Celebrating amazing women and calling out inequalities
Dr Jo Horrocks, the Chief Research and Resilience Officer at EQC reflects on International Women’s Day(external link) on the vital role female leaders play across New Zealand science and other sectors and the continued push to remove gender inequality.
International Women’s Day has been celebrated globally for over a century. As a day to celebrate the social, academic, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, it’s also a day to call out the inequalities that women world-wide still face and experience today.
For me, it’s an absolute privilege to work alongside women who are tenaciously leading in their respective fields of expertise.
Historically in the sciences, women have not held positions of leadership. In fact, women were scarcely employed.
Over the last decade, we have seen a significant shift in this to an abundance of astonishing female leaders.
EQC is no exception on this front, with our EQC Board Chair Mary-Jane Daley, newly appointed Chief Executive Tina Mitchell, executive leadership team that is 70% female presence and strong female representation on my own leadership team and in leadership across the business.
And it doesn’t stop there – throughout EQC we have amazing women whose empathy, presence and influence can be seen and felt, including among our incredible frontline teams who serve New Zealanders every day. I’m also really proud of our male colleagues who continue to uplift women - International Women’s Day is a celebration of all that we do together to ensure gender equity and equality.
We’re privileged in New Zealand to be in the position we are today. I know I speak for all my female colleagues in expressing our pride in being among those building a more sustainable future for our country through the work of EQC. My focus within that is on using science, research and data to help New Zealanders make their homes and communities safer and is a huge motivator and source of personal satisfaction in my career.
For us, ‘leading’ in natural hazard reduction does not mean EQC ‘owns’ or is ‘lead agency’ for any particular function. It means leading by example; showing thought leadership and proactive action; being a supportive and valuable partner; and being constructive and solving problems. Above all, it means making progress on key issues and challenges that will make a difference to everyday New Zealanders.
All around the world I know there are women like me who are similarly motivated, in particular to help those who are among the most vulnerable and marginalised and who therefore experience the deepest impacts of events such as natural disasters.
One of the issues being highlighted through International Women’s Day is that advancing gender equality in the context of the climate crisis and disaster risk reduction is one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century. Women are increasingly being recognised as more vulnerable to climate change impacts than men, as they constitute the majority of the world’s poor and are more dependent on the natural resources which climate change threatens the most.
While this may not be a gender issue in Aotearoa, it resonates for me and gives me cause to acknowledge our friends across the globe who are accomplishing change and leading the charge on these issues.
And while New Zealand has progressed to a point where women are celebrated on many levels and are seen in leadership positions right across different sectors, we also need to acknowledge that there is still some way to go here as well.
To move forward we must continue to call out and break down the inequalities that women face and ensure our society benefits from the diversity of thought, leadership and intelligence this brings.
Through EQC’s investment in research that helps New Zealanders better understand our natural hazard risk and identify ways to reduce the impact of those risks, I’m proud that we’re encouraging this diversity. Successful applicants for funding include brilliant people regardless of gender, many of whom are able to weave either a mātauranga Māori, climate change or social science lens through their research.
So today I celebrate the remarkable women around me, and the women who have paved the way for us.
I reflect on how far we have come while acknowledging that there are still women who are not as fortunate, and calling out that gender disparity still exists, if not within my workplace or in my circles.
We see you; we hear you; and we are with you.