A message from our Chair, Peter Forday |
2020 has been a unique year of change globally, nationally and in our local communities.
While our sector has been heavily impacted by border closures, our community has worked hard to support each other.
Connection has never been more important and we continue to work closely together with our clients and communities here in Queensland.
The Board of Multicultural Australia has been working hard to identify a gifted leader who is passionate about securing great opportunities for Queensland’s newest arrivals and ambitious for the organisation that champions them.
We are very confident we have achieved exactly that.
We are absolutely delighted to announce that we have appointed Christine Castley to be the next CEO of Multicultural Australia.
Christine is a highly credentialed leader with a strong track record of delivering significant reform and innovation. She is currently the Deputy Director-General at the Department of Premier and Cabinet (Queensland).
Prior to this role, Christine was Deputy-Director for Housing, Homelessness and Sport in the Department of Housing and Public Works. In this role, Christine led major reform including the development of the Queensland Housing Strategy 2017-2027.
Christine’s appointment as CEO of Multicultural Australia marks a return to an area of personal passion and commitment – the important work of assisting migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum.
Christine was an Immigration Advisor in the 1990s and served as Chair and Member of the Management Committee for the (then) South Brisbane Immigration and Community Legal Service (currently the Refugee and Immigration Legal Service) from 1992-2002 and in 2011-2012.
This experience, together with her long-standing work in the social justice sector, reflects Christine’s continuing commitment to equal access to justice and services for everyone.
She has a deep belief that we can all play a part in helping the most disadvantaged people in our community, including refugees, migrants and people seeking asylum, to live in safety and prosper while they contribute to our communities.
Christine is a Board Member of the Residential Tenancies Authority in Queensland and a Board Member for the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Adding to her vast professional experience, Christine holds a Bachelor of Laws, Bachelor of Arts, Postgraduate Diploma in Arts and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Queensland.
We know that shaping our organisation to best support new Queenslanders long into the future needs vision, energy and an ability to see things through. The Board is confident that Christine will build on our 22-year track record of success for our clients.
Christine commences at Multicultural Australia on 2 November 2020. We look forward to welcoming Christine, as she learns about our clients and the Multicultural Australia Way, from Acting CEO Tim Draper and indeed the whole Multicultural Australia team.
Please help us give Christine a very warm welcome from the Multicultural Australia community as we continue to shape our welcoming Queensland together.
Yours sincerely
Peter Forday
Chair of the Board
