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Celebrating International Women's Day 2023
PUBLISHED 8 MARCH 2023
Embrace Equity this International Women's Day
Happy International Women's Day 2023; this year's theme is 'Embrace Equity'.
The day is being marked in many (perhaps not all) countries by a variety of events, from music and dance, to serious debates and probably more than a few lively conversations.
Our colleagues at The Irish Times Magazine have published a comprehensive list of 'Seventy Women Who've Shaped Irish Culture' - it's an interesting roll-call of women, from the 15th century up to the present day, and some of the names might surprise you.
The hard facts are still in play: UN research shows that, even with international moves towards wage equity, women earn 23% less than men globally, and women occupy only 24% of parliamentary seats worldwide.
At Irish Times Training, we appear to be bucking the trend. At the moment we are a majority female company with the ratio 4:1 in our staff. Our faculty members are slightly more female in number, coming in at 5:3. Traditionally, the Education sector has attracted more females than males, but a gender balance in the sector is essential to ensure that many, diverse voices are heard.
Particularly in the area of Executive Education, where skills, ability and experience are things to be fostered, developed and shared, there is a need to be aware of equity issues. A sense of belonging, playing a part to achieve a larger goal, making a contribution - all of these are elements of a fulfilling work environment, where everyone's talents are valued and acknowledged. Getting to that place is a constant underlying aim of personal and professional development, so we're dedicated to help everyone achieve that.
"What we women want today—and every day—is equality,
not congratulations or celebrations" Greta Thunberg.
Don't worry, we're not going to get into a big philosophical argument here, but a day like International Women's Day can provide us with pause for thought about the shape we want our society to be. That society includes all of us.
International Women's Day was set up as a day to reflect on the contribution that half the world’s population makes to societies across all cultures, and to life at large. Maybe we can celebrate an International Everyone Day where we show consideration and attention to everyone we meet – oh, wait, shouldn’t that be every day?
#IWD2023 #EmbraceEquity