Alex Duncan Quickfire

Why do you support Women for Women International? 

Because it aims to improve the lives of vulnerable people.

Why are you passionate about gender equality and women’s rights? 

They are part of the expansion and deepening of human rights that have been happening over the past century.

What is your feminist origin story/what is your earliest memory of witnessing gender inequality and wanting to do something about it? 

Seeing a wife on her knees serving tea to her husband and me in South Sudan.

What is the proudest moment of your career to date? 

Helping to shape South African agriculture policy after 1994.

[The 1994 General Election indicated the end of apartheid in South Africa.]

What skills do you bring from your day job to your role as a trustee? 

• Being able to examine political power and the ways in which it affects social and economic outcomes
• Knowledge of several of the countries in which Women for Women International works
• Experience in setting up and achieving sustainability in organisations

What have you learnt during your time as a trustee? 

Syndromes of disadvantage and discrimination that do much to keep poor women poor.

What has been your favourite part of being a trustee?

Engaging with a range of people, I would otherwise not have met.

What else are you passionate about? How do you spend your spare time? 

• Southern and Eastern Africa and the regions' prospects
• Beekeeping

Who is one woman who inspires you and why?

Angela Merkel – one of the few grown-up leaders in modern Europe!

Do you have any advice for a first-time trustee?

• Take the long view
• Keep governance and management distinct in your own mind