About Matt

The short version

Matt Finch (matthewfinch.me) works with communities, companies, and institutions to help them do useful and surprising new things.

Currently developing community engagement projects for the University of Southern Queensland and serving as Creative/Researcher for British Library Labs, Matt has devised everything from a season of burlesque in New Zealand’s biggest city to live zombie battles in rural Australia. He has spoken in the British & Australian Parliaments and is a regular keynote speaker at national and state events.

You can read Matt’s newsletter at tinyletter.com/marvellouselectrical

A bit more about me

I create stories, media, and events to help people learn, play, and explore. My speciality is helping organisations and communities, large or small, to create new and effective activities, policies, and offerings.

I write on science, the arts, and pop culture for print and online media, and also create content for business and the public sector. You might find me explaining the science of snake venom, coaxing local secrets from drinkers in Aussie country pubs, peer reviewing scholarly papers & articles, or making a choose-your-own-adventure online book review. I can also overhaul existing material to make it clear and compelling, whether for a wide readership or a specialised audience. You can find my newsletter at tinyletter.com/marvellouselectrical

I also devise events, games, and workshops that encourage innovation, help people learn, and offer participants a rewarding experience. I’ve created some downloadable activities which are free to use, including the Book Fair Game, which was released for World Book Week 2016 and featured on BoingBoing.

I was the first ever Creative in Residence at the State Library of Queensland, Australia, from 2016-2017, and a consultant for the Australian library which won the national Bess Thomas award for innovation in 2014. The events I’ve created for publishers and media companies have helped them to research new productions.

I’ve spoken in both the Australian and British Parliaments,  and am a regular keynote speaker at conferences – but I’m equally comfortable working with a team of web designers, a kindergarten class, or the patrons of a tin-roofed country pub. Drop me a line.

Full biography

Matt Finch helps communities, companies, and institutions to create new and exciting activities, programmes, and partnerships. His work spans policy consultation and strategic direction, community outreach, collection & events development for cultural institutions, and professional development for staff at all levels.

Matt is regularly invited to keynote at conferences and events including LIANZA 2017, SWITCH 2016 (PDF download), and VALA 2014. He has spoken at the British House of Commons and Australia’s Parliament House on literacy issues and is known for devising lively interactive workshops for professional development and community engagement. From 2016-2017 he was the first ever Creative in Residence at the State Library of Queensland.

He is currently developing community engagement projects for the University of Southern Queensland while serving as Creative/Researcher at British Library Labs, and the author of the newsletter Curious, Mysterious, Marvellous, Electrical (tinyletter.com/marvellouselectrical)

Matt holds a Ph.D. in Modern Intellectual History from the University of London. His writing credits cover a range of print and online media in the US, UK, and beyond.

Find out more about Matt’s writing.

Here are a few case studies.

See testimonials for Matt’s work.