On Monday, 3 March 2025, Arnold Bloch Leibler hosted our annual International Women’s Day event, bringing together changemakers to discuss the critical issue of housing security for women. In line with this year’s theme, “March Forward: For ALL Women and Girls,” we focused on how housing security is essential to economic independence and opportunity for women in Australia and beyond.
In a panel discussion introduced by Property & Development special counsel Brianna Youngson and facilitated by partner Gia Cari, our distinguished guest speakers - Georgina Harrison, CEO and Executive Director at Amplify, and Carolyn Viney, CEO of Assemble - spoke of the systemic barriers women face in securing affordable housing.
In her introduction, Brianna explained that, according to the United Nations, women are more likely to experience housing instability due to systemic gender inequalities, including wage gaps and unpaid care responsibilities.
“It’s a problem that no government, no sector of the community can resolve on its own. It has to be a joint effort,” she said.
Drawing from their experience across public, private and community sectors, our panellists explored innovative solutions to drive meaningful change.
Georgina highlighted the contradiction between Australia’s wealth and its inability to address housing affordability, saying, “We are considered to be a country with great wealth, yet we are unable to solve housing affordability. The problems are not new, but they remain deeply entrenched.” She called for bold leadership and innovation, noting, “People want innovation in housing—there has to be a better way of doing this.” She also stressed the decline in government investment, which has left many Australians, especially women, without housing security.
Carolyn discussed the importance of long-term solutions, focusing on low-to-middle income housing, which she described as the most underserviced part of the market. She pointed out, “It’s hard to understand why prices are so high when compared with wages, and the biggest swing in support comes from addressing renters' rights.” Carolyn also emphasised the need for private investment in housing, saying, “We need to leverage private investors who already know what they’re doing, rather than expecting the government to act as a developer.”
The discussion reinforced the urgency of addressing housing insecurity as a barrier to women’s economic independence. However, despite the challenges the discussion also conveyed a shared sense of hope and determination, with both Georgina and Carolyn expressing confidence that with collaboration, innovation, and stronger investment, we can create a more secure and equitable future for women and all Australians.
The event attracted a diverse audience of around 80 people, including clients and friends of the firm, with a strong contingent of ABL lawyers and staff.
ABL welcomes the opportunity to engage in conversations on critical issues to the community and as we continue striving for a more inclusive and secure future for women worldwide, IWD provided an ideal occasion.
More information and resources on this year’s UN Women theme for International Women’s Day can be found here.
Thank you to members of the ABL Women's Network, in particular Bridget Pardy, Alexandra Harrison-Ichlov, Caroline Conan-Davies, Kalinda Scheef and supporting partners Genevieve Sexton, Christine Fleer, Rebecca Zwier, Gia Cari and Teresa Ward.
