Caitlin Figueiredo on the importance of emerging leadership

<p>This episode, Shadé Zahrai interviews Caitlin Figueiredo, Founder and CEO of Jasiri Australia. She is also an Australian Youth Development Index Expert Panelist of the Ministry of Youth and Sport, Board Member and Vice Chair of Australian Youth Affairs Coalition and Ambassador of Alannah and Madeline Foundation.</p> <p>She was named Young Leader of the 100 Women of Influence in Australia, an Obama White House Changemaker and a Queens Young Leader.</p> <p>Some of her other past roles include, Head of Technology and Data for the Australian Red Cross, Task Force Member for the UN Women, Representative to the UN Annual Youth Assembly, Australian Director for The Global Resolutions Project, Founder and State Director of World Vision ACT.</p> <p> </p> <p>Valuable Discussion Points </p> <p>(01:26) What is the story of Caitlin’s leadership journey and what is her experience of leadership at such a young age?</p> <p> </p> <p>For Caitlin, leadership is not defined by age. She started pretty young, and that was mainly because of her grandparents and parents who taught her from a young age that leadership and supporting your community has to start from the time that one is young. So it's always been very natural for her to be a leader. When her family came to Australia from Kenya, a couple of years after the White Australia Policy ended, they found it really difficult in the beginning to fit in. They faced cultural prejudice and racial discrimination. When Caitlin was little, they learnt that the whole part of themselves was to give back to their community, to serve their community and to leave where they live better than they found it.</p> <p> </p> <p>(04:10) What is Caitlin’s main program, Girls Takeover Parliament?</p> <p> </p> <p>Jasiri Australia, the organisation founded by Caitlin, runs the Girls Takeover Parliament programme.</p> <p>Essentially, it's an experiential education initiative to create pathways to politics for young women both across Australia and around the world. The whole purpose of Girls