Catalyst Blog

One by one, people are starting to get it. What’s good for women is good for the world.

Last month began with the Women Deliver conference in Washington, DC on the economic impact of global maternal health. Then, days after the inaugural G(irls)20 Summit in Toronto, nearly 40 CEOs endorsed a UN-led initiative to empower women by promoting gender equality at work. The following week, the UN Economic and Social Council opened in New York with speakers calling for women and girls to be placed at the centre of the global struggle to achieve a set of UN development and anti-poverty goals.

All four events shared one simple message: women are the key to solving the world’s problems.

It’s all about access. When a woman accesses work and education, she can build a bustling economy in villages, towns and cities. When a woman accesses adequate healthcare, she can see to it that her  family’s health improves. When she can access women in political and business circles as role models, she becomes an active contributor. And when she gets access to political or corporate leadership, she can shape policy to further improve the lives of women, men and children.

It’s a cycle of positive change. And women are at its core.

A new blog is born! Last week, Catalyst’s second blog was launched. Dubbed Catalyst CanCon (short for Canadian content), this blog is penned by Toronto-based Deborah Gillis, Catalyst’s Vice President, North America.

In her introductory post, Deborah wrote that Catalyst CanCon is “an opportunity to extend the conversation in Canada and to share some of my thoughts, experiences, and reactions to change (or lack of change) in our workplaces and our society.” Deborah hopes to get a conversation going with CanCon—for readers “to agree, to argue, or to propose new ideas.”

Below is a cross-posting of Deborah’s most recent dispatch about the G(irls)20 Summit held in Toronto just prior to the G20 Summit.  She felt it demonstrated an enviable focus and spirit—3.4 billion girls cannot be ignored!

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Can 21 Girls Make a Difference?

Traditionally, the world’s 3.4 billion women have been neither seen nor heard when the predominantly male leaders of the wealthiest and most powerful nations meet.  But some new voices were raised in the lead-up to this year’s G20 Summit in Toronto, when 21 young women representing the G20 nations and the African Union gathered to chart a global strategy to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

I was privileged to review some of the applications for the 21 seats at the table.  After a long flight from Toronto for a business meeting in California, I got up at 4 a.m. to read amazing stories from accomplished and thoughtful young women.  Four hours later, when I left for work, I was refreshed, energized and inspired by their commitment to change the world.

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