Gloria Vega and Julia Huynh are true believers in the power of mentoring, eagerly drawing attention to its importance during Queensland Women’s Week. The two were first paired up early last year as part of the Women in Technology (WiT) Mentoring Program and the sessions with Ms Huynh have helped spur Ms Vega to launch a new social enterprise onto the global stage.

“The WiT mentoring program was the catalyst I needed to bring my dream to life,” said Ms Vega, who combines her role as Sunwater’s Portfolio Strategy Manager with her role as leader of the new charitable foundation called Acude. “The WiT program gave me the confidence and tools I needed. I then worked with Julia, my mentor, to sharpen up my enterprise model, as well as balance personal and professional needs. The program gave me an opportunity to tell my story to a community who really supported me and wanted me to achieve my goals.” Ms Vega formed Acude to connect Australians and Latin Americans, using the Latin American mastery of social connection to help overcome isolation issues in Australia, and linking Australians with foundations that help break cycles of poverty in Latin America. The enterprise has been designed to create new perspectives for Australian children, connecting them with disadvantaged communities, locally and abroad.

Julia Huynh, who has been coaching and mentoring individuals and businesses for over a decade, said that her biggest passion was helping people and organisations ‘realise and reach their potential’.“It’s a personal addiction to what I call the ‘lightbulb moment’ – when you’re talking to someone and the light goes on in their eyes and you know they suddenly get it. That moment is very special to me,” said Ms Huynh.

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