Maria Dimopoulos
Consultant

Maria Dimopoulos has a legal background, and incorporates her legal knowledge as an anti-discrimination and diversity trainer. Maria has had extensive experience in policy formulation for the Government sector, research for social planning and in community education. She has also successfully undertaken sensitive consultations with ethnic communities on a range of issues including care for aged, skilled migration and employment, health, domestic violence and the law. In delivering cultural awareness programs to a wide sector of the community, Maria has contributed to the development and a greater understanding of the cross-cultural implications in decision-making and service provision.

Maria has written extensively for a number of journals, including Feminist Law Journal, the Australian Institute of Criminology and various Local Government Journals. She has also co-authored the book ‘Blood on Whose Hands’ – the Killing of Women and Children in Domestic Relationships.

Maria is also a recipient of an Amnesty International Human Rights Award for her work on the legal needs of women from NESB.

Maria has also participated in a wide range of Boards and committees relevant to diversity awareness issues including

• Queen Victoria Women’s Trust Board
• Immigrant Women’s Domestic Violence Services of Victoria
• City of Melbourne Multicultural Centre Advisory Committee
• The Board of Governors of Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS);
• Chief Justice’s Ethnic Communities Advisory Committee to the Family Court;
• Equal Opportunity Commission Victoria's Women’s Reference Group;
• Prime Minister's National Campaign Against Violence and Crime - Cultural Diversity Reference Group
• Chairperson: Association of Non-English Speaking Background Women of Australia

As a Consultant, Maria has recently undertaken work for a diverse range of organisations including:

• Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
• Australian Institute of Judicial Administration
• Australian Institute of Criminology
• National Judicial College of Australia�� Family Court of Australia
• Department of Justice
• Fiji Law Reform Commission (Review of Domestic Violence Legislation) (current)
• Policing Jurisdictions, including Victoria Police, NSW Police and the Australasian Police Multicultural Advisory Bureau
• Australian Multicultural Foundation
• Emergency Management Australia
• Victorian Law Reform Commission
• Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs
• Department of Education, Employment and Training (Vic and Tas)
• Victorian Local Government Councils (Dandenong, Darebin, Stonnington, Kensington)

Professional Associations:

• Centre for Citizenship and Human Rights, Deakin University
• Australian Institute of Judicial Administration

Maria was also selected to participate in a Global Leadership Course offerred to a select 20 people from around the world at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ USA (2001)