An alignment designed to make women WISER

Women in Sustainable Energy and Resources (WISER) is aligning with other women’s representative groups to influence more change in industry.

WISER officially launched in December last year with a function including 80 women. They now have 3,000 Linkedin followers and have the backing of corporate miners and members of the supply chain.

The group had taken the focus away from traditional roles in the industry, said WISER co-founder Joanne Bergamin.

“There wasn’t really a place for me in traditional women-in-mining groups and also the industry is looking so much more forward looking now in terms of sustainability,” Ms Bergamin said.

“I don’t think that was captured by traditionally coal-led groups like all the BHPs and Glencores that were heading up the other groups.

“We really wanted to make (WISER) a place where women, no matter where they work, could look to operating more sustainably and supporting each other better.”

Main image: Co-Founders of WISER Lauren Dolezal and Joanne Bergamin, Leah Cummins, Owner of Bunya Designs

WISER has combined with Uniq You, a not-for-profit service bringing virtual career advice for girls which is spreading out of Queensland to other states.

The group has also partnered with Indigenous Women in Mining Resources Australia to help promote women into leadership roles.

They were initially targeting regional and remote areas said Uniq You spokesperson Val Ridley.

“In terms of having a service that is scalable and intentionally scalable so we can reach every young person ultimately, no matter where they are,” Ms Ridley said.

“We do have a priority for regional/remote, although we are represented in metro regions.

“In terms of states, we have a stronger representation in Queensland at the moment. Just launched this year in Victoria. We’ve actually just secured our first national major partnership with BMD Constructions and they’re taking us to Northern Territory.

“We are piloting New South Wales, and hopefully we are going to have our first, which is interesting, first mining company to join us. And that should take us to WA.”

The change in culture was slow said Ms Ridley.

“They’re the two barriers and in many communities or schools families where however you look at it, the information a young person gets in the school environment is only as good as the networks of the person delivering that piece of information.

“By having a scalable national access to a library of role models means that their influence circle can be much greater and the information they’re getting more accurate. “

Empowerment meant pulling a lot of levers said Ms Bergamin.

“We need to create that pipeline. And I think men have always been really good at sponsoring other men, literally pulling them up, not just mentoring. And that’s what women need to do better.

“By creating this network where we can see and talk to each other about everything from what we should be looking at getting for pay, for example, we’ve never been able to have these discussions before just with other women when we are relaxed, glass in hand.

“It’s amazing what comes out of these conversations and it’s a very supportive environment.

“When I go to an event like this, I feel like I’m in a room with a hundred of my best friends and I want every woman in the industry to feel like that and that she has someone to talk to when she has an issue in the workplace.”