"Having lived and worked in regional communities throughout Australia, I understand that every place has its own story, strengths and aspirations. The best solutions come from listening first and working alongside the people who know their communities best."
About Nicole
Nicole Duyst is an independent Strategic Consultant with a passion for helping organisations create meaningful change through collaboration, thoughtful engagement and practical strategic planning.
With extensive experience working across local government, regional organisations, not-for-profit organisations and the private sector, Nicole partners with clients to navigate complex challenges, build consensus and develop strategies that deliver lasting outcomes.
Partners and Collaborators
Leigh West - Graphic Artist + Co- Design + Creative Director
Leigh West brings a rare blend of artistic intuition, technical design expertise, and practical experience delivering high-impact cultural strategy publications. Leigh is an artist herself and has extensive experience designing visual collateral, engagement tools, and strategy documents that are clear, engaging, and community-driven.
Her work is grounded in regional knowledge, lived experience, and an ability to translate complex ideas into accessible, creative formats.
Leigh’s practice focuses on branding design, illustration and visual storytelling. Her design work is not just aesthetic; it supports strategy and engagement outcomes by making content more understandable, appealing, and human-centred.
With a deep understanding of working with councils and cultural clients, Leigh ensures documents are not only professional but emotionally resonant with stakeholders. . Her ability to collaborate with Nicole on co-design and engagement ads value to projects.
Senior Consultant
Denise Cox is a practicing artist and senior strategy and planning consultant with over 20 years’ experience across local government, sport and recreation, community development, and the arts. Her work is characterised by clear strategic logic, deep engagement with stakeholders, and a strong ability to align plans with operational delivery and measurable outcomes.
Denise brings a sharp policy mind and a collaborative working style, making her a vital asset to any multi-disciplinary project team. She has worked extensively across Queensland with councils, not-for-profits, and community organisations, leading projects that range from master plans to strategic frameworks, cultural audits, and place-based community initiatives.
What sets Denise apart is her ability to work seamlessly between big-picture strategy and on-the-ground reality. She excels at distilling large volumes of data, community feedback and sector research into focused, actionable strategies that are implementable and aligned with government frameworks.
Denise has also supported and advised arts and culture working groups, regional planning teams and local government executives on issues ranging from cultural infrastructure to inter-agency collaboration. She is particularly adept at ensuring that co-designed community engagement leads to realistic, locally relevant outcomes.