Sunday 8 March will mark International Women’s Day, which was started in 1911. The theme overall for the day is Give To Gain.
Women’s Defence Connection (WDC) has chosen to celebrate International Women’s Day on Thursday 5 March through organising its third annual lunch in Melbourne.
The theme of the lunch was Balancing the Scales: Shared Responsibility in Leadership.
MAJ Liz Daly was the keynote speaker and MAJGEN Michelle Campbell has facilitated the panel discussion on allyship and joint responsibility, discussing how to evolve female participation.
The panel has included individuals such as Deakin University, Director, Defence and Security, Strategic Partnerships, James Mullins; Suzi Finkelstein Advisory, Executive Coach and Leadership Advisor, Suzi Finkelstein; BAE Systems, Head of Organisation Development and People Development, David Rowe; and SystematiQ, Business Development Manager, Erin O’Brien.
Both men and women were included on the panel and invited to the lunch to broaden the conversation and include “allies, listeners, and partners in change”. According to WDC’s website, this is because “gender equity is a journey we’re all on together”.
MAJ Daly ended her speech with reassurance for the women in the room.
"This is dedicated to the women who were told they were too loud, too bold, too ambitious and too much. You were never too much. They just weren’t enough," MAJ Daly proclaimed.