For three decades, marie claire has celebrated women who inspire, agitate and champion change. To mark the occasion, we’ve selected 30 of the most powerful women in the country. Whether they’re smashing glass ceilings, swimming for gold or telling female-led stories on the screen, these are the women blazing a trail and bringing the next generation along with them.
Advocacy
Professor Megan Davis
The leading Australian lawyer on constitutional recognition of First Nations peoples, Professor Megan Davis has been a singular influence in Indigenous rights, law and national reconciliation. One of the authors of the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart, she catalysed the campaign for a Voice to Parliament. “Seeing mob suspend their belief that change won’t happen in their own country, come together to imagine their world could be a better place and choosing a vision of unity and hope and belonging to Australian democracy, not being separate, was a real highlight,” she says. Even though the 2023 referendum did not pass, “we do what all Aussies do: dust ourselves off and fight on for the vision that the Uluru Statement from the Heart still provides. Because hope and peace matter.”
Entrepreneur
Zoë Foster Blake
For millennial Australian women, Zoë Foster Blake is the blueprint. Always 10 steps ahead of the pack, Foster Blake launched a blog before Substack was even a thought and was writing romance novels (that were then adapted to TV shows) before BookTok took hold of the publishing industry. Then she became one of the country’s most successful entrepreneurs when she founded her cult-favourite beauty brand, Go-To Skincare, with a relentless dedication to efficacy, accessibility and fun. Foster Blake is an icon of originality, proving that you can build an empire on wit, vision and an unwavering sense of self.
Finance
Michele Bullock
When the Macquarie Dictionary crowned “cozzie livs” as its Word of the Year in November 2023, Michele Bullock had barely unpacked the boxes in her new office at the Reserve Bank’s headquarters in Sydney’s Martin Place. Appointed RBA governor two months earlier – the first woman to hold the role – she took charge as Australians were feeling the pinch and the government was rolling out sweeping internal reforms recommended by the RBA Review. But despite this – and thanks to her nearly four decades of experience, after having joined the bank in 1985 – Bullock has emerged as a respected voice of tough-talking clarity in turbulent economic times.
Advocacy
Grace Forrest
A world free from modern slavery might be possible thanks to the campaigning of people like Grace Forrest. As founding director of Walk Free, she leads global efforts to eradicate modern slavery, forging critical links between fashion, ethics and humanrights advocacy. Under her leadership, Walk Free publishes the Global Slavery Index, the world’s foremost dataset on exploitation, influencing international laws and corporate practices. In 2024, her work culminated in Forrest becoming the first Australian woman awarded the prestigious Roosevelt Four Freedoms Freedom from Fear Award, joining icons like Nelson Mandela and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Sport
Alexa Leary
Alexa Leary was a 19-year-old triathlete when in 2021 she suffered a brain injury in a 70km/h cycling accident while training. She spent two weeks in ICU before her life support was turned off. But miraculously, she started breathing on her own, and only three years later would land herself a spot swimming for Australia at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, taking home two gold medals and a silver. A master of the pivot, she is now parlaying her success in the pool into a career as a pop star, signing a deal with the same record company that represents PNAU and Fisher (the latter happens to be a big fan of Leary’s debut dance track, “Closer”).
Sustainability
Ronni Kahn
It began with one van and a bold idea. In 2004, Ronni Kahn founded OzHarvest to turn surplus food into a lifeline. Two decades on, OzHarvest delivered more than 28 million meals in 2024 alone, rescuing 14.3 million kilograms of surplus food from going to waste. Through OzHarvest and other initiatives such as OzHarvest Market and education programs like NEST and FEAST, Khan has revolutionised the food sustainability space, campaigning for true systemic change that impacts – and nourishes – millions of Australians in need.
Music
Jessica Mauboy
Two decades ago, a high school student from Darwin stood on an ochre-coloured road in Alice Springs and belted out Whitney Houston’s “I Have Nothing”. The performance landed her a spot on the newly launched series Australian Idol, where she went on to capture the nation with her electric vocals. Since then, Mauboy has become a household name in music and film, winning three ARIAs, plus an AACTA Award for her role in the 2013 film The Sapphires. Now she’s struck out further, announcing in August that she’s left Warner Music to establish independent label Jamally. In the same month, Mauboy was also inducted into the National Indigenous Music Awards Hall of Fame.
Government
Sam Mostyn
Few in public life have had the lasting impact of Sam Mostyn: as the first female AFL commissioner she spearheaded the launch of the women’s professional league; when she chaired the Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce she recommended reinstating the Single Parenting Payment and boosting investment in affordable early childhood care; and as co-chair of the 2018 National Sustainable Development Goals Summit, she helped launch Australia’s first data platform to increase accountability and accelerate progress towards a more sustainable future. Since being sworn in as Governor-General in July 2024, she has stayed true to her practical, principled and quietly revolutionary style, using her @gg_australia Instagram account to demystify our democracy and lift the curtain on a role many people don’t fully grasp.
Fashion
Nicky and Simone Zimmermann
What started as a stall selling flouncy floral dresses at Sydney’s Paddington Markets in 1991 has blossomed into Australia’s first-ever billiondollar fashion label. And yet, despite the Zimmermann sisters’ extraordinary success that has placed them alongside the bastions of luxury fashion that line Paris’ Rue Saint-Honoré – now home to the brand’s European headquarters – Nicky as creative director and Simone as chief operating officer remain more hands-on than ever. It’s a good thing, too: currently in an exciting phase of expansion, the business employs more than 1300 people globally, many of whom are young Australian creatives getting a front-row seat to the scaling of a global empire proudly championing Australian creativity and craftsmanship.
Politics
Sussan Ley
Ten years ago, both major parties set a target of 50 per cent female parliamentary representation by 2025. At this year’s election, only 31 per cent of Coalition candidates were women, a shortfall many say contributed to their landslide defeat. Enter Sussan Ley, the first woman to lead the federal Liberal Party in its 80-year history, and Australia’s first female opposition leader. With a political career dating back to 2001 and a colourful pre-politics resume – she worked as an air traffic controller and a cattle-station cook before enrolling in university as a mother of three to study economics part-time – she’s been tasked with rebuilding her party, solving its “women problem” and steering it back to what she calls “the sensible centre”.
Film
Margot Robbie
Margot Robbie’s journey from Ramsey Street to Hollywood was like a pebble being thrown into a pond; the 35-year-old’s success has had a ripple effect that goes far beyond herself. Not only has Robbie carved out an impressive acting career, clocking numerous accolades including three Academy Award nominations, but her work as a producer with her entertainment company, LuckyChap, has moved the needle for the telling of more women-led stories. Whether it’s the cultural behemoth of Barbie, which had record-breaking box-office success, or indie movies like I, Tonya, Robbie is making space for diverse voices in Hollywood and shaping the future of film.
Advocacy
Chanel Contos
In 2021, Chanel Contos lit the fuse with a single question on Instagram: had anyone been sexually assaulted as a school student? The overwhelming response ignited a national reckoning to confront rape culture in Australian schools, with Contos leading efforts to challenge entrenched norms around consent and sexual violence. Her advocacy made mandatory consent education a political priority, culminating in its inclusion from 2023 in the Australian curriculum from kindergarten to Year 10. Thanks to Contos’ tireless advocacy, she has transformed how a generation learns about respect, boundaries and consent.
Business
Shemara Wikramanayake
Close your eyes and picture the CEO of Australia’s biggest investment bank. Ingrained assumptions likely mean you’re imagining someone male, pale and with a receding hairline. That’s what makes Shemara Wikramanayake, who has led Macquarie Group since 2018, so remarkable. From a Sri Lankan family who moved here from the UK when she was a teenager to becoming the first Asian-Australian woman to head an ASX 200 company and growing Macquarie Group into one of the world’s largest investors driving the global transition to renewable energy, she’s not only broken the mould, but the glass ceiling, too.
Advocacy
Grace Tame
The great irony of Grace Tame’s story is that when, at the age of 15, she was insidiously groomed, stalked and sexually assaulted by her 58-year-old maths teacher, he thought she’d be the kind to keep quiet. Quite the opposite: her refusal to remain silent has made her one of the most impactful (and outspoken) public figures in Australian history. In 2021, she was named Australian of the Year for her role in overturning Tasmania’s gag laws preventing survivors like herself from speaking publicly about their experiences, and during her tenure she made it clear she would not allow anyone – including a prime minister – to co-opt her story to fit their own narrative.
Entrepreneur
Jo Horgan
You can’t discuss the Australian beauty industry without talking about the impact of Jo Horgan. In the 28 years since she opened the first Mecca Cosmetica boutique in Melbourne, Horgan has redefined the beauty retail landscape, building Mecca into a powerhouse with more than 100 stores in Australia and New Zealand. A champion of innovation, she’s pioneered the immersive retail experience with a customer-first, service-led approach that reimagines what it means to run a purposedriven global brand. Horgan also uses her platform to amplify women’s voices through initiatives like Mecca M‑Power, proving that beauty can be both transformative and empowering.
Government
Julie Inman Grant
No stranger to controversy, Julie Inman Grant has, over the years, drawn the ire of YouTube, Elon Musk and even Pauline Hanson in her role heading the world’s first agency dedicated to protecting citizens from online harm as Australia’s eSafety Commissioner. Her mandate is broad and often contentious, from tackling cyberbullying and online abuse to holding tech giants accountable for harmful content. Now, in her most ambitious move yet, she’s pushing for a world-first social media ban for children under 16 – a stance that has made her a target of online abuse herself, which has only strengthened her resolve.
Media
Brooke Boney
As a political journalist and proud Gamilaroi woman, Boney has spent her entire media career educating audiences about Indigenous Australia, from reporting on major issues such as the Change the Date campaign to something as simple as using the Gamilaroi greeting of “yaama” at the start of a news bulletin. In 2023, Boney covered the Voice to Parliament referendum count live, where she had to tell First Nations viewers that 60 per cent of the country had voted no. Last year, she traded morning television and its brutal call time for the hallowed halls of England’s Oxford University, where she’s studying a master of public policy.
Medicine
Dr Georgina Long
Thousands of lives have been saved by the work of Georgina Long. As a world-leading melanoma oncologist and researcher, Long has transformed treatment at the Melanoma Institute Australia. Her groundbreaking immunotherapy trials have turned advanced melanoma (once almost always fatal within months) into a disease that more than half of patients can now live with long‑term. For some, it’s even curable. Named 2024 co-Australian of the Year, Long is also the first female and first Australian president of the Society for Melanoma Research, with her prolific work reshaping cancer care worldwide.
Sport
Emma McKeon
It’s hard to overstate the accomplishments of Australia’s most decorated Olympian, Emma McKeon. The girl who learnt to swim at her parents’ swim school in Wollongong went on to rewrite swimming history with a staggering 14 Olympic medals across Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. McKeon claimed the title of most successful Australian Olympian ever after taking home six golds, three silvers and five bronzes. Not only that, but with 20 Commonwealth medals and eight world‑relay records to her name, McKeon has elevated women’s sport in Australia, her grace, humility and dominance inspiring a generation of female athletes nationwide.
Climate
Amanda McKenzie
Few can turn complex climate science into a rallying cry, but that’s what Amanda McKenzie has done as founder and CEO of the Climate Council. When the Abbott government abolished the Climate Commission in 2013, McKenzie led a grassroots campaign that raised $1.3 million from 16,000 supporters in just 10 days to launch the Climate Council. It has since become Australia’s leading independent climatescience communicator. Working across the spectrum, McKenzie and her team influence boardrooms, energise grassroots movements and reframe the public understanding of climate risks, advocating for renewable energy transitions and mobilising communities toward sustainability.
Politics
The Teals
It felt like the tectonic plates of Australian politics began a massive shift when the wave of six Teal independents won their seats in the 2022 federal election. Leading bold, community-driven campaigns that prioritised climate action, integrity and gender equality, the Teals – Monique Ryan, Allegra Spender, Zali Steggall, Sophie Scamps, Kate Chaney and Kylea Tink – mobilised voters in unprecedented ways. As members of parliament, they’ve used their position to pressure the major parties over emissions targets, and helped launch key reforms like the National Anti‑Corruption Commission.
Film
Nicole Kidman
If, after turning 40, Nicole Kidman had never worked again, she would have had the kind of career most actors would envy: a meteoric rise to Hollywood stardom, a range of scene-stealing performances and a sleek gold statue for her mantlepiece. That might’ve even been the expectation (after all, she once called out the industry consensus that female actors were “done” at 40). But Kidman has turned this narrative on its head. Through her production company, Blossom Films, she’s been the powerhouse producer behind many of the past decade’s most successful female-led projects, starred in some of the biggest streaming series on the planet, and taken on leading roles that dismantle the notion that women’s desirability, complexity and agency diminishes as they age.
Politics
Penny Wong
Respect. Fairness. Integrity. Inclusion. Penny Wong doesn’t just embody these values, she’s used them to rewrite the rules of Australian politics. Australia’s longest-serving female cabinet minister and the first Asian-born and openly LGBTI member of cabinet, the current foreign minister has brought a principled voice to some of the nation’s most complex challenges. For her, the highlight has been witnessing parliament’s transformation. “Watching the first speeches of my talented Asian-Australian colleagues like Sally Sitou and Gabriel Ng,” she says. “Growing up in a very different Australia, and becoming a senator in a very different parliament, I didn’t realise how long I had been waiting to hear their voices.”
Advocacy
Rosie Batty
The day after her 11-year-old son, Luke, was fatally stabbed by his father in 2014, Rosie Batty stood before reporters and said, “Family violence happens to [anybody], no matter how nice your house is, no matter how intelligent you are.” Her raw honesty broke the silence and stigma around domestic violence in Australia, a national crisis affecting more than one in five people. In the decade since she was named Australian of the Year in 2015, Batty has turned her personal tragedy into tireless advocacy, exposing systemic failures and harmful cultural attitudes that allowed the death of her son.
Television
Asher Keddie
The beating heart of Australian television can be found in Asher Keddie. For more than 40 years, Keddie has reflected the emotional truth of Australian women, telling stories that cut through and resonate on iconic shows such as Love My Way, Offspring and Strife. Off-screen, Keddie has started working as a producer to adapt books to television, extending her creative reach to shape the stories that get told. Once known as the Australian TV’s golden girl, the seven-time Logie Award winner is a trailblazer whose legacy is steeped in emotional authenticity and tenacity.
Politics
Julia Gillard
Is there a parliamentary address more steeped in lore than the “misogyny speech”? In just 15 minutes, then-prime minister Julia Gillard delivered a searing takedown that would become a defining moment in feminist political history, framing how sexism in public life is talked about and called out. As Australia’s first female prime minister, Gillard delivered landmark reforms across education, mental health and climate change. After leaving office, she continued to transform her impact by founding the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership where she champions leadership and the importance of girls’ education, cementing her as an enduring force for change.
Law
Jennifer Robinson
Referring to Jennifer Robinson – as is often the case – as “the A-list’s go-to lawyer”, a brilliant legal mind-for-hire for those who can afford it, is a grave disservice. A product of public education in Australia – a point of pride she says outranks even her status as a Rhodes Scholar – this is a woman who has dedicated her career to defending the rights of individuals challenging the world’s most powerful institutions. From her time as legal counsel to Julian Assange and WikiLeaks, to representing the liberation movement in West Papua, advising women and journalists during the #MeToo movement, and representing American actor Amber Heard in successfully defending her ex-husband Johnny Depp’s defamation case in the United Kingdom, Robinson is an advocate for those whose voices are often silenced, and whose causes require not just legal skill, but courage, conviction and an unwavering commitment to justice. The best part? She rarely loses.
Sport
The Matildas
In 2023, the entire country caught Matildas fever as the Australian women’s football team competed in the FIFA World Cup on home soil. Television audience records were broken, and the Matildas’ semi-final against England was the most-watched broadcast in Australian history. Two years later, the Matildas effect is still going strong, with the landscape of women’s sport altered forever. The federal government has invested $136 million in grants to improve sporting facilities for more than 100,000 women and girls, and $3.2 million to support women in sports leadership positions. And more good news: Sam Kerr and Mary Fowler are slated to return from injury to play in the 2026 AFC Asian Cup in March.
Arts
Kirsha Kaechele
Most people wouldn’t describe being taken to court for discrimination as “absolutely thrilling”, but Kirsha Kaechele is not most people. The artist and curator, best known as one half of the couple behind Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), made international headlines in 2024 after winning the right to keep men out of her Ladies Lounge – a decadent piece of performance art designed to invert centuries of gender exclusion. While it may be her most talked-about project, Kaechele has spent decades using art as a tool for social change: from transforming abandoned houses in New Orleans into immersive art spaces to staging a gun buy-back scheme as part of an art installation and convening a “forest economics congress” to address the long-running environmental conflict in Tasmania.
Technology
Melanie Perkins
Not your average tech founder, Melanie Perkins launched Canva at just 19 and has since built one of the world’s fastest-growing software companies, now serving more than 220 million monthly users. Driven by a mission to “be a force for good”, Perkins has evolved Canva’s purpose from making design easy and accessible for all to using its global reach as a vehicle for meaningful change. In 2021, she and co-founder (and partner) Cliff Obrecht pledged to donate the majority of their equity – worth billions – to the Canva Foundation, with the aim of addressing some of the world’s most pressing challenges.
