At the beginning of this term the ‘Shift’ programme ran its first LeadHERship mini-conference. The conference was held over two days and brought together a group of 40 Year 12 & 13 female students from across the Wellington region.
The kaupapa of the two days was to inspire and empower the group of young women in the areas of wellbeing, self-leadership and leadership of others. Whole group sessions, workshops, idea-storming and small group debriefs were all used to cover the topics of; self-care, values, resiliency, team work, communication, visioning, goal setting, confidence, human centred design, healthy relationships and empathy.
A highlight identified by the young women was the panel discussion. Five wonderful, diverse and experienced women each shared their story of being a female in a position of leadership. The young women were then able to ask further questions and dig deeper into the panellists wisdom. We were also lucky to have Porirua Mayor Mike Tana and Deputy Mayor Izzy Ford drop into the conference, to offer the young women words of inspiration and empowerment.
At the conclusion of the two days, the young women went back to their whānau, schools and wider community. Their challenge was to pass on the knowledge that had been added to their kete. The young women are currently figuring out what that would look like and how to make it happen. We’re excited to see what impact they will have!