INTERNATIONAL Women's Day is an opportunity for all to celebrate the successes of women in the Sunraysia community, says Christie Centre executive officer Florence Davidson.
The disability support provider's celebratory breakfast on Friday, in collaboration with Social Traders, will showcase women in business and social enterprise, while also exploring how social enterprise contribute to gender equity initiatives.
Ms Davidson said it was the second time the Christie Centre would host the breakfast to celebrate IWD, which was on Wednesday.
This year's IWD theme is "Cracking the Code: Innovation for a gender equals future", which highlights the role that bold ideas, inclusive technologies and accessible education can play in combating discrimination and the marginalisation of women globally.
Ms Davidson said while it was important to celebrate the successes of women in Mildura on the day, it was also a reminder that there is a "long way to go to creating equity particularly for women who face other barriers other than just gender to gain full citizenship within the community".
"I think the key for us is to showcase the capability of women within the region, whilst acknowledging the dilemmas being in smaller communities that there is sometimes a fear of failure that prevents us from giving things a bit of a go," she said.
"But we have that opportunity to say well instead of waiting for someone to do it, let’s do it together and see if that makes a difference."
More than 100 women and men will be attending Friday's sold-out breakfast, from gender equality allies to business women, community role models to women in social enterprises.
There will be four well-known busineswomen attending as a part of the breakfast's panel discussion.
They are Anne Mansell, a local businesswoman who was the CEO of Dried Fruits Australia, Sami Fox, who will discuss her experience coming to Australia as a migrant and learning and then teaching English and assisting people to access support, Kelly Wandel, from the charity WomenCAN which encourages women to return to work, and Miranda Campbell, who is a social procurement lead for Victoria and Tasmania who started as a young entrepreneur.
Ms Davidson said she was "delighted" to have all four of the women attending the event to discuss their experiences and ideas.
"It is timely that we are able to come together to not only support each other, but to recognise the strength in doing things collectively."
