Philanthropist, Film-Maker and Disney Heiress to Visit Australia
4 October 2011 at 11:32 am
US philanthropist, film-maker and Walt Disney heiress, Abigail Disney will visit Melbourne and Sydney later this year to share insights into philanthropy and preview her latest documentary on the plight of women in conflict zones.
Abigail Disney is a renowned social activist film-maker, philanthropist and member of the global philanthropic initiative Women Moving Millions. Her trip to Australia will see her visit Melbourne on November 29-30, and Sydney on December 1-2, as the international guest of the Australian Women Donors Network.
In her first Australian visit, Disney will be speaking at a Gala Dinner and Film Night in both cities, as well as a Philanthropy Masterclass where she will speak about the strategies and successes of her own Not for Profit organisations, Peace Is Loud and the Daphne Foundation.
The Gala Dinner and Film Night will feature exclusive clips from Disney’s latest production ‘Women, War and Peace’ – due for release later this month – which spotlights the stories of women in conflict zones from Bosnia to Afghanistan and Colombia to Liberia and features narrators such as Matt Damon, Tilda Swinton, Geena Davis and Alfre Woodard.
Disney says she has spent many years thinking about, talking up and generally advocating for women’s political leadership at all levels of the political spectrum.
She says she hasn’t done this out of any cosmic sense of women’s superiority, but rather because she believes that the world has been managed by only half of its inhabitants for too long.
Women Donors CEO Julia Keady says Disney is a formidable force and a sought-after public speaker globally with expertise in philanthropy, women’s leadership and politics.
Abigail E. Disney is heir to the Disney fortune, and her personal wealth is said to be in the hundreds of millions – however she has made a name for herself through her hands on documentary work which looks at the effects of modern warfare in places such as Colombia, Bosnia, Liberia and Afghanistan.
Her film making career began with the 2008 Oscar-shortlisted documentary ‘Pray The Devil Back to Hell, which tells the story of Liberian women who challenged the barriers of gender and politics in Africa to end a century of civil war.
Disney has appeared at The Hague and Clinton Global Initiative Conference and serves on boards including the White House Project, Fund for City of New York and Global Fund for Women, and her philanthropic foundation has granted millions to women’s rights, AIDS advocacy, children’s rights, labour conditions, religion and environmentalism.
Julia Keady says Disney’s extraordinary life story, philanthropic endeavours and first-hand experiences will make for a unique event.
The Australian Women Donors Network is a Not for Profit organisations that connects the philanthropic community with projects that invest in women and girls.
For more information on Abigail’s visit, including ticket sales, go to www.womendonors.org.au
