WiT Stories

WiT Awards 2025 Keynote Speech - Iyari Cevallos Board Chair

This year at our Women in Technology Gala Awards I talked about our theme “Stronger Together; stronger for her, for all, together...a call to recognise remarkable talent and the responsibility we share in shaping the future of Science & Technology.” The Gender Compass Report I referenced, reminds us the ‘movable middle’ makes up 65% of our population, those who can shift the future of gender equity - if we engage them 🗣️💬. Noting that ‘trailblazers’ at 19% are leading the way. I touched on the similar stories we share; Girls being told to “pipe down”, passed over at work, and Boys told to “toughen up”, missing time with their kids due to heavy work loads when their children are young. Both carry limiting stories.

An Unconventional Path to Blockchain Developer

Jo's journey into tech began uniquely. After five years teaching English in Spain, France, and China, she moved to Australia for a Master’s in International Relations. While studying, she tutored English online for Chinese students. When China’s new education policy shut down all online tutoring platforms, Jo had to decide: find a school job or change careers. Wanting to avoid state testing, she chose to teach herself coding, aiming to rebuild the tutoring platform. She gave herself six months to succeed before returning to teaching.

The launch of the new statue of Dr Abigail Allwood

The launch of the Dr Abigail Allwood statue is the culmination of four years of work…. It began when Malia Knox aged 9 and her mother Kelley were visiting Sherwood Arboretum Park reading names engraved on the plaques of each tree commemorating their planting in 1925. With keen insight, Malia questioned why only two trees were planted by women and the other 72 by men.

Rebecca McDonald won the inaugural Community Award at the 2019 WiT Awards. She was recognised for her impact on empowering millions of the world’s most underprivileged children learn to read as Founder and CEO of Library For All

TechEd founder driven by passion, not profit

Rebecca’s vision for leveraging the power of technology to bring books and literacy to the world’s most vulnerable children earned her the inaugural Community Award at the 2019 Women in Technology Awards. Learn about the journey that led Rebecca to empower millions of the world’s most underprivileged children learn to read through Library For All.

Making peace with success

Bronwyn Venus reflects on her unconventional career journey into the world of science and shares how being involved with the Women in Technology Community and the recognition of her peers finally gave Bronwyn the confidence to acknowledge and build on her rapidly-growing list of achievements.

An inquisitive mind and sense of purpose

Chamindie Punyadeera is driven by a passion for science she says is a calling, not a career. But as a culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) woman who migrated to Australia from South Africa, via the Netherlands, in 2008, she says it was incredibly tough to re-establish her career in a new country with no support network. When she was introduced to the Women in Technology community, it proved to be an inspiration for her career and led her to champion WiT's first program specifically designed for CALD women in STEM.

Delivering life-saving tech with style

Alex Sorina Moss is a former model and creative director who taught herself technology and drew on her expertise in fine art and design to create a prototype of an earpiece with an advanced micro-computer she invented that predicts both fatigue and heat stress – a potential life saver for astronauts and miners in high-heat and high-pressure environments. Read about Alex’s inspiring journey into a high-tech career and how winning a Women in Technology Award helped build her profile and credibility in Australia which in turn supported her efforts in helping grow Canaria Technologies from a 2-person founding team with a proof-of-concept for NASA to leading a 25-person team and a multi-million dollar business.

A woman of firsts

WiT Member Lynore Close tells of her journey from working as a 25 year old farm hand in the Adelaide Hills to becoming the first female indigenous ICT trainee in South Australia and how's she's continuing to build thriving career in IT - from finding her tribe network of supportive leaders and entrepreneurs in the WiT Community to completing her Masters degree in 2022 and working as a Security Analyst for Flight Centre Travel Group.

Stepping up to lead with courage, passion and integrity

2016 WiT Board Readiness Graduate Lisa Devereaux shares her experiences of completing WiT's Board Readiness Program and how she's continued to apply the insights gained over the years. She also reflects on her Board Leadership career to date and shares why - as a leader and key decision-maker representing a community - it's so important to seek guidance from mentors and trusted support networks to navigate difficult decisions and guide you through challenging periods throughout your career.

Do you have a member story to share? Contact us. Stories are correct at the time of publication but may date.