Former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern, who led her country through the worst terrorist attack in its existence by passing gun-control laws and a model covid lockdown program that saved thousands of lives, is finding new life in the U.S. However, she has been met with mixed reactions from the Seton Hall community about the legacy she left behind as a female leader. 

In her closing speech to the New Zealand parliament, Ardern said she cannot determine what will define her leadership, but she hopes she has demonstrated “something else entirely.”

“You can be anxious, sensitive, kind and wear your heart on your sleeve,” Ardern said. “You can be a mother, or not, an ex-Mormon, or not, a nerd, a crier, a hugger – you can be all of these things, and not only can you be here – you can lead just like me.”

Ardern, who served as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand from 2017-2023, was the youngest female leader in the country’s history.

Read more at: https://www.thesetonian.com/article/2023/07/former-prime-minister-jacinda-ardern