Then, as now, Tearfund was formed primarily of voluntary workers. As Tony McCarthy, Chair of the Board from 1979—2004 writes: “Tearfund is, and has always been, a peoples' organisation. It is a community of disciples committed to being practical in expressing their faith; passionate about their discipleship in seeking to express God's love and concern for the poor; and rigorous in exploring the scriptures to learn and to inform both belief and practice. It is an inclusive organisation.”
Surrounding the paid staff positions and voluntary Board members is a vast network of Christians in Australia who contribute to the spiritual, directional, financial and educational work.
Tearfund Australia’s Board members are faithful Christians who volunteer their time and skills to steering the organisation’s governance, direction and accountability.
Our executive leadership team bring their professional experience, and their passion to bring about God’s work of transformation, to enact Tearfund’s vision and mission.
Chief Executive Officer
In her position as CEO, Bec leads the Tearfund Australia team in working in partnership to tackle poverty and injustice. Passionate about integral mission and restorative justice, Bec holds deep commitment to partnership in all its forms: with our partners around the world, churches across Australia, members, supporters, the Tearfund Family and many other coalitions. Bec brings strong leadership experience in the advocacy, church engagement and fundraising spaces and a solid understanding of development work, as well as a background in business, making her an entrepreneurial and relational leader. She is a strategic and creative thinker with experience building organisations, and has a talent and love for investing in people and teams.
International Program Director
Mary brings a wealth of experience to the International Program Director role. Born and raised in Kenya, where she experienced first-hand the work of INGOs in community development, Mary went on to study and work within the international aid and development sector and has been working in this space for almost two decades. This includes work within the Tearfund family of agencies (Tearfund UK, Kenya) and with several of our partner agencies, before joining Tearfund Australia to oversee our international program work. Mary leads the International Program Team to enable communities to overcome the injustice of poverty by focusing on strengthening capacity; tracking program effectiveness; encouraging innovation, collaboration and research; and, partnering with communities to deliver community transformation outcomes. The team also works in partnership with global alliances including the Integral Alliance and Micah Global.
Director of Innovation & Strategy
Matt brings a breadth of experience in leadership, strategy, collaboration, and facilitation in the private and nonprofit sectors. He worked for 12 years in the energy industry in Australia and London, in operational, commercial, and strategy leadership roles, before studying a Masters of International Development and joining Tearfund in the UK in 2018. He worked there as Chief of Staff, then spent a year as interim CEO for Tearfund Netherlands, before moving back to Australia with his family in 2023. Matt now facilitates collaboration among the global Tearfund Family, and leads Tearfund Australia's strategy process and our innovation portfolio. Working with Bec and the rest of the Executive Leadership Team, Matt is responsible for ensuring our efforts are aligned toward a clear and compelling aspiration, supported by focused organisational choices and creative thinking and testing.
Australian Programs Director
Greg brings over two decades of experience with Tearfund's supporter engagement team - informing, challenging and empowering Australian Christians to make biblically shaped responses to poverty and justice. Greg leads a national team that engages with Christians to enable them to live out their faith through prayer, discipleship, learning, advocacy and giving. The team works with Tearfund’s supporters, volunteers and hundreds of churches across Australia who work in partnership with Tearfund to help us achieve our mission through church engagement, advocacy, communications and education and raising the funds needed to support Tearfund’s International and First People programs.
People & Culture Director
Karen brings over 20 years of experience in the not-for-profit sector to the Human Resources role overseeing the management of people at Tearfund, which includes staff and volunteers in Australia, and volunteers and consultants placed with overseas partners. With knowledge gained from Human Resources, accounting, business management, training, senior leadership and governance roles, Karen facilitates excellence, professionalism and care through all areas of Tearfund’s People & Culture including recruitment, learning and development and employee wellbeing. Karen is passionate about ‘purpose-filled’ work, engaging, equipping and empowering all people at Tearfund to optimally achieve Tearfund’s mission.
Digital Services Director
Julie has over 12 years’ experience working in the not-for-profit sector. With a background in IT, project management and business strategy and a passion for connecting technology and data to organisational strategy, Julie leads Tearfund's Digital Services Team. With a strong understanding of Tearfund's digital needs, the team focuses on innovation, continuous improvement and best practice to deliver digital strategies, systems, tools and processes to enable Tearfund to achieve its mission.
Chief Financial Officer
Elizabeth is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years of experience in financial management, strategic leadership, and governance. As CFO, she brings technical expertise and an enterprise mindset to Tearfund. Starting in business advisory, her heart for justice led her to the for-purpose sector, where she has navigated social enterprises and faith-based organisations through significant growth and change. Elizabeth is committed to fostering environments where people can flourish and realise their God-given potential. Leading the Financial Operations and Supporter Services team, she oversees reporting, risk, and board engagement while ensuring systems effectively support Tearfund’s mission. Ultimately, Elizabeth is driven by a vision of restoration and transformation, believing that through innovation, faithful stewardship and the power of God, real change is possible.
Joel McKerrow
An award winning writer, speaker, educator, artist and successful touring performance poet, Joel McKerrow has been Tearfund's Artist Ambassador since 2014.
Read more about JoelDr Tanya Riches
Dr Tanya Riches is a scholar, speaker, and songwriter with a deep commitment to global justice and transformational development through Christian faith and practice.
Tanya currently serves as the Director of the Master of Transformational Development (MTD) at Eastern College Australia, a unique postgraduate program designed to equip Christian leaders from diverse global contexts.
Read more about TanyaConnect with us
We’re better when we act together. Joining with Tearfund connects you to a global movement of Christians who are taking action so that all people can flourish.
As Tearfund, we’ll be walking alongside you, holding you in prayer, and equipping you with training and tools you need to make a difference.
Throughout the year, we offer a range of campaigns, gatherings and initiatives you can get involved with. What and how many you choose is up to you. Interested? Express your interest and our team will be in touch.
