Julie-Ann Guivarra (born in Cairns) is an Australian diplomat who was the first Indigenous person to serve as a senior executive in the Australian Foreign Ministry and the first Indigenous woman to represent Australia as an ambassador, serving as Ambassador to Spain from 2018 to 2020 [1] with non-resident accreditation to Andorra and Equatorial Guinea. [2] In May 2020, she was appointed as Australia's Ambassador for Gender Equality. [3]
Guivarra was born in Cairns, Queensland, and is of both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage. [1] Her great-grandfather was a Filipino pearl diver who married a Torres Strait Islander. [4] She was the first in her family to go to university, [1] earning a bachelor's degree in Commerce at James Cook University [1] and a Master of Arts (Foreign Affairs and Trade) from Monash University. [2]
Guivarra began working for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade after finishing university in 1997. [1] She held assistant secretary and director roles and served in Geneva as a counsellor at the World Trade Organization. [3] She was posted to India and worked on trade policy in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations. [4] She also served as Assistant Secretary of the South East Asia Analytical and Effectiveness Branch. [5]
In 2018, Guivarra was appointed Australia's ambassador to Spain, Andorra, and Equatorial Guinea. [5] She finished in the role in January 2020 and was replaced by Sophia McIntyre. [6] [7]
In March 2020, on International Women's Day, Foreign Affairs Minister and Minister for Women Marise Payne announced the appointed of Guivarra as Ambassador for Gender Equality, [4] [3] the fourth person to hold the role after it was created in 2011. [8] The purpose of the role is to ensure that gender equality and empowerment of women and girls is a "key focus of Australia’s diplomatic, development, and regional security efforts". [3]