Who’s who at Culture Collective

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7 people sit around a table with microphone in front of them. There are Culture Collective banners behind them.

Photo credit: Chris Scott

Hundreds of people and organisations make up Culture Collective – our richness is in our diversity. Here’s an introduction to some of the people behind the scenes:

The Programme Lead team

Three people stand in front of a Culture Collective banner, smiling. Morvern, on the left, wears a black smart jacket. Kathryn, in the middle, wears a bright green roll-neck, and Matt, on the right, wears a black t-shirt.

Photo credit: Lydia Smith

The Culture Collective network and activity was coordinated by a Programme Lead team between April 2021 and October 2023. This team consisted entirely of freelancers, and includes:

Kathryn Welch, Programme Lead. Kathryn co-ordinates the programme, liaises with Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government, and supports the co-ordinators leading Culture Collective projects.
Morvern Cunningham, Creative Lead. Morvern co-ordinates a programme of support for the creative practitioners working across the network, and organises our events.
Matt Hickman, Engagement Lead. Matt leads our work to ensure artists from a diverse range of backgrounds are supported within the network, including designing bespoke support and networking opportunities.
Arusa Qureshi, Communications Lead. Arusa manages Culture Collective’s website and social media, including commissioning blogs, writing resources, and interviewing artists and practitioners.

In October 2023, management of the programme was handed back to Creative Scotland. For questions and enquires about Culture Collective, please contact [email protected].

The Programme Lead team work regularly with other freelancers who bring extra skill, knowledge and perspective to the team. In particular, we’re keen to recognise (and recommend!) some of our regular collaborators:

Halina Rifai produced the Future Culture Podcast, which also included music by Hen Hoose.
Maria Stoian created the illustrations for our events and podcast series.
The Starting Points events were hosted – variously – by Lewis Hou, Heather Parry, Arusa Qureshi, Ink Asher Hemp, Emma Jane Park and Tomiwa Folorunso.
Mario Cruzado brought the technical wizardry to capture, edit and share our live event videos.

The Culture Collective projects

The Culture Collective network is made up of 26 individual projects. These are typically collaborative efforts, including multiple organisations, artists, groups and communities. You can find out more about – and get in touch with – individual Culture Collective projects via the links within the Projects section of the site. You should contact them directly to discuss job opportunities / commissions, or getting involved in your local project.

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