International Women’s Day (IWD)

IWD is an opportunity to empower women, celebrate achievements, and accelerate progress toward a gender-equal society.

Women are not one size fits all. We are leaders, builders, creatives, explorers, and thinkers. We are liberated from old-fashioned moulds and have fashioned a loud collective voice that demands not just equality, but equity through supporting people to succeed by acknowledging the different barriers people may face and tailoring resources to their circumstances.

I am proud to be surrounded by strong women and allies who support people (and each other) to make possibilities a reality.

If you want to take a stand for gender equity, don’t be afraid to speak your truth and share your voice. We are with you!

IWD is a day to acknowledge the wonderful women in our lives, both personally and professionally, and to celebrate our successes. It is a day of recognition, reflection and inspiration – where we acknowledge the amazing work women do in our community; remember the hard fort battles for women’s rights and; reinvigorate our passion to continue to propel women into the future as fearless leaders.

This is a global event celebrated by women on the same day every year, no matter their culture, age, sexuality, or where they live – how great is that! Although the day is inspiring, it is always a sobering reminder of the significant forms of gender-based violence and abuse that girls and women continue to experience and the significant support that women can offer to those less fortunate.

I am so lucky to have so many wonderful women around me from all walks of life – both personally and professionally. Some words I try to live by:

• Live and embrace your best life. You only have one!
• Have the strength to let go of what no longer serves you.
• Celebrate your wins no matter how big or small – be proud!
• Focus on progress – not perfection – in all areas of your life!
• Listen to your intuition – trust yourself!
• Seek to understand others without judgement!
• Live in the moment – be mindful – be present!
• Gratitude – this has to be my favourite word ever!

IWD salutes our female predecessors, emerging young women, others experiencing less favourable circumstances, and those who walk alongside us – irrespective of gender. I’m grateful to have had some formidable, transformational leaders during my career spanning science, welfare, employment services and disability sectors.

Meaningful change can be realised with courage to challenge the status quo; address inequities; build capacity for individuals, organisations and communities; eliminate barriers to success; and advocate for those whose voices aren’t being heard. Never underestimate the potency of integrity, honesty, accountability, resilience, and softer skills like effective communication, collaboration and compassion in achieving impactful change.

Strong women working together create endless opportunities.

This IWD, I call on men. You can make the world a better place for women.

Read books by women; Watch sport played by women; Screenplays and shows produced by women; Enjoy art made by women; Follow women on social media that have different points of view to you; Pay women for their work; Celebrate women’s excellence in their chosen field.

Call sexism, misogyny and men’s violence what they are; Believe women. Ask your partner and friends about their experience as women and girls; Understand them as their own person, not only the role they fulfil in your life; Understand their struggles; Support their values, beliefs and dreams.

Stand up for women and girls, and not just the ones you know; Support education for girls everywhere; Question your own thoughts and actions. Understand that you have your own bias, ego and social conditioning.

Share the domestic and mental load fairly. Value women’s time equally to your own; Choose language mindfully; De-gender fashion; Let children express themselves without shame; Teach age-appropriate consent.

Understand expression of emotion is not a weakness. Express your own emotions safely; Understand that feminism is not misandry. Learn about it. Use the word positively. Claim it as your own.

Understand that transphobia, homophobia, sexism, racism and men’s violence are all part of the same problem that women face. Learn about the role of white supremacy at the heart of these issues.

Listen to women. Stand up for women and non-binary people who experience marginalisation – First Nations women, Black women, Asian women, disabled women. Trans women are women.

Any day is a good day to celebrate women, but one performative day per year will not change the status quo.

If you care about women, embrace equity. Everywhere. For everyone. Every day.

IWD is a reminder of the strength that women like myself and others show on a daily and on a continual basis. It’s being the ‘superwomen’ that we are daily whether it’s doing it alone for your family, making sure everything is under control for the wellbeing of children, or doing the things that no one thought you could – whether that’s career, education and many other things that can keep us on our toesin any aspect of life.

Women are born resilient and sometimes we need to remind ourselves of that. I like to empower others by reminding them that growth doesn’t come from remaining in your comfort zone. Real growth comes when you embrace challenges and change.

IWD shows us how truly beautiful and strong women are. Getting to support women who have had to overcome certain barriers to get where they are now is amazing. They are so influential and being around that influence drives me to make more change. All women are AWESOME!

IWD to me is the chance to celebrate women for all they are, and all they bring to the workplace and the world!

I never thought of myself as a leader however, I had the opportunity to step into a Team Leader relief role this past year.

What an experience! I have come to see myself as an important member of the team and have developed new skills and met some amazing woman leaders in our field. I hope along the way I have been able to inspire others to step out of their comfort zone and dream big!

So grateful for all the opportunities.

IWD represents a day of celebration to me. We are very fortunate as women to be living in today’s society, as we can look back and see how far we have come. Women now have the opportunity to grow and accomplish whatever we choose to. It is a day of unity, love and acceptance. I have always been raised to believe I have the power and confidence to change the world and stand up for what I believe in. This has further helped me give the women I support at Endeavour Foundation a voice to use, a voice to lean on and a voice to encourage them to reach for the stars.

I have had many role models throughout my career, including leaders who showed me what good leadership should look like and the positive impact it can have on others. I have been blessed with strong, independent role models in my personal life as well, who have always supported me on my journey.

I always try to follow the quote ‘although we can’t always control the events in our life, we can control our reaction to them’. Never stop learning and seeking feedback. In order to develop and grow, we need to continuously learn and improve while still believing in our own ability. That has been an important lesson for me, to not let an awareness of our own development areas impact our confidence levels or self-belief. So, no matter what stage you are at in your career, you can continue to learn, evolve, and grow.

Who would have thought that someone who loves frocks and fashion would be leading in an industrial warehouse environment typically dominated by men? Well, I certainly didn’t!

I walked into Geebung in August 2021 not sure what to expect. Within my first few months, I was called fat and told I would ‘never make it’. My leader at the time took me for a ‘coffee’ to tell me what a poor job I was doing – despite providing zero leadership, zero training and not having a clue himself.

I can laugh about it now but these are unfortunately all too common examples of how men treat women in the workplace.

Women in the workplace have come a long way and it needs to be acknowledged we still have some way to go to ‘embrace equality’.

I love the work I do here at Geebung, I love authentically and genuinely lifting other women up. Holding space with our women here at Geebung, hearing their stories, and empowering them to live better lives and strive forward is one of the greatest joys for me.

Sisters stand tall in support of all.

Happy IWD from our Elders in Yugambah Country (Logan), and the Kingston team – originally from Samoa, Aotearoa (New Zealand), Sudan and Torres Strait Papua New Guinea.

IWD is a day to stop and reflect on some of the amazing achievements and contributions women have made to society. It is a day to take note of the women around you who have positively influenced and shaped you to be your best you. And then to take that learning and pay it forward.

Pictured is me with my mother and older sister. Both of these women have taught me to be the strong, kind, passionate, and compassionate woman I am today.

IWD means celebrating your fellow powerful ladies! I am extremely blessed to have a truly supportive/ride-or-die group of strong independent girlfriends, who back me always through thick or thin.

Ladies who are not just supportive of me but my daughters, those kinda ladies who you can be stuck in traffic/running late/overloaded, and they turn up with a coffee/sweets or do school pick up on the days you need a hand without a question #lovemygirls #IWD #rideordie #homegirls #yougotthis #girlsruletheworld #takesatribe #mumslife #makingitwork #aunties.

IWD means the celebration of women from all walks of life, cultures and backgrounds. I am grateful to know such wonderful, independent and passionate ladies in both my work and personal life, who are always extremely supportive.

Not only have I been able to build awesome working relationships with these women, but they’ve become friends too that you can genuinely connect to. People who aren’t afraid to tell you the truth because they care so much about you and your family, and want to see you succeed. I have been very lucky to have met strong, independent ladies who are just good people and so much fun.

I think being able to be a woman in this modern day and age presents unique opportunities that weren’t previously available to the women who walked before us, such as:

• Being able to now have a family and career and not have to pick one or the other.
• Being able to have high ambitions and knowing they are not out of reach.
• Seeing a lot more women in leadership, trades etc and watching them be successful and inspire other women.
• More women in sports are able to do it professionally for a living (eg. Women’s Australian Cricket Team (Southern Stars)).

It’s about all those women who have overcome obstacles in their lives and have inspired others to do the same! I also think it’s about friendship.