Shirley Chowdhary FAICD

Shirley is a Fellow of Senate and Pro-Chancellor at the University of Sydney, where she also chairs the Senate People, Culture and Safety Committee. She is a non-executive director of Hardie Grant, Australia’s largest independent publishing and media company, and Chair of Women for Election. She also serves on the Advisory Board of Propel Group, which supports boards and C-suites to manage digital reputation.

Her governance career spans some of Australia’s most trusted institutions. Previous roles include Deputy Chair of YMCA NSW, Chair of the Australian Institute of Architects, and non-executive director of Australian Associated Press and Northrop Engineers. She was also on the inaugural Advisory Board of Mentor Walks, which has provided mentoring to more than 16,000 women across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Dubai and Canada. Alongside her board work, Shirley has held senior executive and advisory roles across the listed, private and for-purpose sectors.

Earlier in her career, she practised law with Cleary Gottlieb in New York and Tokyo, served as Regional Counsel for J.P. Morgan Investment Management, and was CEO of the GO Foundation, the Indigenous education charity founded by Adam Goodes and Michael O’Loughlin. She lived and worked in Japan for a decade and has worked internationally across Asia, North America, Europe and Africa. Her work also includes hosting two series of the Women’s Agenda Leadership Lessons podcast and writing a biography of a Second World War prisoner of war.

In 2024, Shirley was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Sydney for her contributions to law, business, gender equality and Indigenous education. She was recognised as an AFR 100 Women of Influence in 2019 and was part of the 2025 cohort of the AICD’s Chair’s Mentoring Program.