FWD›››24
31 July - 2 August
Thriving in Paradise
3 Days
97 Speakers
Join us for Forward Fest, a dynamic & engaging business festival of ideas, creativity, & technology
Forward Fest 24: Thriving in Paradise
A Three-Day Business Festival
A premier three-day business festival designed to unite local businesses, entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, and government representatives, along with state, national, and international delegates.
Event tracks
What to see at this year's Forward Fest
FWD
Climate
The intersection of technology and environmental sustainability, highlighting innovative solutions and strategies to combat climate change.
FWD
Emerging
Showcasing the forefront of technological advancements, emphasising how these innovations are transforming sectors.
FWD
Health
Track explores technology advancements, emphasising the transformative potential of Extended Reality (XR) & Virtual Reality (VR), address global health challenges.
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Invest
Dedicated to exploring investment landscapes, uncovering emerging trends, and networking opportunities for startups.
FWD
Scale
Focuses on what it really takes to scale into a long-term sustainable business.
Festival
FWD
Executive
Designed for leaders who wish to take a quantum leap in their thinking, knowledge of the world, and approach to leadership to build the perfect connections to propel them forward.
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Future
These are core sessions for attendance by all delegates with a focus on future and emerging technologies.
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Growth
Designed for like-minded businesses to share their knowledge and experiences to grow the shared economies with innovation from our region.
FWD›24 Showreel
What is Forward Fest all about?
Forward Fest is a dynamic business festival held on the Sunshine Coast, uniting entrepreneurs, small business owners, investors, researchers, policymakers, government officials, intrapreneurs, and students from local, national, and international spheres, fostering invaluable networking opportunities and knowledge exchange.
Showcase your innovation
Twelve innovative businesses will be selected to participate in the Innovation Showcase.
Forward Fest 2024 presents an exciting opportunity for the Sunshine Coast business community to showcase their ingenuity and share unique solutions with public and private sector business leaders.
Proudly supported by Sunshine Coast Council, the dedicated Sunshine Coast Innovation Showcase promises to be a dynamic platform for local businesses to showcase their cutting-edge products, services and digital solutions.
Sign-up to our FWD›››NEWS
Stay up-to date with all the latest updates
Pay it forward
A festival of innovation and tech
Unlock Your Potential: Join Our Pay It Forward Initiative
Embracing Silicon Coast's Give First ethos, our Pay It Forward initiative invites you to open doors for emerging talent and innovators.
Forward Fest is committed to fostering an inclusive and thriving innovation ecosystem. Our Pay It Forward program allows everyone, from individuals to corporate giants, to sponsor festival access for deserving students, startups, and small business owners. Enhance local capacity and innovation by simply adding a Pay It Forward ticket to your purchase when buying your own. Together, we can ensure that financial barriers do not prevent the brightest minds from participating in Forward Fest 2024.
Pricing
Ticket Packages
Networking
BREAKFAST›››FWD OPENING - Table of Ten
Table of 10
SOLD OUT
Breakfast + Keynote speaker
–
This ticket gains 10 people entry to BREAKFAST›››FORWARD OPENING ONLY.
Networking
BREAKFAST›››FWD OPENING
Individual Ticket
SOLD OUT
Breakfast + Keynote speaker
–
This ticket gains you entry to BREAKFAST›››FORWARD OPENING ONLY.
Join Tania Price, Founder & CEO of Entropolis as we unlock your entrepreneurial potential by leveraging Tania’s 30 years of global corporate and start-up expertise.
Networking
FWD›››COLLABORATE
Session event only
$25
Canapes and a beverage on arrival included
–
With national and international businesses joining local organisations on Day 2 of Forward Fest, FWD›››COLLABORATE is proudly brought to you by UniSC.
What better way to mix and mingle with industry groups, government departments, and organisations of all levels on the boardwalk at TAFE sharing learnings from the past two days.
Networking
FWD›››CONNECTOR
Session event only
$25
Canapes and a beverage on arrival included
–
Whether you have been part of Forward Fest for the whole day, or you wish to join just for the end of day connector event, all are welcome to FWD›››CONNECTOR.
This networking event may just be where you meet the person who has the solution to your biggest business problem. Forward Fest is built for collaborative collisions and FWD›››CONNECTOR is the perfect way to experience just that!
Festival
FWD›››DAY ONE
$455
Day One Sessions and Networking Drinks (no breakfast)
–
- Day 1 Only
- Connector Event
- Expo & Innovation Showcase
Festival
FWD›››DAY TWO
$455
Continental Breakfast and Networking Drinks included
–
- Day 2 Only
- Breakfast to Connector
- Expo & Innovation Showcase
Networking
FWD›››EXECUTIVE
$550
Breakfast & Gala Dinner included
–
- Day 3 Only
- All inclusive
- Gala Dinner
FWD›››GALA DINNER
$165
Three course dinner
–
FWD›››EXECUTIVE and Forward Fest is wrapped up in a delicious three course meal at the exquisite Fish on Parkyn Mooloolaba.
This ticket gains you entry to the FWD›››GALA DINNER ONLY.
Networking
FWD›››INCLUSIVE
$675
Breakfast & Networking events included
–
- Day 1 and 2 all inclusive
- Breakfast to Connector
- Expo & Innovation Showcase
- VIP Dinner Only by Invitation
Festival
FWD›››INTENSIVE
$990
Breakfasts, Networking Events & Gala Dinner included
–
- Day 1, 2 and 3
- All inclusive special events, Plus VIP and Gala dinner
FWD›››Venture Forward
SOLD OUT
Invite Only
Our keynote speaker will be sharing insights on the future of the Sunshine Coast, while Kathryn Giudes, the chair of Silicon Coast, will officially launch Forward Fest 24.
Student, Startup or Founder?
PRE-PAID OR DISCOUNTED TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE
Pay It Forward
SOLD OUT
Our Pay It Forward program is designed to support young and emerging industries with discounted and pre-paid tickets purchased by the business community.
Limited availablity, register your interest quick
Prepaid tickets are only available for students
Prepaid or discounted tickets are only available for startups, founders or a small business (3 employees or less)
Directions
How to get here
TAFE Queensland Mooloolaba campus
34 Lady Musgrave Dr, Mountain Creek QLD 4557
TAFE Queensland Mooloolaba campus - 34 Lady Musgrave Dr, Mountain Creek QLD 4557
