2024 Victorian Chapter International Women's Day Luncheon

Recording of the 2024 Victorian Chapter International Women's Day Luncheon, themed 'Count Her In: Invest in Women. Accelerate Progress.'
Guided by the insights of the Parlour Census Report: Gender & Diversity in Australian Architecture, 2001-2021, the event delved into the key career stages of ‘learn, earn, and lead’, which are critical to women’s economic empowerment. The conversation was facilitated through an engaging panel discussion with diverse speakers and curated roundtable conversations.
The event was made possible with the collaboration of the Planning Institute of Australia & the Victorian Chapter of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects.
The event was sponsored by the City of Melbourne, Total Synergy, and Fielders Lysaght.
Supporting partners, Stylecraft and Collective Futures.
00:00 - Introduction by Stephanie Bullock from Kosloff Architecture
03:07 - Welcome by David Wagner, Victorian Chapter President
08:06 - Jocelyn Chiew, director of city design at the City of Melbourne
16:54 - Kosta Kairis from Fielders Lysaght
19:00 - Introduction to the Theme and Panellists by Stephanie Bullock
20:18 - Panel discussion hosted by Georgia Birks
Speakers:
Felicity Douglas - Managing Director at NH Architecture
Felicity is a genuine collaborator who brings a unique blend of calm efficiency and strong communication skills to the role of Managing Director at NH Architecture. Her experience running large-scale and complex architectural projects both in Australia and overseas has given her an appreciation for what enables creative teams to thrive. She enjoys building and nurturing positive relationships both inside the studio and externally across our network of clients, stakeholders, and strategic partners. Mentoring has been a consistent focus for Felicity. She drives diversity and inclusion efforts at the practice, recently spearheading an expanded parental leave scheme and implementation of flexible work strategies.
Dr. Gillian Mathewson - Senior Lecturer, Department of Design, Monash University
Dr Gill Matthewson is a director of Parlour promoting equity and diversity in the architecture profession. She is also a member of the Monash University XYX Lab concerned with the gendering of public spaces. In both roles she focuses on building bridges from research into making a real difference in the lives and careers of women in the built environment professions (Parlour), and in the daily lives of women using public spaces (XYX Lab). In particular, she has led the compilation and analysis of the comprehensive statistical map that is at the heart of much of Parlour’s advocacy work.
Sonia Sarangi - Director at Andever
Sonia Sarangi is a director at Andever, a registered Architect with 18 years' experience, an ArchiTeam and Ausdance Vic Board Member, sessional staff at UniMelb, mentor to many and a Mum of two. She is the child of immigrants who then undertook her own migration journeys to Singapore and finally Naarm / Melbourne. The duality of being an insider-outsider as a result of these multiple journeys is one that has deeply shaped her and her practice. Sonia’s portfolio of experience - overseas and locally - cuts across a wide spectrum of Architectural scales from Urban Design right down to custom Residential.
Anne Michaels - Founder and Director at sheBuilt
Anne is the Founder and Director of a property development company, sheBuilt, an organisation that helps to empower women in the built environment and has over twenty years hands on experience in both property development and property investment. Anne also has significant experience in, Business Planning, Finance and Funds Management, having previously worked in the corporate sector for many years. Anne currently serves as a Non Executive Director on the Board of ASX listed Hotel Property Investments, the Deputy Chair of the City of Port Phillip’s Business Advisory Group and the President of the Clarendon & Coventry Streets Business Association.
Host - Georgia Birks - Architecture Media