Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I have a wonderful young woman of colour, Isha Dadlani, from the Girls Takeover Parliament program, shadowing me as I go about my day. Isha lives in Sydney and is in her second year studying psychology at ANU. I'd like to thank her for writing this contribution.

As you know, this program is run by an organisation called Jasiri, which promotes gender equality in our community and in our democracy. Each year the program provides about 60 young women the opportunity to learn the key features of democracy as well as assess how well Australia is doing in achieving inclusiveness in our political system. After training, these young women are given the opportunity to shadow a member of parliament for one day, allowing them to experience this great place and to have a voice. This bolsters their confidence, promotes a more just and fair society and strengthens their connection to Australian democracy.

Today they will also record their opinions regarding whether they feel represented or comfortable. That is important, given the majority of us parliamentarians are strikingly similar in terms of our race. The real aim should be for our parliament to truly reflect the make-up of our society. We're a long way from achieving this. Programs like GTOP are incredibly important to introducing this conversation and engaging young women in our democratic institutions. I hope one day to be a guest at Isha's first speech in this place. Well done, Isha.