GWL Voices at Women Deliver 2026: Advancing Conversations on Global Leadership

At the Women Deliver Conference 2026, GWL Voices will join a global community of leaders, advocates, and young changemakers to engage in conversations that go beyond gender equality alone, bringing into focus a question that is becoming increasingly urgent: what makes leadership legitimate in today’s world, and what kind of leadership the United Nations needs now.

In the lead-up to the Geneva Debate on 9 June, this moment in Melbourne serves as an important step in broadening where and how these questions are being shaped. Rather than limiting the conversation to traditional diplomatic spaces, GWL Voices is engaging across the conference to connect perspectives from global platforms, policy discussions, and lived experiences.

A distinguished delegation of GWL Voices members will drive this engagement, including GWL Voices’ Board secretary and Executive Director (a.i.) Ms. Cristina Gallach; co-founder, Ms. Helen Clark; and members Ms. Kate Gilmore, Ms. Geeta Rao Gupta, and Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. Together, GWL Voices members will contribute as speakers, conveners, and interlocutors, engaging with civil society, diplomatic actors, and fellow leaders. Their presence reflects a deliberate effort to connect different spheres of influence, ensuring that conversations on leadership are informed by both experience and diversity of perspective.

From Global Platform to Global Process: GWL Voices engagements at Women Deliver Conference

GWL Voices’ presence at Women Deliver will be anchored in a series of high-level and interactive engagements designed to connect global debates on gender equality, climate governance with the future of multilateral leadership.

1. Flagship Side Event: Power, Representation, and the Future of the UN

This high-level discussion will bring together GWL Voices members and partners to explore the relationship between representation, legitimacy, and global leadership. The session will focus on identifying key criteria for the next UN Secretary-General, with insights feeding directly into the Geneva Debate.

2. Her Turn Session with the University of Melbourne

“Her Turn - Imagining Feminist Futures for the United Nations” is an interactive session that will engage young leaders in a dialogue on leadership and representation. Participants will reflect on what constitutes legitimate leadership today and contribute perspectives grounded in diverse regional and lived experiences.

3. Fireside Chat: UN Leadership for the 21st Century

This conversation will provide a space to reflect on the evolving demands of global leadership, highlighting the importance of inclusive, accountable, and gender-responsive governance.

(You must be registered to Women Deliver Conference to attend this session)

4. Participation in High-Level Panels and Plenaries

GWL Voices members will contribute to key sessions, including discussions on women’s leadership, representation within the UN system, and the future of multilateralism. These engagements position leadership legitimacy as a central theme within broader global debates.

• April, 28th
• 09:30 am - 11:00 am: Ms. Helen Clark will have a Fireside Chat on "Bridging the Leadership Era."
• 04:00 pm - 05:30 pm: Ms. Helen Clark & Kate Gilmore will be at the panel "Shaping a New World Order: People-driven Multilateralism."
• 06:00 pm - 07:00 pm: Ms. Cristina Gallach will be part at the panel “Holding the Line: Gender Equality and the Future of Global Leadership” by GQUAL.

• April, 29th
• 07:30 am - 09:00 am: Ms. Helen Clark will participate at the panel "Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and Development Justice: Bridging the Divide."
• 09:30 am - 11:00 am: Ms. Cristina Gallach “Rethinking Multilateralism: Building Human Rights Centered Alternatives.”
• 09:30 am - 11:00 am: Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngucka will participate at the panel "Girls at the Center: Power, Voice, and Investment."
• 12:00 pm - 01:30 pm: Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngucka will participate at the panel "From Movements to Power: A Dialogue with Gen Z and Millennial Women in Politics."
• 02:00 pm - 03:30 pm: Ms. Geeta Rao Gupta will participate at the panel "Healthy Women, Thriving World: Why Investing in Women’s Health Drives Gender Equality and Economic Progress."

Engagements Beyond the Conference

These discussions do not end in Melbourne. They extend into other spaces and formats, allowing the conversation to evolve as it reaches different audiences. In Canberra, engagement with diplomatic actors and foreign policy communities will create opportunities to reflect on leadership within the realities of international decision-making, strengthening dialogue with Permanent Representatives, embassies, and policy actors.

In Brisbane, an intergenerational dialogue in partnership with Griffith University, and civil society institutions will bring together young voices and experienced practitioners, continuing the exchange on what the future of global leadership should look like. These moments reinforce the importance of connecting youth perspectives with policy and diplomatic discussions, ensuring that contributions from different generations are meaningfully integrated.

What emerges from this series of engagements is not a single answer, but a process that connects global visibility, diplomatic insight, and youth perspectives into a broader conversation, as the selection of the next UN Secretary-General continues its course. Because the next leader must reflect the world it serves.