November 30th, 2023
Uplifting Ōtautahi’s Ethnic Women
“It was an incredibly thought-provoking course. I’m grateful for the inspiration, knowledge, and courage it provided to empower women. Thank you so much for leading the way, Hafsa.”
“This course has helped me to build my confidence and rediscover myself back. Thank you so much Dr. Hafsa Ahmed MNZM PMP® Ph.D. for all the knowledge and insights that you shared with us in this journey. I will cherish the tools and friendship forever. Thank you Erica Austin for your sharing and all the lovely photos. Thank you too to all the wonderful cohorts for sharing and building each other up.”
These words were shared by some of the participants of the Ethnic Women’s Leadership bootcamp. Dr Hafsa Ahmed (MNZM) took some time to tell us more about the origins of this course and the collaboration with Leadership Lab’s Rourou project that enabled the course to be accessed by more women in Ōtautahi.
All photos for this piece credited to Erica Austin, Peanut Productions
In the first half of 2023, Lady Khadija Trust received funding from the Ministry for Ethnic Communities for the country’s first-ever Ethnic Women’s Leadership course. The course, which was designed and delivered by Lady Khadija Charitable Trust cofounder Dr Hafsa Ahmed (MNZM), aimed to help ethnic women achieve a greater sense of self and build confidence in their leadership skills. The programme was tailored for women from ethnic communities with the first cohort graduating on 30 June, 2023. However, a group of women missed out on this first cohort due to work commitments. The purpose of the bootcamp, offered in collaboration with Leadership Lab’s Rourou project and Erica Austin, was to provide an opportunity for the women who missed out on the course earlier in the year. There were a diverse range of attendees of the bootcamp who came to Aotearoa New Zealand from India, China, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Iran, Afghanistan, Chile, Brazil, Colombia.
The course had many benefits, particularly in building self-awareness and confidence, which will help the women succeed in their communities and employment. The women described the sessions as “life changing”, which gave them a greater sense of belonging. Over the course of the bootcamp, the attendees also heard from other ethnic women leaders in the community such as Himasha Gunasekara and Mavis Kamota.
Lady Khadija Charitable Trust hopes to be able to continue to offer this leadership course in the following years as well to support more ethnic women.
This is a Leadership Lab Rourou initiative in collaboration with Lady Khadija Charitable Trust. The Rourou project hosts spaces to listen to contemporary voices, to collaborate with others, and to address gnarly issues. Rourou amplifies marginalised voices for advocacy and to provoke system change.
If you would like to find out more about Leadership Lab’s projects, contact info@leadershiplab.co.nz
You can also connect with stories of impact from across our Leadership Lab ecosystem by signing up for this monthly pānui (see bottom of www.leadershiplab.co.nz ), connecting with us on LinkedIn and Facebook and browsing our website.
Thanks heaps for your interest.
November 30th, 2023
Uplifting Ōtautahi’s Ethnic Women
“It was an incredibly thought-provoking course. I’m grateful for the inspiration, knowledge, and courage it provided to empower women. Thank you so much for leading the way, Hafsa.”
“This course has helped me to build my confidence and rediscover myself back. Thank you so much Dr. Hafsa Ahmed MNZM PMP® Ph.D. for all the knowledge and insights that you shared with us in this journey. I will cherish the tools and friendship forever. Thank you Erica Austin for your sharing and all the lovely photos. Thank you too to all the wonderful cohorts for sharing and building each other up.”
These words were shared by some of the participants of the Ethnic Women’s Leadership bootcamp. Dr Hafsa Ahmed (MNZM) took some time to tell us more about the origins of this course and the collaboration with Leadership Lab’s Rourou project that enabled the course to be accessed by more women in Ōtautahi.
All photos for this piece credited to Erica Austin, Peanut Productions
In the first half of 2023, Lady Khadija Trust received funding from the Ministry for Ethnic Communities for the country’s first-ever Ethnic Women’s Leadership course. The course, which was designed and delivered by Lady Khadija Charitable Trust cofounder Dr Hafsa Ahmed (MNZM), aimed to help ethnic women achieve a greater sense of self and build confidence in their leadership skills. The programme was tailored for women from ethnic communities with the first cohort graduating on 30 June, 2023. However, a group of women missed out on this first cohort due to work commitments. The purpose of the bootcamp, offered in collaboration with Leadership Lab’s Rourou project and Erica Austin, was to provide an opportunity for the women who missed out on the course earlier in the year. There were a diverse range of attendees of the bootcamp who came to Aotearoa New Zealand from India, China, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Africa, Iran, Afghanistan, Chile, Brazil, Colombia.
The course had many benefits, particularly in building self-awareness and confidence, which will help the women succeed in their communities and employment. The women described the sessions as “life changing”, which gave them a greater sense of belonging. Over the course of the bootcamp, the attendees also heard from other ethnic women leaders in the community such as Himasha Gunasekara and Mavis Kamota.
Lady Khadija Charitable Trust hopes to be able to continue to offer this leadership course in the following years as well to support more ethnic women.
This is a Leadership Lab Rourou initiative in collaboration with Lady Khadija Charitable Trust. The Rourou project hosts spaces to listen to contemporary voices, to collaborate with others, and to address gnarly issues. Rourou amplifies marginalised voices for advocacy and to provoke system change.
If you would like to find out more about Leadership Lab’s projects, contact info@leadershiplab.co.nz
You can also connect with stories of impact from across our Leadership Lab ecosystem by signing up for this monthly pānui (see bottom of www.leadershiplab.co.nz ), connecting with us on LinkedIn and Facebook and browsing our website.
Thanks heaps for your interest.