On Tuesday 12 May 2026 (from 12.00pm – 2.00pm - AEST), WLI will host an online Learning & Networking event launching WLI's Everyday Developmental Leadership: How Pacific Women Drive Change in the Pacific research paper. The event is for Australia Awards scholars and alumni from the Pacific and their families, as well as development colleagues in our region.
About everyday leaders
Every day, in communities, churches, civil society organisations, businesses and government departments across the Pacific, women are collaborating with others to undertake the day-to-day work that helps influence positive change. They are improving the care that patients receive in hospitals, protecting their countries’ natural heritage, supporting their communities to adapt to climate change, helping people with disabilities find their voice and exercise agency, and providing women with skills and access to loans to enable them to establish small businesses and be more financially secure.
But how do these women understand leadership, and what does it mean in their daily lives? How do they build legitimacy and credibility, introduce new ideas, and shift mindsets in complex social and cultural contexts? And how do they sustain their efforts while balancing competing demands on their time, skills, and networks?
WLI is pleased to celebrate the publication of Everyday Developmental Leadership: How Pacific Women Drive Change, a research paper and suite of case studies which explore how Pacific women understand and practice everyday leadership in their own contexts. Drawing on interviews with ten women leaders across diverse settings, the report provides insights into how leadership is grounded in relationships, shaped by cultural values, and oriented toward collective change.
About this event
Join WLI for a conversation with some of the leaders featured in the research as they share their leadership journeys, reflect on what they have learned, and explore what these insights mean for supporting leadership and change in the Pacific.
The event will feature a live expert panel discussion and audience Q&A to explore the topic in further depth, moderated by Dr Elisabeth Jackson from La Trobe University's Centre for Human Security and Social Change.
About the panel
Guest speakers include:
Ipul Powaseu, disability rights and disability inclusion advocate, Papua New Guinea
Adimaimalaga Tafuna'i, founder Women in Business Development Inc, Samoa
Setoki Tuiteci, Council Chairman for the National Trust of Fiji, Fiji
Event details
Date: 12 May 2026
Time: 12.00pm – 2.00pm AEST
Location: Online, via Zoom