Inspiring Inclusion is “not a Zero Sum Game”
In this current social climate where the ‘villainification’ of DEI is on the rise, I find the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day quite fitting.
On one hand, there’s the campaign theme ‘Inspiring Inclusion’ and on the other there’s the global theme culled from the UN website, ‘Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress’.
While it might seem like they’re isolated, these two statements go in hand. Inspiring inclusion involves taking actionable steps to foster a sense of belonging that ensures that women engage as active participants in every field in society rather than as an after thought.
Inspiring inclusion involves investing in women which ultimately leads to better community development outcomes and prosperous economies. As Aradhana Khowala puts it:
Women are good for countries; women are good for companies and women are good for communities.
Unlike a zero sum game situation where one party has to lose ground for the other party to win or gain ground, there are no sides. It is a collaborative effort; one that is for the betterment of our society for future generations.
As the day winds down and the IWD banners get pulled down and the celebrations are a nothing but a distant memory, this is something we all want to keep in mind beyond this one day. We ultimately benefit from actively including women in society building and it is not a wise course to fight it.
