Travels From South Australia
Speaker Topics
Future-Ready Governance - Sharper decisions for boards and elected leaders.
Audiences leave with a framework for governing AI and innovation; sharper questions for the table; confidence to lead change, not just react.
Boards and councils are being asked to govern AI, risk and disruption that didn’t exist a few years ago. As a former Lord Mayor, Stephen knows the chamber and the boardroom from the inside, and helps directors and elected members ask better questions and govern emerging technology.
Leading in the Age of AI - The future of leadership is more human, not less.
Audiences leave with a clear read on how AI changes their role; how to lead teams through disruption; the questions every executive and board should be asking now.
AI is rewriting how organisations decide, work and create value, and most leadership models haven’t caught up. Stephen shows leaders how to cut through the hype, make confident calls under uncertainty, and double down on the human skills machines can’t replace.
Read lessStrategic Foresight in an AI World - Turn uncertainty into your biggest advantage.
Audiences leave with a method to turn trends into decisions; how to build strategy that survives surprise; where AI genuinely adds an edge.
Most strategy still bets on a future that looks like the past. Stephen hands leaders a practical foresight toolkit to anticipate change, stress-test plans against multiple futures, and use AI to sharpen human judgement rather than replace it.
The Agentic Leader - Going agentic, personally and professionally.
Audiences leave with where to start and what to automate first; how AI reshapes you and why leading yourself differently changes how you lead others.
The next leadership edge isn’t knowing about AI, it’s running on it. Stephen shares his own move to an agentic operating system across work, health, home and travel, and what it teaches leaders about productivity, wellbeing and judgement. Part live case study, part practical playbook.
The Future Citizen - The people you’ll serve, employ and lead next.
Audiences leave with a sharp profile of the future citizen; where today’s assumptions will break; how to design services, products and workplaces people actually want.
Customers, staff and communities are changing faster than most strategies. AI, longer lives, new values and shifting demographics are rewriting how people will live. Stephen paints a vivid, evidence-based picture oftomorrow’s citizen and what it takes to stay relevant.
The Future of Cities - How technology and design are reshaping where we live and work
Audiences leave with where cities are going and why; how AI and design shape liveability and value; what it means for their sector.
The rules of city-making are being rewritten, from housing and CBDs to mobility, public space and liveability. Stephen blends frontline experience leading a capital city with a futurist’s eye to show where places are heading and what it means for investment, communities and growth
Stephen Yarwood
Leader of Global Urban Innovation and Strategic Foresight, and Former Lord Mayor of Adelaide
Stephen Yarwood, a distinguished Futurist, Urbanist, and former Lord Mayor of Adelaide, is a catalyst for transformative change in both corporate and community settings. With a profound expertise in cross-disciplinary strategic foresight, Stephan explores the dynamic interplay between people, places, technology, and change. His passion extends beyond envisioning the future; he actively educates, motivates, and empowers individuals to shape it.
Stephan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Planning, Graduate Diplomas in Regional & Urban Planning and Environmental Studies, and an MBA from Adelaide University. He is an award-winning Fellow of the Planning Institute of Australia, with extensive international experience across Australia, New Zealand, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. His career spans roles in the South Australian Government, Parliament, and Local Government, where he has excelled as a planner, researcher, educator, and speaker. He has led initiatives dealing with various land use types and a range of environmental, economic, community design, and development issues.
As an international thought leader on "the future citizen," Stephan is a committed advocate for collaborative leadership, assisting leaders in navigate the evolving social, environmental, and economic landscape. His consultancy, city2050, specialises in transformative strategic planning, providing innovative governance, strategy, and policy solutions. City2050 serves global corporations, governments, and communities, aiming to prepare and empower them for a rapidly changing future.
Stephan’s professional services include keynote speaking, workshops, strategic planning, scenario planning, training, coaching, and stakeholder engagement. He is a highly sought-after speaker known for his articulate and though-provoking communication style, engaging audiences worldwide on urban excellence, governance, and visionary leadership. His favourite engagements involve diagnostic and vision-setting commissions for cities, towns, and regions globally, where he applies his expertise to create sustainable and innovative urban environments.
In addition to his consulting work, Stephan was announced as a founding member of the Airbnb Mayoral Advisory Board in 2016, alongside three former mayors from the U.S. and Italy, contributing valuable insights from his tenure leading Adelaide to strengthen Airbnb’s partnership with cities globally. His contributions have earned Adelaide international recognition as an innovative destination by Lonely Planet, National Geographic, and The New York Times.