Every year, more and more International Women’s Day events are popping up across workplaces, various organisations and schools. Just as more of these panels and speaker series take place, more conversations also continue around inclusivity at IWD events.
A new survey conducted by advertising agency Pureprofile on behalf of Vu Consulting in October 2024, informs the 2025 More Voices, More Representation on International Women’s Day campaign. By surveying 1,017 participants who are women, trans, gender-diverse, and non-binary people, it was found that more than 1 in 2 (54%) reported not seeing any change in representation of their respective demographics in the past 12 months, while 16% said they feel less represented now. Only 15% have seen an increase in representation.
Other factors that were explored included whether diverse women and gender diverse people are paid adequately for their participation, whether participants felt the panels or speakers represented them and were of similar diverse backgrounds (and looking and sounding like them), and if there was a focus on women’s empowerment initiatives. With this in mind, this survey reports that 54% of diverse respondents are advocating for greater attention to intersectional issues and 46% are calling for more diversity in representation. Additionally, 41% have highlighted the need for fair payment for participation.
Those from racialised and underserved communities reported a 5% increase in representation at IWD events. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and gender diverse people, along with those from LGBTQIA+ communities, saw a 14% Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) participants from non-English-speaking backgrounds “reported growing exclusion, with representation for these groups declining by 11% and 7%, respectively”.
When it came to women and gender-diverse people with physical or mental disabilities, 26% felt more represented.
“Many organisations still focus too heavily on the diversity and not the inclusion of people from diverse backgrounds,” said Tiff Ng, Founder at The Social Story, in an official statement.
Ng said the report examined the profound effect that CALD women and gender diverse people’s authentic inclusion has for the wider community.
“This report not only highlights the inequities of CALD womxn in colour in positions of power, but the profound effect their authentic inclusion has for the wider community,” she said.
“Organisations need to commit to creating environments to not only see but hear from womxn with different experiences and can proficiently speak on intersectional issues that are currently ignored. For DEI initiatives to truly take us further, the importance of intersectional voices cannot be overlooked.”
The campaign is backed by 33 Australian advocates and organisations including Tasneem Chopra OAM, Briar Harte, Winner Disability Inclusion Change Maker of the Year 2024 and Writer of Mostly Unlearning, Women of Colour Australia, Prabha Nandagopal from Elevate Consulting Partners, Lisa Sarago from AI Indigenous Innovations, Professor Nareen Young, Michelle Lim, UTS Business School, The Sussan Group, Pureprofile and many others.
Here’s what some of them had to say about the survey’s results and what needs to be done next:
Niti Nadarajah, Founder, Coaching by Niti
“As we see increasing backlash and resistance towards diversity, equity and inclusion programs, it becomes even more critical to hear the lived stories and perspectives of women from diverse backgrounds and/or who identify as having intersectional identities. Open and transparent communication about the systemic reasons driving DEI efforts, and a robust change management plan to drive awareness, adoption and effective execution of DEI programs, have never been as important. And that starts with listening to those who are most impacted by lack of representation”.
Professor Nareen Young, Associate Dean (Indigenous Leadership & Engagement) at UTS Business School
“The diverse mainstream of Australia’s women simply haven’t been included in International Women’s Day celebrations for a long time. If the origins of IWD didn’t recognise the intersections of ethnicity and class I don’t know what it did, and we are taking it back. IWD is about all of us”.
Solai Valliappan, Investor, Adviser, Board Director
“This year will highlight those leaders who have been just performative in their words /actions and those who are meaningfully fostering inclusive environments. It will be these leaders who recognise intersectionality who will continue to see the benefits of success (time and money)”.
Grace Young, Chief Innovation Officer, Wattwatchers
“Attacks on minority groups are often seen as distant problems, affecting ‘other people’ far away from ‘us’. This perspective ignores the interconnected nature of social discrimination. Intersectional representation is crucial, especially on occasions like International Women’s Day, because it reveals that policy decisions and their consequences directly impact individuals within our own circles—people who are not abstract strangers but neighbours, colleagues, and friends. When discriminatory policies and rhetoric go unchallenged, they create a broader environment that gradually normalises harmful conduct. This slippery slope of marginalisation, seen vividly in Trump’s America, extends beyond its initial targets, emboldening misogyny and other forms of discrimination that ultimately impact us all. Recognising these issues are not remote or theoretical, but deeply personal and local, is key to fostering empathy and mobilising communities to proactively challenge systemic discrimination”.
Min-Shi Michelle Lim, AAPC Director | Organisational Culture, Ethics, and Intersectional DEI Specialist
“The increasing DEI backlash in the USA underscores the urgent need for stronger leadership accountability at the Executive Committee (ExCo) and Board levels, along with clear communication about its value, the why, and the very real, tangible risks of pulling back on DEI. Intersectional representation in 2025 must go beyond surface-level gestures to address deeply embedded structural inequities. Leaders have a responsibility to articulate why DEI matters – and they must do so by highlighting its proven impact on innovation, diverse decision-making, and long-term organisational success. However, achieving meaningful representation requires courage.
“Leaders must not only prioritise DEI initiatives but also confront the very workplace cultures that perpetuate dangerous biases – biases that unfairly blame DEI for unrelated issues such as poor governance or risk management failures. DEI is not the scapegoat—it’s the solution. True progress will depend on a top-down commitment to systemic change, paired with an ability to bring everyone along on the journey. This means centring diverse lived experiences, being transparent about impact, and empowering diverse women to shape policies and initiatives”.
Tasneem Chopra OAM, Cross-cultural Consultant, Diversity Equity & Inclusion trainer, Board Director
“Organisations have an opportunity to proactively lead with inclusive rigor that values diversity by not diminishing it. In the face of wilful contempt for inclusion, those with power and conscience fight back by acknowledging intersectional inclusion, platforming it, resourcing it and stepping into the role of genuine allyship. Not just leaning in.
Through equitable HR policies in recruitment, retention and promotion, co-designed by those most impacted by DEI measures, change can occur that grows employee wellbeing, business efficiency – and company profitability.
Ironically, this fear of wokeness and cancel culture, has been out-cancelled by those being held to account, who felt they had the most to lose”.
Lisa Sarago, CEO and Co-Founder of Land on Heart and Land on Heart Foundation, Director of AI Indigenous Innovations, Founder of Tiddas in Tech
“It’s so important for our younger generations to see representation of all women during IWD – so that they know that their values, beliefs and experiences matter. Seeing a diverse range of female leaders’ voices elevated during IWD ensures that all women are represented and heard. All of our lived experiences are different and unique, and we cannot address the inequities and inequalities for all women if we do not have voices from all women”.
Here is the full list of partners of the More Voices, More Representation campaign
- Tasneem Chopra OAM
- Women of Colour Australia
- The Social Diary
- Professor Nareen Young
- Gloria Yuen, Head of regulatory enablement and delivery, NAB
- Lisa Sarago, AI Indigenous Innovations
- Briar Harte, Winner Disability Inclusion Change Maker of the Year 2024 and Writer of Mostly Unlearning
- Prabha Nandagopal from Elevate Consulting Partner
- Michelle Lim, Organisational and Culture Lead, RBA
- UTS Business School
- The Sussan Group
- Pureprofile
- Neha Madhok, Founder and Lead Consultant at Neha Madhok Consulting and former Co-Founder and CEO of Democracy in Colour
- Niti Nadarajah, Coaching by Niti
- Ruhee Meghani, Allied Collective
- Prabha Nandagopal, Elevate Consulting Partners
- Friska Wirya
- Welcome Merchant
- Zen Tea
- The Water Well Project
- Jerusha Mather
- Yasmin Poole
- Giant Leap
- Grass Skirt Project
- SSI
- Racial Justice Centre
- Grace Young
- Koon Lai
- Susannah Thai, Head of Strategy and Growth, Greenlight Worldwide
- Women NSW
- ASRC
- Lida Ghan, Ghan Fashion
- TCIP
