Women in Strategic Policy (WISP)

The Australian National University’s Strategic and Defence Studies Centre is excited to be partnering with Girls Run the World to present the Women in Strategic Policy program. Supported by a Strategic Policy Grant from the Department of Defence, the program will train and support young women to publish in and contribute to Australia’s strategic debate. Over the next two years, the program will support the publication of over 40 opinion articles and 10 policy papers - all authored by women under the age of 35.

Program aims

Across three intensive days of online training, this program aims to equip participants with the skills and opportunities to contribute to Australia’s defence discourse. The program is open to all young women under the age of 35 with experience, expertise and/or a demonstrated interest in Australian foreign, national security, strategic and/or defence policy.

Participants will gain:

• An understanding of Australian Strategic Priorities, particularly ones that relate to their fields of interest or existing areas of expertise

• A foundation for writing opinion articles for both academic and mainstream media 

• A writing-ready idea and outline for an article

• A pitch for editors that they have received feedback on from their peers 

• A network of peer and professional supports to assist them as they begin writing, pitching, and publishing 

2025 mid-year workshops

Applications are now open for the program’s third and fourth workshops in June, July, and August 2025.
Eligibility: Young women under 35yo who are interested in writing opinion articles on strategic policy.
Format: The workshops will be held entirely over Zoom between 9:30am-4pm. 
Dates: The three day workshops will be held across two weeks on the following dates:

• Workshop 1: June 17th-18th, June 24th (application deadline: June 2nd)
• Workshop 2: July 29th-30th, August 5th (application deadline: July 4th)

Apply here.