International Women’s Day is a global holiday celebrated annually to commemorate the cultural, political, and socioeconomic achievements of women as well as raise awareness about the challenges that they still experience in their everyday lives, on a personal or professional basis, to this day. This day is often marked differently in different countries, taking into consideration different historical and current socio-cultural contexts across the nations; however, there is also an annual theme that serves as an umbrella for the supporters of the cause across the globe to gather their contributions under. The theme of this year's International Women's Day is putting an end to gender biases and working towards a gender equal world.

The webinar was opened by ICOS Director Laura Harmon, followed by a welcome address from Mr. Colm Brophy T.D, Minister of State for Overseas Development and the Diaspora.  

During the webinar, we had the opportunity to hear from various women and their experiences in regard to gender biased behavior, especially in a professional setting, across various sectors. We also had the opportunity to ask them questions and learn from their experiences in a panel discussion afterward.  

The speakers from the webinar included: 

• Dr. Caroline Munyi, who is the Migrant Women’s Health Coordinator at AkiDwA. Caroline is a gender, peace and development specialist. Caroline started her career in Kenya and worked on integrated rural development programmes. She then came to Ireland and did a BA in Development Studies, pursued a Masters in International Peace Studies and a Ph.D. in the area of Masculinities and Violence. In Ireland Caroline has coordinated Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) projects for AkiDwA and ActionAid Ireland. 

• Benna Lolem, a Project Coordinator for the Embassy of Ireland Karamoja Bursary Program, implemented by Straight Talk Foundation – an NGO in Uganda. 

• Josephine Sepeku, a Project Manager for the Future Stem Business Leader Program at Dar Teknohama Business Incubator. She holds an MA in Gender Rights & Globalization from NUIG and has an LLB in Integrated Law & Shariah from Zanzibar University. 

• Amanie Issa, Legal Consultant at the World Bank, is our next speaker this morning. Her role focuses on the socio-economic inclusion of women with disabilities in 190 economies around the world. Amanie is a recent graduate of the Ireland Fellows Programme. 

• Hélia Salvador Ndeve is our next speaker. Hélia holds an MA in Leadership in Early Years Education and Care from IT Carlow. Hélia also holds a Bachelor in Primary Teaching with a major in Early Years Education from the Pedagogical University- Beira/Mozambique 

• Jennifer Treadwell, Vice President for Welfare and Equality at the National College of Ireland’s Students’ Union. 

A wide range of topics were discussed throughout the webinar, including gender bias in education, sport, culture and the home. The speakers spoke about how we must not leave men behind in this conversation, and how to are a key part in how we can #BreakTheBias. Attendees have heard many different experiences and perspectives from all over the world. Some attendees commented that they were “inspired” by the attendees and thanked the speakers for sharing their “rich, vast experience”.  

We would like to thank all of our incredible speakers from our #BreakTheBias webinar; Caroline, Benna, Josephine, Amanie, Hélia and Jennifer. It was a pleasure to learn from them all, to hear about their experiences and to gain their insights.  

You can watch the event back here: International Women's Day 2022 - #BreakTheBias webinar