BPW International

Four countries from the Oceania Region met in Wellington from on the July 31 and August 1 to share ideas; seaking  to combine the strength of BPW Federations and Affiliate Clubs in the Oceania Region to move BPW forward and network with members. The attending countries were New Zealand, Australia, Cook Islands and American Samoa.

Twelve Australians travelled to Windy Wellington for meeting, Jean Murray, (BPWI Executive Secretary), Freda Miriklis, (BPWI 2^nd Vice President), Susan Jones (Oceania Regional Coordinator), Young Hai Park (BPW Asia Pacific Regional Coordinator) , Marilyn Forsythe (BPWA President), Liz Flatters, Rinske Geerlings, Kate McCauley, Trish Clifford , Barbara Hunter, Pat Harrison (Past BPW International President) Caitlin Medley.

Members recognized the need for such meetings to be held in countries where the cost of travelling to Australia or New Zealand was prohibitive and the next meeting will be held in American Samoa in two years time.

It is important that BPW has a presence in all the Oceania Region with many countries, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga, Solomon Islands where clubs could be established.

A panel was held on the Future of BPW Oceania where two young BPW members, one from New Zealand and Kate McCauley who is from BPW Sydney gave excellent presentations on how to move forward in the region. They were joined by New President Angela McLeod and BPW Australia President Marilyn Forsythe speaking about how the two countries can support the ‘Polynesian’ countries in growth and establish a presence.

New Zealand Minister for Women’s Affairs, Pansy Wong hosted a dinner the “Beehive” New Zeeland Parliament House. The Minister spoke about many issues that face countries including violence against women, gender equity, women’s representation on boards and equal pay. The pay gap in New Zealand is 12% compared to Australia.

The Oceania Meeting gave members  of how many issues BPW should address as a group.  BPW has complementary skills and the workshops including BPWs of other countries, highlight the issues in the region.  The larger Asia-Pacific region is relatively dispersed and making detailed discussion and problem solving difficult.

During the weekend, all the interactive sessions and discussions, e.g. about empowerment of women and financial security enabled members to form a real appreciation and in-depth understanding of the issues, to develop more effective solutions and achieve results earlier.  Another great benefit is the sharing of case studies of initiatives that have worked, e.g. the work-life balance success stories from NZ companies that we can utilise in Australia to gain support.  Apart from the above, the positive dynamic and energy between the delegates over the weekend live in memory forever.

The Oceania Meeting provided an opportunity to network with other regional members, share ideas and make lasting friendships

Edited version from original submitted by Rinske Geerling BPW Sydney