Nicole Bieske, Director and National President

Nicole has been a member of Amnesty International for 10 years. She has served on the Board since 2004, including as the previous Vice President and as a General Member. Nicole has also held many other roles within Amnesty International, including Secretary of the Victorian Branch, founding convenor of the National Legal Team and co-convenor of the Victorian Legal Group. Nicole represented Amnesty International Australia at the 2007 International Council Meeting, the 2007 and 2008 International Finance Meetings and the 2008 Chairs Forum. She is also a lecturer at Monash University. Nicole is a qualified solicitor.

James Sharp, Director and Vice President

An Amnesty International member since 2004. Convenor of the WA Refugee Group and a former member of the WA Branch Committee. James is currently a semi-retired management consultant, after a career in the law and industry in Australia and overseas. James has a Bachelor of Law.

Michael Butler, Director and Company Secretary

An Amnesty International member since September 2000 Michael was a member of the Victorian Branch Committee from August 2002 until July 2008. This included a term as Victorian Secretary in 2005-2006 and more recently as Victorian President from 2006 to 2008. Michael has a BA (Social Work) and has partially completed a bachelor of theology degree.

He is currently employed in a senior management position in the national office of the Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers, Australia. Some of Michael's previous roles have included working with homeless persons, as an alcohol and drugs counselor, an association manager and as an industrial relations practitioner.

Dawna Wright, Director and National Treasurer

Dawna Wright joined Amnesty International Australia as an external advisor to the Audit and Risk Committee in May 2006. She was born in Canada and became a chartered accountant in 1995. Dawna spent the first six years of her career as an auditor and has lived in Sydney since 2001. She now leads the Forensic practice for Deloitte in Victoria and is a Certified Fraud Examiner. Dawna became the Treasurer of Amnesty International Australia in March 2007.

Georgina Perry, Director

Georgina has been a member of Amnesty International for 16 years, including as NSW Branch President. Georgina has served on AI Australia's Board for 6 years, including as Vice President from September 2004 and as National President from July 2006 to July 2008. Georgina is a lawyer at Allens Arthur Robinson, a leading international law firm. Georgina holds a BA, LLB (Hons) from the University of Sydney.

Kate Cooper, Director

Kate has been a member of Amnesty since 1994 and a member of the SA/NT Branch Committee since 2004. She first became involved in human rights campaigns in the late 1970s, organising action in support of human rights in Central America. Kate's professional experience includes teaching Spanish and contributing to education policy research and development. She worked in Nicaragua for two years as an Australian Volunteer Abroad. Her volunteer experience also includes interpreting for visiting human rights and trade union activists from Central and South America.

Sheena Graham, Director

Sheena Graham is a Nudgu woman from Norseman, Western Australia. She has a BA in Political Science/International Relations and History, and now works in international development. Sheena has been an activist with Amnesty International since 2005, joining as an office volunteer in the WA Branch and was one of the founding members of the WA Indigenous Group. In 2007, Sheena was a member of an Amnesty International Canada research team investigating human rights abuses against the indigenous people from the Grassy Narrows First Nation in eastern Ontario. Sheena has written several articles for the Human Rights Defender and has also been a presenter at several National AGMs.

Toni Matulick, Director and ACT/Southern NSW Branch President

Toni is the President of the ACT/Southern NSW region and has been a branch committee member since 2003. Toni is a lawyer and is employed as a Committee Secretary at the Department of the Senate. She has worked as a lawyer and a teacher and has spent most of her life living and working in rural and remote Australia. Toni is also a former convenor of the ACT Asia Pacific team.

Gregory Stitt, Director and WA Branch President

Coming soon

Clare Wiseman, Director and Tasmanian Branch President

Clare Wiseman has been an active member of Amnesty International Australia since 2001. She is currently the President of the Tasmanian Branch, and a Director on the Board. She has been a member of the Branch Committees and legal networks in both in NSW and Tasmania. Clare has also previously been a member of the National Legal Team, and has coordinated a number of High Court interventions for Amnesty International Australia. Clare is a qualified solicitor, and currently works for the Tasmanian Department of Premier and Cabinet as a Senior Policy Analyst.

Anthony Mitchell, Director and NSW Branch President

Anthony Mitchell is NSW Branch President of AIA and a Director on the National AIA Board. He has been on the NSW Branch Committee since 2006, and was Vice-President from 2007 to 2008. He has been an active member of the Speakers Network, has provided liaison support to the Schools Network and the Activist Convener Team, and has been a Branch Committee 'buddy' on major events. His areas of passion include Indigenous rights and the death penalty. Outside of Amnesty, Anthony is a Director of Bendelta, a strategy consulting firm, advising corporations and government agencies around the Asia-Pacific region.

Maree Klemm, Director and Qld/Northern NSW Branch President

First associated with AIA as a donor, Maree became an activist for Refugees and multicultural equity around 2000, and an AIA member in 2004. AI's move to champion economic, social and cultural rights plus civil and political rights and action in one's own country, coincided with her becoming a campaigner for the Millennium Development Goals and participation in several global human rights and humanitarian organisations. She enjoys the collective energy and enthusiasm for human rights campaigning with the Brisbane City Group. Maree holds degrees in science and finance and has more than 30 years corporate and consulting experience in the resources, financial and not-for-profit sectors.

Denise Skiffington, Director and SA/NT Branch President

Denise has been an active member of AIA since 1997. Throughout this time she has been a member of the Prospect Group in Adelaide; held the role of group Convenor for the last 6 years; been a General member of the SA and NT Branch Committee for 3 years; and had a brief spell as Vice President in 2008 before assuming the role of Branch President in December 2008. Outside Amnesty Denise works as a medical General Practitioner, holds a Masters Degree in Philosophy in Health Care and has a long history of involvement in refugee and asylum seeker issues.

Russel Solomon, Director and Victorian Branch President

Russell has been a member of Amnesty International for 23 years having been a member of local action groups in various parts of Australia and overseas. He has served as Vice President of the Victorian branch for 2 years having previously been a committee member. He also convenes a local action group and is on Victoria’s team supporting local groups. Russell is a Senior Lecturer and Program Coordinator in Legal and Dispute Studies at RMIT University. His previous experience includes as a lawyer in private practice and for the federal government, a Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, a National Industrial Officer for a union, and as the Executive Officer for a parliamentary committee. He holds a BA (Hons), B.Juris, LL.B, MA (Hons) and a PhD from the University of Sydney.