Paul Power

As CEO of Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) since 2006 and Co-CEO since February 2026, Paul Power has led NGO advocacy on refugee issues with the Australian Government and United Nations agencies.

Paul has twice served as co-chair of the global dialogue on refugee resettlement (the Consultations on Resettlement and Complementary Pathways), in 2011-12 and 2023-24. For 14 years until 2026, Paul was on the steering committee and board of Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network. The Australian Government appointed him to its Advisory Panel on Australia’s Resettlement of Afghan Nationals (2021-2023) and the Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council (2008-2014).

Under Paul’s leadership, RCOA has supported people with lived refugee experience to take prominent roles in advocacy and leadership, within RCOA and through supporting refugee-led advocacy initiatives at local, national and international levels.

In 2026, Paul is helping to lead the development of Sanctuary Runners Australia, a partnership between RCOA and Sanctuary Runners in Ireland, which uses running and walking to build friendships between recently arrived refugees, people seeking asylum, migrants and Australians of all backgrounds.