For over 25 years Rathana has been leading campaigns, building organisations and growing leaders that transform our world. He has lived and worked in Australia, Europe, UK and Asia as well as working extensively on the ground across Africa, the Middle East and the Americas in environmental sustainability and human rights.

During his time at Greenpeace Rathana led the development of the 10 year Global Framework and Strategy, was the Head of Global Learning and Development and served as Japan Program Director shortly after the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster. He also served as the inaugural Southeast Asia Mobilisation Director and in many other international leadership roles including laying the groundwork to found Greenpeace Malaysia. He campaigned on  climate, deforestation, marine protection, plastic pollution, toxic chemicals and food security.

Prior to this he was a unit head for Amnesty International overseeing people-powered campaign strategies, prisoners of conscience and individuals at risk, youth movement building and human rights education work. He campaigned for civil freedoms in Asia, including the release of high profile political prisoners and the rights of everyday people to access free and fair elections. He also worked on refugee and Asylum Seeker rights in Australia, the rights of women in Iran, Marriage Equality in the US and Australia and other key human rights issues.

Cutting his campaign teeth in Community Organising for the Sydney Alliance and London Citizens, Rathana also served for 4 years as Vice Chair of refugee and migrant peak body the ECC, head of the Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby and is currently on the Board of Directors for New York based Mobilisation Lab and recently stepped down from the board of Asia based climate movement training institute AktivAsia to make time to be on the board of a, soon to be announced, global philanthropy group. He is also the former Chief of Staff for climate movement funder, The Sunrise Project and has been Managing Director for a number of NGO startups he helped take to scale, including Environmental Leadership Australia.

Rathana’s expertise in coaching and mentoring other change-maker CEOs to help translate their ambitions into reality has garnered testimonials from some of today's most recognised change-makers. His namesake international consultancy group, rathana.org, deploys 47 consultants across 15 countries working with some of the worlds leading change-agents to co-create, innovate and accelerate positive change including UNICEF, ActionAid, Climate Catalyst, OzHarvest and others.

In 2022 Rathana co-founded his passion project, the Multicultural Leadership Initiative — a global network of NFPs working at the intersection between race, culture and climate change to empower and involve greater leadership from People of Colour in building a climate safe future that is fair and equitable for all.

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Rathana has been awarded multiple accolades over his career but the three he holds close are the Vice Chancellor's Human Rights Award from his undergrad alma mater the University of Technology Sydney, the Asia Pacific CEO of the Year in Environmental Sustainability and his first ever award outside of high school when still a young teen, the Lions Club Youth of the Year for his region. The latter instilling in him from a young age the value of community, culture, service, education and the importance of cultivating self-determinant opportunities for all.

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