Chair, Think+DO Tank Foundation

Siobhan is the Manager, Inquiries and Engagement at the Victorian Commission for Children and Young People. A highly skilled policy analyst and adviser with particular interest and expertise in relation to child protection and children’s rights, Siobhan was previously the Policy and Engagement Manager at Plan International, Australia. She has an Arts/Law degree (University of Tasmania) and a Masters of Law specialising in child rights law (University of Melbourne). Siobhan has worked for over a decade in the Victorian public service in law reform and has advised both the Departments of Human Services and Health on human rights compliance in the areas of housing and child protection. Siobhan was a founding member of the Victorian chapter of Australian Lawyers for Human Rights, a national network of lawyers committed to advocating for human rights and rights-based approaches in Australia. At Plan International, Siobhan was responsible for parliamentary advocacy, community and youth engagement and child rights capacity building. She has specialist expertise in strategic planning; program design, implementation and improvement; and innovation.

Siobhán will leave the Chair’s position in July 2020.

Languages: English, Spanish

Director + Incoming Chair, Think+DO Tank Foundation

Maria Herminia Graterol is a Venezuelan women’s rights activist with a passion for the arts. Her career has focused on rights of women and children living in poverty and has taken her to many countries. In the last five years she was a consultant to different women’s organizations, including the Center for Women’s Global Leadership at Rutgers University and Venezuelan Women in Action. She was the Coordinator of the first funding cycle of the Angelica Fuentes Foundation (Peru, Mexico and Colombia). She has been in love with theatre since she was 3 years old and is passionate about promoting the arts as a key element of quality education for all. She co-founded and directed the House of Language Acquisition (HOLA NYC) in NYC for four years. She currently serves on the Board of the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI, USA) and continues to work with women’s rights activists all over the world through International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific. In addition to sharing her skills and expertise with Think+DO Tank Foundation, Maria serves on the boards of People’s Theatre Project (New York City) where she is Vice-President until December 2019; Be the Choice Foundation (Canada); and International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia-Pacific (IWRAW-Asia Pacific).

Maria will become our Chair from July 2020.

Languages: Spanish, English

Director, Think+DO Tank Foundation

Sera Mirzabegian is a barrister who practises in commercial litigation, regulatory investigations and litigation, class actions and human rights. She has acted for major Australian and international companies in a variety of industries including banking and finance, media, automotive, telecommunications and medical devices. Sera has also acted for senior executives, politicians, and marginalised and disadvantaged individuals and communities. She is currently a Councillor of the NSW Bar Association. Outside the law, Sera has co-produced and co-hosted an online political talk show called The Third Rail and is a co-founder of WomenVote, an independent and non-partisan women’s lobby group.

Languages: English, Armenian

CEO, Think+DO Tank Foundation

Jane Stratton is the CEO and founder of the Think+DO Tank, where she intrepidly changes the world through creative thinking with communities. In 2017 Jane established the highly successful social enterprise LOST IN BOOKS, a multilingual kids’ bookshop and creative community hub in Fairfield, South Western Sydney. Directing large-scale multi-disciplinary projects, The Motion Room and Against the Tide unite Jane’s dedication to human rights and her drive to create impactful creative experiences. Jane has an accomplished background in law, human human rights and social policy, working for organisations such as the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Jane’s intelligent and empathetic approach has fostered her reputation as an intrepid leader at the forefront of courageous work with communities, inspiring those within them and beyond them to broaden the horizon of what is possible.

Languages: English, French, Thai, Arabic (intermediate), German, Spanish (beginner)

Kalpana Gee is a senior executive in digital businesses, customer led transformations, and technology functions. She has deep experience in delivering large customer journey and service design led digital transformation programs. Kalpana is passionate about collaborating with the community to design and deliver experiences that make a difference to their lives. Kalpana has worked in the Financial Services and Telecommunications industry for over twenty years. In her last role she was the Head of Customer Experience and Service Innovation for Westpac Consumer Bank, transforming the organisation to a customer journey and service design led approach to delivering change. Her roles at Westpac included Head of Digital for Business Bank, Director Business Development in the Strategy & M&A team, and Head of Business Transformation for the Westpac Online Transformation Program. Prior to Westpac, Kalpana was the General Manager of I.T. for Optus Business. Kalpana has a Master of Science in Information Technology and a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Bioscience (De Montfort University, Leicester, U.K.).