Events

Despite multiple global movements in support of gender equality and justice, a level playing field in the professional and social landscape remains elusive for women even today. According to UN Women, it will take at least 286 years to close gaps in legal protection and remove discriminatory laws against women.  

On International Women’s Day, Columbia Global Centers | Mumbai invites you to join a powerful conversation delving into the complexities of achieving true gender equity and dismantling systemic barriers. The discussion will center around the global push for change and the unique obstacles faced by women in competitive and professional arenas. 

Our panel brings together women from diverse cultures and backgrounds to share insights into the challenges faced by women across competitive fields and their efforts in reshaping perceptions and policies.
 

Meet our panelists

Veronika Didusenko, an MPA'25 student at SIPA, Columbia University, and the founder of NGO Righttobeamother. Ms. Didusenko is currently fighting against the discriminatory rules of the Miss World beauty pageant that discriminate against women based on their family status, maternity, and pregnancy. Ms. Didusenko was crowned Miss Ukraine (Miss World) in 2018 but was subsequently disqualified for being a single mother, which she felt was unfair. To stand up against this injustice, she founded the Righttobeamother NGO, which advocates for gender equity.

Gloria Allred is an award-winning women’s rights attorney, lauded for her pioneering legal work for discrimination based on gender, race, age, physical handicap, and sexual orientation. As the founding partner of Allred, Maroko & Goldberg (AM&G), she has been leading women’s rights in the US for the last 47 years. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s College of Liberal Arts for Women, she founded the Women’s Equal Rights Legal Defense and Education Fund (WERLDEF) in 1980. Ms. Allred and her battles for justice have been captured in an original documentary, “Seeing Allred”, currently streaming on Netflix.

Diana Edulji, former India captain, is the first Indian woman cricketer to be inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Born in Mumbai, she played her first series in 1975 and remains the third-highest wicket-taker in Tests. In 2017, Ms. Edulji was the only woman representative in the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators, tasked with overseeing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).  As an administrator, she paved the way for gender equality in the sport by fighting for the Women’s Premier League and pay parity for women cricketers. During her tenure, the first Women’s T20 challenge was held successfully in 2018.

Danielle Hazel is a professional model, an abstract artist painter with a background in the performing arts and ambassador of #righttobeamother campaign. Together with Gloria Allred Daniel represents legal side of the global initiative which aims to change anachronistic violation of all sorts of gender equality laws in Miss World pageant. She became a mother at 19 and has been facing discrimination by the rules of the contest for 6 years, but she is ready and eager to bring a positive change. Daniel believes that inclusive competitions can help to break gender stereotypes, create professional opportunities for contestants, and help to empower women.

Tülin Şahin is a Turkish-Danish supermodel. She won the “Supermodel of Denmark” model competition in 1995 at the age of 15.  At the age of 19 she went to Paris to start her full-time modelling career and has been modeling full time ever since.  She is the official 'Face of Turkey' since 2008 and supports women via different platforms all over Turkey and around the world. This year she is celebrating 25 years in her fashion career. Besides modeling she has her own TV show about fashion on the biggest TV station in Turkey called Star TV.  The show is called “Tülin Şahin ile Moda” meaning “Fashion with Tülin Şahin," and has been running for 11 years with a worldwide audience. Tülin Şahin is an ambassador of UNICEF and UN Women.

Moderator

Adv. Audrey Dmello is a women and child rights lawyer and is currently the Director of Majlis (an NGO that works with vulnerable victims). Ms. Dmello has a degree in law from Bombay University and a postgraduate degree in management from Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS). For the past 15 years, Ms. Dmello has provided legal and social support to women and children in cases of sexual and domestic violence. She has vast experience in training police, prosecution, and judges on laws related to violence against women and children including the POCSO Act, POSH Act, and PWDV Act. She has researched various topics and published articles in esteemed journals. Her work on effectively implementing the law has helped marginalized women and children access justice.