WEN VIC - Padma Raman and Susanne Legena on attitudes and gender equality

Padma Raman and Susanne Legena on attitudes and gender equality

Join Padma Raman, Executive Director of the Office for Women at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and Susanne Legena, CEO of Plan International Australia, to discuss the state of gender equality in Australia, attitudes to gender equality, and how to use these insights to  progress gender equality.

Plan International Australia released Gender Compass Stage 2 in April 2025, offering fresh insight into Australia’s evolving gender equality attitudes. The Australian Government released Working for Women: A National Strategy for Gender Equality in 2024, and the third annual Status of Women Report Card on International Women's Day 2025.

Event Details

Date: Tuesday 3 June 2025
Time: 5.30pm to 7.00pm. Attendees are welcome to arrive from 5.00pm for networking.
Cost: Members $5, non-members $10 (click here to join)
Inclusions: Light refreshments
Venue: FTI Consulting, Level 50/600 Bourke Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000

About the Panellists

Padma Raman PSM is Executive Director of the Office for Women (OFW) at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Prior to joining OFW in September 2023, she was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety Limited (ANROWS) from 2021. In her time as CEO, Padma established ANROWS as the widely recognised leading authoritative voice on evidence to end violence against women and children.

Before starting as CEO of ANROWS, Padma was the Chief Executive of the Australian Human Rights Commission for 11 years. Prior to that she established and was Chief Executive Officer of the Victorian Law Reform Commission for 9 years and served as a part-time commissioner of the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission for 5 years.

Padma has a wealth of experience as a senior executive at both the state and federal level, and in 2018 was awarded the Public Service Medal (PSM) for outstanding service leading significant cultural, technological and governance change. She has a Master of Laws by research focusing on the experiences of immigrant and Indigenous women under the Australian legal system.

Padma is also appointed by the Commonwealth Government as an independent member of the ANU Council and further serves on the Students Safety and Wellbeing Committee of Council.

 Susanne Legena is the CEO of Plan International Australia, a passionate feminist, and a champion of young people. With over 20 years’ experience in corporate communications, government relations, and campaigning, she is committed to driving social change.

 Susanne is passionate about design thinking and human-centred design, aiming to co-create solutions to complex global challenges like poverty, gender equality, and climate change. Since joining Plan International Australia’s executive team in 2011 and becoming CEO in 2017, she has led the organisational focus on equality for girls.

Susanne also serves as the Chair of the Emergency Action Alliance, is a Director of Community Plus, supporting community development in Melbourne’s West.