Collective Leisure launches new Advisory Board

Collective Leisure, Australia’s first social enterprise leisure management company, has announced the formation of its new advisory board.

A significant milestone for the consultancy, the Advisory Board brings together a diverse range of experts to support their commitment to social justice and increasing their positive impact in our communities.

With a social enterprise deemed a ‘business for good’, trading like any other business but existing specifically to make the world a better place, Collective Leisure is certified by the regulator Social Traders.

Founded in 2019 from a deep sense of social justice, the awareness that global health and well-being are tracking poorly, and the desire to create a sustainable social enterprise, Collective Leisure co-creates programs for hard to reach and underserved communities - with the mission is to reduce health inequity within our communities.

Announcing the formation of the Advisory Board, Collective Leisure Chief Executive, David Burns stated “we’re very excited to bring together a highly respected group of humans to support us with our mission of reducing health inequity with our communities.”

Advisory Board member Simon Rosenbaum joins from UNSW Sydney where he is a Scientia Associate Professor.

With research focuses on physical activity and mental illness, including physical health comorbidities, Associate Professor Rosenbaum brings a range of experience to the board as he has been involved in numerous international projects including as a consultant to the World Health Organization, Physical Activity unit and to the United Nations in Bangladesh.

Dr Sharon Zivkovic is the co-founder of Wicked Lab, founder of Community Capacity Builders and Centre for Autistic Social Entrepreneurship and she is also proudly Autistic. She has a long history of working in the social enterprise sector, including as a Visiting Fellow at Northumbria University in the UK, with numerous accolades including Enterprising Woman of the Year award in 2001 for “making communities more enterprising, taking advantage of their communal strength.”

Karen Creavin joins the board from across the globe as it’s only UK member. She is the Chief Executive of Active Well-being Society (UK) and has more than 25 years’ experience working in the public sector in Britain. She has established award winning programs centred around increasing physical activity including ‘Gym for Free’ which has then rolled out nationally under the name ‘Be Active’.

Jackson Hills brings 15 years of experience working in the non-profit and community organisations and is the current Manager Policy and Strategic Engagement of Q Shelter, Queensland’s peak body for housing and homelessness services. He has worked as a mentor for young people and in local and state government roles. He has a strong understanding of social justice and understands the power of sport as a movement for change and he brings this vision to support CL’s growth.

Tim Green is a Governance Specialist for Campbelltown Council and he has worked in both the private and public sectors in law and governance for more than 15 years. Prior to his legal career Tim pursued a professional sports career and was the proprietor of a highly successful bicycle and sports store in Queensland. His diagnosis of Stargardt’s Disease shifted his career focus and ambition of becoming a triathlete and racing in IRONMAN. In 2022 David and the team supported Tim to complete his first IRONMAN challenge and overcome the challenges of being a vision-impaired athlete.

The diverse board is well-placed to provide multisectoral specialist skills and knowledge in combination with lived experience to support Collective Leisure’s vision to reduce health inequity through accessible sport, physical activity and well-being programs, particularly for those most in need.

To find out more about Collective Leisure programs and services go to www.collectiveleisure.com.au/

Images: The Collective Leisure board (top) and David Burns gets recognition at the 2022 Aquatic and Recreation Institute Awards (below).