Staff and Volunteers
Assisi Aid Projects is staffed by a small team of part-time staff in our Melbourne office. We place the majority of human resources overseas with our partners, as this maximises impact, local ownership and value for money. The Melbourne team are supported by our wonderful volunteers, who bring a range of skills and experience to support our work.
Dr Jacqueline Parisi has spent much of her career strengthening international non-government organisations in Asia and the Pacific. She has drawn upon her experience to develop strategy, design programmes, perform evaluations, and implement capacity development interventions.
Jacqueline has also developed a social enterprise methodology and applied this to assist survivors of sex trafficking in Laos and Cambodia, and people affected by leprosy in remote parts of China – generating sustainable income streams and social change.
She has worked in Cambodia, China, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, New Zealand, Spain, Sri Lanka, Thailand, UK and Vietnam.
Jacqueline holds an MBA, and a doctorate focused on capacity optimisation in international development, and the transferability of practices between private, public and non-profit sectors. She holds several non-profit Board positions and serves as advisor to the Mekong Club in Hong Kong, fighting modern slavery.Â
Cate has over a decade of experience in Australia’s not-for-profit sector, largely focused on supporting Melbourne’s refugee communities in various program management and executive roles.Â
In addition to her role at Assisi Aid Projects, Cate works part-time at The Social Studio, a Melbourne-based social enterprise working with refugee youth, and is a Director at the Migrant Information Centre where she advises on philanthropy.
Cate has qualifications in Behavioural Science and International Development from LaTrobe University.
Following an internship at Assisi Aid Projects in 2022, Isabel rejoined the team in 2023 as Project & Engagement Officer. Isabel oversees Assisi Aid Projects’ communications content and assists with project reporting and review processes.Â
Isabel first became interested in the work of Assisi Aid Projects after learning about its intersectional focus on women’s economic empowerment and partnership model of development, and continues to be inspired by stories of the projects’ participants.Â
Isabel holds a Bachelors of Arts in Geography from the University of Nottingham and a Masters in Development Studies from the University of Melbourne.
Following an internship at Assisi Aid Projects in 2023, Kirsty rejoined the team as a volunteer at the start of 2024 and then took on the role of Project & Engagement Officer in mid-2024.
Women’s rights are one of Kirsty’s greatest interests and working at Assisi gives her the opportunity to know the work she is doing has a real impact on the lives of women and children in the Asia-Pacific region.
Kirsty holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in History and Politics from the University of Stirling and a Masters in Public Policy and Management from the University of Melbourne.