Energy-tech leader awarded Women in Renewables scholarship

The Clean Energy Council and Monash Business School are pleased to announce Bridget Ryan, Policy and Government Lead at global energy-tech company GreenSync, has been awarded the 2020 Women in Renewables Your Leadership Voice: Women in Focus grant.

Now in its second year, the Your Leadership Voice: Women in Focus scholarship was established to support women in the clean energy industry to enhance their leadership potential as part of the CEC’s broader Women in Renewables initiative. Recipients complete the Monash Business School’s innovative leadership course designed specifically to address the particular challenges facing women in senior positions.

Clean Energy Council Chief Executive, Kane Thornton said he was blown away by the calibre of applications this year and was extremely proud to award the scholarship to such an exceptional candidate.

“Bridget has demonstrated a huge passion and dedication to the renewable energy industry throughout her 17 years working in the sector. I feel confident that this scholarship will enable Bridget to take her career to the next level and believe she has an incredibly bright future as a leader in the industry.”

“We know that diverse workforces lead to better results, but unfortunately the renewable energy industry is still largely male-dominated, particularly in leadership roles. The CEC established the Women in Renewables initiative with the aim to facilitate change that will enable greater gender diversity across the industry, and to empower talented women like Bridget to reach their full potential.”

Bridget said she was thrilled to receive the scholarship and looking forward to the opportunity to further develop her communication and negotiation skills and build greater confidence as a leader.

“During my time in the industry I’ve seen a significant change in attitude towards both women and renewable energy. It’s been really encouraging to see a shift in gender-based assumptions in society being reflected in the renewables industry. There are increasing numbers of fantastic women in leadership roles in our sector and increased focus by organisations on addressing gender and diversity gaps. There is, clearly, still some way to go, but I’m excited to be part of the change we bring. Similarly, I’ve witnessed huge change in the role of renewable energy – from being at the periphery of the energy industry to being front and centre as we transition to a clean energy future. It’s a pivotal time to be working in the industry.”

Monash Business School’s Director of Executive Education Michelle Russell, said the Your Leadership Voice: Women in Focus program was developed to help close the gender gap in senior leadership roles across Australia.

“The program is designed to transform female leaders by addressing the communication challenges facing women in the workplace, and empowering women to succeed in senior leadership roles. Through our partnership with the Clean Energy Council, we are thrilled to be able to support women in the renewable energy industry to develop their leadership voice and in doing so, ensure women play a key role in leading Australia’s energy industry transition.”

The Clean Energy Council also announced applications for its fifth annual Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) scholarship open today.

“This scholarship gives talented women in the industry the opportunity to complete the AICD Foundations of Directorship course, with our overarching goal to build greater gender diversity at board level in the long term,” said Mr Thornton.

Applications for the 2020 Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) scholarship are open from 4 February and close on 28 February. For further information about the CEC’s Women in Renewables initiative and scholarship programs, please see the Women in Renewables scholarship webpage.