Coca-Cola hosts diversity summit with Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai

The Coca-Cola Company is hosting a one-day Level the Playing Field summit in Sydney today, 18 August 2023, to drive progress for women and under-represented groups in business, sport and society. 

The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Summit will feature a keynote address from Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai and 20 local and international activists, including Saudi women's rights activity Manal Al Sharif, Australian Paralympian Dylan Alcott AO and Elizabeth Broderick, Lawyer and Founder of the Champions of Change Coalition amongst others. 

Scheduled to coincide with the finals of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the largest female sporting event in the world, Claudia Lorenzo, President of Coca-Cola ASEAN & South Pacific, said The Coca-Cola Company is committed to fostering equal opportunity in its workforce and global community.

"The FIFA Women's World Cup has been breaking the record books and is a significant milestone in women's sports, embodying the belief that anything is possible," said Lorenzo. "Our Level the Playing Field summit aims to give visibility and fuel progress for women and under-represented groups more broadly in society and workplaces.

In the lead-up to the summit, Coca-Cola has announced a multi-year partnership between The Coca-Cola Foundation, the global philanthropic arm of The Coca-Cola Company, and a financial access nonprofit. 

The partnership will fund Change Make Her, a new five-year partnership with Kiva, a global micro-loan platform, aiming to support up to 45,000 under-represented entrepreneurs across Southeast Asia, South Pacific, Latin America and Africa.

Saadia Madsbjerg, President of The Coca-Cola Foundation, said the new partnership will be supported by a USD 1.1 million grant from The Coca-Cola Foundation that will establish a revolving five-year loan fund to empower budding female entrepreneurs in emerging markets.

"We recognize that one of the key barriers to equality, particularly for women, is opportunity, including access to economic resources, including credit, finance and business training. 

"That is why, together with global micro-loan platform Kiva, The Coca-Cola Foundation is thrilled to announce our support to the Change Make Her program," she said.

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