Our story
Established in 2018, WATTLE is an intensive leadership development and networking program which empowers women to attain and succeed in senior university leadership roles.
WATTLE is working to increase the number of women in leadership roles within the University sector, to address the current and persistent imbalance.
WATTLE brings together women identified as potential leaders across the university sector to provide an intensive leadership and networking program that is designed, and run, by senior academic and professional staff in the university sector.
The WATTLE program is guided by member universities, with all funds reinvested in the program. WATTLE is based on the highly successful New Zealand Universities Women in Leadership Programme (NZUWiL).
WATTLE is proudly hosted by Swinburne University of Technology.
WATTLE is a grassroots organisation that runs independently of any specific university and is a volunteer, non-profit making initiative that reinvests all surpluses in the program.
Today, the WATTLE alumni network spans to over 180 women in universities across Australia. View our member universities here.
WATTLE stands for Women ATTaining LEadership. The name pays respect to its Australian roots.
The shape of the logo resembles a blossoming wattle flower, strength and perserverance shown through rising leaves. An aspirational energy is conveyed in the logo’s movement, the leaves are connected to represent support and community.
The colours used reference Australian culture as well as the women themselves. Purple symbolises previous women leaders who have paved the way with the yellow representing the women of the present, standing on their shoulders to reach new heights.
WATTLE aims to
Empower women to attain senior university leadership roles thereby increasing the pool of women in senior academic and managerial positions in professional and academic areas in the tertiary sector.
Address, in a cost-effective manner, the lack of women in leadership and at the same time the gender imbalance in senior academic and managerial positions at a time of public interest and of tertiary sector reform.
Contribute directly to the Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) program, which is dedicated to improving gender representation in STEMM disciplines, however WATTLE encompasses all disciplines.
Build research, teaching and administrative leadership skills for individual participants, and thereby enhance the research, teaching and administrative capability of their universities.
Develop an Australia-wide active network of women in academic and university leadership, promoting collaboration across the sector and continued development of individuals.
Strengthen and augment the pipeline of women for leadership.