The Central West Women’s Forum is proud to announce high profile speakers for its next two events in September and December, both of which will be held at Duntry League.

On 14th September Dr. Skye Saunders will address an audience of some 100 people following on from the success of the inaugural canape evening held in June with speaker Minister Bronnie Taylor.  Skye is a passionate and committed advocate for the advancement of gender equality. Skye is an Associate Professor of Law at the Australian National University and is the Vice President of the YWCA Canberra. In 2018 Skye was part of Project Empower with Country to Canberra to empower teenage girls in rural and remote Australia to achieve their leadership potential.

Maraynne Hawthorn, the Chair of the newly incorporated Central West Women’s Forum said ‘we are delighted that Skye has accepted our invitation to speak at our second canape evening. Skye is a visionary speaker, who is able to convey messages with clarity and resonance, leaving a lasting impact on both hearts and minds.’

Vice Chair of CWWF, Richard Hattersley said ‘Skye invites men to be agents for positive change in a culture of gender discrimination, and the Central West Women’s Forum also believes that men and women together need to be champions of change’.

Richard said ‘We are also delighted to announce that The Hon. Sussan Ley, MP, Australian Minister for the Environment, will be our speaker on Saturday 7th December.’

Both events will be held from 6.00 to 8.30p.m. and entry will be by ticket.  The cost of the evening is $35. Canapes will be served and a bar will be available. 

Maraynne said ‘our first event in June was over subscribed by over 50% and we had to turn away some 50 women who wanted to attend.  Please book early to avoid disappointment. Tickets will be available from the Central West Women’s Forum Facebook page and from https://www.trybooking.com/BEPGZ

The Central West Women’s Forum has been established to give voice to women of the Central West who want to make a difference, achieve results and influence the choices available across the region. 

Its diverse membership will provide and leverage support, encouragement and development opportunities to each other from within its resources and coordinate external speakers and experiences.

Members of the Forum are linked by their desire to have a strong region known for its commitment to excellence in leadership.

Dr Skye Saunders is an Associate Professor in Law at the Australian National University, an Employment/ Discrimination Solicitor and is the Vice President of the YWCA Canberra. Skye pioneered the first research in Australia on sexual harassment in rural workplaces which is contained in her book 'Whispers from the Bush- The Workplace Sexual Harassment of Australian Rural Women.' In 2017 the Victorian Women's Trust produced a short documentary film called 'Grace Under Fire' which is based on Skye's research on workplace sexual harassment in rural Australia. In her work, Skye strives to ignite the inherent empathy and perception in both men and women as a central part of her mission to disrupt sex discrimination in the workplace.

Skye was a delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW62 and CSW63) in New York with the YWCA Australia. Skye was also recently awarded the Chancellor’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award (University of Canberra). She is currently researching for her new book project, 'Defying Gravity- Rising Above Sex Discrimination in the Workplace.'