EMERGE MAGAZINE | WD2026 SERIES
From former heads of government to frontline community advocates — Women Deliver 2026 is bringing the world’s most influential voices on gender equality to Narrm. Here is who will be in the room, and why it matters for our communities.
By Emerge Magazine | 21 April 2026 | emergemagazine.com.au
In seven days, Melbourne will host one of the most significant gatherings on gender equality the world has seen. Women Deliver 2026 runs from 27 to 30 April in Narrm — and the speaker lineup announced this week signals the weight of what is coming.
Emerge Magazine, as an official media partner, will be in the room for all of it. Here is a closer look at the confirmed speakers and what their presence means.
Political leaders with the power to act
Senator the Hon. Katy Gallagher, Australia’s Minister for Women, brings direct federal policy authority to the conference. Her presence signals that this is not only a civil society event — it is one where government accountability is expected.
Her Excellency the Honourable Sam Mostyn AC — Governor-General of Australia
That Women Deliver 2026 is being held in Australia is, in part, a reflection of the values held at the highest levels of the nation’s leadership. Governor-General Sam Mostyn AC brings to her role a lifetime of sustained advocacy for gender equality, climate justice, and women’s economic participation. Before her appointment as Australia’s 28th Governor-General — and only the second woman to hold the office — she served as Chair of Australians Investing in Women, as a founding supporter of the women’s climate action group 1 Million Women, and as the first female member of the AFL Commission. She has described her commitments around feminist values of respect and kindness as firm — not aspirational. Her presence in the orbit of WD2026, having hosted events in the lead-up to the conference, signals something important: this is a moment Australia’s most senior representative has chosen to stand behind.
Hon. Dame Jacinda Ardern, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, has become one of the defining global voices on compassionate, evidence-based leadership. Her participation in WD2026 signals a commitment to the kind of political leadership that centres women and communities rather than institutions.
Hon. Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and former Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, brings decades of multilateral experience. She has long been a champion of gender equality as foundational to development — not an add-on to it.
Hon. Julia Gillard AC, Australia’s first female Prime Minister and now Chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, will speak from the intersection of lived political experience and sustained institutional advocacy.
“These are not symbolic voices. These are women who have held power, exercised it, and are now directing it toward the next generation of change.”
Emerge Magazine editorial
Dr Maliha Khan — Women Deliver CEO
Dr Maliha Khan leads Women Deliver and has shaped the vision for WD2026 as a conference that moves beyond dialogue to collective commitment. Under her leadership, the program has been explicitly designed around a central question: what must change so power, resources, and responsibility are better aligned to deliver justice for girls, women, and gender-diverse people?
That question is not rhetorical. It is the architecture of the entire four-day program.
What this means for our communities
For African, South Asian, South-East Asian, and other multicultural women in Greater Geelong and regional Victoria, the WD2026 speaker lineup is significant for a reason that goes beyond the headline names.
These speakers will be addressing systems — funding systems, political systems, economic systems, health systems — that shape the daily lives of the women in our communities. When Helen Clark speaks about multilateral accountability, or Katy Gallagher speaks about Australian government commitments, the policies being discussed have real consequences for women navigating those same systems in Geelong.
Emerge will be there to ask the questions our community would ask, and to bring the answers back.
The full speaker registry
The complete WD2026 speaker registry is publicly available and includes leaders from civil society, philanthropy, Indigenous communities, climate advocacy, and feminist economics from across the globe. Emerge will be highlighting specific speakers and sessions throughout our conference coverage beginning 27 April.
Follow our coverage at emergemagazine.com.au and across our Instagram and LinkedIn channels.
About Emerge Magazine
Emerge is Geelong’s multicultural community news publication, serving African, South Asian, South-East Asian, and broader CALD communities across Greater Geelong and regional Victoria. An IMMA member and Victorian Government grant recipient, Emerge is an official media partner for Women Deliver 2026. Visit emergemagazine.com.au
