Samantha Gash
Keynote Speaker
Nothing can stop Samantha Gash armed with the philosophy, if you want something you’ve never had – you must be willing to do something you’ve never done. She’s an inspiring speaker and change agent – having raised over $1.4 million for charities.
An accomplished lawyer working for the largest international law firm in the world, Samantha traded in her heels for running shoes and went out to change the world through highly collaborative social impact campaigns. With true grit, unrelenting focus and the willingness to create the next best plan in the face of chaos and change, she has created lasting impact.
Samantha was the first woman and the youngest person at the time, to complete the Four Deserts Grand Slam – one of the world’s toughest endurance competitions that spans 1000kms across the hottest, coldest, driest and windiest deserts on earth.
After years of pushing her mental and physical boundaries she now uses running as a vehicle for social change through advocacy; peer to peer fundraising and integrated digital campaigns. Sam has now raised $1.4 million dollars for charities through running & social impact campaigns.
Based in Melbourne
About
In 2016, she became a Goodwill Ambassador for World Vision and used her growing platform and endurance experience to raise awareness of the barriers to quality education for Indian children. 3200kms, 77 days and $150K later, she did just that.
In 2014, Samantha co-founded Freedom Runners – an initiative that combined a fundraising and awareness campaign around the high cost of feminine hygiene products for women in Sub-Saharan Africa and its link to female absenteeism in school. Over 32 days she ran 1,968kms across South Africa’s rugged Freedom Trail, navigating her way through river crossings, mountain ranges, thick bamboo and wildlife. $55K was raised for a Save the Children initiative.
She is featured in two award winning documentaries – Desert Runners and Run India; was a delegate for the Australia and India Youth Dialogue conference; has a publishing contract with Macmillan; is a Global Ambassador for Lululemon; is a Pride of Australia nominee and finalist in the Women’s Agenda leadership awards in the Agenda Setter and Inspirational Leaders category. Samantha met her husband Mark Wales (former SAS Troop Commander) on the set of Australian Survivor in 2017. They now have a 2 year old called Harry
Samantha & her husband took part in Bear Grylls new 10-part series on Amazon Prime called ‘The World’s Toughest Race’. A 700km extreme adventure race in Fiji that took place in 2019 where Samantha led a team of three men.
In 2020 Samantha launched:
- The Relief Run campaign
– a virtual run supporting the Australian Red Cross bushfire relief efforts. Utilising social media and an e-commerce platform, she raised over $1 million dollars in 12 days from 19,000 registered participants in 67 countries on every continent in the planet.
Samantha is featured in two award winning documentaries – Desert Runners and Run India; was a delegate for the Australia and India Youth Dialogue conference; has a publishing contract with Macmillan; is a Pride of Australia nominee and finalist in the Women’s Agenda leadership awards in the Agenda Setter Category.
In 2020 Samantha and her husband featured in Bear Grylls new 10 part series on Amazon Prime called ‘The World’s Toughest Race’. A 700km extreme adventure race in Fiji where Samantha led a team of three men.
Keynotes
Samantha’s keynote presentations go beyond tales from the trails and explore the mindset strategies required to lead a life beyond the comfort zone. Her motivational yet practical messages are transforming some of the world’s largest organisations, allowing people to push past their limitations.
She dives deep into the themes of resilience, agility, leadership with purpose and risk mitigation.
See why Samantha is getting rave reviews for her powerful and purposeful presentations that leave people from all backgrounds with a new outlook on life.
