MEDIA RELEASE

Almost 1,000 women and men from across the state were drawn to the sixth annual International Women’s Leadership Conference on Tuesday, Sept. 22 to hear women leaders from eight nations share their stories of success. 

The majority of the event is now viewable online at  www.hawaiiwomensconference.com. 

Held at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel and Resort, the one-day conference has a reputation for inspiring attendees. This year’s conference theme was “Just a little bit more,” urging delegates to do more for their community. 

“Although each speaker’s background was unique and each came from a different country, their messages reminded us that even the most difficult challenges can be overcome,” Gov. Linda Lingle said. 

This year’s presenters included Amanda Ellis, the lead specialist for gender and development for the World Bank; Jing Ulrich, the managing director and chairman of the China equities business of one of the world’s largest asset management companies; Tzipi Livni, the former foreign minister and former acting prime minister of Israel; Beatrice Sieh-Brown, the first woman to head the Liberian National Police; Cathrine Ann, a former victim of abuse, who now runs a multi-million dollar Canadian business venture; Mindy Gibbins-Klein, a British career coach and author of “The Book Midwife”; and Dr. Heidi Kraft, a former U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander and mother of twins who spent nine years as a U.S. Navy psychologist, and was deployed to a remote air base in western Iraq when her twin son and daughter were just 1 year old. 

In addition, video messages were presented by Michelle Rhee, who runs the public school system in our nation’s capitol, and Senator Loren Legarda, the first woman to serve as majority leader in the Philippine Congress. 

The conference is funded by private sponsors and registration fees, and does not use any state funds.