Penelope Morton

Born and raised in Adelaide, South Australia, Penny commenced her career in the South Australian Police Force, before returning to university to complete undergraduate degrees in law and social science. Her early work experience ignited an interest in driving change through public policy, while her studies drove a desire to work in international affairs. Combining these interests, she has since held a variety of positions in Canberra and overseas with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade including in Afghanistan, New York, and Bangladesh. As Deputy High Commissioner in Bangladesh, Penny led Australia’s engagement in political, security, development and humanitarian affairs. As First Secretary at Australia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, New York, she managed the social, political and human rights portfolios across the General Assembly and U.N. Security Council. At the Australian Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Penny managed the human rights and gender portfolios, bilateral legal matters and counter terrorism work. Most recently, she led Australia's engagement in the early stages of the World Health Organisation (WHO) review into the COVID-19 pandemic and oversaw the development of Australia's international climate change advocacy strategy in the lead up to COP26 in late 2021. In her spare time, she's a prolific fiction reader and loves a bushwalk.