"WE NEED TO DEEPLY KNOW THE PROBLEM AND BE BRAVE TO SEE REAL CHANGE."
DR FRANCESCA MACLEAN

ABOUT
THE FORTEM PROJECT
There’s a lot of talk about gender equity. The Fortem Project is here to help you take action.
Gender inequity is a complex problem and is often poorly understood – or at least, not understood in a way that doesn’t perpetuate problematic stereotypes or perceptions.
Male-dominated sectors such as engineering, construction and transport exacerbate this challenge, presenting many cultural and structural barriers to advocacy and action that can make it just too complex to see a path forward.
The Fortem Project is here to unravel this complexity to equip you with the knowledge and bravery to drive change in your teams, organisations, and even families.
Created by gender equity champion Dr Francesca Maclean, The Fortem Project is the destination to help you better understand gender equity, particularly in male-dominated sectors, through lived experience, useful research, and a critical yet thoughtful lens, always focussed on driving change.
We will publish new content on a regular basis, and constantly curate The Toolkit with recommended books, podcasts, articles and online campaigns to help you make STEM inclusive for all genders.
DEFINING THE BRAND
THE NAME
Fortem is Latin for brave, and if the movement of gender equity, particularly in male dominated fields, is missing anything, it is bravery.
We know it can be hard to say something and stand up for what’s right if you don’t have the confidence that you know what you’re talking about.
Our vision is to equip you with the knowledge to do just that: be brave, step up, say something, do something.
The standard we walk past is the standard we accept. Let’s be brave and make that standard inclusive, always.
THE LOGO
There are so many parts to gender equity in STEM. These parts vary in their size, impact, and what they look like in different situations and form different perspectives.
At The Fortem Project, we are piecing these parts together, which is represented by our polygon mesh background.
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ABOUT DR MACLEAN
ABOUT
Francesca is currently leads social procurement at Yarra Trams, the world's largest and most complex tram network. She has experience working in global engineering and construction firms, and is the Co-Founder of gender equity organisation, Fifty50, based at the Australian National University.
She's a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, particularly in male dominated fields, driven by her experiences in engineering, construction and transport. Her love of understanding, communicating, and solving complex problems distinguishes her leadership and abilities to deliver outcomes.
EDUCATION
THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY (ANU)
Doctor of Philosophy | Tissue engineering for brain repair
Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) | Materials Engineering
Bachelor of Science | Chemistry
WORK
YARRA TRAMS | SOCIAL PROCUREMENT MANAGER
Francesca has led a significant transformation project at Yarra Trams, increasing the social procurement expenditure from an annual average of $134,000 to $2.7m in her first 18 months. She has also developed and executed an industry leading and award-winning innovation, Shared Value Partnerships, to build the capability and capacity of social benefit suppliers to become mature rail suppliers.
LAING O'ROURKE | SOCIAL PROCUREMENT LEAD
Francesca returned from 9 months parental leave, joining Laing O'Rourke to lead social procurement across a $500m portfolio of major road and rail projects as part of the Victorian Big Build, delivering $12m social procurement activities in her first year. She established Laing O'Rourke's first social procurement strategy for these Victorian projects, and was the architect of the winning social procurement strategy for the $4.5bn North East Link South Package tender.
ARUP | SENIOR CONSULTANT
Francesca was the Social Procurement Lead and the Strategy & Insights (VIC) Lead, passionate about designing inclusive and accessible cities for all. In this time she was also the Australasian Diversity & Inclusion Executive Disability Leader, building Arup's capacity as a disability-confident organisation, and the Melbourne Office S&I Leader, establishing Arup's first podcast, Becoming Better, during the Victorian pandemic lockdowns.
SWINBURNE UNIVERSITY | ENGINEER IN RESIDENCE
In 2018 Francesca led the design of diversity and inclusion within the Engineering Practice Academy's first year teaching the Bachelor of Engineering Practice (Honours). This included the development of specialist diversity and inclusion course material for students as well as staff development.
FIFTY50 | CO-FOUNDER AND STRATEGIC DIRECTOR
In 2015 Francesca co-founded Fifty50 to promote gender equity in STEM at the ANU. Named Engineers Australia's Best Student Group in Gender Diversity, until 2021 she worked with Executive Directors, developing the strategy to work towards an equitable STEM pipeline from university to industry or academia, inclusive of all genders.
RECOGNITION
2024
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Social Traders Game Changer of the Year (VIC/TAS)
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Social Traders Social Impact Partnership of the Year (VIC/TAS) - Yarra Trams and SisterWorks
2020
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Engineers Australia Top 10 Emerging Women Leaders
2019
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Joan Kirner Young and Emerging Women Leaders Program
2018
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ANU Postgraduate Student of the Year
2017
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Science&Technology Australia’s Superstars of STEM
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ACT Young Woman of the Year
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ANU Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Tutoring
SPEAKING
Francesca is an established public speaker, unravelling the complex systems of equity in STEM that affects all genders. Key speaking engagements include:
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Australian Embassy in Jakarta
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Male Champions of Change STEM National Press Club
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Digital Transformation Agency
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Defence Science and Technology Group
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Murdoch University
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YWCA Canberra
Francesca has been profiled by the Australian Financial Review BOSS Magazine for her work in promoting gender equity in STEM, and has multiple appearances on ABC News Breakfast and Radio.
Learn more at www.francescamaclean.com
