Where are they now?: Dr Nicole Bieske (1991)

After graduating from Carey in 1991, Nicole started her career as a corporate lawyer, but found her calling while completing her PhD when she began volunteering at Amnesty International in 1998.

Undertaking a number of roles both within the Australian branch and at an international level, Nicole was also involved with the Board of Amnesty International Australia and served as the National President (Chair) of that Board for over three years. She was a member of the Global Governance Task force and later served as Chair of the International Board of Amnesty International for eight years, overseeing the strategic direction of Amnesty International. All of this work was in a voluntary capacity.

Since then, Nicole has worked for many not-for-profit organisations. She was CEO of Inner Melbourne Community Legal, a human rights consultant for the United Nations, Humanitarian Advocacy Lead at Oxfam Australia, Head of Programme at Transparency International Australia, and is currently Manager of Mental Health and Delivery Strategy at Homes Victoria, an organisation dedicated to reforming social housing.

In 2014, Nicole stated, ‘I have seen the impact that individual people working together can have to achieve social change. And I’m inspired in my governance work to position Amnesty International to have a major impact on the human rights of people around the world.’