每一次的科员毕业典礼，我都会觉得很感慨。哇，每一个人都有很大的变化。她们已经是她们领域的精英而将来的她们会成为更多人的榜样。

“Every time we have a graduation, I feel this sense of being overcome by my emotions. Wow, each of them has changed so much. They were already excellent in their fields when they came into the programme and coming out of the programme, they have become the role models that many look up to.”

This is not a literal translation as some things as you know cannot be directly translated across from one language or culture to another. This is why it is such an honour to work with women of colour because we often traverse across multiple worlds in our daily lives and we understand the subtle and the not so subtle differences and perspectives.

This year has been a hard year for businesses that work in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion due to the economic environment and political conditions. For Accentuated, we are very grateful to have had investment in their women of colour kaimahi staff from ACC, Environmental Protection Authority, MBIE, Inland Revenue, Tauranga City Council and Statistics New Zealand. We have had two cohorts graduated and another two cohorts currently underway.

From our Te Whanganui-a-Tara cohort, which was the 12th cohort across Aotearoa New Zealand, Manda shared her experience doing her PhD being the only woman in the lab and the only person of colour. She also shared that in a previous leadership course, although the content was great, she felt she couldn’t truly feel safe to share the extent of her struggles as there were limited similarities in participants’ backgrounds and experiences.

Aditi spoke about her leadership vision of being a different kind of leader, one who doesn’t need to look the same or fit the success norm but one who brings people on the journey, celebrates people for being who they are and wants the best for them through creating a safe environment.

Hilda talked about owning her authentic voice, which is a quiet yet confident and powerful one. Growing up in the Philippines has shaped her values and beliefs, for example she was taught in her early years that people who are senior in experience and in age deserve a louder voice. She dug deep to update these beliefs so now she can own her voice and value her experience too.

Kathee learnt that there’s another way to look at her desire for perfection and self doubt when it comes to achieving anything less than perfection. She learnt that she can view her drive for perfection as her drive to continually improve and embrace a learning mindset.

Ursula talked about when she first entered the course, she did not identify herself as a woman of colour but as a woman in science. Through learning about the experiences and challenges of women of colour, Ursula was able to see herself in similar struggles. The course has raised her level of consciousness and she has found the power to use her courageous voice strategically to bring about equity.

The next rounds of Accentuated in Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Tāmaki Makaurau and Tauranga will be in April 2026. Get in touch for more details.

From our Tāmaki Makaura cohort, which was the 13th graduating cohort across Aotearoa New Zealand, Fiona talked about raising awareness in her leadership peer groups about what diverse leadership means and empowering the voices and increasing the representation for her Pasifika communities.

Melita is one who has always embraced her roots and been acutely aware of the positions she holds and places she has had access to because she knows there are women who come after her and look up to her. From the course, Melita was able to further step into her leadership in owning her voice, challenging the status quo and regarding herself fully as a subject matter expert.

Kanika spoke of her desire for continuous improvement and found benefits in working closely with women from different backgrounds who have different communication styles. This experience has given her more tools and perspectives to bring into her adaptive leadership style.

Songul, at the beginning of the course, doubted her ability to lead others and was hampered by others’ perceptions of her. Songul worked on turning her self-talk around to one that is more empowering and started applying the leadership mindset and skills learnt in the course with her additional responsibilities as a mentor and stepping into people leadership.

We would like to give a huge round of applause for these graduates, for their dedication and courage to look within oneself and transform. We wish you will be able to reach even higher heights and look back at this experience with great fondness and pride.

Celebrating Accentuated WoC Leadership programmes

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