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SUMMIT SPEAKERS & PANELS
Keep checking each Friday for weekly updates on new speakers, panels and sessions.
PETER Brulisauer
Strategic Session: Is it all downhill from here? Reflections on Australia’s Snow Industry: The Realities, Challenges, and Opportunities Ahead.
Peter Brulisauer is an experienced tourism and resort executive whose career spans leadership of the Southern Hemisphere’s most iconic alpine and island destinations. Pete’s connection to Australia’s alpine industry began in Perisher Valley in his parents’ hotels and restaurants, giving him deep, practical insight into mountain hospitality from a young age.
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Pete currently serves as Vice President, International Business Development at Alterra Mountain Company, where he is leading long term international growth initiatives. Previously, Pete was Chief Executive Officer of Hamilton Island, guiding Australia’s most prominent island destination in the post-Covid period and through significant reinvestment and experience development.
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Before his move to the Whitsundays, Pete spent over two decades in senior leadership roles at Perisher and Vail Resorts. During his tenure at Perisher, he rose through operational and executive ranks to become Chief Executive Officer in 2006. At Vail Resorts, he served as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer - Australia and Perisher, with responsibility for all operations in Australia, following Vail Resorts’ acquisition of Perisher, Hotham and Falls Creek, and playing a key leadership role in these transitions.
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Pete was central to major innovations in the alpine industry in Australia, including the introduction of the Perisher Freedom Pass and the Epic Australia Pass both delivering unprecedented value to Australian skiers and snowboarders and significant uplift in resort visits. Pete held directorships with Tourism Snowy Mountains and the Australian Ski Areas Association (now Snow Resorts Australia), where he was also Chairman.
PETER FILOPOULOS
Strategic Session: From Spotlight to Structural Change: Turning National Moments into Lasting Sector Growth
Peter Filopoulos is a highly regarded Australian executive recognised for helping organisations convert moments of national attention into lasting commercial, brand, infrastructure and community outcomes. With more than 25 years of senior leadership across sport, venues, tourism and major events, he has built a strong reputation for aligning brand, experience, government engagement and commercial strategy to drive long-term sector growth.
Most recently, Peter served as Chief Customer, Brand and Marketing Officer at Football Australia during one of the most transformative periods in the sport’s history. He played a leading role in elevating the CommBank Matildas and Subway Socceroos into two of Australia’s most culturally connected national teams, while helping deliver significant commercial growth and audience expansion. He was also part of the senior leadership group responsible for the delivery and legacy outcomes of the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™ — widely regarded as the most successful tournament in the competition’s history.
Working closely with government, industry, commercial partners and community stakeholders, Peter was a key architect of Legacy ’23, helping translate unprecedented national interest into more than $380 million in federal and state government investment in football infrastructure across Australia, including the development of the $116 million Home of the Matildas high-performance and community facility in Victoria.
Across executive leadership roles spanning Football Australia, Football Victoria, Perth Glory FC, Swimming Australia and Marvel Stadium, Peter has consistently led organisational transformation, commercial growth and the creation of fan and visitor experiences that strengthen destinations, major events and industry ecosystems.
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​Peter is currently Managing Director – Experience at Bastion, one of Australia’s largest independent integrated agencies, where he leads the experiential, partnership and sponsorship practice. In this role, he focuses on building experience-led growth platforms that connect brand, audience, partnerships and commercial strategy to deliver measurable outcomes for clients across sport, entertainment, tourism and major events.
Olivia West
Panel Session
Beyond the Mountains: Snow, Communities and Regional Prosperity
Olivia West is the Chief Executive Officer of Regional Development Australia Southern NSW & ACT, where she leads a cross-border region spanning Southern NSW and the ACT, working with government, industry and communities to drive economic growth, strengthen workforce capability and support long-term regional resilience.
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Since commencing in May 2024, Olivia has led RDASNA’s focus on translating regional insights into practical action — convening stakeholders through initiatives such as the Regional Connect series and delivering a suite of evidence-based reports, including recent work on tourism, workforce, transport and housing. This includes the Southern NSW & ACT Tourism Roundtable Outcomes Report, which brought together industry leaders to identify opportunities to strengthen the visitor economy, improve connectivity and better align investment across the region.
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With over 20 years’ experience in the NSW public sector, Olivia has held senior executive roles in regional development, insights and analytics, and disaster recovery. She has led major economic development initiatives and played a key role in responding to complex regional challenges, including bushfires, floods and critical infrastructure disruptions. Her experience provides a strong understanding of how regions adapt to change and how coordinated action across sectors can deliver more sustainable outcomes.
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Olivia brings a broad regional perspective to discussions on the snow industry, recognising its critical role not only as a tourism driver, but as a contributor to regional jobs, infrastructure investment and community vitality. She is particularly focused on how alpine and snow-based economies connect with surrounding regional centres — supporting workforce mobility, year-round visitation and diversified economic opportunities.
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Through her work, Olivia advocates for more integrated approaches between industry, communities and government — ensuring that investment decisions reflect regional realities, infrastructure keeps pace with demand, and local communities are supported to benefit from growth while maintaining resilience in the face of environmental and economic change.
michelle lovell
Panel Session
Beyond the Mountains: Snow, Communities and Regional Prosperity
Michelle Lovell is the President of the Falls Creek Chamber of Commerce, a member of ARIAG, a representative on the Falls Creek Stakeholder Consultative Committee, and an Executive of the Falls Creek Race Club. With two decades of experience across tourism, aviation, hospitality, and destination development, Michelle brings a uniquely comprehensive perspective to mountain resort leadership.
Her career began in the airline industry at just 20 years old, travelling the world while completing her commerce and public relations studies—often from the upper‑deck galley of a 747 between Melbourne and Los Angeles. She progressed into management, product development, and service design before shifting industries and joining Searoad Ferries as part of its transformation management team. There, she helped steer the organisation from a transport provider into a leading tourism experience, working alongside industry leaders and contributing to projects with the Australian Tourism Export Council, the Victorian Tourism Industry Council, and Business Events Victoria.
Michelle later moved into theme park management, leading sales growth and experience development, before her family’s “Snow‑Change” brought them to Falls Creek. In 2021—during the second year of COVID—she and her family took on Lakeside, transforming a run‑down former staff lodge into a thriving on‑mountain hotel, restaurant, and bar. It was here that Michelle discovered the true power of community, as the Falls Creek region endured bushfires, multiple pandemic disruptions, a major landslide that cut road access, and several challenging snow seasons—yet continued to show extraordinary resilience.
As a business owner and hands‑on general manager, Michelle advocates passionately through each of her committee roles for strong, sustainable, visitor‑focused alpine destinations. Her work is grounded in ensuring Victoria’s snow resorts deliver the best possible experience for every guest, while protecting the vibrant communities that make mountain life extraordinary.
Kirsten Alexander
Panel Session
Beyond the Mountains: Snow, Communities and Regional Prosperity
Kirsten was appointed to the role of CEO of Mansfield Shire Council in September 2022, having joined Council in mid-2020 as General Manager Infrastructure and Planning. Prior to joining Council, Kirsten held executive team roles at the Mt Buller alpine resort and at ARTC, leading multi-disciplinary teams in challenging and diverse environments including as Project Director for the $11.3m Mt Buller Water Storage project
Her local government experience includes senior leadership roles with councils in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales, including four years as Mayor of the City of Charles Sturt. This is where she developed her passion for engaging with the community. Since then, she has continued to build great relationships with community groups and leaders, and to lead the successful delivery of projects in partnership with community. Kirsten has a Bachelor of Engineering and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
