Speeches
Wednesday, 19 February 2025
University of Adelaide Pathways to Politics Program Graduation
I am delighted to welcome you all to Government House to celebrate your graduation from the Pathways to Politics for Women program.
I know that while you have diverse backgrounds, you are all motivated by a desire to harness your skills and experience to improve the lives of others.
I congratulate you all on your willingness to explore a pathway that will equip you to do so as leaders, whether that’s in State Parliament, Local Government or as an advocate who knows how to navigate our political system to effect positive change.
Our democratic institutions are stronger if they truly reflect who we are as a community.
Already you are advocates, you are mothers, you are partners, you are leaders. Like the current and former members of parliament here this evening, you want a fair and just society.
My late mother, the Hon Jennifer Cashmore, was the third woman to be elected to the House of Assembly and the second to be appointed to Cabinet.
Her entry into Parliament coincided with my teenage years. Along with my brother and sister, we would sometimes do our homework in her Parliamentary office.
From that time, but also informed by my years as a public servant and diplomat, I have some understanding of the demands of political life, the long hours, the pressures, the compromises.
But I also know the deep sense of satisfaction that comes with achieving something which makes our community a better place.
Friends
I thank the University of Adelaide for running this program with the support of the Pathways to Politics for Women founding partners, the Trawalla Foundation, headed by the remarkable Carol Schwartz; the Women’s Leadership Institute Australia and the University of Melbourne.
I’ll leave you with a quote from my mother from her book A Chance in Life:
“As a Member of Parliament, I believe it is my responsibility to try, as often as possible, to say what other people are thinking but perhaps not expressing, so that those I represent feel they have a voice.
Another obligation – more difficult by far to fulfil – is actually to make people think. We need to see ourselves not only as individuals but as a very important part of society.
When we do that, we are forced to think about the relationship between thought and action, action, and reaction. We are forced to think not just about our own lives but about the lives of others we depend on and who depend on us – our families, our employers, our colleagues, our country.
In other words, we are forced to think politically. The more people can think politically, the more power they have to influence their future in ways of their own choosing.”
Friends.
I wish you well for your political careers.
Through you many under-represented voices will be amplified however you choose to apply the confidence, knowledge and experiences gained through Pathways to Politics for Women.