Maryam Zahid is an award-winning Afghan-Australian human rights champion, diversity and inclusion practitioner, and self-taught artist. A visionary entrepreneur with a background in community development and public policy studies, she founded Afghan Women on The Move (AWOTM) and Women Empowerment Pty Ltd—two initiatives dedicated to uplifting and advocating for women.
AWOTM, a not-for-profit organisation, provides a safe and empowering space for Afghan women, particularly those who have endured war and trauma. It offers life-skills training, education, discussions on taboo topics, and arts programs. Meanwhile, Women Empowerment Pty Ltd delivers consulting services to mainstream organisations, specialising in cultural diversity and refugee women’s issues.
Passionate about gender equality, women’s rights, and the empowerment of displaced communities, Maryam is committed to ensuring that women are recognised, valued, and supported in their personal and professional lives. She firmly believes that stronger women build stronger families, and stronger families create stronger communities.
Maryam’s personal journey is one of resilience and leadership. Arriving in Australia under the Women at Risk program in 1999 at just 20 years old, she overcame challenges to complete her HSC and pursued studies in community development, teacher aiding, and health counselling. She later expanded her expertise with studies in public policy at Oxford University and executive leadership at Stanford University, reinforcing her dedication to social impact and community development.
With over 24 years of experience in the community sector, Maryam has led programs in domestic violence prevention, case management, and refugee resettlement, supporting refugees and migrants. She is also a bilingual health educator with NSW Refugee Health and a casual voice-over artist at SBS Australia.
As a self-taught artist, Maryam writes and produces exhibitions and theatrical plays, bringing them to local and national theatres and arts centres. Through her artistic work, she uses art diplomacy to spark conversations about change, adaptation, displacement, and gender issues, challenging patriarchal structures through creative expression.
A dedicated advocate and volunteer, Maryam serves on multiple advisory boards, including the Women’s Reference Group at the Department of Home Affairs and the Women’s Advisory Board and Multicultural Advisory Board at Blacktown City Council, where she champions the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities. Additionally, she is an exclusive committee councillor for WentWest Limited, a Primary Health Network (PHN) in Western Sydney, an Australian Government initiative. In this role, she focuses on multicultural health and refugee women’s health advocacy.