SPARKLING on the global stage, Lake Macquarie woman Selina McCloskey has been crowned Miss International Australia 2024.
The 23-year-old from Eleebana will jet to Japan in October to represent her country, using the platform to empower women and close the gap when it comes to gender equality.
"It's been a dream of mine to represent my country for a long time. This pageant in particular really aligns with me, it's about being loyal and honouring your family and your community," she said.
The Miss International pageant is one of the four biggest beauty contests in the world alongside Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss Earth.
Aside from the glitz and glam, Ms McCloskey said the reason she joined pageants three years ago was to surround herself with like-minded women and to make a difference.
"It's about having a greater platform to talk about women empowerment and women in business, because I want to see equal representation of gender in leadership positions in the workplace," she said.
As part of pageant duties, each participant is required to choose one of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to focus on.
"The United Nations is estimating it's going to take over 140 years to see equal gender representation in leadership positions in the workplace and this is something I am trying to shorten," she said.
In the hope of combatting the issue, Ms McCloskey volunteers with Dress For Success, where she helps women from all backgrounds gain confidence before entering the workforce.
"I help style women and these might be financially troubled women, women with a challenging past or even just ladies who need help with confidence and styling. We help them, review their resumes and make them the most confident version of themselves to get into the work force," she said.
She also creates high tea events to help women socialise and has plans to talk to local schools about the important of gender equality.
She said she loved the pageant world for the opportunities it brought her and the people she got to meet.
"Having a new friend in every country, I mean that's pretty cool," she said.
