In celebration of International Women's Day, Trust for Nature (Victoria) and Bush Heritage Australia invite you to join the 10th annual Celebrating Women in Conservation Virtual Breakfast on Thursday 4 March 2021.

Having shared a challenging 2020 with the devastating Black Summer Fires and the global pandemic, this virtual event will explore how connection to Country and people can help us stay resilient through crisis recovery.

Meet our special guest speakers Keelen Mailman and Melia Benn to celebrate yourself, your colleagues, and women in conservation.

SPEAKERS

Keelen Mailman OAM is a Bidjara woman. She became the first Aboriginal woman to run a commercial cattle station at age 30 when she took over Mt Tabor, two hours from Augathella on the black soil plains of western Queensland. Mt Tabor is in the heartland of Bidjara country and is the place where Keelen's ancestors left their marks on caves and rock walls over 10,000 years ago.

Keelen won Barnardos Mother of the Year Award in 2016 and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her contribution to the Indigenous community in Queensland in 2020. Keelen is also a best selling author. Her book, Power of Bones, is an unflinching memoir about childhood poverty, abuse, and racism. Her tale happily becomes an inspiring story of a woman's extraordinary strength through adversity, due to her deep connection to her ancestors, Country, culture, and language.

Melia Benn is a descendant of the Mamu and Gunggandii peoples. Melia was called to the Bar in 2018 and is one of only two First Nation women at the Bar in Queensland.

Following her admission to practice as a solicitor in 2014, Melia worked as a property lawyer in private practice before transitioning to the Queensland Government where she was a senior lawyer for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (QLD), appearing in the District and Supreme Courts. Prior to moving to the Bar, Melia was the Counsel Assisting the Northern Coroner. At the Bar, Melia has a broad practice that includes criminal defence, anti-discrimination, regulatory prosecutions, and class actions.

BREAKFAST CHEF

A ticket to this event comes with a breakfast recipe and demonstration video from Elizabeth Chong AM. We encourage you to join the event on Thursday 4 March with your delicious breakfast in front of you!

Elizabeth is a prominent Chinese-born, Melbourne-based Australian chef, teacher, author, and television presenter. Her Chinese cooking school in Hawthorn, Melbourne, Victoria, has seen more than 35,000 students pass through its kitchen while across Australia, her face is well-known. Elizabeth's book, The Heritage of Chinese Cooking, was awarded the prestigious Prix La Mazille as International Cookbook of the Year in 1994.

The multi-award winning chef, affectionately known as the Empress of Chinatown in Melbourne, was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2019 for significant service to the hospitality sector and to the promotion of Chinese cuisine.

MASTER OF CEREMONIES

Tanya Ha is an award-winning Australian environmental campaigner, author, broadcaster, science journalist, and sustainability researcher. She is also a media commentator on science and environmental issues, a behaviour change researcher, and was a delegate to the Australia 2020 Summit.

TICKETS AND DONATIONS

Your ticket fee goes towards the conservation work of Trust for Nature (Victoria) and Bush Heritage Australia. Once you have purchased your ticket, we will send the virtual event URL link to you closer to date.

Also, as not for profit organisations, we rely greatly on donations from supporters. Please consider making a donation to Trust for Nature (Victoria) and Bush Heritage Australia.

For any inquiries please email conservation@breakfast.org.au