Anyier Yuol

Anyier Yuol's Biography

Committed to reframing the way we approach diversity and inclusion in our society Anyier Yuol is one of the world’s leaders in the area of social change. Born in a Kenyan refugee camp and moving to Australia at the age of 10, Anyier Yuol is an inspiring entrepreneur with aspirational dreams for social change.

Anyier Yuol is the founder and CEO of Miss Sahara and Anyier Model Management and is an advocate for women's and girls rights, refugee and gender equality, sport for development, youth participation and improving representation of minority groups in Australia through sport and the beauty and fashion industry.

The former chair of the Australian National Committee on Refugee Women (ANCORW), Anyier Yuol regularly consults local councils, state and national government agencies, schools and businesses, and attends high level consultative meetings at the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva.

Anyier Yuol has been influential in her advocacy activities in creating a space where young people are able to use their voice to bring change.

Empowering audiences worldwide, Anyier shares her story of resilience to encourage her audiences to feel listened to and feel inspired and get the most out of life regardless of the struggle they have been through.

Speaking Topics Include

Diversity and inclusion - How to support the practice of inclusion

Inclusive leadership that supports diversity starts by building a culture of belonging, educating yourself and others, promoting positive visibility and equitable opportunities. Leaders need to ensure individuals are aware that they can all benefit equitably to reach their full potentials.

Anyier Yuol draws from personal experience as a woman of colour and Australian-South Sudanese growing up being seen as the ‘other’. After being told that Australia was not ready to crown a minority to represent Australia at an international pageant during a competition, right there, she understood the hurt of ‘not belonging’. Anyier believes equality can only be achieved if the diversity, differences, and equity is truly valued.

Anyier uses her knowledge and lived experience to inspire individuals and leaders to leverage the diversity of thinking to ensure they are creating a space that creates systemic change.

you will learn:

Why achieving true diversity is a continuous journey and not a one-off destination.

Why it is important to leverage the commercial value of creating an inclusive workplace that supports diversity.

How to encourage others to speak up and be heard.

How Inclusion can be a powerful enabler of positive outcomes.

How Anyier is utilising the fashion and beauty industry, by establishing a sustainable modelling agency with a focus on social change to have important conversations about diversity and inclusion.

Education and gender equality

Successful individuals, communities, and societies are underpinned by the quality of their educational system. Without equal opportunity and accessible education, individuals cannot reach their full potential.

Born in a refugee camp and raised without formal education, Anyier understands the barriers that prevent individuals from accessing education. Anyier has firsthand experience education challenges that exist with being a refugee young woman. Anyier has forged her own path to success by completing her Bachelors, Masters and now undertaking a PhD, once again, seeking to advance the opportunities for women through her research into challenges and inequalities faced by women in relationships involving bride or dowry exchange traditions. Anyier Yuol collaborates with a range of stakeholders to amplify the voice of women in Western Sydney across Australia and the world over.

you will learn:

Gain insight on how Anyier education journey has led her to where she is today.

Gain insight on her work in the social advocacy space and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).

Growth mindset – How to shift your thinking

Having a growth mindset is about believing that you can achieve and do anything through hard work. A growth mindset encourages you to overcome obstacles and view setbacks as opportunities. If you have a growth mindset, you are open to the possibility of positively influencing the culture of your interpersonal and professional relationships.

Anyier Yuol believes your ability to shift your thinking and choose your mindset makes a significant difference to how you succeed in your personal and professional life. If you choose to have a fixed mindset, you will never realise your potential. A growth mindset educates you to see obstacles, identify your strengths, adapt to opportunities, and learn. When Anyier established her social enterprise businesses, she had no idea how far she would be able to go but she had every intention of finding out. She made mistakes and learnt along the way.

you will learn:

How Anyier keeps positive and balance her professional and personal life to achieve her goals.

How to approach stress, problems, and perceived obstacles.

How to maintain your growth mindset to accelerate your leadership capabilities.

Building resilience - How to adapt and overcome any challenges

Being resilient does not mean that a person does not experience difficult life events, but rather that they are better able to cope with them when they do occur. It involves being able to adapt to changes and approach negative events as constructively as possible.

Born in a refugee camp in Kenya, dealt with the loss of both of her parents at an early age and moving to Australia at age 10 years old, Anyier largely created her own future through hard work and resilience.

Anyier Yuol has seized every opportunity offered to her to not only extend her formal education to Doctorate level, launched her social enterprise businesses, but also has a vision for an inclusive society in which individuals from multicultural communities can work to achieve their aspirations and make a significant contribution to their adopted multicultural country.

you will learn:

How Anyier has reframe adversity into opportunities for leadership and growth.

How Anyier guiding values drives her.

How Anyier was able to garner an audience both locally and internationally, motivating her to create her own national annual pageant and launching a modelling agency.