Communications and Project Management
I began my career as a radio journalist and senior producer for public radio networks in Australia and Canada. I have subsequently managed digital communication teams for the Museum of Vancouver, Public Record Office Victoria at the Victorian Archives Centre in Melbourne and more recently as Senior Communications and Marketing Lead for Biosis, an Australian ecology and heritage firm. I have been responsible for writing successful communication strategic plans, produced and curated multi-media content, implemented public programmes and been responsible for digital innovation incubation and system integration. Communication responsibilities have included media relations and promotions, social media strategy and content production, website maintenance and adhering to SEO standards, video production, publications, training materials and the production of annual reports.
Media and Search Marketing Camapaign for AI Microbat Collision Risk Assessment. In 2026 I delivered a content strategy to raise the profile of ecology firm, Biosis, and their work assessing microbat collision risk on windfarms. The campaign showcased their ground-breaking use of combining technologies, including machine learning, in combination with thermal video to better track microbat flying behaviour. I produced a short in-field video embedded on their service page, wrote feature articles which were published by Renew Economy Magazine and the Green Review, along with first page results and AI endorsement on Google search marketing.
Science Communications Content Creation. As Senior Manager of Communications and Marketing for leading Australian ecology and heritage firm Biosis I was tasked with producing content which profiled their environmental assessment work, mostly bird and bat ‘collision risk’ for the renewable energy industry, and activated a SEO web improvement strategy to position them as leading technical consultants in ecology impact assessments and Aboriginal archaeological heritage. I wrote 30 new landing pages about their key services and ensured I implemented SEO best practice so they are now ranked on the first page of google results and endorsed by Gemini Pro as the leading ecology firm in Victoria and NSW. This video profile (linked on image) showcased their important work in monitoring shorebird habitat-use by fitting small monitoring devices to their backs and tracing their daily movements by digital GPS tracking, known as bio-logging.
Communications Asset Production Management: I wrote the annual communications and marketing strategies for the Museum of Vancouver MOV (2009-2013) and was responsible for applying a new brand and vision for both MOV and the state records of Victoria based at the Victorian Archives Centre (2014-2023). I take an evidence-based approach to strategic planning, applying the most effective communication solutions based on data. This includes story planning to promote the value of collection items, promotion of public programs (grants, awards, exhibitions and events) or producing training materials which effectively reach target markets. Media relations work has included overseeing my team's media campaigns for the annual Victorian Premier's History Awards, all VAC Gallery exhibition promotions and previously all Museum of Vancouver exhibitions. I won a Canadian Sector Marketing Award for my work with the Museum of Vancouver in building their new brand and was highly commended for my work in redesigning the state archives website to be user, and search result, centred. Kate has also been responsible for designing effective social media strategies including designing content streams which engage audiences in conversation about shared history; leadership in the sector; contemporary relevance and; public facing services or products. (Click on image for link)
Media Management: I was a radio journalist and program producer for a decade with Local ABC Radio, Australia and CBC Radio, Canada. I have since managed teams responsible for media relations across two cultural institutions. As head of development and audience engagement for the Museum of Vancouver and for Public Record Office Victoria I am familiar with the needs of media agencies. I have managed earned media requests for TV shows Who Do You Think You Are (SBS) or for deadline driven requests from daily news producers. Kate is familiar with pressurized deadlines, ongoing fact checking, and the required publication formats for republication of content across digital, social and broadcast media.
Social Media Strategy: I have built and maintained an engaged following of 31 thousand social media followers across 5 social media platforms for the Victorian Archives Centre, and an audience of 6 thousand followers for ecology firm Biosis. I identifed core markets and then design a content strategy based on key objectives. For the state archives of Victoria I built a strategy around five content pillars: leadership, nostalgia, relevance, behind the scenes and diversity. Content was sought and produced under those five strategic targets to engage the public with the historic collection, remind government workers of their legal obligations to government recordkeeping, and has helped to earn brand recognition of the state collection across Melbourne's cultural landscape. For Biosis, I focused on technical expertise, profiling their work as ecologists and heritage archaeologists and honing in on the nuanced technical expertise their consultants bring to the field to ensure their clients can be confident they're paying for quality assessments to meet state planning reporting guidelines.
Long Format Articles: Kate has written a number of long format journalistic articles as a freelance writer. From travel articles to personal lifestyle pieces Kate has been published by a range of publications. She has written for: Vietnam Airlines Magazine; Slate Magazine, for Me and My Mutation; The respected Canadian publication The Tyee on repatriation of indigenous artifacts; for Traces Magazine, on modernist design in reducing 20th Century pandemics; and for communications journal Story.com she wrote a 'How To' sector article on persuasive communication techniques.
Behind The Scenes Video: To satisfy the curiosity of the public interested in the work of paper conservators, and archival collection management staff, Kate produced a profile video of the conservation teams working on historic prison registers at the Victorian Archives Centre. The video explained the value of the prison registers and the process conservators follow to remove mould from the large volumes. (Click on image for link)
First People's Respectful Language Guide: Kate completed a project in 2023 to write a respectful language guide for staff to assist them in writing respectfully about Victorian Aboriginal First Peoples' history. It was the first comprehensive guidance document written specifically to service the needs of the staff and clients of the agency. The guide draws from a range of recommendations made by indigenous led organisations such as the Indigenous Archives Collective, Yoorrook Justice Commission media protocols, University of NSW guide to indigenous terminology and Vic Gov's First People's State Relations (among others). She sought cultural advisory guidance during the production of the guide from Liz Allen.
Publications: Kate and her team designed and co-wrote the key promotional publication for the Victorian Archives Centre. The publication showcases a range of historic archives available to researchers and university students, presented as mini stories per page. This includes records related to Aboriginal Victorians, Royal Commission witness testimonies into the 2019 bushfires, historic photographic collections of Port Melbourne and case files of those in mental health institutions. The publication is now used as a researcher training tool and is given to all masters students of history at Melbourne University as part of their introductory training into the collection. In addition Kate has written a number of other training publications including How to research your historic home. (Click on image for link)
Video Training Materials: The complexity of researching archived collections triggered the need for a range of researcher training videos. This included writing an animation script and working with animators to visually explain and simplify how 19th century letters to government were organised. The animation is used by history lecturers, internal support staff and online researchers to aid in their research.(Click on image for link)