Shona Thomas, Fi Peel and Phoebe Lupton.

Our Board

Jaci Armstrong, Chairperson

Jaci Armstrong has extensive experience in the disability, government and health sectors including positions with NSW and Federal MPs and at KPMG in Sydney. Jaci has also served as National Policy Advisor for Guide Dogs Australia (GDA) where she led strategy and engagement with government and industry bodies. Ms Armstrong also represented GDA on blindness sector peak bodies Vision2020 Australia and Blind Citizens Australia, and was one of four Australian delegates to the World Blind Union. Jaci also has substantial governance experience and currently serves on the boards of People with Disability Australia and HireUp. Ms Armstrong is also a former chairperson of Riding for the Disabled. Jaci has extensive lived experience of disability. Having had significant vision loss since birth, she has benefited from having a Guide Dog as her primary mobility aid for over 20 years. Further understanding of the importance of accessible design, inclusive practices and attitudes has been reinforced by observing the experiences of her twin sister who has cerebral palsy.

Kate Lidbetter, Deputy Chairperson

BA (Syd Uni), Grad Dip Arts Management (UTS), Master of Policy (UNSW), Grad Cert Applied Finance (Kaplan), Graduate Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD).

Kate is Chief Executive Officer of Symphony Australia, also known as Symphony Services International. Previous positions have included Director of Music at the Australia Council for the Arts, Artist Development Manager of Symphony Australia, Artistic Administrator of the Australian Youth Orchestra and General Manager of Sydney Children’s Choir. Kate is Chair of Gondwana Choirs and has held previous directorships with Ensemble Offspring and ADHD Australia. She regularly participates on panels, committees and juries for various music organisations in Australia and abroad.

Vishwas Singh CA, Treasurer

Graduate Diploma of Chartered Accounting from Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand. Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Otago.

Vishwas is a Senior Accountant at Hines overseeing investor reporting, ASIC compliance, SOX compliance, managing financial services integration and treasury functions including cashflow and budget variance analysis. Before his roles in commercial real estate, Vishwas was an auditor at PwC New Zealand and Deloitte Australia and has worked with clients operating in various industries. Vishwas is also a casual academic at UNSW and UTS and often takes part in panel discussions to further the dialogue between industry and academia.

Alex Jones, Director

Bachelor of Fine Arts (New York University), Graduate Australian institute of Company Directors (GAICD), Certified Provisional Deaf Interpreter and Translator (NAATI, CPN4QG52P). Alex is a leader with more than 15+ years of experience in corporate, government, and non-government roles. He is a dedicated advocate for changing societal attitudes towards people with disabilities and people who are Deaf or hard of hearing in Australia. A Co-founder of Ai-Media, a global captioning solution provider, Alex has been instrumental in enhancing accessibility. With a background in cultural event leadership, including the 2005 Melbourne Deaflympics Cultural Festival and 2018 Australian Deaf Games, he has been a longstanding ambassador for the NSW Don’t DIS my ABILITY campaign. Alex currently works at Sydney Opera House as a Senior Manager, Access in the Social Engagement and Impact Team. He continues to drive initiatives that empower individuals with disabilities, embodying his commitment to fostering inclusivity and equal opportunities.

David Kay, Director
David is an independent consultant for the disability sector. He more than 15 years’ experience in advising governments and large not-for-profit organisations on disability sector strategy and reform, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), and the interface between the NDIS and other mainstream government services and sectors (including health, education, justice, and the arts). David has held a number of not-or-profit Board position in the health and disability sectors.  He is currently a Board Member for the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation, and was a former Chair of the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation Australia.

Emily Dash, Director

Emily Dash is an accomplished filmmaker and theatremaker as well as a dedicated industry advocate for arts practitioners and audiences with disability or who are Deaf. Emily has written, produced, directed and/or performed in many screen and stage productions in Sydney and has worked with the ABC and Sydney Opera House. Emily has participated in several Accessible Arts professional development programs and is a member of Accessible Arts’ Advisory Panel. She is also a board member of Bus Stop Films, Attitude Foundation, and Dirty Feet.

Fiona Winning, Director

Fiona has had a diverse career in independent and commercial performing arts across contemporary performance, theatre, dance and festivals. She was Sydney Festival Head of Programming from 2012 to 2017, presenting works by inspirational Australian and international artists in venues across the city. Previously, Fiona worked as a dramaturge and producer in contemporary arts, curating the Australian Theatre Forum in 2011 and co-convening the Bundanon Trust’s annual Siteworks event in 2010-11. From 1999 to 2008, Fiona was Director of Performance Space, a national contemporary arts hub based in Sydney. In this role, she collaborated with artists and communities to conceive and produce events in theatres, galleries and public spaces, as well as developing a range of festival, training and residency programs. She was instrumental in the development of Carriageworks, collaborating with the arts sector, Arts NSW and architects Tonkin Zulaikha Greer. Fiona is also a lecturer and co-designer of NIDA’s landmark Master of Fine Arts (Cultural Leadership) course.

Alice Anderson, Director

Alice Anderson GAICD PLV (she/they) is a seasoned board director and disability inclusion advocate. With over a decade of experience, she brings a unique perspective to fostering inclusive environments. As a person with learning disabilities, Alice understands the challenges and opportunities faced by individuals with disabilities. Alice has served on multiple not-for-profit boards and a strong interest in good governance. She is currently the Sector Development Coordinator at The Centre for Volunteering, promoting inclusive volunteering spaces. Alice holds a Bachelor of Arts and diplomas in Community Service Work and Business Management. She is also a graduate of the Australian Institute for Company Directors’ Company Directors course. They also studied Auslan, by completing Certificate II and III.

Ursula King, Director

Ursula is a researcher and writer. Her career has encompassed clinical emergency medicine, service sector consultancy, community development and academia. Ursula’s current research focuses on knowledge translation using creative practices in the fields of sustainable futures, planetary health and medical humanities. Her writing crosses creative non-fiction, essay, poetry and podcasting. A member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Ursula has completed the Company Directors Course with particular interests in diversity and inclusion, governance and strategic engagement.

Image description: A group photo of Accessible Arts staff including standing in a line with the Harbour Bridge in the background. Photo includes (from left to right): Libby Forsythe, Amy Claire Mills, Bedelia Lowrenčev, Liz Martin, Daniel Jaramillo and Rachel Musgrove. Photo by Dieter Knierim.

ENDS