Summary
In this episode, our host Criena Gehrke talks with Elly Andriopoulou, Managing Director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC). The two discuss the origins and evolution of SNFCC – as well as its early successes, stemming from a strong vision of enacting social impact and the ambition to be a cultural center for all.

Elly speaks about the social impact of SNFCC and highlights the importance of building impact studies into planning processes, as those can put into perspective the scale and reach of what a capital infrastructure project can bring to its community – by showing how it is viewed in the public eye, providing metrics around environmental and financial impact, and identifying clear KPI’s for stakeholders as well as the community.

Later in the episode, Criena and Elly talk about the various ways SNFCC aims to evolve and diversify its business model. They also talk about SNFCC’s role in developing cultural tourism in Athens – and the balance between that role and its primary mission of serving the local community.

Criena wraps up the episode with her thoughts on Australia’s recently released National Cultural Policy – which she applauds as a beacon of optimism for the Australian creative sector in the years ahead.

References:

• Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
• SNFCC Board of Directors
• Greek National Opera
• The National Library of Greece
• Stavros Niarchos Foundation
• SNFCC's 2022 Impact Study
• Australia’s National Cultural Policy

Bio
Elly Andriopoulou is the Chairwoman and Managing Director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), appointed in June 2020. Before joining the SNFCC, Elly held leadership positions in banking, strategy consulting, and most recently, philanthropy. She holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, and a BA in Psychology from Deree College.