Director | Common Ground Trails (WA)

Dave’s ethos is connecting people with trails, spaces and landscapes. Common Ground evolved from a shared love of mountain biking and trails and the unique ability for them to unite individuals and communities.  Dave will share insights into processes and strategies behind Dwellingup’s evolution into a premier trail destination.

Presentation topic: Vision – Do the sum of the parts make a whole?

Stakeholder engagement, regional master planning, trail design and construction, visitor facilities planning and design, development of the trail centre.

Examine how these elements came together to create unified vision, offering a seamless experience for visitors, driving increased visitation and fostering economic growth. Additionally, we’ll reflect on the lessons that can be learned by comparing Dwellingup’s visitor experience with international trail town models.

Director | Magic Dirt Trailworx (WA)

John Dingey, better know as JD is a passionate sustainable trail builder. Magic Dirt is one of WA’s original trail building companies with a mission to ensure every trail they build is better than the last.  JD and his team have been hands on in the development of the Dwellingup trail networks crafting world-class trail systems that attract riders and elevate destinations.  

Presentation topic: Building Sustainable Trails – The challenges and successes

How do you balance designing engaging but inclusive trail systems that cater to a wide range of users? How to manage excitement with sustainability and making the most of limited fall. 

Assistant Director, Parks and Visitor Services Division | Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) – (WA)

Rod has been in protected area management for more than 40 years. Balancing community expectations for facilities and services in parks with available resources, whilst protecting the nature and culture of the parks.  

Presentation topic: How Trails Contribute to Nature Conservation 

There is plenty of research to show that people spending time in nature are more likely to speak up for and act to protect the places that that they visit and care about and to more generally adopt pro-environmental behaviours. Place attachment and connectedness to nature plays a key role in the adoption of pro-environmental behaviours 

The presentation will challenge trail managers, trail builders and trail users to think about how they can do more to give back to the environment and landscapes where they are planning, building and maintaining trails.

Trail Super User | Bennett and Slater (NZ)

Sarah has biked and biked New Zealand’s trails for more than 25 years as a professional travel writer for Lonely Plante, Tourism New Zealand, the Department of Conservation and many more. She has seen where magic happens and where trails fall flat.   

Presentation topic: The Sweet Spot – Trail tails from a super-user  

What is it that creates great trails that deliver for visitors, host communities, nature and the economy? 

Head of Digital Experience | Destination Store (NSW)

With a keen eye for digital trends, Ben’s focus is to strengthen destinations across all digital touch points. From growing engaged communities to sourcing compelling content, Ben understands what works (and what doesn’t) when it comes to turning trails into must-ride destinations.

Presentation topic: Beyond the Trailhead – How to source and create content that grows your MTB audience

Whether you’re a marketer or a decision-maker new to trail marketing, this session will help you rethink your approach and start turning your trails into destinations.

Director and Guide | Off the Beaten Track (WA)

Tracy’s thirst for adventure and hiking combined with an entrepreneurial spirit resulted in her founding Off The Beaten Track WA in 2017. Tracy’s specialty lies in making trails and adventure more accessible and inclusive. Through hiking and trails, Tracy and her team are improving the lives of West Australian’s living with a disability, one step and one adventure at a time.

Presentation topic: Empowering Lives Through Accessible Tourism: The Off the Beaten Track (OTBT) journey

Join Tracy as she shares the OTBT story. A story of inspiration, resilience and impactful change. Delve into the intricacies of how seemingly modest adjustments can result in profound effects.

Tracy will share her blueprint and a call to action for other business. Learn how small changes, when driven by a genuine commitment to inclusivity, can yield monumental impacts.

Trail Coordinator | Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (VIC)

The Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (GORCAPA) was established on 1 December 2020 under the Great Ocean Road and Environs Protection Act 2020 to manage, protect and foster resilience of the significant natural, cultural and heritage values of Crown land and marine waters along the Great Ocean Road. Prior to this management reform, 30 organisations were vested with responsibility across the region, creating a suite of planning and delivery challenges and a lack of a shared vision. These challenges included management of the region’s extensive trails network, which includes a rich diversity of multi day walks including the iconic Great Ocean Walk, shared use trails and short walks, rail and mountain bike trails.

Presentation topic: Bringing Everyone Together: Multi agency collaboration and regional trail management

Matt will share insights on how the development of a Regional Trails Strategy has presented a unique opportunity to bring together all land managers, rights holders and stakeholders under a unified vision and principles for trail development, management and promotion. Learnings in developing and fostering stakeholder relations, managing multiple objectives and expectations and creating a shared vision to deliver regional benefit will be explored.