Women of the World Q&A (Economics & Law)

Carly Kind is a human rights lawyer and Director of the Ada Lovelace Institute, a London-based research institute with a remit to ensure that data and artificial intelligence (AI) work for people and society.

Since graduating from UQ with a Bachelor of Laws and Arts (International Relations) in 2007, Carly has worked in human rights law and policy in Geneva, London and New York, and obtained a Masters in International Relations from the London School of Economics in 2010. She was the Legal Advisor to the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty, a Visiting Scholar at Columbia University’s Human Rights Institute, and Legal Director of Privacy International. From 2015 to 2019, as an independent consultant, she advised human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, and international organisations like the United Nations, Council of Europe and European Union on legal and policy questions at the intersection of technology and human rights.

Dr Leonora Risse is an economist who specialises in gender equality. She is a Research Fellow with the Women’s Leadership Institute Australia and with the Women and Public Policy Program at Harvard University. She is a co-founder of the Women in Economics Network (WEN) in Australia and currently serves as the WEN National Chair.

Leonora earned her PhD in Economics from The University of Queensland, and served as a Senior Research Economist for the Australian Government Productivity Commission. She is currently appointed as a Senior Lecturer in Economics at RMIT University.

Leonora engages regularly with government, businesses, community groups and public audiences on gender equality issues. She focuses on identifying evidence-based policy to close gender gaps in workforce outcomes and applying a ‘gender lens’ to economic analysis and policy design.

Olivia Williamson has Arts and Law degrees from The University of Queensland and is a practising Senior Associate specialising in town planning and environment law at HopgoodGanim Lawyers. In addition to extensive planning advisory and litigation experience, an integral part of her practice is advising clients on environmental management, approval and compliances issues, including representation in environmental prosecution and enforcement proceedings.

Olivia was recognised and included in the lists of The Best Lawyers in Australia for Planning and Environment Law in 2020 and 2021. In the years following her graduation from UQ, she had the great privilege of working as the Judge’s Associate to Her Honour Chief Judge Patricia Wolfe AO.

Outside of her professional life, Olivia is active within a number of professional boards and community organisations.

Paula Wilton has over 30 years of experience as a health economist, working in the public and private sectors in Australia and overseas. She has worked as a senior executive at the Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet and as the Health Practice Lead at the Allen Consulting Group.

In 2017, Paula led the implementation of reforms in Victoria’s hospital system after a cluster of avoidable perinatal deaths. This included the establishment of the Victorian Agency for Health Information, which monitors health service performance, where she worked for several years.

In 2015, Paula worked with the Premier of Victoria on Victoria’s Ice Action Plan, a key deliverable in the first 100 days of the Andrew’s Labor Government.

Paula has a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) (The University of Queensland), a Master of Economics (Hons) (Monash University) and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.