IFME Supports International Women's Day
Thank you to our IFME representative from IPWEA NZ, Priyani de Silva-Currie, for authoring this post.
International Women's Day (IWD) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. At IFME we are committed supporters of empowering women to achieve success. We don't just talk about it; our team embodies this aspiration.
Our IFME President Sanne Hieltjes, and World Federation of Engineering Organisations (WFEO) Women's Representative Eveline Kokx, are two examples of world leading women leading our team. We are privileged to have great level of diversity within our membership, we represent many countries at IFME, we are especially proud of the equality of our board and committee appointments to our International Federation with a growing number of women actively participating in shaping our future.
IWD has occurred for well over a century, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. Prior to this the Socialist Party of America, United Kingdom's Suffragists and Suffragettes, and further groups campaigned for women's equality. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere in the world. We can all play a role in forging gender parity. Advocacy, inclusive mindsets, and tangible action are needed from all people.
In recent years, men as advocates, and champions of change have been recognised as a major trend in accelerating women's equality all around the world. IFME as a progressive and influential leadership organisation has committed to help build diverse and inclusive organizations that challenge stereotypes and bias. We have recognized our history, where we came from, and now embrace our future where the world "expects" inclusivity, diversity, and equality. The world notices the absence of equity and celebrates its presence. We mark this day in history as the day we took action to change our IFME world.
In 2022, amidst this challenging Covid world, where countries are facing war, poverty, injustice and suffering we must step up and be aware of the significant negative impact that bias has on women's equality - both conscious and unconscious bias. We need to recognize it and call it out. We need to #BreakTheBias.
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