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In conversation: meet our Engagement and Communications Manager, Camille Furtado

Dec 09, 2025

The Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care is built on collaboration and sector engagement. We sat down with Camille Furtado, Engagement and Communications Manager to talk about her role, why engagement matters, and what’s next for the Centre.

What does your role involve, and how does it support the Centre’s vision?

As Engagement and Communications Manager, my role is to shape how the Centre connects with the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) sector. That means thinking strategically about engagement and working with the wider team to build relationships with educators, employers, government, advocacy groups and aligned sectors such as Allied Heath, Higher Education and VET. 

My role is about creating opportunities for dialogue, listening to the sector’s workforce needs, and ensuring our communications support collaboration. We want to keep people informed, invite feedback, and make sure our work reflects what the sector truly needs.


Why is engagement so critical for the success of the Centre of Excellence, and how do you approach it? 

Engagement is absolutely critical for the work of the Centre. If our initiatives aren’t sector-informed, they won’t be of use to the workforce they are designed to uplift. My approach to engagement is very considered - it starts early in the lifecycle of an initiative. From environmental scanning and defining goals through to planning and delivery, my team works collaboratively across the Centre to surface contextual issues and identify gaps. We design strategies that draw on sector expertise, so our work reflects real-world practice and challenges.

To raise awareness and invite collaboration, we use tailored approaches built on strong partnerships and advisory mechanisms. We showcase our work at conferences, in publications, and through newsletters and targeted communications. Stakeholder mapping helps us understand regional needs, and we actively gather feedback through surveys and direct outreach. Everything we do has a two-pronged approach: raising awareness while encouraging dialogue - we want people to know what’s happening and to see that they can help shape it.

What’s one message you’d like every educator or aspiring educator to hear?

The Centre is here to support them - not just in their practice, but in their considerations about the possibilities for their career journey. We want to remove barriers for progression, support ongoing professional development, and strengthen retention in the sector.

Educators hold invaluable skills that shape the lives of our youngest learners. Their work not only gives children the best start in life but also enables workforce participation and strengthens the economy. These skills and care are fundamental to society. The work of the Centre of Excellence is to unlock and champion that value, the value of workforce participation in such a critical sector, ensuring educators feel recognised, respected and supported.

What’s the most rewarding part of connecting with the sector?

For me, it’s seeing and hearing the innovation and commitment across communities. It’s rewarding to collaborate on shared goals and help uplift efforts that are already making a difference.  Sometimes it’s small-scale solutions in remote areas that have a huge impact on children’s lives. Other times, it’s systemic work that addresses broad workforce challenges.

The sector is full of people leaning in because they understand how important this work is for the future. That energy and drive are humbling; it is a motivator to create sustainable solutions to meet everyday barriers and challenges. 

What’s coming up next that you’re excited about?

Now that we have piloted several initiatives and are moving into evaluation, I’m excited to work with the team to capture what we learn and how we can refine these products for broader uptake. Collaboration will be key to scaling impact across the national TAFE Network and the wider VET sector. 

Final thoughts?

The Centre’s real strength is in its multidisciplinary team and collaborative approach. We bring together a diverse mix of skills, knowledge, and experiences - subject matter experts, learning designers, engagement specialists, and project managers - all under one roof. This breadth of expertise means the solutions we develop are robust and innovative. The Centre of Excellence is truly greater than the sum of its parts, and this makeup ensures that the best possible outputs to support the sector.

We acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands on which TAFE SA stands.


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