Speeches
Wednesday, 26 March 2025
Reception for Zonta Young Women in Leadership Awards Program
Rod and I warmly welcome the Zonta community to Government House.
In 2023 it was my pleasure to speak at the Zonta Young Leaders graduation ceremony, a program which some award finalists have completed.
I note some finalists are also past winners of an Order of Australia Student Citizen award, awards which are presented here at Government House.
As Governor, gender equity is one of my priority areas.
I am proud to support Zonta in its mission to build a better world for women and girls, and I stand ready to assist in any way I can in encouraging young women to see themselves as leaders.
Congratulations to all the finalists in the Zonta Young Women in Leadership Awards Program.
Many of you have, or continue to, undertake senior leadership positions within your school communities.
You have volunteered your time and energy to the Defence Force, to not-for-profit organisations like Puddle Jumpers, the South Australian Youth Forum, and others.
You are studying, or looking to study, fields such as medicine, law and political science – giving you the skills and knowledge to go out and make a practical difference to the lives of women and girls.
I thank you all for harnessing your leadership abilities to be a positive force in your schools, universities and communities.
The recent theme of International Women’s Day was ‘March Forward: Turning Promises into Progress’.
As an award finalist, this is what you’ve demonstrated – putting your ideas into practical action.
I encourage you to keep up the good work.
The late teenage years are a pivotal time in your lives, where you start to make decisions about which pathway you are likely to follow – even though that may change over time.
And wherever life takes you, I trust that you will be able to gain insights from people who are willing to share their own experiences and that you will be willing to share your experiences too.
That kind of learning can be very valuable.
Further progress will take self-belief, a willingness to learn from others, and recognition that diversity and diversity of opinion can contribute much to the strength of our community.
You have already started on that trajectory.
I must say that I found having a good network of people, some of them friends, to be a good sounding board for ideas, and for support when times are tough.
Perhaps there are new friends or collaborators among your fellow finalists – I encourage you to get to know one another this evening!
Friends,
I thank Zonta South Australia for running these awards and for supporting young South Australian young women to make their own contributions towards achieving gender equity in our society.
I congratulate Zonta on the creation last year of Zonta Australia, a collective voice for districts across the country to advocate at a national level.
This will no doubt strengthen Zonta’s ability to reach its goals, while also supporting its longevity.
I wish our finalists all the very best for the future, as they take the baton from the women who came before them, supporting girls and women everywhere to reach their potential.