CARE Australia’s ability to deliver lifesaving assistance and bring lasting change to communities living in poverty is largely due to our talented, passionate and committed team.

In Australia and overseas we have 768 staff, of whom ninety-seven per cent are nationals of the countries in which we operate, dedicated to our mission to work around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice.

We have a corporate governance system, which ensures that management is fulfilling our mission and complying with legal and ethical requirements. This is detailed in CARE Australia Governance. The Executive Team and Board of CARE Australia are listed below.

Executive Team

Morgana Ryan, CEO

Morgana was elected CEO of CARE Australia in September 2024 after serving as Interim CEO for seven months. She had previously served on the CARE Australia board since 2021, before stepping off as board member to take on the Interim CEO role.

Morgana has extensive experience in the commercial and not-for-profit sectors at a governance and executive level. Her work has spanned strategy, organisational change, international development and IT at the International Secretariat, Regional and Country levels of large INGOs. She is also a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Morgana is the co-author of two acclaimed books focused on supporting INGOs to operate effectively and maximise impact.

She has spent more than 15 years working in the for-purpose sector, including projects with Oxfam International, Plan International, Amnesty International, CRS, Save the Children International and Fred Hollows Foundation.

Morgana’s own heritage as the granddaughter of refugees, along with her experiences living and working in Oman, Qatar, Brunei, Nigeria, Netherlands, Norway, and the UK, have shaped her views and her strong passion for social justice, equality, diversity, and collaboration.

She is passionate about delivering CARE’s vision of improving the lives of women and girls around the world.

Cath Hoban, Director of Fundraising and Marketing

Cath leads CARE Australia’s fundraising and marketing efforts, ensuring that we reach our ambitious income targets and maintain strong relationships with our stakeholders. Since she joined us in 2019, she has been driving our ethical, innovative and impactful campaigns.

Cath admired CARE’s work throughout her 25-year career in fundraising, and is proud to be part of a team that is empowering women to overcome poverty. Her first experience in the international aid sector was with her sister, who started a charity in Cambodia to stop the trafficking of women. She helped build the organisation and it has been a lifetime high to see the impact it has had on the lives of women and girls.

During her career, Cath has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for not-for-profits and developed award winning campaigns to advocate for the environment and human rights. Her experience and knowledge of the fundraising sector was acknowledged by Fundraising and Philanthropy Magazine Australia and New Zealand when she was awarded 2009 Fundraiser of the Year.

Cath was previously the Director of Fundraising and Marketing at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, National Director of Membership and Fundraising at The Wilderness Society and Joint Chief Executive Officer at The Wilderness Society.

Matt Radford, CFO

Matt leads our finance team to deliver our financial reporting, ensuring our sustainability, in order to support our international programs and work with partners. Matt has worked in the international development sector for the past 20 years, supporting over 2000 projects with NGOs, private foundations, public donor agencies and private sector partners focused on progressing the Sustainable Development Goals.

He is committed to promoting and upholding the values of equality and fairness, while ensuring that we can maximise our impact though enhanced efficiency and transparency.

Bianca Collier, Director of International Programs and Operations

Bianca is responsible for leading CARE Australia’s humanitarian and development programs around the world. She is deeply committed to achieving positive outcomes for communities and individuals, by supporting women, to defeat poverty. She has a strong focus on accountability: to communities, donors, governments, partners and colleagues. Bianca aspires to a more equitable world, and is grateful to work with an incredible team to contribute towards that.

Bianca has worked in the international development sector for 18 years, across Africa, Asia and the Pacific. She has led local and international teams to develop innovative solutions in humanitarian crises and development projects.

Bianca previously worked as Head of Country Office Support at CARE Australia, Chief of Party at Save the Children, and Country Director at Save the Children and OAfrica.

We also have a range of experts who are available to discuss our work, in areas such as emergencies, gender equality, sexual and reproductive health, climate change, food, education, health and human rights. Visit our media section for more information.

Board

The Board of Directors is responsible for directing CARE Australia’s activities towards the achievement of our vision and fulfilment of our mission, while living our core values.

It is responsible for approving strategic direction, monitoring implementation and fulfilling stakeholders’ expectations, along with overall performance, compliance with relevant laws, codes of conduct and ethical standards and for the oversight of risk management.

Chair

Marcus Laithwaite – Chair

Marcus has been the Chair of CARE Australia’s Board since March 2020 and brings significant experience in financial reporting, audit and risk management.

Marcus’ first connection with humanitarian work came when he was living with his family in Indonesia from 2003-06. During the 2004 tsunami, he was devastated at the loss of life and ongoing suffering in Banda Aceh and assisted The Red Crescent’s relief efforts. He has been involved with international aid organisations both in Australia and overseas ever since.

Marcus was drawn to CARE Australia’s focus on women and girls because he believes everyone deserves respect. His passion for equality is evident in his professional life where he was PwC Australia’s first Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer.

Marcus is currently a Partner at PwC Australia. He is also a member of CARE International’s Governance Board. His previous volunteer roles have included Chair of ChildFund Australia, Director of the PwC Foundation, Board member and Treasurer of the European Australian Business Council and Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee of Sydney Living Museums.

Directors

Joseph Tesvic – Treasurer

Joseph joined the Board of CARE Australia in 2016 and has been Treasurer since 2020. We are fortunate to benefit from his experience leading large-scale organisational transformations in the public and private sectors.
Joseph ‘s passion for equality led him to CARE Australia, and he is particularly inspired by our commitment to providing humanitarian and development assistance regardless of a person’s religion, gender or location.

Joseph works and travels frequently throughout Asia and has seen the need for CARE’s work firsthand. He also has experience leading social impact initiatives including corporate social responsibility efforts, pro bono contributions, and workplace giving.

Joseph is currently a Senior Partner in McKinsey & Company’s Sydney office and leads McKinsey’s Operations Improvement Practice for Asia-Pacific, and McKinsey’s Consumer Practice for Australia and New Zealand.

Dr Phoebe Wynn-Pope

Phoebe has worked in the humanitarian sector for 25 years, including in complex humanitarian emergencies and conflict zones around the world. Her academic work focuses on the role of the international community when confronting war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

When Phoebe joined our Board in 2018, we were delighted to welcome her back to CARE Australia, where she worked as our Emergency Response Manager in the 1990s. During this time, she led responses to major emergencies in Africa, Europe and the Middle East. She has incredibly well-rounded experience at CARE, also working as Assistant Country Director in South Africa and Principal Executive of Fundraising and Communications in Canberra.

Phoebe believes that courage is one of CARE’s most admirable values, because it takes courage to be ambitious and you have to be ambitious to build a world that is equal.

Phoebe is currently Head of Business and Human Rights and Head of Pro Bono at Corrs Chambers Westgarth. She is also a member of the Australian Human Rights Institute Advisory Committee, an Ambassador of the Community Refugee Sponsorship Initiative, and a member of Monash University’s Masters of International Relations Advisory Board.

Phoebe is the Chair of the CARE Australia International Programs and Operations Committee and a member of the Finance and Risk Committee.

Peter N Varghese AO

Peter brought his extensive experience in government and international relations to the Board when he joined in 2019. Like CARE, Peter is guided by the values of respect and equality, which capture what he strives for and how he behaves. He is inspired by CARE’s focus on women and girls, and believes that sustainable development is not possible without a focus on gender equality. 

Peter led the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade when it merged with AusAid, and  developed a strong understanding of the challenges of delivering humanitarian and development programs and the importance of in-country partnerships. He has been appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to public administration. 

Peter is currently the Chancellor of The University of Queensland. He is also a Director of North Queensland Airports, an advisor to Tata Consultancy Services, Chair of Asialink Advisory Council, Chair of the Editorial Advisory Board for the DFAT Historical Documents Series and Member of the International Governing Board of the Rajaratnum School of International Studies in Singapore.

Diana Patricia Nicholson

We welcomed Diana to the Board in 2019 and are thrilled to benefit from her extensive experience in governance and her strong support for gender diversity. Diana has worked with some of the leading corporate and not-for-profit organisations in Australia in the areas of governance, acquisitions and takeovers, securities industry law, fundraising and commercial law.

Her approach to work and life is based on her belief that society is strongest when its members care for one another. She is excited to be contributing to long-term opportunities for women and girls, and highly values CARE’s focus on equality, which she sees as the driving force in all of CARE’s work.

Diana is currently a Senior Partner in the Mergers and Acquisitions practice at King & Wood Mallesons. She is also a member of the King & Wood Mallesons Community Impact Board, a member and Acting President of the Australian Takeovers Panel and a Trustee of Melbourne & Olympic Parks.

Jo Thomson

Jo has dedicated her career to designing, managing and evaluating international development programs throughout Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the Pacific.

She shares CARE Australia’s commitment to gender equality, diversity, inclusion and women’s economic empowerment, and advises several NGOs, government and multilateral programs on these topics. She also has expertise in preventing sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment; child protection; public health; and the design, monitoring and evaluation of complex programs.

Jo was welcomed to our Board in 2021 and offers expertise in regulation and best practice, having co-authored the Australian NGO Accreditation Standards and the ACFID Code of Conduct.

Jo is currently the Director of Learning4Development. She is also a Board Director for Accountable Now and a member of the GAVI Independent Review Panel.

Natalie Kyriacou OAM

Natalie has joined our Fundraising and Marketing Board Committee. Natalie is an award winning social entrepreneur and Director (Climate and Nature) at Pollination Group. She is CEO of My Green World, a Melbourne-based social enterprise dedicated to addressing global wildlife and environmental challenges through inclusive, youth-focused education.

Natalie has advised world leaders on environmental and social policy, and driven the expansion, growth and impact of a range of social enterprises and nonprofits around the world. She was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her services to wildlife and environmental conservation and is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree. We are excited to benefit from Natalie’s expertise as CARE Australia continues to raise awareness and funds to support the world’s most marginalised people to prepare for and recover from climate shocks. 

Hong Pham

Hong is a self-driven leader with a decade of experience in the finance industry. As a Chartered Accountant, she thrives on building relationships and collaborating towards shared goals.

Her unique perspective is shaped by her upbringing as a refugee in a camp in the Philippines for 11 years, followed by her migration to Australia on a refugee and humanitarian visa. Having personally experienced hardships, Hong understands the profound impact that for-purpose organisations can have on people’s lives.

It is this personal experience that fuels Hong’s determination to utilise her skills and expertise to make a meaningful and positive social impact in today’s world.

Board Observer

Meenal Khare

Meenal is an adaptive for-purpose leader with global experience spanning corporates, social enterprise and not-for-profits. She previously worked in Fast Moving Consumer Goods (Unilever, Hallmark) before moving to India to develop a female entrepreneurship model (Pollinate Group), and lead a gender equity non-profit that enabled the health and agency of under-resourced women, girls and people who menstruate (Uninhibited).

Meenal developed her knowledge of VC and impact investing at Wade Institute and contributes to the Fundraising & Marketing and International Programs committees at Care Australia in her role as Board Observer. She is currently a consultant with Social Impact Hub specialising in strategy, organisational transformation, fundraising and impact evaluation. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from The University of Melbourne and has been published in the anthology Growing Up Indian in Australia and KINGS Artist-Run’s un Extended.

Meenal seeks to deepen the connection between the grassroots and global through stronger governance, data and story-telling to shape just and equitable systems.

Country Directors

CARE Australia supports operations in seven countries in South East Asia and the Pacific. Read more about CARE’s Directors in each country below.

Timor-Leste – Peter Goodfellow 

Before commencing as CARE’s Country Director for Timor-Leste in 2019, Peter held senior management and technical advisory roles with CARE and Save the Children. This included leading Save the Children’s programs in Vanuatu, and leading the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) response to crises including Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines and the Ebola crisis in Liberia. Prior to this, Peter established water and sanitation infrastructure and programs for refugees and internally displaced people in Uganda, Ethiopia and Haiti. As a Chartered Engineer with the Engineering Council (UK), Peter is a Member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers and holds a Masters of Engineering from Edinburgh University.

Vanuatu – Wilmaraia Sinumila

Wilma is the first Ni-Vanuatu appointed to the position of Country Director for Care International in Vanuatu. She brings with her a diverse professional executive experience, built over 15 years within the private and public sector. As an entrepreneur, Wilma started her consultancy business in 2016 providing consultancy services for Vanuatu Government agencies, the United Nations and World Bank (IFC). Wilma has a strong background in strategic leadership, human resources management, project management, business continuity and disaster recovery.

Advisory Council

Membership of the Advisory Council is by invitation from the Board to individuals who have given exceptional service to CARE Australia. Its objectives are to support and endorse the organisation’s vision, mission and core values, and to assist and provide counsel to the Board and the executive through the experience, corporate knowledge and community influence of its members.

Colin Galbraith, AM
Sir William Deane, AC, KBE
Philip Flood, AO
The Hon Barry Jones, AO, AC
Jocelyn Mitchell
Robert Yallop, AM

Founding Chair

Rt Hon. Malcolm Fraser, AC CH

Board Subcommittees

The Board appoints Committees, which regularly report to the Board, to assist in the discharge of its obligations, consider issues referred and delegated by the Board, and make recommendations to the Board. The Executive Committee exercises all the powers of the Board between meetings of the Board. It is not empowered to take action in contravention of a Board decision and utilises all practical means of consulting the full membership of the Board on significant matters.

The Finance and Risk Committee assists the Board in discharging its responsibilities concerning the integrity of financial management, and reporting its compliance with regulations and principles of best practice to achieve operational, financial and compliance risk management. It also oversees the effectiveness of audit functions.

The Fundraising and Communications Committee reviews and assesses marketing and communications strategies and fundraising investment proposals, and oversees relevant budgets. It facilitates the engagement of stakeholders, and identifies and supports fundraising and profile-building opportunities.

The International Program and Operations Committee assesses the strategic direction, performance and risk monitoring of program strategies developed by CARE Australia; projects where CARE Australia is contractually responsible; and the status of Country Offices for which CARE Australia is designated as Lead or Coordinating Member of CARE International. It has a particular responsibility to monitor safety and security conditions for staff in the field.

Subject to the direction of the Board, the Governance and Nominations Committee oversees the selection of appointees to the Board to ensure the right mix of skills, experience and expertise.