David Wilden

David Wilden is head of David Wilden Consulting, which he established after more than 20 years in a range of senior executive positions in the Australian Public Service. He has significant experience in the design and implementation of migration, citizenship, and settlement policy and programs.

From 2014 to his retirement in late 2022, Mr. Wilden led divisions in the Department of Home Affairs covering immigration and citizenship policy and international policy. Most recently, he was First Assistant Secretary of the Refugee, Humanitarian, and Settlement Division. Among other positions, he also previously served as Regional Director for the Europe Region for the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.

Mr. Wilden was a key contributor for Australia in the consultations and negotiations for the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration and was the Australian representative at international fora. He serves on several boards and is a Fellow with the Centre for Policy Development.

He has a masters of business administration from Charles Sturt University and a graduate certificate in public administration from Flinders University.