Meet Nicolas Duran

The new Diocese of Broken Bay Development and Relationship Manager

What is your background?

I am Colombian. I was born in Bogota, but I have also lived in Paris (France) during my post university studies, between 2005 and 2009. I studied finance and international relations and have two master's degrees: one in human rights and humanitarian law and another in international cooperation for development.

Where have you worked previously and what kind of projects did you work on there?

I have worked in different sectors but mainly in the government sector (in Colombia) and with international development aid and human rights NGOs (in Colombia, France and Australia). Since arriving in Australia in 2016, I have worked with international organisations such as Libraries Without Borders (a French INGO) and UnitingWorld, the development agency of the Uniting Church. My specialty has been the implementation of social and human rights projects, fundraising and the establishment of public-private partnerships for development.

What’s one accomplishment in your career you’re most proud of?

One of the most important achievements of my career has been to help victims of the conflict in Colombia, to overcome poverty and support them in their reconciliation processes through socio-economic and human rights initiatives. Here in Australia, my greatest achievement has been to contribute to fundraising for different social projects in the organisations where I have worked. that allows the Diocese of Broken Bay achieve its objectives of helping the community and to go further and compensate the financial challenges left by the pandemic in previous years.

What drew you to your current role?

The opportunity to help faith communities through fundraising and sharing life stories that have enabled the Diocese of Broken Bay to contribute to improve the lives of others by promoting the gospel.

What are you most excited to do in this role?

What do you do away from work?

I have been married for ten years; I have two boys. The oldest is 7 years old and the youngest is 4. My oldest boy studies in a Catholic school and the youngest boy will start kindergarten at the same school next year. We love to make family plans, go to the beach, go camping,