Kirsty Backhausen | Cyber Security Specialist
City of Newcastle

Kirsty works at the intersection of cybersecurity and local government, where limited resources meet real and growing threats. With experience spanning cybersecurity strategy, inter-council collaboration, and enterprise architecture, Kirsty brings a practitioner's perspective to one of local government's most pressing challenges - how do you build genuine cyber resilience when every council is solving the same problems alone? At City of Newcastle, Kirsty has been at the forefront of efforts to lift cyber capability across the NSW local government sector, working with councils across the region to share knowledge, build capacity, and find smarter ways to work together.