Happy International Women’s Day on behalf of all the women over at Public Outreach! Today we get to fully embrace how creative we are, how strong we are, how innovative we are.
At Public Outreach, we’re very proud to celebrate the women that work with us and the female beneficiaries that we seek to support and strengthen through our fundraising efforts that reach women in Australia, New Zealand and all over the globe.
Today is dedicated to the Palestinian women who used glass, coal and waste to rebuild the Gaza strip. To the Bangladeshi women for showing the world how successful they could be as business entrepreneurs through micro-finance.
To Kamala Harris who made history in August 2020 as the first woman and first Black and South Asian woman to accept and become the Vice President of the United States.
To the Egyptian women who fight every day to change society's views on FGM. To female sole traders in Australia and New Zealand who took a chance on one idea.
To innovative women like Kathrin Jansen, head of vaccine research and development at Pfizer, who developed critical vaccine research in response to COVID-19.
To the strong women in Malawi fighting to end child marriage.
To TIME’s first Kid of the Year, Gitanjali Rao, a fifteen-year-old scientist and inventor who celebrates girl power and women in science.
In 2021, the International Women’s Day theme is ‘Women In Leadership’. Which is an area Public Outreach carries a great deal of pride. The majority of our leadership team, from Managing Director through to Team Leaders, is made up of inspiring women. Many of which have progressed from within the company.
At Public Outreach, we’ve always been proud of the fact that we work to create an environment that empowers women on their journeys to be successful and effective leaders.
What Our Women Say
To celebrate their success and amplify their voice in this vital conversation, we wanted to share with you thoughts and reflections on the day we Choose To Challenge directly from various women at Public Outreach:
If you could speak to your younger self - what would your International Women’s Day message be?
“Whatever you fear most has no power - it is your fear that has the power!”
“Live your life in a way that an 8 year old you would be proud of - don't be apologetic for taking up space, and be confident in the knowledge and understanding you have. You can do anything you set your mind to, you can be anything you want.”
Which female leader has inspired you the most and why?
“I will be the first to admit that my first response to this was Professor McGonagall - and I was ready to completely discount it, but hear me out.
I was 8 when I started reading these books, so she was actually one of the first examples of a 'female leader' I ever came across, enough to recognise the things in her that I wanted to see in myself - compassion, with the right amount of courage and 'stand your ground' that any leader needs.”
“Princess Diana - Her famous saying, ‘Only do what your heart tells you’, is what I have always told myself and something I teach my daughter as well. You shouldn't do something to please others. You should however do something that feels right for you, that something needs to make your heart happy. I fully believe a HAPPY HEART = HAPPY SOUL!”
What does International Women’s Day mean to you from a work perspective?
“This is a really interesting question - there are always improvements that can be made to a work environment, but on reflection of this question - I think at Public Outreach I have been fortunate enough to not be in a situation where I felt like I was being treated lesser or differently based on my gender.”
What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
“It’s a day where I can reflect on the woman I have become today - a moment for me to realise who has helped me onto this journey, a moment for me to realise and also praise myself for overcoming hurdles. A moment for me to realise and to actually TELL MYSELF - I have done a bloody good job! Well done!”
“For me it’s a chance to reflect on the success of generations. From my great grandmother who was an orchard tree farmer owner. To my grandmother who speaks multiple languages and immigrated to Australia with only two suitcases. To my mother who has been a sole business owner her whole life and the biggest inspiration in my life. And finally to me, someone who has been able to carve out her own professional space at an organisation that has empowered me to do so.”
Choose to Challenge
At Public Outreach, we strongly believe in the message of this year’s IWD: A challenged world is an alert world and from challenge comes change. So let's all choose to challenge.
We use today to mark our embracing of two missions to help forge a gender equal world that celebrates women’s achievements and increases visibility on what else needs to be done:
Continue to build inclusive work spaces so that women can thrive
Continue to forge women’s empowerment worldwide.
We realise we don’t have the answers and solutions to all of the above but we believe we can contribute meaningful change through our own mission of existing to empower people to do better, be better and give more.
So instead of trying to answer all the questions, let us instead, leave you with some of your own. What are you reflecting on today? What female leader has given you the most inspiration? What are you choosing to challenge today?
Let’s make International Women's Day YOUR day and make a positive difference.