The Decade of Women In Leadership - Presented by the Embassies of Ecuador, and the United Arab Emirates, along with the High Commissions of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa in Australia

Join us in celebrating the achievements of Women in Leadership! 

In commemorating International Women's Day 2024, in partnership with the Global Institute for Women's Leadership, the Embassies of Ecuador, and the United Arab Emirates, along with the High Commissions of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa in Australia, invite you to the event “The Decade of Women in Leadership.” 

Aligning with the 2024 United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UN-CSW) priority theme: “Count Her In: Accelerating Gender Equality through Economic Empowerment.” The Panel Discussion event, hosted by Mr Noel Campbell (Director of the ANU Australian National Centre for Latin American Studies), will seek to celebrate the achievements and contributions of women in various fields and elucidate their journeys to success. Furthermore, it seeks to inspire the formulation of future initiatives and projects that foster gender equality in our nations, while encouraging the active participation of current and future generations.

The panelists include: 

Dr. Ligia Oliveira-Silva is a Senior Research Fellow at GIWL ANU and a Professor of Social, Work, and Organisational Psychology. Her research focuses on why women have difficulties entering, remaining, and ascending in their careers, as well as the factors that contribute to the economic empowerment of women and the reduction of intersectional gender inequities.

Ms Olivia Thornton is Cricket ACT's first female CEO, and is dedicated to investing in women to perform at a professional level. Ms Thornton has held many a distinguished role on and off the sports field, whilst also consistently advocating for female athletes in Australia. Additionally, Ms Thornton has played a crucial role in Cricket ACT's implementation of their Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), increasing the awareness and support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders peoples.  

Ms Jo Farrell is the General Manager of Kane Constructions, Founder & Director Build Like A Girl and ACT Australian of The Year 2024. A qualified carpenter by trade, licenced builder, certified building designer and now General Manager of a multimillion dollar commercial construction company. Jo is passionate about seeing more women in construction and leads a team of in the ACT with a strong focus on mentoring women at all stages of their career.She founded Not-for-Profit Charity organisation Build Like A Girl in September 2020, as a direct call to action to help women gain apprenticeship employment, receive mentoring and support, and to combat the negative cultural experiences women face in construction every day. Jo has served as a board Director for YWCA, NAWIC and Tradeswomen Australia, as well as being a current active member on the steering committee for Tasmanian based “Build Up Tassie” a Centacare initiative to promote female tradeswomen undertaking social housing projects.

Ms Florence Drummond is the co-founder and CEO of Indigenous Women in Mining and Resources Australia (IWIMRA), a uniquely positioned organisation working to connect and raise the profile of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women in the resources industry. Previous experience includes leadership in global advocacy and awareness projects in major public and governmental bodies including LATAM, the UN Commission of the Status of Women and Australian delegation representation at APEC and UNESCAP. Ms Drummond is a non-executive Director of ASX listed Taiton Resources and was recognised for her leadership locally in the WA Business News 40 Under 40 Awards, plus internationally recognised in Women in Mining UK's 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining alumni. She was also recently appointed as an advisory board member to the Centre for Australia-India Relations.