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Cartier Women's Initiative
Ruby Riethmuller credits Connection Table webinar as the turning point that led to prestigious Cartier Women's Initiative Fellowship.
​​The Connection Table is celebrating one of its own after member Ruby Riethmuller was named a 2026 Cartier Women's Initiative Fellow - one of the world's most competitive and prestigious awards for women entrepreneurs driving social impact.
Ruby, founder and CEO of youth mental health platform Womn-Kind, is one of three Australian women selected from a global field. She will travel to Bangkok, Thailand in June for the awards ceremony, where finalists are in the running for grants of up to USD $100,000. The 2026 program marks the initiative's 20th anniversary, celebrated under the theme "Lighting the Path."
Founded in 2022, Womn-Kind delivers early intervention wellbeing programmes to more than 35,000 young people across Australia and 37 other countries, with over 65% of services reaching young people in regional, rural, and remote communities. In 2024 alone, the organisation helped generate an estimated USD $350,000 in public health cost savings, with projections rising to more than USD $13 million by 2028.
Ruby had been aware of the Cartier Women's Initiative for years - and had repeatedly opened the application, only to close it again. What changed was proximity. A Connection Table webinar featuring Cartier Women's Initiative alumni and Connection Table member, Edwina Sharrock gave Ruby the chance to hear from someone who had walked the path before her and ask the questions she could not answer on her own.
"I finally felt ready in myself this year to apply, and I just remember leaving the webinar feeling like it was achievable," Ruby said. "It felt less intimidating - and it was a place where I could ask the hard questions. It was really helpful."
The fellowship has already proven transformative. Within weeks of the announcement, Womn-Kind appointed its first full-time team member outside of Ruby, marking a shift from founder-led startup to a more sustainable organisation. Ruby will also speak at the Forbes Women's Summit in May 2026 and will access INSEAD's executive leadership program, one-on-one coaching, and a global network of entrepreneurs and investors.
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Ruby's goal is to reach one million young people through Womn-Kind by 2030. "We have a goal to reach one million young people by 2030," she said. "Over 65% of our services are delivered in regional, rural, and remote communities, and I really want to keep it that way."
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For Ruby, the lesson extends beyond her own fellowship. "For so many years, I didn't even give myself the chance to receive this opportunity because I didn't apply. Sometimes the biggest shift isn't the opportunity itself. It's believing you are worthy of stepping into it."