So, what is a Future Shaper?
We joined forces with five esteemed cultural experts to help us find Sydney's best and brightest across five key fields.
Future Shapers – Sydney's greatest innovators, trailblazers and community builders
Time Out's celebration of the individuals and organisations making lasting change in the city's arts, civics, sustainability, food and drink, and community and culture sectors.
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Arts
Things to do
Serwah Attafuah
Part of a vanguard of creators on the bleeding edge of the cryptoart revolution, Attafuah is redefining the way we connect with digital art.
Things to do
Moreblessing Maturure
An interdisciplinary artist, publisher and advocate whose works defies boundaries of genre and identity.
Things to do
Daniel Monks
The acclaimed actor is expanding the scope of the roles available to people with disability.
Things to do
Scott Marsh
A creator striding the dual paths of the studio portraitist and the guerilla graffiti artist.
Nakkiah Lui
The Gamillaroi and Torres Strait Islander playwright and actor is one of the most relevant artists of her generation.
Coby Edgar
Curator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Civics
Things to do
Teela Reid
Lawyer, activist and a proud Wiradjuri and Wailwan woman with a commitment to eliminating systemic racism.
Things to do
Chanel Contos
The student activist has sparked a wake-up call in the way consent and sexuality are taught and discussed.
Things to do
Olivia Williams
The founder of an education platform that has grown into a movement that protects culture in the real world.
Things to do
Sara Saleh
The celebrated poet and human rights activist has spent more than a decade championing her community.
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Food and Drink
Things to do
Palisa Anderson
The founder of the Chat Thai group is pioneering a more sustainable, less impactful way to operate a restaurant.
Bars
Matt Whiley
The man behind the world's first no-waste bar share his vision for a low-impact hospitality sector.
Things to do
Shaun Christie-David
The co-founder of Colombo Social is striving for a more socially conscious culture from Sydney's restaurateurs.
Things to do
Lee Tran Lam
Sydney-based journalist, editor and copywriter, Lee Tran Lam is challenging preconceived notions about food media.
Things to do
Josh Niland
The founder of Saint Peter and the Fish Butchery is bringing 'nose to tail' seafood into the mainstream.
Sustainability
Things to do
Jean Hinchliffe
For eco-activist and leader of Australia’s School Strike 4 Climate movement, Jean Hinchliffe, the tragedy of the fires that incinerated millions of...
Things to do
Nik Robinson from Good Citizens
Robinson wanted to do something to bring about a positive change in the world that they would eventually inherit as adults. But where to start on addressing a...
Things to do
Anna Rose, Clare Ainsworth Herschell and Arielle Gamble from Groundswell Giving
Eco activism is an essential tool in persuading and lobbying our often apathetic power structures to take action, but strategic solutions to such a complex...
Things to do
Clarence Slockee
Based on Gadigal land, proud Mindjingbal-Bundjalung man Clarence Slockee has spent a lifetime advancing his knowledge of native bush food and Indigenous...
Things to do
Jones from Sydney Vegan Market
As businesses and events search for ideas on doing things greener, there is a diverse community that they can turn to for inspiration – that is, the...
Things to do
Jess Miller
Councillor Jess Miller was elected to the City of Sydney Council as part of the Clover Moore Independent team in 2016.
Miller’s key areas of expertise...
Community and Culture
Things to do
Billy Kokkinis
In 1978, when gym owner Billy Moore offered Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ community the recently-opened City Gym as a safe space, at a time when homosexuality...
Things to do
Teddy Cook and Liz Duck-Chong, TransHub creators
As a metropolitan centre, Sydney has a burgeoning trans community. But for a long time there has not been reliable and comprehensive information around many...
Things to do
Emerald City Kickball
A sense of belonging is something we instinctively recognise as valuable. In fact, it’s a yearning that’s hardwired; the most primitive parts of...
Things to do
Dwayne Bannon-Harrison
A Yuin-Ngarrugu descendant with connections to the Yorta-Yorta, Dja Dja Warrup, Watchabolic and Gunai language groups as well as Scottish...
Things to do
William Trewlynn
It was a chance meeting with a young man, a fellow Indigenous queer person who had fallen on hard times, that sparked something in William Trewlynn and led...