WOW at Festival 2018

WELCOME
Quentin Bryce —
Patron, WOW in
Australia
Jude Kelly CBE — Artistic
Director, Southbank Centre
Founder, WOW
Cathy Hunt and Leigh Tabrett —
Executive Producers WOW
at Festival 2018
Welcome to WOW, a celebration of the women of the
Of the 2.3 billion people who
I founded WOW eight years ago out of my belief in
Global sporting events cost vast sums of money
Commonwealth.
live in Commonwealth member
celebration, its power to generate optimism, and to
to stage, and the inevitable question for host
The Queensland Government is extremely proud to
support this uplifting and life-changing event, which
is part of Festival 2018 and the Gold Coast 2018
Commonwealth Games (GC2018).
countries, nearly one third are
young women and girls of 29 years
or younger. Many have wonderful
life prospects, and will go on to be
leaders in their fields and heads of
unleash the energy that makes action and change
possible. In the face of systemic inequity and levels
of violence sometimes unbearable to contemplate,
I wanted to make a Festival — open to people of all
backgrounds — a place of warmth, inclusiveness
communities, when all the excitement is over, is
“What did we really get out of that?” Our answer
was this Festival — a project which would draw
attention to the lives of women and girls across
the Commonwealth, and leave an enduring
GC2018 is making history as the most inclusive
Commonwealth Games of all time, with an equal number
of events for female and male athletes. WOW celebrates
this defining moment and places Brisbane at the centre
of global discussions around gender equality.
Over the next three days, you will hear from extraordinary
women and girls from across the Commonwealth doing
amazing things to change their lives and the future of
their communities.
It is through sharing our stories, challenges and creative
ideas, and inspiring and empowering one another, that we
can tighten our grip on the baton of opportunity, and then
confidently pass it on.
Thank you for being a part of this special event at this very
special time for Queensland.
Hon. Annastacia Palaszczuk mp
Premier of Queensland
great institutions and governments.
For the majority, however, even
some of the most basic human
rights — like adequate food and
shelter, access to literacy and
education — are not assured. For
the world to prosper, and to live in
peace, this has to change. In this
first WOW celebrating the lives
of women of the Commonwealth,
we bring together women from
vastly different traditions and
life circumstances but with a
common characteristic: they are
all making this change happen.
They have extraordinary stories
to tell, experiences to share, and
ideas to excite and challenge us.
I am delighted to be part of these
discussions, and to see and hear
from the young women in whose
hands so much of our future rests.
and fun, in which we could all, together, celebrate
the spirit, resilience and achievements of women,
and imagine a better future. I called it WOW —
Women of the World because I wanted that comicbook
explosive sound: a whoop of admiration and
amazement. It says, ‘If you’re a woman, or you
know a woman, this is for you’.
The connection with the Commonwealth Games,
proposed and led so brilliantly by Cathy Hunt
and Leigh Tabrett and the women of Brisbane is
now part of our strategy: to make WOW a core
part of major events worldwide and to use the
opportunity to illuminate and explore progress
and obstacles to gender equality. Though the
Commonwealth has its own fraught history and
legacy, the women and girls of the member states
can use the connections forged in different times
to pursue a new and equal agenda.
This will be a wonderful fun event. It will also
bear new fruit, create new approaches, and
instigate bold ideas. I’m so proud to be part of it.
legacy for all the individuals who participate.
We were greatly assisted in this ambition by
Southbank Centre, the Queensland Government
and the Commonwealth Secretariat and Games
Federation where we found an alignment of
values, and warm support.
We have many people to thank — our incredible
speakers and artists; our wonderful staff and
volunteers, our generous partners and especially
the remarkable individual women donors who
supported us from the beginning, and brought
us ideas and contacts. We hope this association
is as rewarding for you as it is for us. Most of all,
we want to thank the many extraordinary First
Nation women who are part of this event, as
performers and artists, speakers, workers, and
as our guides and advisors. We thank you for your
generosity and wisdom, and your willingness to
share: it has shaped our thinking throughout.
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Photographer Sara Shamsavari