Feminist February: Feminist Governance

Do organisations run by women for women operate differently than other organisations? In this thoughtful seminar, we hear from experts on the growing local and international practice of feminist governance, exploring the unique leadership of feminist organisations and how they are transforming organisational leadership and hierarchies of competition and control.  The seminar will consider the transformative role of feminist governance, as well as challenges boards and executives face when feminist organisational theory clashes with legislative and funding accountabilities.

Guest speakers include:

• Eleri Butler is CEO of Family Safety Victoria, Victoria's leading agency responding to family violence. Prior to her appointment last year, she was CEO of Welsh Women's Aid, a national peak body preventing sexual and other gendered violence and spent several years managing London based women's organisations. In 2019 Eleri received an Honorary Fellowship from Cardiff University for her work on equality, social justice and human rights and in 2007 Eleri was honoured in the Queen's New Years’ Honour List for services to women and children experiencing domestic violence.
• Robyn Gregory is the CEO of Women's Health West, one of the oldest feminist organisations in the State of Victoria. Robyn has been at the forefront of advocacy for sexual and reproductive health, gendered violence and women's organising. She oversaw the development of the important Toolkit for Working in a Feminist Organisation.
• Srilatha Batilwala is a social activist and scholar in grassroots women's organising, working internationally from her home base in India. She is currently Senior Advisor, Knowledge Building for feminist human rights agency CREA (Creating Resources for Empowerment in Action) and is President of the NGO IT for Change. Srilatha has written extensively for international bodies on principles of women's organising and is completing a chapter on feminist governance in collaboration with women across the world, including Gender Equity Victoria's own Tanja Kovac.