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Department of Pacific Affairs · ANU College of Asia and the Pacific
This course will consider the challenges and opportunities to extend conceptualisations of ‘legitimate leadership’ in the Pacific. Across most sectors, women are significantly under-represented in positions of formal leadership in the Pacific, including in politics, the public service, and business. Research points to a range of socio-economic and structural barriers to women’s leadership, including limited access to financial resources and education, and pervasive underlying social norms that place value in men and masculine forms of leadership. The course will examine a range of policy and programmatic interventions that have been designed over the last decade to improve women’s leadership in the Pacific.
Policy Brief (1,200 words)
Learning outcomes 1, 3, 4
Leadership Pitch (10 minutes)
Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3
Response to Policy Interventions (1,200 words)
Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4
Participation in class discussion
Learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4
Approx. 60 hours total, including 8 x 90 minute workshops. Individual study approx. 40-45 hours.
None required Preliminary Reading · Baker, K. 2018. Great Expectations: Gender and Political Representation in the Pacific Islands. Government and Opposition. 53(3) 542-568. · Baker, K. and Palmieri, S. 2020. Widows and Wives in Pacific politics: A Reliable Pathway for Women? DPA In Brief. 2020/1 · Barbara, J. and Baker, K. 2016. Improving the Electoral Chances of Pacific Women through an Evidence-Based Approach. CDI/SSGM Report. · Garap, S. 2019. Understanding Gender Relations in PNG after Decades of Activism – A Personal Perspective, Part 1. DPA In Brief. 2019/X · Garap, S. 2019. Understanding Gender Relations in PNG after Decades of Activism – A Personal Perspective, Part 2. DPA In Brief. 2019/23 · Howard, E. 2019. Effective Support for Women’s Leadership in the Pacific: Lessons from the Evidence. DPA Discussion Paper. 2019/1 · Howard, E., Apinelu, E. Neemia, T., and Towaki-Bue, J. 2019. Women’s leadership: Bringing context to life. Development Bulletin 81. 28-32. · IWDA. 2019. Public Perceptions of Women as Political Leaders: Views on Women’s Leadership and Temporary Special Measures in Solomon Islands. · McLeod, A. 2015. Women’s leadership in the Pacific. DLP State of the Art Paper 4. · Spark, C. & Corbett, J. 2018. Emerging women leaders’ views on political participation in Melanesia, International Feminist Journal of Politics, 20:2, 221-235, DOI: 10.1080/14616742.2016.1189680 · Tuuau, A. with Howard, E. 2019. The Long Road to Becoming a Parliamentarian in Samoa: Political Apprenticeship, Learning New Language and Pushing Gender Boundaries. DPA Discussion Paper 2019/4. · Zubrinich, K and Haley N. (2009). Experiencing the Public Sector: Pacific Women’s Perspectives. Canberra: State Society and Governance in Melanesia Program.