Celebrating Indigenous women in business and government is important year-round, but especially this International Women’s Day.

Today we’re highlighting four Aboriginal women who are doing fantastic things in their own lives and careers and inspiring future Indigenous females across a range of industries.

Rebecca Blurton

Rebecca Blurton is a Noongar woman from Perth. She’s an entrepreneur and an Indigenous advocate, and she works as the Executive Manager at Westpac — Australia’s oldest bank.

She has previously worked in a selection of eminent positions, such as her time as the Managing Director of Indigenous Women in Business and serving as the Manager of Enterprise Governance at Transport for NSW.

Rebecca currently sits on the Board of Directors at YWCA Australia, which is an organisation at the forefront of fighting for gender equality. The group is currently working on a five-year project — the YWCA Evolve Strategy — intending to maximise the social impact of its work for all women and gender-diverse people.

Gillian Mailman

Gillian Mailman is a Bidjara woman from Queensland. She was the first Aboriginal woman to become an Electrician in Australia, which set the course for her impressive career to follow.

In 2003, Gillian launched her fibre optics business — Fibre Optics North Queensland (NQ). This venture was a huge success and boasted many high-profile clients, including State and Federal Governments. Ten years into the success of this business, Fibre Optics NQ merged with MJB Solutions to form ICT Connect, of which Gillian is now the CEO and Managing Director.

As well as dedicating a lot of passion and energy to her job, Gillian also gives much of her time to supporting Indigenous entrepreneurs to empower other communities. She believes Indigenous people in business should be working to build each other up instead of competing against each other.

Linda Burney

Linda Burney is of Wiradjuro and Scottish descent. She was one of the first Indigenous women to be elected to the State Parliament and Federal Parliament. As a member of the Australian Labor Party, she has served in the House of Representatives since 2016.

Linda has been the Minister for Indigenous Australians since 2022, a position whereby she is the first Aboriginal woman to hold. She has a clear history of making change, also being among the first group of Aboriginal students to graduate from Charles Sturt University. Linda obtained a Diploma of Teaching from Charles Sturt University in 1978 and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Education from the same institution in 2002.

After working as a Teacher for many years, Linda was appointed as Director General of the NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs, which led her to her impressive political career.

In 2014, Linda won the NAIDOC Lifetime Achievement Award, which celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal people.

Malarndirri McCarthy

Malarndirri McCarthy is descended from the Garrwa and Yanyuwa peoples. She grew up in Borroloola before moving to Sydney for school. Alongside Linda Burney, Malarndirri was one of the first Indigenous women to be elected to State and Federal Parliaments.

She began her career as a newsreader and journalist, reporting on television and radio. In 1993, she became a newsreader for ABC News and went on to co-establish the very first community radio station in Borroloola.

Malarndirri first entered politics in 2005 and held a range of positions until returning to her original career in 2012. However, in 2016 she was invited by the Labor Party to stand as the Senate candidate for the Northern Territory in the Federal Election.

Since her success in the election, Malarndirri has held her position as Senator for the Northern Territory, and also works as Assistant Minister in the Albanese Government.

Indigenous Women in Business and Government

These are just a few examples of incredible Indigenous women who are paving the way for others across business and government in Australia. There are currently more Aboriginal people in Federal Parliament than ever before, with 12 First Nations candidates being selected for last year’s election — a number of them being women.

As we celebrate International Women’s Day this year, it’s important to remember and honour the inspiring Indigenous women who continue to drive change across Australia.