Women Deliver 2026

Sessions & Speakers

1. Sunday 04/26

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   Pre-conference | 0800–1800 AEST | Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Center - Room 219/220

   The Girls Deliver 2026 pre-conference will highlight the urgency and reality of this moment for adolescent girls. The pre-conference will serve as an activation and acceleration space, spotlighting where progress has been made, where gaps remain in fulfilling existing commitments, and what we must do as a collective to meet this moment, with and for girls. By centering girls’ lived experiences and leadership, the pre-conference will influence collective action for girls across the ecosystem, and contribute to the Girls Deliver community’s global call to action to fulfill commitments to adolescent girls and protect their rights.

    

   Must have pre-registered to attend.

2. Monday 04/27

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   Meet the Expert Session | 1530–1630 AEST | Council booth E16

   “Impact of Young Feminist Movements in Kenya and Mexico”

   Chantalle Okondo

    

   The Nawiri (Kenya) and Juventudes Feministas MX (Mexico) projects documented feminist organizers’ impact through a participatory action research approach that also provided tools, space, and opportunities for organizers to lead capacity‑building on their own terms and challenge traditional power dynamics. Come by the booth and talk to Chantalle about this research.

3. Tuesday 04/28

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   Meet the Expert Session | 1030–1200 AEST | Council booth E16

   “GIRL Center”

   Karen Austrian

    

   Drop by the Council booth and talk with Karen about the Girl Innovation, Research, and Learning (GIRL) Center, a global research hub that envisions a gender-equitable world where girls and boys make a healthy and safe transition into adulthood and reach their full potential.

   Meet the Expert Session | 1330–1500 AEST | Council booth E16

   “Impact of Young Feminist Movements in Kenya and Mexico”

   Chantalle Okondo

    

   The Nawiri (Kenya) and Juventudes Feministas MX (Mexico) projects documented feminist organizers’ impact through a participatory action research approach that also provided tools, space, and opportunities for organizers to lead capacity‑building on their own terms and challenge traditional power dynamics. Stop by the booth and talk to Chantalle about this research.

   Meet the Expert Session | 1500–1630 AEST | Council booth E16

   “Using Inclusive Data for Better Program Design and Decision-Making”

   Dipankar Bhattacharya

4. Wednesday 04/29

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   Girls at the Center: Power, Voice, and Investment | 930–1100 AEST | Plenary Hall 2

   Adolescent girls are not one group with one set of needs. They are diverse, and their needs can only be met when all girls have real power in the systems that shape decisions and control resources. Adolescence is a pivotal period: it is when opportunities can expand, but also when exclusion, violence, and unequal expectations can become more deeply entrenched. How systems respond at this stage shapes not only girls’ lives, but the future of communities and societies more broadly. This plenary calls on policymakers, funders, institutions, and movement leaders to move beyond superficial inclusion toward shared power, real accountability, and sustained investment. In doing so, it makes clear that a serious commitment to adolescent girls is not only about visibility or representation, but about whether our political, social, and economic systems are willing to change in ways that deliver justice. It will call for global political and financial commitments to adolescent girls, while making clear that girls’ leadership is central to shaping a just future.

    

   The Council’s GIRL Center Director, Karen Austrian will share what the evidence and data tells us about the unique needs of adolescent girls and what works to improve their lives.

    

   Full plenary program details are available here.

   Meet the Expert Session | 0900–1030 AEST | Council booth E16

   “Impact of Young Feminist Movements in Kenya and Mexico”

   Chantalle Okondo

    

   The Nawiri (Kenya) and Juventudes Feministas MX (Mexico) projects documented feminist organizers’ impact through a participatory action research approach that also provided tools, space, and opportunities for organizers to lead capacity‑building on their own terms and challenge traditional power dynamics. Visit the Council booth and discuss our research with Chantalle.

   Meet the Expert Session | 1030–1130 AEST | Council booth E16

   “GIRL Center”

   Maty Dia

    

   Drop by the Council booth and talk with Maty about the Girl Innovation, Research, and Learning (GIRL) Center, a global research hub that envisions a gender-equitable world where girls and boys make a healthy and safe transition into adulthood and reach their full potential.

    

   Maty is also conversant in French.

    

   Media Fireside Chat | 1200–1245 AEST | Media Lounge

   Closed to media

   Maty Dia

   Meet the Expert Session | 1200–1330 AEST | Council booth E16

   “Using Inclusive Data for Better Program Design and Decision-Making”

   Dipankar Bhattacharya