Lord Mayor of Sydney launches mentorship program to empower next generation of women climate leaders

Lord Mayor Clover Moore today announced Sydney will launch a new mentoring scheme to support the next generation of women climate leaders.

Sydney, which will also host the annual Women4Climate Conference in 2020, will become the latest city globally to host the C40 Women4Climate Mentorship Program. The program will pair 20 inspiring emerging women leaders from diverse fields with established women leaders from across the city, business, government and civil society.

“Climate action is the City of Sydney’s top priority. Working together, women leaders from government, business and the community are transforming our cities,” Lord Mayor of Sydney Clover Moore said.

“We’re reducing the impact our urban centres have on the environment, while designing, building and governing places where people want to live. We know women are disproportionately impacted by climate change, and we know women leaders are both determined and effective.

“That’s why we are excited to host the 2020 Women4Climate conference and the mentoring program, to support current and emerging women leaders to become more effective in driving accelerated action on climate change.”

Sydney’s Women4Climate Mentorship Program will support emerging women leaders to become more expert influencers so they can accelerate action on climate change. The program will provide participants with the support they need to become even more effective leaders in their chosen field, including politics, business, public service, NGOs and the media.

The Sydney program will commence in May and run until the Women4Climate Conference in March 2020, where mentors and mentees will present on their projects and development.

“This mentoring program is another example of the City of Sydney’s work empowering women across both our workforce and our city,” the Lord Mayor said.

“We are proud to be the first local government organisation in Australia to monitor and publicly report on gender pay equity. Our latest review in 2018 revealed an overall pay gap of 7.5 per cent in favour of women, compared to the national average of 14.6 per cent (in favour of men).

“Last year, we also introduced a new scheme to pay superannuation to employees on parental leave for up to one year, in an effort to bridge the superannuation gap.”

The Women4Climate initiative brings together mayors of the world’s leading cities, CEOs, climate experts and powerful women leaders from around the world to demonstrate and accelerate the power of women who are committed to creating a healthier, greener and more economically prosperous future.

Today, there are active Women4Climate Mentorship Programs in Paris, Tel Aviv-Yafo, London, Quito, Montreal and Vancouver, with upcoming programs in Auckland, Barcelona and New Orleans.

L’Oréal and ELLE Magazine are the founding partners of the Women4Climate Initiative, with many of their own top managers participating in the scheme.

For more information, including on how to apply for the Sydney program, visit: https://w4c.org/mentorship

For media inquiries on the Sydney program, contact: [email protected].