Stephanie Woollard
Book Stephanie Woollard for speaking engagements & events.
Stephanie Woollard is a Melbourne-born social
entrepreneur, Rotary Foundation Peace Scholar and
Rotarian who has created the international aid
organisation Seven Women, tour-company Hands On
Development and the International Training and
Hospitality initiative.
Stephanie started her Seven Women project when
she was only 22 years old, after visiting Nepal and
meeting seven disabled women making soaps and
candles in a small tin shed. In Nepal, disabilities carry
a strong social stigma, believed to bring bad fortune.
The women were consequently able to sell only a
fraction of what they produced at market and lived in
dire poverty.
Disturbed by the injustice and isolation these women
were facing, she spent her last $200 of travel money
to pay two trainers to help up-skill the women and
sell their products abroad. Since then Steph has
devoted the past decade to changing the lives of
disabled and marginalised women in Nepal. The
organisation has trained and employed over 1000
disadvantaged women and has helped more than
5,000 women in remote villages in Nepal offering
shelter, medical assistance and education.
Through her tour company, Hands on Development
Steph leads specialised tours to Nepal, giving
exclusive access and exposure to participants to
connect and contribute through their areas of
expertise. Her cultural immersions to Nepal and
indigenous Australian communities uplift and enrich
both locals and tour participants through authentic,
inspiring experiences.
The multipurpose International Training and
Hospitality initiative provides cooking classes for
tourists, funding disadvantaged women to learn
culinary and hospitality skills, creating diversified
opportunities for employment.
At the Seven Women headquarters, women
manufacture fair trade products that are sold both
locally and to an international market. These
enterprises fund literacy, skills and income generation
programs for thousands of women in Nepal.
Education programs hosted by Seven Women
include practical production skills such as sewing and
growing vegetables, literacy classes and money
management.
In 2016, Stephanie was recognised on the global
stage with a prestigious Rotary Responsible Business
Award, presented at the United Nations headquarters
in New York to only six honorees worldwide. Other
accolades received include, the Order of Australia in
2019, the JCI TOYP award presented in Estonia, Moral
FairGround’s, National Most Ethical Enterprise Award,
the Nepali Association of Victoria’s award for
‘Commendable service to the Nepalese Community’
and the distinguished ‘La Trobe Young Achiever
Alumni of the Year Award’.
Stephanie is a deeply inspiring young woman
dedicated to education and empowerment of the
world’s most marginalised. Her journey demonstrates
how through persistence and unrelenting
commitment one person can truly make a difference.
Steph’s vision that underpins all her work is to create
a more tolerant and compassionate world.
Stephanie holds an Undergraduate degree in
International Development from La Trobe University
in Melbourne and a Masters degree in Peace Studies
& Conflict Resolution from Uppsala University,
Sweden