Sam
Mostyn

Speaker Profile

Sam Mostyn has enjoyed a diverse career across business, politics, science and the arts, the not for profit sector and sport. Sam was a senior executive at Optus Communications and Insurance Australia Group, and now serves as a non-executive director on the boards of Virgin Blue, Transurban and Citigroup Australia. In 2005, Sam was appointed to the AFL Commission, the first woman to be appointed to that role.

In her time at IAG, Sam oversaw the development of a corporate, social and environmental sustainability plan for the company, and oversaw the company's participation in the Australian Business in the Community Network, the launch of the Australian Business Roundtable on Climate Change, and the creation of Business for Millennium Development. The company also committed itself to carbon neutrality, and to creating a safe, diverse and flexible workforce. Sam has long worked to build strong and trusting relationships across disparate sectors of the Australian community, particularly focused on equality of opportunity for women, the need for diversity in leadership and an enduring commitment to reconciliation with indigenous Australians. She is recognised as a leader in sustainability and climate change advocacy.

In 2009, Sam was a member of the Crawford Review of the Funding of Sport in Australia, and chaired the AFL's traineeship company, AFL Sportsready, which provides traineeships for young Australians in the sports industry. She is a strong supporter of the role sport can play in tackling profound social issues, such as respect for women and racism.

In 2010, Sam worked at the University of Sydney to help establish the Institute for Sustainable Solutions - a multi-disciplinary, multi-sector institute designed to provide solutions to the complex and interconnected challenges facing society.

Sam's other board and advisory roles continue to encompass a broad range of interests. She is President of the Australian Museum Trust and a board member of Australian Volunteers International, the Sydney Theatre Company, and a community representative on the board of the Australia Council for the Arts. She is the Chair of the Stakeholder Advisory Council of the CSIRO's Climate Adaptation Flagship, a member of the NSW Climate Change Council and serves of the advisory board of ClimateWorks Australia. She is a member of the women's advisory panel of the Australian Chief of the Defence Force, and Deputy Chair of the Diversity Council of Australia. Sam also now serves on the Review of the Treatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force led by the Australian Sex Discrimination Commissioner.

Sam lives in Sydney with her husband and 12 year old daughter.

Travels from New South Wales