Minister Outerbridge: International Women’s Day
Minister of Social Development and Sports Nandi Outerbridge expressed her “support and encouragement to the women of Bermuda on International Women’s Day 2017.”
“Each year International Women’s Day [IWD] is celebrated worldwide on March 8th and celebrates the social, political and economic achievements of women while calling for gender equality. Be Bold for Change is the 2017 theme; this is a very appropriate theme as it embraces strong action in support of women’s rights,” the statement said.
“International Women’s Day represents an important opportunity to advocate for necessary change and each one of us – women and men – is encouraged to take bold pragmatic action to accelerate a more inclusive gender equal world.
“There are many ways to be bold – here are a few examples of how you may participate:
Challenging Bias and Inequality:
- query all-male speaking panels
- call it out when women are excluded
- call for diverse candidate shortlists
Campaigning against Violence:
- educate youth about positive relationships
- challenge those who justify perpetrators and blame victims
- speak out against the silence of violence
Forging Women’s Advancement:
- take a junior female colleague to a major meeting or event
- appoint a woman to the board
- mentor a woman and sponsor her goals
Celebrating Women’s Achievement:
- launch awards showcasing women’s success
- hail the success of women leaders
- applaud social, economic, cultural and political women role models
Championing Women’s Education:
- launch or fund a women-focused scholarship
- encourage more girls into STEM education and careers
- value diversity for greater educational outcomes
“A more complete listing of positive actions can be found on the International Women’s Day website www.internationalwomensday.com.
“Although there have been some positive gains in women’s equality, full gender parity has still not been realized in a number of areas. For example a gender pay gap persists across the globe and women are still not represented in equal numbers in business or politics.
“The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2016 finds that, after a dramatic slowdown in progress, economic parity between the sexes could take another 170 years – to 2186.
“Minister Outerbridge encourages everyone, not only women, to be bold for change and make a pledge to carry out at least one action to help progress women’s equality on International Women’s Day and going forward.”
