ingrid burkett

I am the Professor and Director of the Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation (formerly The Yunus Centre) Griffith University (https://www.griffith.edu.au/griffith-business-school/centre-for-systems-innovation ), an innovation centre in Griffith Business School, with the purpose of accelerating transitions to regenerative and distributive futures.   

My work links together innovation, entrepreneurship with impact.  My background includes qualifications in design, social work, economics and business and much of my work has focussed on how we can address complex problems - from place-based inequities to shifting how we invest and contract better for deeper impact.  I have worked across Australia and around the world, with a focus on how we can shift systems to enable better outcomes for people, places and the planet.  Along the way I have built five social businesses, contributed to the design of practice models, policy and processes in a diversity of fields, including local economic development, ageing, disability, procurement, impact finance and impact investment. The highlights for me over the last couple of decades have included creating foundations for social procurement in Australia (and writing a number of guidebooks and research reports about this field in the process); and doing groundwork for Australia’s entry into social and impact investment (whilst working in Australia’s first community development finance institution).  I’ve also led the design of a number of key place-based initiatives aimed at addressing entrenched disadvantage including GROW, the Geelong Regional Opportunities for Work initiative, an innovative, award winning approach to engaging business in addressing disadvantage. My previous leadership role at The Australian Centre for Social Innovation involved building internal and external capability in design for social innovation, and leading TACSI’s portfolio of systems innovation work which focusses on shifting outcomes in some of Australia’s most challenging social issues.  I am a Past President and Honorary Ambassador of the International Association for Community Development and continue to be committed to fostering deep local and international dialogue about designing innovative and participatory methodologies for regenerative futures. Over the years I have held a number of University positions, including as inaugural Social Design Fellow for the Centre for Social Impact at the University of NSW and UWA.