Every Day is Women's Day

I am a day late on this topic because the International Women's Day was yesterday although I started writing this article last night. And, after the family gathering this past week and other distractions - I am behind in every aspect of my life, including writing this blog.  However, every day is women's day so it doesn't really matter.

I read this article by Nicholas Kristoff tonight (http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com, (found on my blog page, under Eric Ripert's blog on the  right of the page)) titled Do Women Leaders Matter?.  Mr. Kristoff is an Pulitzer Prize award winner and a very interesting journalist because he has been a consistently strong advocate for women.  He wrote a book in partnership with his wife, Sheryl Wu Dunn, an equally accomplished journalist (also a Pulitzer Prize winner), called Half of the Sky, Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide. "Women hold up half the sky" is a Chinese proverb that has not been true in most of the world because there are still serious gender gaps everywhere.  Mr. Kristoff's and Ms. Wu Dunn's book makes a case as to why it is critical to support women in developing countries. This is over and above the fact that women have the right to be treated equally to every other citizen in all countries.

In response to Mr. Kristoff's latest blog entry, Do Women Leaders Matter? regarding the issue of women in power and what they do for other women is one I have experienced directly.  I have never met a woman in a position of power - and I have met a few of them - that has helped other women.  I am sure it happens in some organizations but I didn't experience it and I worked in a very large global company in New York.  My theory is that women that are educated are still not comfortable with their roles, don't know how to handle power, and feel threatened by other women.  They were helped to get to their senior positions by men and mentors but - in general - they don't know how to do the same for other women.  Men have been doing that for centuries and created their "old boys' network" while women are fairly new to the workforce. Do Women Leaders Matter?  Yes, they definitely do.  But more needs to be done to educate those women in in leadership positions so that they are comfortable to use their power to help other women.

If I have experienced the lack of support from senior level executive women in New York, I cannot even imagine the disparity that exists in countries where women don't share equal standing with men in all regards, including the availability of healthcare, access to education, etc.  Women helping women is an issue but regardless of who helps women, women need the help.  I'm not complaining about my own situation as I am in New York and while there is still a glass ceiling, millions of women all over the world don't even have any type of ceiling to aspire to.  They don't have the luxury of thinking about a "glass ceiling" because their needs are so much dire and basic.

Why women are important other than being such a large percentage of the world's population (almost equal to the number of men) and should be counted - aside from being a basic human right! - is highlighted in the article below.  To summarize a few of the key points:

• One woman dies in childbirth around the world every minute due to inadequate healthcare.
• The poorest families in the world spend approximately 10 times as much (20% of their incomes on average) on a combination of alcohol, prostitution, candy, sugary drinks and lavish feasts as they do on educating their children (2%).  When women control the purse, they spend more money on nutrition and education of the children. 
• The more education and healthcare is provided to women, the greater positive impact is made on economic growth in the countries that make an investment on women.  Women are able to participate in the labor force and contribute to productivity and growth. More education also allows women to make informed decisions for their families, their health and their prosperity. 

For similar reasons, Goldman Sachs has made a 5-year, $100 million, commitment to the education of women worldwide since 2008.   It is a very impressive program that has already impacted women in over 22 countries.  Kudos to Dina Powell for her leadership in this area and to the team that is working on the 10,000 Women program!

To learn more about this important cause please go to:  www.halftheskymovement.org.