International Women’s Day 2023

The 8th March is International Women’s Day (IWD), a day for reflection about how far we’ve come towards gender equality, and also how far we have to go.

The seeds of IWD were planted in 1908, when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter working hours, better pay and the right to vote. A year later, the Socialist Party of America declared the first National Woman’s Day.

The idea to make the day international came in 1910 from a German Marxist theorist, Clara Zetkin, during an International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen. There were 100 women at the conference from 17 countries, and they agreed on her suggestion unanimously.

IWD was first celebrated in 1911, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. The centenary was celebrated in 2011, so this year we’re celebrating the 112th International Women's Day.

This year’s IWD theme is ‘Cracking the Code: Innovation for a gender equal future.’

Cracking the Code highlights the role that bold, transformative ideas, inclusive technologies, and accessible education can play in combating discrimination and the marginalisation of women globally.

Innovation is a driver of change and by embracing new technologies and championing the skills and knowledge of women in science, technology, mathematics, and engineering (STEM), the UN believes we can work towards a gender equal future.

While innovation has the power to transform lives, there are still many barriers to equality. Access to inclusive digital technologies and education is critical.

By ensuring equal access to education for women and girls and creating clear pathways and inclusive workplaces for women in STEM, we can leverage the transformative power of inclusive innovation, so critical to cracking the code to gender equality.

You can find out more about IWD here: https://unwomen.org.au/get-involved/international-womens-day

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