I am architect and I work for the Pro Patrimonio foundation as a project coordinator.

How long have you been working for your organisation?

I’ve been working for Pro Patrimonio since 2011. I was invited to join the team by the Vice President, Serban Sturdza, with whom I’ve been collaborating since 2005. Our common passion for heritage, traditional crafts and cultural landscape were the main reason to start working together.

What inspires you most about what you do?

The foundation was started in 2000 by the architect Serban Cantacuzino and from 2010 it is led by another architect, Serban Sturdza.  Both are great personalities and role models in this field.  Since I joined the team, I have learned such a lot and feel that the work of Pro Patrimonio is really beginning to show great results. I am so happy I made this decision!

Why do you think your work is so important?

People don’t realise that Romania has lost more heritage buildings in the last 20 years than in the Communist period. It’s like Syria, but without war.  And the reason for this is lack of education and the loss of local identity.

I do this work in the hope of changing things by involving people more and rebuilding the collective memory of the communities. I had the fortune to study abroad where I learned how heritage and landscape influence the people and provide a high quality environment.  I chose to come back in my country after I finished my studies to apply what I have learned.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

The Pro Patrimonio team is made up mostly of women. It is a good and friendly working atmosphere.  The volunteers participating in our projects are also mainly women.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

Now Romania is facing a very difficult period: Corruption is starting to demolish the real democracy of the state.  In 2018 the first female Prime Minister began to govern the country. Unfortunately, she is not a good example as she does not appreciate culture, lacks professional knowledge and has no vision for the future … At the same time, there are high levels of domestic abuse in our society and social protection is mainly carried out by non-governmental organisations.  It’s the same for architecture and heritage protection – a rather neglected field.   Professionally, men and women are fairly equal but our society is still very traditional and so there is less female presence in major projects or decisions.

100 years ago, architecture was a profession dominated by men.  This was also when the modern state of Romania was founded.  Alongside the important men who modernised the state and the society, there were some important female figures, especially in the fields of heritage, tradition and architecture.  During the forty years of Communism (1949-1989), architecture was controlled by the state and used as a ideological and propagandistic instrument. Heritage was also used to manipulate history and to destroy resistance (no memory, no resistance).

What question would you like to ask another inspiration woman from one of our international organisations?

What’s the best way to change people’s image of heritage: From old places standing in the way of modern life to having real economic and social value?

I am the Conservation Architect for the National Trust of Australia (Victoria). I provide architectural conservation advice on the repair, restoration and development of properties owned and managed by the Trust in Victoria (39 properties), prepare conservation works schedules for buildings, co-ordinate conservation works projects at our properties, promote best conservation practice in the organisation and provide advocacy to the wider community about best conservation practice.

How long have you been working for the organisation?

Four years.

What inspires you most about what you do?

Working with amazing heritage buildings and uncovering their diverse details and the stories behind their construction, inhabitants and changes over time and being able to share these stories with the wider community. I am inspired to reveal the many layers and I love seeing the process of restoration and/or activation of our heritage properties – seeing them come back to life and being used and engaging a diverse range of people. I am also inspired by good design that fits really well with heritage buildings but that will be the heritage of the future showing design and innovation from the 21st century. I like to pass on my passion for heritage buildings and sites so they are seen as an opportunity rather than a constraint to good design and innovation.

In Australia we are losing the tradespeople who use traditional methods to work on our heritage buildings, with very few young people carrying on the work of those near retirement. I am inspired to make sure this does not happen. I want to nurture the traditional trades community so young tradespeople are instilled with the passion to work on our heritage buildings.

Why do you think your work is so important?

It is so important that we value and conserve our heritage buildings as they tell us so much about who we are and where we have come from. It is important to have them in use and activated so they can demonstrate the important layers and stories of our history that would otherwise not be told.

It is also really important to ensure that appropriate repair and conservation methods are used on our heritage buildings so the buildings are preserved into the future and so we don’t lose the skills of the traditional trades. In my job as a conservation architect, I am often recommending reversal of previous repairs that are doing damage to heritage buildings and making sure that appropriate materials and methods (traditional methods) are used in any future restoration.

It is so important that we undertake sympathetic development and appropriate restoration that does not obscure the history of materials, past industry and how we lived but that brings our buildings into the 21st century with innovative design of conversions and additions that will be the heritage of the future, reflecting our current culture and design thinking. Promoting good design that respects the past but creates the heritage of the future.

We need to use our heritage buildings and celebrate them, keep them active for all to enjoy and to learn from them.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

Generally at the staff level, there are no barriers to being a women in the organisation and I am respected for my skills and expertise regardless of my gender. However I feel that I do face discrimination from the older generations in the volunteer and membership base who are a bit taken aback by having a woman in a role like mine and are less willing to take direction from a woman in a senior role regardless of their qualifications.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

Yes, I think it has changed in some areas but not others. As an architect, I feel like there are a lot more women in the architecture profession than 100 years ago, particularly in conservation architecture. There appears to be an even balance of males to females in senior architecture roles. However when it comes to tradespeople, I rarely come across a female tradesperson and this area has changed very little in 100 years it seems. This is not the case for conservators in the decorative arts and materials conservation, which once again is now a lot more balanced with a number of women in these conservator professions.

What question would you like to ask another inspirational woman from one of our international organisations?

How important have strong female role models played in the development of your career?

I manage a FAI project to enhance the landscapes around our properties – environmentally, socially, culturally and economically.

As part of this, I have been developing a network of hiking trails (on foot or by mountain bike).  I explore the surroundings of FAI properties, analysing the territory, selecting and classifying routes, writing texts and putting together guides.  I prepare maps with itineraries and a careful selection of cultural points of interest that encourage visitors to discover the area surrounding properties for exceptional places and unique experiences.

How long have you been working for the organisation?

I have worked for FAI for several years now, beginning with an apprenticeship in the Technical Office where I was involved in the restoration of the Velarca, a house boat on Lake Como.

What inspires you most about what you do?

I’m an outdoors girl and my current job is such a wonderful way to keep up my passion for exploring.  Before joining FAI I did a lot of sailing –  lakes, seas and even oceans – and then I studied yacht design.  I love climbing and now like to explore the trails of the Alps with my mountain bike (sometimes I have to carry it on my back). I am the Italian 2017 amateur downhill champion!

FAI properties are in the most beautiful parts of the country and it’s great to know that by enhancing the tourist/cultural offer, we are bringing real benefit to these regions.   And sharing these wonderful places with a wider public!

It’s exciting because FAI is committed to improving accessibility and giving people the opportunity to reach our places with ease and by sustainable transport.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

Obviously, for a girl like me, an office job in Milan, 8 hours a day in front of the computer is tough, almost impossible … After trying various different roles, I have managed to carve out one that really suits me.

FAI staff are 80% women and I’m very comfortable with that.

I’m the Conservatoire’s ranger and Wetland Ecologist at the protected site of Canavérier, in the south of France.

I do various different things every day: surveys, public education and awareness, water quality control and level management, wildlife monitoring (like surveying and ringing birds), habitat management, data reports, cartography… and all this in one area!

How long have you been working for your organisation?

I started my job in 2016, so less than two years. I studied for a masters in Environmental Science at university in Spain (I’m actually Spanish!) and I arrived in the south of France five years ago to work in Wetland Management.

What inspires you most about what you do?

When I wake up in the morning, it’s so inspiring to do something I love.   And I can see the positives changes taking place in nature day-to-day.   When we manage a site with the objective of protecting the environment, I feel very optimistic.

Why do you think your work is so important?

I think that my job is important because, while as an ecologist and lifelong passionate fan of nature and wildlife, I fundamentally believe in defending the environment.

I spend most of my time outside. I think that is very important to discover the particularities of the Canavérier wetland and to know how to manage the risks and find the best solutions.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

I’m the only woman in the Wetland Management team, but nowadays those attitudes are changing and women are increasingly recognised in the ranger role.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

Given that nature conservation is quite a new field, it is already more adapted to women’s rights and gender equality because in the 1980s a new social movement emerged in Europe.

Historically, rangering was considered a man’s job but it is changing and actually so many women have joined the ‘environment police’!

In contrast in higher nature qualifications (such as conservationists and biologists), women make up the majority.

What question would you like to ask another inspiration woman from one of our international organisations?

“Is there something about being a woman that stops you reaching your goals?”

I’m volunteering as finance officer with Bodenfreiheit. We check payments of our members, reach out to those who forgot to pay their membership fees and prepare lists of members entitled to take part in decision making at our annual meetings.

Additionally I work on developing strategies on how to make use of land we could acquire. Our use-cases depend largely on the ecological status, the possible integration of neighbours and the possibility of reaching as many people as possible. Recently we acquired a very small – but important – strip of land which would be the access road to a vast open field. Not everybody is happy with our ownership of such strategically important but small pieces of land.

I went out with ecologists to assess the status and developed three use-cases which the general assembly will have to vote upon.

How long have you been working for your organisation?

I started days after Bodenfreiheit was founded back in 2011. And I’ve been a member ever since then.

What inspires you most about what you do?

There is so much we could grumble about, so much we can criticise. The most important things are those where you can directly create an actual impact. Show positive change in reality and not only discuss about it in theory. And that’s what we try to do at Bodenfreiheit: Change the policies of spatial planning in our state – not with petitions and criticism but with concrete examples in the real world.  And it is starting to create impact.

Why do you think your work is so important?

The face of the earth was changed by humankind in just two generations. With ever accelerating speed. It is important to do something now. Be it as small as our activities. Still they make sense.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

Like in a lot of organisations there are the men who speak up and often take the first row. In my position I remind my fellow male board members about the lack of women in the board, about the position of women, about possible female keynote speakers and so on.

And they do take up my point. But it still needs somebody having female positions in mind.  They are still not taken into account automatically.

Do you think the industry your work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

We are living at a time of rapid change.  Most of the time things around us change with such tremendous speed that it is really hard keeping track of it.

So we need people with a clear and straightforward focus on gender and equality to remind others.   To raise their voices on behalf of those who are usually under-represented.  But things do move in the right direction.

What questions would you like to ask another inspiration woman from one of our international organisations?

What is it we could learn from each other to strengthen gender equality without entering into the power games men are so good at?

I was recently involved in a partnership project between Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, Te Runanga o Ngati Porou and the Department of Conservation where we worked together to map an archaeological site which is very significant. Working in partnership to achieve these heritage goals is something we can contribute as an organisation.

The outcomes of the archaeological authority process tell very detailed and interesting stories about the early settlement of New Zealand and the opportunity to be involved in sharing these amazing archaeological stories with the communities they relate to is very exciting.

Why do you think your work is so important? 

Understanding the history of New Zealand and how it has shaped our identity as a people and as a country I believe is essential to going forward without repeating the issues of the past. And the best way to do that is to reveal the stories associated with that past.

Heritage New Zealand owns and manages a property portfolio of over 40 places for the public of New Zealand. These places reflect significant stories associated with the history of New Zealand and include places where the Treaty of Waitangi was signed.

So on Waitangi Day, 6th February, (the first day the Treaty of Waitangi was signed with tangata whenua in 1840) Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga opens our properties to the public for free. We include as part of that day a copy of the Treaty that was signed at our property in Northland and fly, and have information available about, all of New Zealand’s flags through time and their significance.

Telling a range of important heritage stories, and undertaking heritage activities in partnership with other agencies is an opportunity to encourage the public to better understand our country.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation? 

I came from an organisation where there were very few of us working in the field, to an organisation which has a strong representation of women across all aspects of the organisation. This provides a strong and supportive working environment.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

Absolutely. Over the last 35 years I have seen an enormous change in the role of women in the public service which has been driven by the education system and women themselves.  As an honours student at university I was told that the sought after holiday job would be going to my male counterpart as he would have a career in archaeology and I would go off and have children.

Women are now employed for our skills and better represented across the public sector. However there is a range of research which indicates there is still a disparity of pay in some places between men and women doing the same job.

What question would you like to ask another inspirational woman from one of our international organisations? 

Why do you think the heritage profession attracts more women than other professional organisations?

Our vision for Anguilla is that the island becomes a model of outstanding environmental and cultural stewardship, management, and conservation.

Why do you think your work is so important? 

Often we as human beings are under the false impression that we are the most important organisms occupying this planet and rather than living lives that reflect a harmonious relationship with our biodiversity, we misuse, over exploit and destroy it. I believe as a conservation officer I give our biodiversity a voice.

Whether through public awareness and education of our fragile and important ecosystems or through working directly with our unique wildlife.  I believe that informing and reminding people of the connection we have and delicate balance we all should endeavour to maintain is vitally important for both the survival of our natural environment and mankind alike.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation? 

When I first started with the ANT it was all women at the office and we have always respected, supported and encouraged each other. A few years later the office expanded to include a few males and they continue to show us respect and support in the same way, never underestimating our abilities to work in this sometimes very labour intensive field.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

The span of 100 years is indeed a long time for mindsets to be changed towards women and their abilities to be more than just house wives and bearers of children. I have had the privilege of meeting and hearing of some extraordinary and amazing women in my line of work, doing jobs that would have traditionally been recognised as more male led. Despite that perception, their work preceded them and spoke volumes, demanding the respect of both genders in my field.

What question would you like to ask another inspirational woman from one of our international organisations? 

The question I would like to ask other inspirational women in my field would be, how do you balance conservation work with family life (husband and kids)?

Occasionally conservation work can take you away from home for a number of weeks at a time (missing very important milestones like anniversaries, birthdays, graduations etc.) or even the protection of some wildlife can be very dangerous, like in the case of illegal poaching or trafficking.

How do you find the balance between your two loves?

My name is Liza Fowler and I am the Invertebrate Education and Project Officer working on the Darwin funded “Securing the future for St Helena’s endemic invertebrates” or “The Survey” Project for short on St Helena Island.

How long have you been working for your organisation?

This is my fifth year with the St Helena National Trust, I began my career through the Darwin Apprentice scheme with the “Increasing local capacity to conserve St Helena’s threatened biodiversity project”, then went on to work as the Invertebrate Education Officer on the “Laying the Foundation for Invertebrate Conservation on St Helena project” (“Bugs on the Brink” for short), and now I am currently working on my third project, the Darwin project “Securing the future for St Helena’s endemic invertebrates”.

What inspires you most about what you do?

One of the most inspiring areas of my job is delivering my invertebrate knowledge to others. I have delivered invertebrate awareness and education into our primary schools, secondary school, Forest School and public events. I have created an Invertebrate Education Pack for our teachers to continue invertebrate awareness in the curriculum. The bug science team at the Trust has managed to intrigue non-bug lovers as well as those already interested in creepy crawlies, and hopefully this will inspire others to continue the good conservation work relating to invertebrates through future generations.

Why do you think your work is so important?

I believe that creepy crawlies are much overlooked, they may be very small but they are undertaking great jobs in our environment. Without the decomposers we would be knees deep in poo, without pollinates we wouldn’t have food, and in general they tell us how healthy our environments is, and many haven’t even been studied yet.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

Overall the Trust is a mixture of females and males and it is a great working environment to be in. The bug team currently consist of all women and we all have a great sense of humour, so it’s never a dull moment because someone is always cracking a joke.  It is also well balanced as we are never in the office for long periods of time, and we are always working externally with others, whether it is with visiting experts, education in our schools and events or just giving advice to other organisation.

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

Yes it has changed, as female entomologists used to be overlooked or not given their full recognition.  Today if there are women involved in entomology expeditions or new discovery their names will live on in history.

What question would you like to ask another inspiration woman from one of our international organisations?

I would like to ask the ladies of other international organisations, what inspires you to save our planet from species depletion and is it working for you?

I would also like to say to everyone out there no matter how big or how small our conservation work is we are all making a difference.

I got my first job with the National Trust in 1999 as the European and Overseas Co-ordinator. I joined a team of five working on international relations and my role was to run the European Network of National Heritage Organisations (ENNHO) and the European Exchange Programme.

I remember being so thrilled to have landed a role that brought together my love of languages (I even had a bilingual business card!) with my passions for learning, art history and environmental conservation.

Since 2008, I have been managing the Secretariat of the International National Trusts Organisation (INTO).

What inspires you most about what you do?

We might call ourselves ‘National’ Trusts but in fact, conservation can’t be neatly parcelled up into national packages.  Keeping alive our wonderful built, cultural and natural heritage for present and future generations depends on global co-operation.

And it’s incredible to see people and organisations coming together under the INTO banner to support one another, to share ideas, experiences and resources, and to show solidarity.

I believe that with international support, local empowerment and joined up working, we can really make a difference.    This is what inspires me most.

Why do you think your work is so important?

We live in a complex, multi-dimensional and inter-dependent world.  Things have changed a lot since INTO was established ten years ago.  Funding has reduced while development pressures have increased; the impacts of climate change become more real every year; and there are new challenges posed by migration and other societal trends.

Across the world, our local National Trusts see every day and at first hand the effects of these challenges.  And yet many of them are tiny organisations.  Dedicated and passionate, big on ambition and hope, they are often struggling with limited resources, insufficient political support and a lack of public awareness.

The role of INTO is to help them achieve their objectives.

Also, by bringing together our worldwide family of supporters, donors, members and volunteers – who all love heritage whatever country it’s in – I believe we can begin to create the sort of world where protecting our heritage is integral to our global society’s future.

What’s it like working as a woman in your organisation?

INTO and the National Trust are both very egalitarian, non-hierarchical organisations.  There is a good gender balance in senior roles in most countries and seven out INTO’s twelve trustees are women, including our Chair and Vice-Chair.

Nonetheless, I still believe that within the Trust movement, as everywhere, men and women tend to operate differently.   Talented women do still seem to be less visible, held back more – often by their own self-limiting beliefs.   My advice?  Plan your career.  Make good networks. Go easy on yourself, be brave, be confident!

Do you think the industry you work in has changed over the last 100 years for women?

When I’m giving talks about INTO (like this one in Port of Spain), I always mention Octavia Hill, the social reformer who was one of the three Victorian founders of the National Trust. She is such an inspiration!  I also often (mis!) quote James Lees-Milne, who ran the Trust’s Country Houses Scheme in the 1940s.

I do it to give courage and inspiration to our younger Trusts who are often dazzled by the current success and size of their alma mater.   It goes something like this: “After 47 years of operation, the Trust employed four male staff, of whom two where unqualified, and two female staff, a typist and a ‘junior’, and had a membership of 6,000”!

But it also reminds us that in the early 1940s women had very different roles in the Trust.  Today, this tiny acorn has grown into a global movement and I’m happy to say that across the world, National Trusts are being led and managed by some amazing women.   In 2011, we featured some of our them on our website, including Stephanie Meeks (America); Hsiu-ju Sun (Taiwan) and Michaela Kubikova (Slovakia), all of whom are still part of the INTO family.

This year we are celebrating the amazing work undertaken by female rangers, conservation officers, architects across the world from Anguilla to Zimbabwe in our Inspirational Women feature.

Many Trusts were also started or heavily influenced by women: Annie Wyatt, the Australian Red Cross worker who set up the Australian National Trust in 1945; Virginia Courtauld, the half Italian, half Hungarian wife of Sir Stephen (with a snake tattoo on her ankle and an pet ring-tailed lemur) who gave their Rhodesian home to the National Trust of Zimbabwe in the 1950s; Mary Prince, the West Indian Slave who endured brutal cruelty at the School Lands Cottages, now a property of the Bermuda National Trust; Guilia Maria Crespi the driving force of behind FAI – Fondo Ambiente Italiano; Peggy Carey, May Bonamy Collins and Diana de Jersey who set up the National Trust for Guernsey, and so on!

What question would you like to ask another inspirational woman from one of our international organisations?

As individuals we might sometimes think that we’re so small and insignificant, how can we change the world?  But when I look at the incredible organisations that make up INTO, I see how passion and determination can make a real difference.   My question is for our wonderful emerging female leaders: “How do you manage the transition from ‘doing’ to ‘leading’?”

(Incidentally, Lees-Milne also famously said “I think if I searched the whole world, there is no job I would rather have.”  I think I agree with him!)