Growing skills, confidence and networks, one wāhine at a time.

“When Isha Sharma arrived in New Zealand from India in 2017, she thought her future would be in medicine. Instead, she found herself in aquaculture, building a career in fish health, behaviour and early life stage development. Now an Early Life Stage Supervisor at New Zealand King Salmon, Isha joined AWDT’s YOU programme to strengthen the people side of her leadership. Direct by nature and technically capable, she wanted to better understand how to communicate across different personalities, backgrounds and situations. Through the programme, Isha learned to pause, listen and lead with greater empathy. The shift was quickly noticed by her managers, colleagues and family. For Isha, the change has been deeply personal as well as professional. “I learned that sometimes you need to stop judging yourself and just focus on growing and moving forward.””

“When Fiona Sherlock and her husband Jon found themselves questioning whether they could keep farming, they chose to challenge the way they had always done things. What followed was a journey of innovation, resilience and renewed purpose. Through AWDT’s Next Level programme, Fiona found clarity about her place in the business and the confidence to help lead change on farm, turning difficult questions into new opportunities for their family, their farm and their future.”

“Grounded in whakapapa and guided by wairua, her teaching reminds us that leadership is a relationship built on mana and aroha. Through story and reflection, she creates space for understanding, belonging, and growth  helping women lead with authenticity, balance, and heart.”

“Grounded in whakapapa and guided by wairua, her teaching reminds us that leadership is a relationship built on mana and aroha. Through story and reflection, she creates space for understanding, belonging, and growth  helping women lead with authenticity, balance, and heart.”

“Grounded in whakapapa and guided by wairua, her teaching reminds us that leadership is a relationship built on mana and aroha. Through story and reflection, she creates space for understanding, belonging, and growth  helping women lead with authenticity, balance, and heart.”

“Over time, Sheena felt a pull that that she could not ignore. She describes it as a knowing, a call home, to reconnect with her roots in the Far North. “I started realising I wanted to come home. To help my people. To serve.”, she says. What began as a feeling soon became a purpose: to make a difference for her whenua and her whānau. ”