The Management Committee of the One World Centre is responsible for meeting the legal and financial obligations of the organisation, policy development, acting as employer and having overall responsibility for ensuring the organisation meets its objectives. All members of the Committee work on a voluntary basis and are elected each year at the Annual General Meeting of the association.
Joe Courtney – Chairperson
Joe has been involved with the One World Centre ever since his wife Anne was the coordinator way back in 1995. He has been on the management committee for a while now and enjoys keeping the Centre’s social and fundraising activities going. He is a meteorologist specialising in tropical cyclones, and enjoys travelling, though his trips sometimes keep him out of the OWC scene a bit more than he would like. He would also like to spend more time out bush or in the ocean, as well as having a go on the guitar. Joe is keen for the OWC to model good development activities and is proud of the way the Centre has been a beacon for global education in WA for so long now without having the big money. He hopes we can build more community support for the Centre and continue the great work on the ground with teachers to bring global education to all the young kids.
Dr Peter Devereux – Deputy Chairperson
Peter is a part time Research Fellow at Curtin University’s Sustainability Policy Institute advancing the doctorate of sustainable development on the new UN Sustainable Development Goals. Previously he worked in UN Volunteers; the school of Sustainability at Murdoch University; in Nicaragua as a university lecturer and NGO environmental adviser; UN volunteers in Fiji; and Australian Volunteer International’s Perth office. Peter rejoined the OWC management committee in early 2015 and was elected deputy Convenor and was briefly the acting coordinator after the resignation of Jules Jamieson in May 2015. He has also done some OWC professional development sessions when regular OWC global education consultants were unavailable.
Michael Perera (Treasurer)
Michael has worked for over 30 years in the finance field, having worked for publicly listed companies, small to medium enterprises, and not-for -profit organisations. He has extensive experience in management accounting, budgeting, and treasury matters as well as in corporate governance. Michael is also a Board Member of two other not-for-profits and is a member of the Australian Society of CPA’s.
Emma Coupland (Secretary)
Emma returned from living and working in Timor-Leste for over 20 years and joined the OWC Management Committee in 2004. In 2025 Emma took on the role of Secretary.
Lynne Butler (OWC Coordinator)
Lynne took on the role of OWC coordinator in September 2015 after re-joining the Management Committee in April 2015. After many years working as a TAFE lecturer in Human Services and in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Officer training in WA, Lynne undertook a Masters Degree in Social Science by Research in 2002. With a focus on the survival of local NGOs in post-conflict environments, her extended periods of ethnographic field-work took her to Timor-Leste and Aceh Province in Indonesia. After completing her Thesis Lynne continued to work in Timor-Leste as an International Training and Development advisor and Project Manager with Local NGOs, Government Departments, and International Agencies including the ILO, for over eleven years.
Paul Bluett
Paul has been a volunteer with the Centre since 2019, assisting with admin and community events. He has a background in sexual and reproductive health, and community advocacy, and became involved in aid and development issues in Asia through his work with the WA AIDS Council and Family Planning WA.
Avenel Hicks (OWC Librarian)
Avenel Hicks is a retired librarian having worked at ECU and UWA libraries for almost 20 years. She later worked with an overseas volunteer program operating in Developing Countries for six and a half years and since 2018, has been looking after the library at the One World Centre developing the collection and helping other volunteers gain experience in library work.
Dr Elaine Lewis (Education Coordinator)
Dr Elaine Lewis is a primary teacher, working across year levels from Kindergarten to Year 7, for more than twenty-five years. Elaine is a Life Member of the One World Centre, serving on the Management Committee 2011-2016 and returning to that role in 2025. Elaine also served on the Education Committee since 2011, conducting professional learning workshops for teachers and contributing to community education sessions. Elaine’s particular interests are in the Western Australian Department of Education’s Caring for Country sustainability framework and the Two-way Science program that fosters partnerships between schools and Indigenous communities. Dr Lewis’ research interests focus on Education for Sustainability, having completed her doctoral research in this area. In addition, Dr Lewis has experience as a lecturer in environmental education at Murdoch University and in primary education at Edith Cowan University Australia.
Dr Caroline Marsh (Education Adviser)
Caroline Marsh is an educator with an interest in education for global citizenship and sustainable development. We are pleased that Caroline has returned to the Board in 2024, bringing with her years of academic and global education teaching knowledge and practice.
Paddy Cullen
Is a long term OWC supporter and has worked for many years as the Oxfam Campaign Manager in WA. Paddy joined us in 2018 and provides advice on community projects.