About

Elected Chair in 2013 and re-elected in 2015 and 2019, Peter Doukas was the youngest ever Chair of the Ethnic Communities’ Council of NSW. He also served as Secretary between 2009 and 2013 and presided over significant changes to the internal governance structure of the organisation. These changes included the registration of ECCNSW as a company limited by guarantee. Mr Doukas is the Managing Director of law firm Denison Toyer, based in the Sydney CBD and operating mainly in commercial, administrative and estates law. He has worked in corporate governance since 2006 and has provided extensive advice to associations and NGOs around compliance and governance. He is currently the Chair of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia and serves on various non-profit boards. In 2020 Mr Doukas was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for services to multiculturalism.

Ms Passaris has been an active member of ECCNSW since 2004 and was first elected to the Board in 2007. In 2019, she was appointed Deputy Chair, bringing with her many years of experience in leadership and governance. Over her time with ECCNSW she has served in a number of key roles, including Executive Member, Assistant Treasurer and Secretary, demonstrating her long-standing commitment to the organisation.

Ms Passaris is a solicitor and practises across a wide range of legal areas including property, criminal, family, estates, and litigation. She also holds a Commerce/Marketing degree.

Ms Passaris is a committed advocate for multiculturalism, women’s rights and social cohesion. She strongly believes in the importance of diversity as a source of strength and is dedicated to amplifying diverse voices and ensuring they are heard, respected and valued across all areas of society. 

Elected as Treasurer in 2017 and a member of the Board since 2005, he has served as Secretary and was Chair from 2011-2013. Mr Valageorgiou is an experienced NFP board director and formerly a senior executive with TransGrid, who also provided HR and change management consulting services to NFPs. He is currently the Chair of Multicultural Care, President of the Samian Brotherhood of Sydney & NSW Ltd, Treasurer of FECCA, and a Founding Director of Hurstville Glory Football Club, with extensive experience in dealing with issues related to multiculturalism, aged and disability care, and sporting administration.

Elected in 2019 as Secretary, Glen served as the ECCNSW Youth Chair through 2015-2019. He is a Solicitor practising in the community legal sector, civil and not-for-profit law, and worked as a legal advocate for asylum seekers in Australia and overseas. Glen is a co-founder of the Australian Youth Parliament of the World’s Religions and a former Executive Member of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies.

Elected in 2019 as Youth Chair of the Ethnic Communities Council of NSW (ECC NSW), Joshua has dedicated himself to the NSW Jewish community and the broader NSW multicultural community. Joshua is a strong advocate for culturally and linguistically diverse communities and is dedicated to combating racism and racial hatred. He champions culturally inclusive work practices, supports special religious education in NSW, and is committed to safeguarding Australia's multiculturalism and fostering a more cohesive society. Joshua contributes his policy and education expertise to furthering the objectives of ECC NSW and representing the interests of NSW's culturally diverse communities to government and industry.

Joshua was a Director of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, Vice President of the NSW Council of Christians and Jews, and Board Member of the Youth Parliament of the World Religions. Joshua was selected to participate in the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) Anti-Racism Youth Leadership Initiative, the National Student Leadership Forum, and the Youth Discussion on Social Cohesion.

Joshua is an education policy advisor in the NSW Government, assisting in the NSW Curriculum Reform. He was previously a government policy consultant, a high school teacher, and the founder of a local education start-up. Joshua holds an Honours Double Bachelor Degree in Secondary Education and Commerce and completed a thesis in educational policy and leadership.

Elected to the Board in 2017. George has worked in the real estate industry for 54 years and has worked in both the Sutherland Shire and Inner West markets with LJ Hooker Marrickville and now Raine & Horne Commercial with his son Anthony. 

George has invaluable experience in commercial and industrial sales and leasing, as well as development site sales. Consequently, he has a wealth of knowledge of the commercial and industrial markets to draw upon to assist his clients in securing the best possible sale price for their property. George is a member of the following organisations: Property Council of Australia, Real Estate Institute of NSW, Board member of the ESTIA Foundation (Part of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese), former committee member of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Church, Gymea NSW.

Elected in 2015 as a board member and a Member’s Forum member since 2012. Member of AHEPA Australia Ltd 50 years, served as national president 2013-2015. A member of the Greek Young Matrons Association since 1984 (raising funds for children’s hospital and Greek Archdiocese), committee member of St Basil’s Ladies Auxiliary for over 20 years, member of the Hellenic Women of Sydney committee raising funds to provide food, clothing, pharmaceuticals for orphanages in Greece. 

Chairperson of the AHEPA National Educational Fund Inc, member of the AHEPA Australia National Council, Secretary of the AHEPA Medical Foundation Inc. Ahepan of the year 2007. Member of the St Sophia Restoration Fundraising Committee under the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW, and a member of the Hellenic Lyceum. Attended Sydney TAFE Ultimo with Diploma in Floristry and Advanced Floristry. Retired business person.

Elected in 2012, Abbas is a seasoned professional with expertise in international marketing and a strong record of fostering unity, interfaith dialogue, and multicultural collaboration. He is the founder and former president of the Australia India Chamber of Commerce NSW (now the Australia India Business Council), director of We Australians Are Creative Inc., and board member of the Mount Druitt Community Agency. Abbas also serves as president of the Indian Crescent Society of Australia and sits on the Advisory Subcommittee of Blacktown. A dynamic community networker, he is a committed advocate for environmental sustainability and renewable energy.

Ada Cheng joined the board in 2019, bringing over 30 years of experience in aged care. As CEO of the Australian Chinese Nursing Home Foundation, she has transformed aged care for Chinese communities across Australia, earning numerous awards both locally and internationally for her innovative strategies and excellence in combining cultural sensitivity with high standards of care. Her adoption of Geron-technology has significantly improved seniors' quality of life, demonstrating her forward-thinking approach to tackling the challenges faced by diverse elderly populations. Ada's impact extends beyond her organisation, establishing her as a global thought leader in aged care. In 2025, she was recognised as the Global Ageing Influencer in Singapore and the Smart Ageing Global Star in Hong Kong.

Elected to the Members’ Forum in 2012 and as a Board Director on 2017. Mr Pashalis is the Secretary of the Greek Orthodox Parish and Community of Belmore “All Saints”.

Siddique Panwala is the Principal Solicitor at Unisaj Legal, providing legal assistance in the areas of family law, domestic violence, immigration, and conveyancing.

Beyond his work at Unisaj Legal, Siddique has played a significant role in community advocacy and multicultural engagement. He served as Treasurer of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) and legal adviser to numerous community organisations, including the Indian Crescent Society of Australia, Vedic Parisad – Australia, AUSPAK Women Association, Suhag Charity, and the Australian Peace and Harmony Association.

Elected to the Board in 2019, Amir brings over 35 years of expertise in multicultural services, including teaching and program management of the TAFE Multicultural Education program, and community engagement. He was also the lead tutor on a project that developed a training program for Australian business people conducting business in Asia and the Middle East.

Amir provided training to Australian Business teams deployed in Egypt and worked as a bilingual tutor to a range of TAFE NSW courses, and has been tutoring a ‘Cultural awareness program’ for the Australian Peacekeeping troops, Department of Defence. He is also a Facilitator at STARTTS (Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Torture and Trauma Survivors) for its program, “Families in Cultural Transition”.

His community leadership includes serving as Past President of the Australian Egyptian Forum Council and holding board positions on various community organisations and advisory committees. In recognition of his contributions,

Amir was awarded the NSW Premier's Stepan Kerkyasharian Community Harmony Medal in 2023 and has been nominated as Ambassador for the NSW Multicultural Health for 2025.