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About Dr Katie
Dr Katie Butler is a community development practitioner, disability inclusion specialist and social researcher. Driven to advance equity, opportunity and inclusion, she concurrently focuses on improving organisational policy and practice for inclusivity and working directly within diverse communities to build empowerment and community connectedness.
Katie has worked in the human services sector across local government, not-for-profit and higher education since 2012. She currently works at the University of Newcastle as an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator. Katie was born with bilateral Peters Anomaly. She gets about with her wonderful Seeing Eye Dog Quinnie and uses screen reading software and electronic braille to work and research.
As a proud blind professional and academic, Katie strongly advocates for and works to enable disabled leadership in research, policy development and service design and delivery.
I work to advance equity, opportunity and inclusion.
I am concurrently focused on improving organisational policy and practice for inclusivity and working directly with diverse communities to foster capacity and community connectedness.
I bring a unique approach to my work by applying a community development lens to all work I undertake. I bring people together who share a common purpose to support, empower and mobilise one another to realise their full potential and power to make a difference.
As a social researcher, I take a well-informed approach and continuously evaluate and strengthen my work in diversity, inclusion and community development initiatives.
I have recently completed my PhD at the University of Sydney. Using an action research methodology, I explored the influence of role reversal experiential learning activities on the capability for disability inclusive planning and practice in a local government setting.
I am a proud disabled professional and strongly advocate for our leadership over work which impacts our lives, whether in research, policy development or service delivery.
Katie is a current SED handler and has experience in disability and community advocacy. She is an experienced researcher, has a PHD in disability inclusive workplace practice, and is a passionate believer in client centred service delivery.