The gender pay gap has widened 1 and 131mn girls are still out of school. However, there is a generation of women and girls determined to end inequalities.
Below, Sterling Media, a communications consultancy dedicated to delivering strategies to address 21st-century business and communication challenges, reveals four women inspiring the world in 2019.
1. Education: Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and has long been outspoken about the desire to attend school since a young age despite living under an anti-education Taliban regime in the Swat Valley, Pakistan. She came to international attention when she was shot by Taliban gunman aged 15 for her pro-school views.
Malala has used her platform to implore world leaders to prioritise equal educational opportunities for girls, and to raise awareness of the issues and barriers to education that displaced girls.
2. Philanthropy: Melinda Gates
Co-founder of the international organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Melinda Gates is one of the world’s most foremost philanthropists, raising awareness of the inequalities that affect women around the world.
Melinda has used her platform to call for greater diversity within the field of technology, based on her own experiences of a male-dominated working environment whilst at Microsoft.
3. Politics: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Although some would argue that that the current state of American government and politics is far from inspirational, the 2018 Midterm Elections helped to bring some much needed new voices into Congress, most notably that of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. A Democratic Socialist,
this 29-year-old Congresswoman confounded political experts when she came from working as a waitress and bartender to winning a primary election against ten-term incumbent Congressman.
Elected on a progressive platform that includes taxing the rich, free public college and trade school and Medicare For All, Alexandria is a much-needed outspoken young voice within Congress.
4. Climate: Greta Thunberg
At 16, Greta Thunberg has grabbed headlines for her School Strike against Climate Change. The idea at the heart of the strike – why learn and prepare for a future that might not exist because of the destructive force of climate change – has resonated with an entire generation of
school students who have joined Greta in striking from school on Fridays.
She has gained a global platform for her views on tackling climate change, famously admonishing government leaders and international business figures at the World Economic Forum for their inaction on climate change.
About Sterling Media:
Sterling Media, is an award-winning, multi-disciplinary global business and communications consultancy. The company represents corporates, companies, consumer brands, charities, celebrities, countries, governments, and global thought leaders.