Chanel Contos joins Julia Gillard's Global Institute for Women's Leadership

Chanel Contos will establish and chair a global youth advisory committee for the institute, which is jointly based at the Australian National University and King's College London.

The 25-year-old said the new committee would recruit 15 volunteers in the UK and 15 from the Australia-Pacific region to inform the institute's research on gender equality and young people.

"I'm so excited. It's such a privilege and I also think it is a really important role to exist in terms of all avenues that bridge gaps between young people and their experience, especially the experience of young women, and policymakers, research and the high-level structural impact in our society," she said.

Ms Contos prompted changes to consent education in Australia's school curriculum after thousands of people shared their harrowing stories of assault.

All schools are required to roll out age-appropriate consent education from this year, but Ms Contos said it would require further evaluation to ensure its being implemented effectively.

Ms Gillard, who is the founder and chair of the institute, said Ms Contos has already shown herself to be an outstanding leader.

"We're delighted to have Chanel on board. Her expertise and experience will be invaluable as we move forward in our mission to support and champion the next generation of female leaders," Ms Gillard said.

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Ms Contos said she was not concerned about the Australian National University's record of high sexual assault and harassment rates in taking on the new role.

"I think it should be about the kind of the ways that they're trying to make change and hold accountability and do better rather than where it happens because my opinion is if you try to boycott every institution where sexual assault happened you literally couldn't do anything."

A recent poll by the institute and Ipsos UK found about 60 per cent of Millennials and Generation Z respondents believed equality between men and women would be achieved in their lifetime. Ms Contos doesn't necessarily share that optimism.

"I think it would require serious dedication from from all angles of society in order to rectify the current situation we're in."

Just over half of these cohorts believed promoting women's equality had gone too far and was discriminating against men.

"It's testament to the fact that there's obviously lots of young people who feel very frustrated and as if their voices aren't being adequately heard ... I think that shows the drastic need to have these conversations more."

She is hoping a diverse group of people on the new committee will drive the institute's research agenda.

"It's important to understand what challenges are facing young single mothers or young people in hospitality for example.

"Lots of research ... really focuses around corporate leadership, but things like sexual violence and harassment, power imbalances can be really common in lots of jobs where young people dominate."

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