Nina Dunbar has served as a nonprofit executive, fundraiser, and arts advocate for municipal and nonprofit organizations in California, Arizona, and Louisiana for more than 25 years. Before joining Opera Santa Barbara, she ran Change|Practice|Play, a Santa Barbara-based consultancy focusing on strategic planning, development, and grants writing. Nina previously served as Director of Development & Communications for the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and was the Executive Director of The Arts Fund of Santa Barbara. She currently serves on the board of Santa Barbara Beautiful and is a former member of City of Santa Barbara’s Arts Advisory Committee.
Before moving to Santa Barbara, Nina oversaw the planning and commissioning of award-winning public art and infrastructure projects for the Phoenix Office of Cultural Affairs and San Francisco Arts Commission. As a founding partner of AMPS/Arts Management for Public Spaces (1995-1999), she consulted on public art planning, policy, and project management for government and private sector clients in the U.S. and Vancouver, BC. Nina received her MA in Arts Management from the University of New Orleans and holds BFA in Painting and Art Education from Temple University.
