Over a thousand people from workplaces, schools and community groups from across New Zealand and the Pacific gathered online today to celebrate International Women’s Day at a virtual event hosted by Zonta Club of Wellington and UN Women Aotearoa New Zealand.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is:

“Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”

This recognises the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, to build a more sustainable future for all.

Advancing gender equality in the context of the climate crisis and disaster risk reduction is one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. The issues of climate change and sustainability have had and will continue to have, severe and lasting impacts on our environment, economic and social development.

The online breakfast event was hosted by Zonta Club of Wellington and UN Women Aotearoa New Zealand and featured speeches from Her Excellency, The Rt Hon Cindy Kiro (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Kahu and British), GNZM, QSO, DStJ, Governor-General of New Zealand, Hon. Jan Tinetti, Minister for Women, Sophie Handford, Councillor for the Kāpiti District Council and Ranjna Patel ONZM QSM JP, Director and Founder of Tamaki Health.

The speakers challenged us all to consider our own legacies, and discussed the strong links between female representation in leadership positions, and better outcomes for communities across a range of issues including social justice and the environment.

A recording of the event can be watched here for free: https://youtu.be/-Zv3k9wWjgU

More information:

Zonta International is a global organization of executives and professionals working together to advance the status of women worldwide through service and advocacy. To learn more about Zonta and look at opportunities to join this global organisation of executives and professionals visit www.zonta.org.nz.

UN Women is the United Nations Entity for gender equality and the empowerment of women with a mission to ensure that globally, all women and girls have equal opportunities. UN Women Aotearoa NZ is the New Zealand branch of UN Women. To become a member or be involved go to www.unwomen.org.nz.

About the Speakers

The Rt Hon Cindy Kiro (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Kahu and British), GNZM, QSO, DStJ,Governor-General of New Zealand, is the first Māori woman to be appointed to this role. Prior to this, her distinguished career spanned teritary education, she was also the first woman and first Māori Children’s Commissioner, and Chair of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group.

Hon. Jan Tinetti is the Minister for Women, Minister for Internal Affairs and Associate Minister of Education. Prior to entering politics, Jan’s career was firmly established in education, serving as both primary teacher and Principal and advocating at a national level for equal educational opportunities.

Sophie Handford, Councillor for the Kāpiti Coast District Council. Sophie was the founder of School Strike 4 Climate protest, one of New Zealands largest and most successful protests, mobilising more than 170,000 people. Sophie became New Zealand’s youngest elected councillor in 2019.

Ranjna Patel ONZM QSM JP, Director and Founder of Tāmaki Health & Gandhi Nivas. Tāmaki Health was established in the 1970’s in Otara, and has since grown to a network of over 40 clinics across Auckland and New Zealand. Ghandi Nivas provides early intervention and prevention services for New Zealand men identified at risk of committing harm in the family home, and has helped over 2,500 families in Tāmaki Makaurau.

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