Women drive social and economic change workshop in Tauranga

TAURANGA October 27- A workshop this week in Tauranga led by local women Dr Riri Ellis and Ms Ngaria Rolleston provided a training and networking opportunity for current and future female Māori leaders from the Western Bay of Plenty community.

Sponsored by Mobil, the workshop on Wednesday was attended by 21 women from a diverse range of local community organisations. Dr Ellis and Ms Rolleston presented the Skills Development and Networking Workshop for Women, based on the international Global Women in Management programme (GWIM) they were selected to attend earlier this year.

The GWIM programme, which is supported by the ExxonMobil Foundation’s Women’s Economic Opportunity Initiative, holds four-week workshops around the world designed to empower women in the not-for-profit and civil society sector with leadership, technical and professional skills as well provide the opportunity to exchange best practice and experience.

“The programme is an exciting opportunity that New Zealand has recently become involved in. We believe Dr Ellis and Ms Rolleston’s participation in Global Women in Management will greatly benefit their whanau and the community,” said Andrew McNaught, Country Manager for Mobil Oil New Zealand.

Dr Ellis and Ms Rolleston were two of the first three New Zealand women to attend an international GWIM workshop, this year held in Jakarta, Indonesia and Washington D.C., USA, respectively.

“The training provided a unique opportunity to grow our own skills, and to learn from female community leaders from around the world,” said Dr Riri Ellis.

“We wanted to share our learnings with other Māori women, in the hope that our experience will benefit the wider Tauranga community.”

Dr Riri Ellis attended the GWIM workshop in Indonesia in April 2016. Dr Ellis today talked about the diverse realities that exist for women of different cultural understandings who are located within the Asia-Pacific Rim. She also presented a seminar on emotional intelligence and personal leadership.

Ngaria Rolleston attended the GWIM workshop in Washington D.C. in July. For the local session, she facilitated a session entitled "An introduction to gender" and "The advocacy process as a tool for social change".

Ms Rolleston stated that “It is well recognised that investing in women drives economic and social change. The impact is powerful and far-reaching benefiting entire families, communities and countries.”

With ExxonMobil’s support, GWIM has provided training for more than 700 women from nearly 500 organisations around the world. Mobil is proud to have been able to extend the Global Women in Management Programme to women and communities in New Zealand.

Dr Riri Ellis is a member of Ngai Tukairangi, Te Whanau a Tauwhao and Ngati Tapu hapu of Ngai Te Rangi. She is presently General Manager for Tukairangi Investments, on the executive committee of the Federation of Māori Authorities, a trustee of the Ngāi Tukairangi Trust, and one of the two Maori business representatives on the Bay Connections Governance Group.

Ngaria Rolleston is a member of Ngai Te Rangi/Ngati Ranginui iwi. She currently works as the Communications and Business Development Manager for Te Awanui Huka Pak Ltd, and was previously Youth Project Manager at He Mauri Ohooho – Maori Economic Development Advisory Group, and Business Services Manager for FOMA.

About the Global Women in Management Programme

The Global Women in Management Programme (GWIM) is a worldwide initiative that since 2005 has been supported by the ExxonMobil Foundation’s Women’s Economic Opportunity. Its goal is to help women around the world fulfil their economic potential and serve as drivers of economic and social change in their communities.

About Mobil Oil New Zealand

Mobil and affiliated companies have been doing business in New Zealand for more than 120 years. We provide high-quality petroleum products and services daily to customers around New Zealand. We are also committed to supporting and engaging with the communities in which we operate.

For more information, visit www.mobil.co.nz.

Media enquiries:

Sandy Trigg, Network Communication: +64 (0) 21 231 9406
Samantha Potts, Mobil: +61 (0) 428 686 386