Dr Bilquis Ghani is a Lecturer in Arts at the University of Canberra. Her research focuses on the mobilisation of the creative process through moments of social and cultural rupture. Bilquis is the lead for Hunar Symposia, a collective of academics and artists creating spaces of decolonisation, discourse and collaboration between practice and theory. She is also on the board of directors for Diversity Arts Australia and HADIA Foundation. Her book, A Sociology from Art Praxis in Afghanistan, will be released by Palgrave Macmillan in 2026. Before returning to academia, Bilquis worked for many years as a DEI practitioner, including as Head of Inclusion at the Sydney Opera House.