In recognition of International Women’s Day I thought I would list twenty or so women, still living, who inspire or have inspired me over the years – in no particular order:
1) Angela Merkel – German Chancellor and most powerful woman in the world
2) Germaine Greer – older statesperson now of the feminist movement and still likes to poke fun at things
3) Mary Robinson – former President of the Irish Republic and UN Commissioner for Human Rights. Wisdom and humility a great mix
4) Helen Clarke – Former NZ Prime Minister – often poked fun at but the PM most Australians wished they had
5) Jane Campion – Film maker extraordinaire
6) Kathryn Bigelow (see 6 above)
7) Dame Judi Dench – 79, partially blind but still best actress on the planet. The world felt safer when she was M.
8) Catherine Deneuve – 70, fully sighted second best actress (French) on the planet and about to do a lingerie shoot for New York Magazine out March 24.
9) Michelle Obama – OK so he’s the President we all know she can hold her end up just as well
10) Susan Tedeschi – singer/songwriter and a half of the Tedeschi-Trucks band. True 50:50 they even have two drummers.
11) Posh Spice (Victoria Beckham) – yes really. Educators should sit up and take note – motivational quotient (MQ) much better endowment to have than IQ.
12) Olivia De Havilland – retired British/American actress – took on the male dominated studios and eventually won.
13) Aretha Franklin – Quite possibly the greatest female voice of all time. Hint to Australian promoters – she would pull a huge audience.
14) Madeleine Albright – First ever female Secretary of State in US. Almost met her once – long story
15) Gehad Al Khaldi – My Finance Director in Saudi Arabia – the first ever in the Kingdom smart, funny, brave and still remembers my birthday. The nation’s future.
16) My female staff over the years – punching way above their weight – no more said!
17) Kate Adie – BBC foreign correspondent. From Lockerbie to Rwanda, the best of her generation.
18) Jan Manton – Brisbane’s Queen of contemporary art – confident, assured and dynamic
19) Lizzy Paplinger – One half of MS MR an indie pop duo. Worth checking out – very on trend.
20) Andrej Pejic – Australian born ‘beauty’ for blurring the lines and reminding us that this focus on gender isn’t that meaningful after all.
The Construction Training Centre 