THE Hunter Innovation Festival will be seeking collaborative input from the wider Hunter as it takes to the road to officially kick-off this year’s festival. In partnership with local Councils, the Hunter Innovation Festival Roadshow will head to Muswellbrook, Singleton, Port Stephens, Maitland and Lake Macquarie during the first week of its three-week festival program.

The Muswellbrook roadshow event will be held at the recently opened Hunter Innovation Precinct from 3-6pm on Monday October 9.

Innovation for regional businesses will be the focus with key topics including unleashing innovation, unlocking IP, prioritising intellectual property, research and development, creating and encouraging innovative students and adopting automation, robotics and mechatronics.

The Singleton roadshow event will be supported by The Business Centre and will be held at the Central Hotel, Singleton on Tuesday October 10 from 5pm.

The workshop will feature a practical commercialisation and funding presentation led by The Business Centre, where innovation experts will walk participants through the three steps to go to market, and provide tips and advice on how to get funding ready.

This event will help event participants get started and also provide an opportunity to meet experienced Business Connect advisors who can provide additional fee-free support (up to 36 hours) on how to take ideas to market or get funding, as well as provide support for online digital services.

The festival will hit Port Stephens on Wednesday October 11 from 5-7pm and will be held at event host and innovation enabler business, Varley Group.

This event showcases the growing innovation ecosystem in and around Tomago which is enabling significant growth, particularly in the renewable energy sector.

In addition to presentations from the Varley Group, the Port Stephens showcase will also feature guest speakers from the University of Newcastle, MGA Thermal, and LAVO.

The Maitland roadshow will feature meaningful discussions about the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities in the innovation landscape.

Event participants can also gain valuable knowledge from experienced professionals and thought leaders. Held at the Maitland Athletics Centre, the Maitland showcase will be on Thursday October 12 from 11am – 2pm.

The roadshow will then take to Lake Macquarie on Friday October 13 from 7:30-9am.

Held at the Multi-Arts Pavilion in Speers Point, the breakfast event will feature guest speaker Claire Chaikin-Bryan, who will present how creative spaces like Fab Lab empower individuals, communities and businesses to turn ideas into tangible reality. For discussion will also be the concept of a Fab City, where cities envision a future where they produce locally what they consume globally, fostering economic resilience and sustainability.

Rounding out the Hunter Innovation Festival roadshow is a dynamic and collaborative pitch showcase, called A Taste of Shark Tank on Wednesday 18 October.

In collaboration with the Hunter Angels Ltd, this event is inspired by the spirit of Shark Tank, but with a unique emphasis on collaboration and community-building.

Hunter Innovation Festival Chair Alex Brennan said these free roadshow events are a great way for people across the wider Hunter region to come together and share novel ideas and concepts.

“The entire Hunter region is bursting with people who have incredible ideas and knowledge to share.

“By connecting with other like-minded people and innovators, you never know where these conversations may lead to or what ideas may be brought to life,” Mr Brennan said.

Tickets for the Hunter Innovation Festival roadshow events are free to the community, but places are limited for each event. Anyone interested in attending should secure their spot now by heading to the Hunter Innovation Festival website: https://hunterinnovationfestival.org/