Last night we held the finale of the Queensland Tourism Futures Mentoring Program at the Brisbane Business Hub, proudly supported by Brisbane Economic Development Agency (BEDA). This program has been running for over 10 years, and it’s something we are deeply passionate about at QTIC, supporting the future generation and leaders of our industry.

Throughout my career I’ve been fortunate to have many unofficial mentors: people who encouraged me, challenged me, and guided me, often without even realising the lasting impact they were making. In today’s world of dispersed workplaces and career shifts, mentoring matters more than ever. That’s why QTIC has opened this program not only to students, but also to career changers, emerging leaders, and anyone taking that non-linear journey into tourism.

It was inspiring to hear mentors and mentees share their journeys last night, and to see the positive impact of these connections. A special mention to Carlie Tough, who completed the program in 2024 and, upon joining QTIC earlier this year, stepped up to deliver an exceptional finale event. We couldn’t deliver this program, or the finale, without the generosity of our partners: The University of Queensland, Tourism Solutions Group, BEDA, Sirromet Wine, and Wine em and Dine em, as well as the QTIC team who support behind the scenes. Another big thank you to our Mentors for generously giving up there time to contribute to the program. We would love to hear from those who’ve been involved as a mentor or mentee: what did you value most, and how can we make the program even stronger?

There’s still time to apply for the Tourism Business Digital Adaption Program $2,500 rebate to upgrade the systems that keep your business running, from bookings to payments to customer feedback tools. It’s a free, practical opportunity to save time and improve your guest experience. Digital capability isn’t a “nice to have”; it’s critical to competitiveness. I encourage every operator to take advantage of this opportunity. More details are in this newsletter.

Last week, more than 180 industry leaders came together at The Star Gold Coast for Queensland’s official World Tourism Day Luncheon. Although it was a little early, it was fantastic to celebrate our industry under the global theme of Sustainable and Transformative Tourism. Highlights included Minister Andrew Powell announcing two new funding rounds to support investment across the visitor economy, and the launch of QTIC’s new multi-year fee-for-service partnership with the Queensland Government, providing certainty for the delivery of workforce, capability, and accreditation programs. We also enjoyed thought-provoking discussions from an outstanding line-up of speakers. A heartfelt thank you to our presenting partner Experience Gold Coast, major partner the Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation, venue partner The Star Gold Coast, and our generous sponsors Fun Over 50 Holidays, Griffith University, and Oztix.

I also had the pleasure of attending the opening of the QUAMPI Arts and Cultural Centre on Minjerribah this month. Advancing First Nations tourism within Queensland is critical and the opening of this Centre ushers in a new era for Quandamooka history, culture and artists. 

We also launched QTIC’s Strategic Plan 2025–2028 and Advocacy Plan 2025–2026. These plans reflect what we’ve heard from across Queensland, and we’ve worked hard to capture the issues and opportunities that matter most to our industry. At the same time, it’s important that QTIC focuses on clear priority areas, we don’t want to spread ourselves too thin and risk achieving little. Over the coming months, we’ll be refining our approach to stay aligned with these plans, and we ask for your support as we do so.

Advocacy remains at the heart of QTIC’s work, ensuring the challenges and opportunities facing our industry are heard and acted on at every level of government. From workforce issues to regulatory reforms and infrastructure investment, our team is actively engaged in making sure your voice shapes the decisions that matter. You can read more about our current advocacy priorities in this newsletter.

And finally — as we head into the September school holidays, I hope it’s a bumper season right across this amazing state: from the outback to the coast, and from the south all the way to the far north!