Speeches
Thursday, 26 February 2026
Committee for Adelaide International Women’s Day Breakfast
I am pleased to join the Committee for Adelaide and its members and supporters, once again, to mark International Women's Day.
The advancement of gender equality is something I have sought to lend support to throughout my career.
It’s my pleasure to open this breakfast in the company of so many people who, I know, share the same deep sense of commitment to gender equity, here in Adelaide and beyond.
As patron of the Committee for Adelaide, I thank the committee for hosting this breakfast, and for its dedication to advancing not only the economic interests of our city, but its social and community ones as well.
Because inevitably, social issues have considerable economic impact.
We know that violence against women costs the national economy billions of dollars each year.[1]
We also know that violence against women is a global issue. International news reporting, especially of late, makes this abundantly clear.
And since we last met, the Government has received and responded to Royal Commissioner Natasha Stott Despoja’s report into Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence.
The 2026 International Women’s Day theme, set by UN Women Australia, is 'Balance the Scales' - a vital reminder that gender equity is not a gift to be granted, but a balance to be actively, deliberately sought and achieveds.
I am heartened by the Committee's recognition that meaningful progress cannot be achieved if we continue to engage predominantly with women alone.
Gender equality can only be achieved with commitment from all South Australians, of all genders, backgrounds and walks of life.
I warmly welcome our keynote speaker, Tarang Chawla, whose dedication to calling out men's violence against women, and whose advocacy for male allies as active agents of change, speaks directly to the importance of this work.
As Governor I am committed to supporting South Australian organisations which assist women affected by men’s violence.
I am pleased to be patron of the Zahra Foundation, and I thank the Committee for Adelaide for choosing the foundation as today’s charity partner.
As patron of Catherine House, a shelter for women escaping domestic abuse, I have seen first-hand the impact of domestic violence and I have met women showing extraordinary strength and courage, in the earliest stages of rebuilding their lives.
The treatment these women have endured is disrespect at its most extreme.
Extreme, but not isolated, either in its prevalence – on average one woman a week is killed in Australia by her domestic partner – or its proximity to less intense forms of disrespect, such as sexism, embarrassment, intimidation or harassment.
The kinds of things that every woman I know has experienced at some point in her life, as I have.
I encourage the men here today, if you haven’t done so already, to ask women - your wife, mother, daughters, sisters, colleagues – about their own experiences.
In a recent study by Our Watch, four in five men said they wanted rates of violence against women reduced, but more than 40% said they personally couldn’t do anything to create this change.[2]
Listening to women’s experiences is a good way to start on a path to understanding.
I trust the men here today will take this breakfast, and the messages it shares, as an invitation to reflect on the ways in which they can do more to progress gender equality.
Not from a place of guilt, but from a sense of shared responsibility and respect for the dignity of all human beings.
It’s great to see a good number of men here today – when I first started attending International Women’s Day events decades ago, there were very few – and there is room to grow these numbers further.
Friends,
Together I am confident in our capacity to work together and create meaningful change so women can feel safer in their homes, their communities and workplaces; to close the gender pay gap; and to make sure that progress here in Australia is shared by women around the world.
Events like this breakfast are important, not simply for the conversations they begin, but for the momentum they build toward pursuing the systemic and structural change our society needs, at every level.
I believe that some of our best ideas are developed through actively listening to other people, and I look forward to the conversation this morning will spark.
I wish the Committee for Adelaide, and us all, every success as we seek to balance the scales together.
[1] https://www.pmc.gov.au/resources/national-strategy-achieve-gender-equality-discussion-paper/current-state/gendered-violence#:~:text=There%20are%20significant%20economic%20costs,cost%20borne%20directly%20by%20victims.
[2] https://www.ourwatch.org.au/news/four-in-five-men-want-to-stop-violence-against-women-but-many-dont-understand-how