THE PEOPLE BEHIND
COMMON SOCIAL.

Kate Brown & Adel Issa
Co-Founders and Directors

We bring more than two decades of experience building communities, shaping engagement strategies and creating the kind of connections that turn belonging into participation.

Our careers span alumni and community engagement, communications, strategy, programs, events and stakeholder relationships in complex organisations across Australia and internationally. Together, we’ve built global networks, developed award-winning campaigns, launched mentoring and volunteering programs, and helped organisations better understand, engage and grow their communities.

We’ve led high-impact programs and projects of all shapes and sizes, bringing together diverse stakeholders, navigating competing priorities and turning ambitious ideas into practical, measurable outcomes. Our experience includes building and strengthening networks in Australia and overseas, working alongside government stakeholders including DFAT, and designing initiatives that increase participation and create lasting impact.

Our work has received international recognition for excellence, and we’ve both presented at international conferences, sharing our experience and contributing to conversations about best-practice community engagement.

Common Social brings all that experience together, grounded in our shared belief that great community work should be strategic but human, ambitious but achievable, and always lead somewhere.

Away from work, our approach to connection isn’t all that different. Family is at the centre of Kate’s world, and she is happiest surrounded by the people she loves, planning the next family adventure or pulling everyone around the table. Adel, meanwhile, is an unapologetic food and wine devotee and the kind of traveller who builds the itinerary around the restaurant, not the other way around.

Kate brings people to the table. Adel knows exactly where to book it.