Dr Dianne McGrath
Sustainability Strategist, Speaker & Change Leader
Dianne helps organisations turn bold visions into action, inspiring teams to innovate, perform, and lead change. From being shortlisted for the Mars One mission to crewing the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, Dianne blends expertise and adventure to show what’s possible.
Quick Contact
With a PhD in Environmental Engineering and multiple graduate diplomas in sustainability, environmental management, marketing, and education, Dianne brings a rare combination of technical expertise, strategic insight, and real-world experience.
As Director of Food For Thought Consulting Australia, she works with organisations across government, corporate, education, and non-profit sectors to embed practical sustainability strategies, circular economy initiatives, and high-performance systems that deliver measurable impact.
Dianne is a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) and has addressed audiences of over 500,000 people globally, inspiring teams to embrace innovation, resilience, and leadership under pressure. Her talks focus on turning bold visions into actionable strategies, leading through change, and creating sustainable systems that benefit both people and the planet.
Beyond her professional achievements, Dianne embodies the principles she teaches. She was shortlisted for the Mars One mission and is currently crewing in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, demonstrating her commitment to challenge, exploration, and sustainability in action. Her work is not just about ideas—it’s about lived experience, personal mastery, and transformative outcomes.
Topics
Navigate the uncharted: Strategic exploration in action
- How to turn bold, long-term goals into actionable strategic plans
- Building foresight and leading when the map doesn’t exist
- Workshop option available: Trajectory PLANS — Your blueprint for bold goals in shifting conditions
Resilience by design: Leading under pressure
- Leadership lessons from the high seas: what extreme stress teaches us about mental toughness
- The “Dianne 2.0” model: self-experimentation and operational systems for sustainable high performance
- Workshop option available: Micro-Adjustments — Transform habits and mindsets for resilient leadership and better outcomes
Leadership at the edge: Innovation with purpose
- Lessons from space: how extreme missions stretch your leadership and organisation’s potential
- Bridging vision to execution at scale across all sectors
- Workshop option available: From ‘What If’ to ‘What Is’ — Innovation to extraordinary execution mindset for leaders and teams
On purpose: Unlock strategic drive
- A facilitated experience to help individuals and teams clarify their purpose, align strategy with vision, and build roadmaps for meaningful impact
- Ideal for executive offsites, leadership retreats or strategy resets
Still becoming
(Inspirational / Great Story Keynote)
Some people wait for certainty. Others commit — and become. Dianne has made bold choices that defy convention: training for a one-way Mars mission, circumnavigating the planet in a 70-foot racing yacht with 20 strangers, and turning her body into a living experiment in high performance and resilience.
But this isn’t a keynote about achievement. It’s about the courage to begin when the outcome is unknown — and the quiet, determined decision to keep showing up when the map runs out.
This keynote invites audiences into the quiet, courageous journey of showing up for big dreams — the messy middle, the broken expectations, the breakthroughs that no one claps for.
With insight, humility and humour, Dianne explores how we navigate ambiguity, lead without a roadmap, and rise to meet moments we’re not yet ready for — but choose anyway.
Facilitator: Strategic conversations that matter
With her rare combination of lived experience, deep strategic insight, and exceptional communication skills, Dianne is a trusted facilitator for high-stakes conversations and leadership panels. Whether guiding executive roundtables, moderating industry panels, or hosting purpose-driven discussions, Dianne creates clarity, momentum and meaningful outcomes in the room.
Ideal for: Conference panels, leadership forums, board retreats, innovation summits, or cross-sector dialogues requiring skilled, credible, and engaging facilitation.
