Let’s create better futures together.

The Good Cartel exists to create meaningful human connections in service of futures we can all be excited about.

Sarah is standing against a brick wall that is painted white. She is wearing a colourful patterned turtleneck top and clear framed glasses. She is smiling and her head is slightly tilted to the left.

Meet the human behind The Good Cartel…

Sarah Patterson (she/her) is an award-winning strategic designer and engagement expert on a mission to prove that change isn't about strategy: it's about relationships.

With over 20 years’ experience spanning government policy, architecture and design, she founded The Good Cartel Consulting to help create futures we can all be excited about. Through her practice, Sarah has facilitated high-stakes collaborations tackling climate resilience, clean energy transition and social cohesion.

An accredited Partnership Broker and guest lecturer, she mentors emerging leaders through programs like UNLEASH. Her research into systems change and relationships uncovers powerful blueprints for change hiding in the most unexpected places.

Let's connect

What does a “good” cartel do?

  • A person with brown hair points to a white wall with orange and yellow coloured post-it notes on it.

    Facilitates impactful relationships to drive change

    As a partnership broker, I can help you prepare to partner, identify the right partners and create the strong foundations for your collaborations.

    I can design and facilitate inclusive engagements that help you and your partners to find aligned pathways to create change.

    I can also independently advise on and support partnerships to re-establish momentum, move through conflict or make changes to direction.

  • Several people sitting in lined up chairs with notepads displayed on their laps. The image is cropped so that only the torso down to just below the knees is visible.

    Creates spaces for humans to connect in meaningful ways

    As a skilled facilitator and speaker, I can support you to bring your teams or community together through creative workshops and events designed foster improved connection and build lasting relationships.

    I also host a regular community co-working day and other gatherings in Melbourne for people who work alone, or in small teams, offering time and space to focus on your most important work with support from others. Learn more about The Collective here.

  • A desk with a podcast microphone in the foreground. A notepad, laptop, pink mug and picture frame are in the background.

    Seeks inspiration from unexpected places

    I’ve been on a quest to find out what we can learn from cartels and monopolies to more effectively convene and mobilise around big change.

    You can follow my journey on my substack, where I welcome the opportunity to explore together.

    I’ll be speaking at TEDx Canberra in October. So come along and learn more about my quest.

“People today will mostly focus on the points of connection, the nodes of interest like stars in the sky. But the real understanding comes in the spaces in-between, in the relational forces that connect and move the points.”

— Tyson Yunkaporta, Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save The World