William Hauritz AM was the director of the Woodford Folk Festival held annually in Queensland, Australia, from its inception to 2019.[1] In 2018, he was named as one of the Queensland Greats by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in a ceremony at the Queensland Art Gallery on 8 June 2018.[2]
The festival is the biggest community-driven cultural event in Australia, injecting millions into the Queensland economy annually. It is acclaimed for its inclusivity, optimism and exploration of ideas, welcoming more than one million interstate and overseas visitors, and has received multiple national and state tourism awards. Under Hauritz’s leadership the festival has extended its reach to regional Queensland communities, engaged more than 47,000 volunteers, helped build arts sector capacity both locally and across Queensland, created opportunities for more than 30,000 artists while fostering new generations of talent, strengthened relations with traditional owners of the festival site and is a model of environmental innovation in the festival sector.[3]
Hauritz was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2005 Australia Day Honours for "service to the community, particularly through the establishment of the Woodford Folk Festival and leadership roles in organisations that provide a forum for the promotion of cross-cultural and artistic awareness".[4]
Hauritz stepped down as director on the return of the festival after a two year covid hiatus in 2022.[1]
- ^ a b Sunshine Coast News (28 March 2023). "'Visionary' festival founder praised as new era starts". Sunshine Coast News. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
- ^ "Congratulations to the 2018 Queensland Greats". Queensland Greats Awards. Queensland Government. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- ^ "2018 Queensland Greats recipients". Queensland Greats. Queensland Government. 28 June 2018. Archived from the original on 27 October 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
- ^ "HAURITZ, William". honours.pmc.gov.au. Retrieved 30 November 2018.