Techa Beaumont

Techa Beaumont was born in Australia of Persian, Jewish, Indian and European descent. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Sociology and Theatre) and Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales in Australia. Her professional work experience includes advocating for environmental and human rights for Indigenous communities across the globe, researching and reporting on human rights issues as well as grassroots community cultural development and capacity building.

She was the Executive Director of the Mineral Policy Institute, Australia’s mining industry watchdog for six years. As a volunteer, she participated in the Mittagong Forum for Leaders of the Australian Environment Movement, served on the steering committee of BankTrack, a global organisation working to improve the sustainability of the finance sector, and on the World Conservation Union’s working group on Accountability of the Private Sector.

As the founder of Kulchajam, a not-for-profit arts and cultural organisation, she was focused on promoting cooperation, human well-being, social justice and reconciliation through arts and cultural programs. Her recent achievements involve the co-founding of an ethical food co-operative, the launch of a street art mentoring program for disadvantaged youth, and the implementation of a series of arts and cultural programs supporting reconciliation and intercultural healing in Indigenous communities. She is also a poet and performing artist who is passionate about the role of art and culture in addressing social problems and facilitating opportunities for positive personal development.

Through her studies at Duke University she is seeking to expand her skills as a leader in the NGO sector, with a focus on cross cultural education and negotiation. She has an interest in applied research, investigating different cultural models for addressing and healing trauma as an essential process in reconciliation, mediation and peacebuilding.