International Women's Day 2024

A very happy International Women's Day #IWD to my LinkedIn network! I've been so inspired and encouraged by this community, many of whom are women who have been my mentors, colleagues and friends. Thank you.

We mark #IWD each year to celebrate women's achievements, raise awareness?about discrimination and take?action?that drive gender equality. Indeed this is a year-round call to action but March 8 is an opportunity to shine a light on the topic and track progress made globally.

By now, we are all well versed in the economic argument for a gender equal world, and the heaps of data to show why it makes business sense and adds trillions to the economy aka "the SMART thing to do". ?We also know the social argument and why it is "the RIGHT thing to do". We are now in a time when it is "the ONLY thing to do", the world expects diversity, equity and inclusion, celebrates its presence and importantly, notices its absence.?

Since the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals #SDGs and the start of IWD itself in 2015, despite all the efforts, progress has slowed and in some parts of the world we are regressing. There are many sobering statistics out there, for example:

1. Not a single country in the world has achieved gender equality.?One third have made no progress and 18 countries regressed. The top 9 countries however closed 80% of their gender gap.
2. The majority of the world's poor are women. Poverty is not gender-neutral, poverty disproportionately affects women because they do not have as many opportunities as men to receive an education, work or own property.?
3. 130 million girls remain out of school worldwide. Yet girls' education is integral to every aspect of ending extreme poverty.?
4. Just 1 in 3 managers or supervisors is a woman. The glass ceiling holds strong and will take at least 140 years until women are equally represented. Statistics for women in parliamentary positions and holding board seats are closer to 1 in 4.?
5. Women earn 77 cents for every dollar men earn. Some progress has been made to close the gap, but there is still some way to go.?
6. Women Shoulder billions of hours of unpaid childcare globally.?Now referred to as "unpaid care work" in recognition of the often unrecognized and invisible labor that falls largely on mothers and daughters, regardless of socioeconomic status. For many women these duties are in addition to paid work. The total value of unpaid care work is estimated to be between 10 and 39% of GDP, this blew me away! Contributing more to the economy than manufacturing, commerce or transporation!

Unless we can level the playing field, we will not be able to foster an environment where everyone thrives.

The World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap report states that achieving gender parity in leadership for business and government, are two key levers that in turn will address broader gender gaps in households, societies and economies. Furthermore, the shift of DEI strategies to "whole of business" approaches that include supply chains and community impact is key. Accountability and transparency through global reporting by #WEF and others and through ESG and sustainability reports increasingly under scrutiny at the Board level, are all integral to accelerating progress.??

At the individual level, we can each contribute by:

1. Giving to charities and missions that support women and girls in the parts of the world where it is needed the most.
2. Being more curious and open-minded to the diverse opinions around us without dismissing them as disruptive.
3. Build connections beyond visible and invisible differences.
4. Advocating for change in our communities and workplaces.
5. Role modeling inclusive behavior.
6. Calling out behavior or policies that are discriminatory.
7. Understanding the difference between equity and equality.
8. Celebrating, lifting-up and acknowledging the women who inspire us.....every day!

Lastly a note to any men who are feeling that the pendulum has swung the other way, the last thing we want is for you to feel excluded! We need you in our corner. Please read the statistics above and understand why we have to be intentional about this topic. We have so far yet to travel. The rise of women is not about the fall of men and we value you as our allies to help make progress possible.

We live in hope for the day that Sheryl Sandberg talks about, when we don't need to call it out or be intentional anymore, it will just be:

"In the future there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders."?