Dr Aumua oversees the work of The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ, which has a mission to end avoidable blindness and vision impairment in the Pacific. It achieves this by raising funding to support and partner with Pacific governments and ministries to train local eye care workers and provide the facilities and technology they need to improve access to quality eye care. Previously, Dr Aumua served as Deputy Director General at The Pacific Community’s (SPC) Suva office, where she managed the operations of staff, divisional work and Fiji-based activities, including SPC’s education, maritime, geosciences, land resources, social development and human rights programmes. Dr Aumua has extensive experience in research, policy development and management in the health and education sectors in New Zealand and Australia and has held sustainable development leadership roles across the Pacific.

Rev. James is married to Maelin (Fiji/Kiribati/Samoa) and has two children. He is an ordained minister of the Methodist Church in Fiji and licensed to preach and celebrate the sacraments in the Anglican Diocese of Polynesia. A descendant of indentured labourers from India, James has roots in the vanua of Noco (Notho) in the province of Rewa and maternal links to the Vanua of Macuata (Mathuata). He holds a Bachelor of Divinity in Ecumenical Studies (Hons.) from the Pacific Theological College in Suva, Fiji and a Master of Theology in Christian Social Ethics from the Methodist Theological University in Seoul, South Korea. He was elected General Secretary of PCC at its 11^th General Assembly in Auckland in 2018. He is a passionate advocate for ecological stewardship and climate justice, with particular focus on care for the ocean and self-determination issues, and is also an active gender justice advocate. He is a keen Stand-Up-Paddler and long-time volunteer chaplain and crew member and trustee of the Fijian traditional voyaging society, the Uto Ni Yalo Trust and mentors several ocean health collectives.

Wynetta Dewis has family connections from Boigu island and Horn Island in the Torres Strait. She has over 20 years’ experience in leadership and project management roles. Ms Dewis is Chief Executive Officer for the Queensland Indigenous Family Violence Legal Service, the Chair of the National Family Violence Prevention Legal Service Forum and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Group. Ms Dewis is also a member of the Queensland Legal Assistance Forum Committee, the Coalition of Peaks Committee and the Community Legal Centre Australia Board.

‘Ana Malia is a young and passionate advocate from Tonga. At just 20 years old, she currently serves as a board member, mentor and youth ambassador of Talitha Project, Tonga, a NGO that focuses on empowering young women and girls. Ana Malia first became involved with the Talitha Project in 2018, while attending an empowerment camp. Since then, the belief that she can help change our community, society and world has motivated her to continue on this journey. She has worked across various Talitha projects, including the Pacific Girl programme. She is also an advisor in the “With and For Girls Fund Advisory Group”, facilitated by Purposeful, as well as a member of the “Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change”, a youth-led organisation comprised of students across the Pacific. ‘Ana Malia is also a student at the University of the South Pacific – Tonga, pursuing a Bachelor of Law. She is humbled and greatly appreciates the various platforms and opportunities that she has been fortunate to have in order to highlight the issues that girls in Tonga and across the Pacific face and to represent the voices of young Pasifika women and girls in lobbying for change. Her advice to girls in Tonga, as well as in the Pacific, is: If you believe very strongly in something, stand up and fight for it. We cannot always rely on our leaders to continue dictating and shaping the World which we will eventually lead. We are the future generation and so, as future leaders, our opinions must be included, heard and valued.

Ethel Falu Sigimanu has been instrumental in advancing gender equality and women’s human rights in the Solomon Islands. She is one of the longest-serving permanent secretaries in the Solomon Islands government, having spent 17 years as permanent secretary in various government ministries 10 of which were as Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Women, Youth, Children and Family Affairs. During this time, she took leadership and was greatly influential in the work towards the passage of the Family Protection Act 2014, which is the first domestic violence legislation in Solomon Islands, as well as the Child and Family Welfare Act 2017. She also developed and reviewed National Gender Equality and Women’s Development policies and conducted a study on Family Health and Safety. In recognition of her courage, strength and leadership in the areas of human rights, social justice, women’s equality and advancement, Ms Sigimanu received the Women of Courage Award in 2019 by the US Secretary of State. Ms Sigimanu also serves on a number of national and regional boards, particularly in the areas of gender and human rights and other areas of the social services sector. Ms Sigimanu is now serving as a freelance consultant, focusing on areas that she is passionate about, particularly the advancement of gender equality and recognition of human rights.

Teretia Tokam is the Executive Director of the Kiribati Women and Children Support Centre or KWCSC. Previously, Teretia worked at the Office of the Attorney General in Kiribati, as the country focal officer of the SPC Regional Rights Resource Team, and as the National Coordinator of the Eliminating Sexual and Gender-based Violence project of the Women’s Ministry in Kiribati. Teretia is a feminist and women’s human rights activist and she is currently a member of the regional network to combat violence against women.

Tahina Booth is an accomplished tri-international athlete representing Australia in Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting and in the Rugby League for the Papua New Guinea Orchids. Elite sport has instilled in Tahina discipline and leadership, and the many other skills learnt through sport have transferred into Tahina’s professional life. Tahina founded the Grass Skirt Project (GSP), a Papua New Guinea NGO and social enterprise using sport to prevent gender-based violence through collaborative partnerships and innovative health and wellness events for grassroots communities.

Susil is a senior executive with ExxonMobil PNG with over 15 years’ experience in the development and professional services sector. In addition to her role as ExxonMobil PNG Media and Communications Manager, Ms Nelson-Kongoi is the Chair of Incentive Fund, Vice President (International) of the Business Council of PNG, Chair of the PNG Business Advocacy Network, and Honorary Treasurer on the Board of Coalition for Change. She is actively involved in other non-profit organisations, such as the Business and Professional Women’s Association, advocating for the promotion of women’s participation in the economy, respecting women’s rights and ending violence against women and children. Susil has a Bachelor of Commerce from Canterbury University, New Zealand, and also holds a Masters of Business Administration from Divine Word University, Papua New Guinea. 

Rhema Misser has been a leader in the disability movement for 19 years. He is the President and Founder of the Lavamea Taeiloa Disabled People Association, Inc. and, for four years, served as a board member of the Pacific Disability Forum in Fiji. Rhema looks forward to collaborating with other participants in Pacific Women Lead for the benefit of everyone throughout the Pacific.

Born in New Caledonia in 1965, Hon. Nadine Jalabert studied midwifery in France (1984–1987), served as a midwife in New Caledonia in bush dispensaries (1987–1997), and has worked in a hospital setting in Noumea (since 1998). Since 2014, Hon. Nadine Jalabert has served as Councilor in Mont-Dore city where she helped establish a shelter for female victims of domestic violence and has actively promoted equality between girls and boys, women and men. Since 2019, Hon. Nadine Jalabert has served as the President of the Women’s and Family Rights Committee in the New Caledonia Congress. Hon. Nadine Jalabert is married and has two sons.

Mereseini Rakuita is a visionary champion of gender equality and women’s rights in Fiji and the Asia-Pacific region. She is the Pacific Community (SPC) Principal Strategic Lead – Pacific Women and Girls, driving gender equality and empowerment of women across the Pacific region as part of SPC’s executive team. Dedicated to gender equality, she serves as the chairperson for the FP2030 global movement dedicated to advancing the rights of people everywhere to access family planning services. Mereseini Rakuita is a qualified lawyer and also the youngest female politician to be elected to Fiji’s parliament, in 2014, and she was the first female Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources. She has also served as Acting Permanent Secretary for Justice and Anti-corruption with oversight of operations in the Elections Office (2012–2013). Prior to politics, as State Solicitor (2009­–2013), she was the highest ranking female legal advisor to the government, and also Chairperson of the Telecommunications Authority of Fiji (2008) – the first and youngest Fijian woman in all of these roles during tenure.

Ms Cowley is the Assistant Secretary of the Pacific Development Branch in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Office of the Pacific. Prior to commencing this role in February 2022, she was Australia’s Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City and has previously served as Assistant Secretary in DFAT’s Health Policy, Staff welfare and People, Policy and Planning Branches. Before joining DFAT, she worked in Indigenous education. Ms Cowley has been a passionate diversity and gender equality advocate engaging government and the private sector, including during her time in Vietnam, delivering several Gender Equality Conferences and working to connect local gender advocates with international equality movements. In 2021, she received DFAT’s Gender Equality Award recognising her contribution to advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment outcomes, and also received a Secretary’s Award for Reconciliation. Ms Cowley was a founding board member of the Asia Pacific Leader’s Malaria Alliance (APLMA) and the Ayui Foundation (Thailand), and was Vice President on the board of Lifeline Canberra. Ms Cowley holds a Master of Business Administration, a Bachelor of Communication and a Graduate Diploma in Education, as well as an Associate’s degree in Music and is an Accredited Partnership Broker.

Alex Su’a is a lawyer who has been practising law since 2004 in Apia, Samoa. He is registered as a barrister, solicitor and notary public of the Supreme Court of Samoa. Since 2018, he has been a partner of a small law firm, Stowers & Su’a Lawyers, in Apia and, currently, serves as the President of the Samoa Law Society. Alex is a very proud fa’afafine and is a steadfast advocate in favour of the human rights of the fa’afafine and fa’atama community in Samoa. Since 2005, he has been a founding member of the Samoa Fa’afafine Association, Inc., the only SOGIESC organisation in Samoa, and, since 2018, has served as its President.

Virginia Dawson is the Director Policy at the Pacific Islands Forum. She has championed gender equity through policy and programme development during her international career. Her prior roles include Counsellor at the New Zealand High Commission to Fiji (2020-2024) and First Secretary at the New Zealand Embassy in Myanmar (2017-2019). As a development practitioner, Ms Dawson has worked for United Nations Agencies, non-governmental and civil society organisations across the Pacific, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean.  Ms Dawson holds a Masters Degree in Development Studies and Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management.