metoo A society that prevents half of its population from realising their economic, cultural, physical or spiritual potential cannot be an enriched society. While much of the conversation was about flexible work practices and the lack of women partners in law firms, the focus was also on improving the profession for the benefit of the whole community. I'd advise looking at your existing organisational values (if you have them) and think about whether they they do align with feminist values. What is your definition of a Feminist Leader? ( hV9^2 !VEHF42-zAy Lx;2\# G+Wjk$'"{ w)k_w$z4Pmc Ec:*K"3L2EYLplcgZ25"@T)b.9wqMF)F(?C g6B>:Ja/5a6c_`11ZEh{H^byiLG)AGabR EGlXpZzc"qbH Bjrg4Q_thf1PQg&tQiG;dgADH Companies could invest in specific well being activities or just provide spaces to talk about well being and how everyone's doing in a way that isn't just an item at the end of an agenda - there needs be dedicated spaces to talk about it. In what we might call the big business sector, there doesnt seem a lot of openness to challenging the status quo, of moving away from management and leadership through a male gaze. So now is a more critical time than ever to really look at how your organisation is responding to that and making sure that staff are well cared for. I think other leaders have been much more compassionate and careful about the way they've communicated about that. feminist beyonce femaleness femininity apologetic chosen respected longer want But the speech that struck me the most was one that pointed out that it was important not to miss the point of who the MeToo movement was really for. I don't agree with everything she says, by any means but Nicola Sturgeon I think has shown some real feminist leadership through the compassionate way that she's communicated to the Scottish people and the world about COVID - a really stark contrast in my opinion to how our leaders in Westminster have spoken about it. This moves beyond gender into the sphere of power and privilege. hb``b``f`a` @16 Xp*>BbAC>4e`KKKh xt0h0bE2 3p#H4,:pi_. If women who were trained to understand rights, to advocate for others, if they were still being discriminated against within their own profession, then what hope was there for anyone else? But now I ask myself this new question: Do I have to stop myself from criticising other women in business who argue that gender is no longer relevant, or who suggest that because their career has never been impeded then there mustnt be an issue? And they could be huge. I can think of no better way to celebrate International Womens Day than for us to all walk away from here today with a commitment to take those examples into our own everyday lives, to seize this moment to do whatever we can to push harder for gender equality: I cant wait to see the results., Deanne Weir with IWDA Chair Kirsten Mander and CEO Bettina Baldeschi on IWD 2018. One is an Indian woman called Srilatha Batliwala. APcgCuRZ This was important for me, because it helped me to understand the notion of intersectionality, a word that is being bandied around a lot. And just acknowledging I think that we're facing really difficult times and being really open about that - not expecting that we're going to be able to continue on as business as usual.If someone listening feels like their organisation could benefit from adopting feminist leadership principles in the workplace, how could they encourage senior management to invest in a course like yours?So I think it's about an organisation understanding if and what the benefits for them could be. Many of those criticisms were unfair, and were part of the conservative backlash that tried to sully the entire notion of feminism. So what we wanted was to have an opportunity to look at leadership through a feminist lens and through discussions about what power means but we couldn't find it anywhere. you are a x, y, z type of leader. routledge IWDAs ethos of working WITH women in other countries, of talking to local womens organisations, understanding their needs and challenges, and then helping to build their capability to drive change in their own communities: that is inspiring Feminist Leadership. 0000009784 00000 n So it's not just about thinking how do people or staff who are disabled need to be supported? The screen sector is a particularly important one in this discussion, because the cultural product produced by the sector is a critical influencer in how we see gender roles in our society. We shouldnt have to work harder than men just to prove ourselves, there shouldnt be unconscious bias suggesting a man will do a better job simply because of his gender, but it is still there and if we deny it, we are just kidding ourselves. Yet sometimes our existing systems and institutions dont help. Using the Grubb Schools definitions we distinguished Authority (relating to role, system and task) from Power (relating to the person). Many of them are also terrified of providing information to the government due to past experience in their home country, so applying for an ABN, a tax file number, filing BAS statements: these are all scary things for many women. To me, a Feminist Leader wants to achieve social transformation: they want to achieve gender equality so that women are treated as human beings with equal rights and equal opportunities to men. This is Feminist Leadership at its best, working with these women to find solutions that work for them and their families. If we're trying to make a positive change in the world we need to be really resilient in the face of those things. 0000024137 00000 n We are talking about full on societal change here, not just creating better career opportunities for a few. 3865036. anu There's loads! There are many women lawyers (and men of course) who work tirelessly to reform, to protect, to advocate for women who dont have a voice, and our society is the better for it. It's not just a nice to have, which I think is is often seen as so we talk about self care, as well as cultures of care. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. birgitt And when we look at the basic data, we know that we can be a better society. It's a term that has been around for decades but often has outdated connotations. Seriously? 0000010672 00000 n It's a much more intensive journey that really requires a lot of introspection and analysis of how your organisation works. How can people develop this in their company? Blog: Lets be bold on Feminist Leadership. 6NmTd-\o~!Tm+`U_6*uV- So in addition to monitoring the proportion of women leaders in social impact leadership, we advocate for Feminist Leadership. This then not only places it in this really interesting position of being seen as only accessible by a privileged group of people that can afford to 'do self care', but it also lends itself to a very individualistic view towards it. 0000008801 00000 n Ez@F&:V^s,3c(-_`! And how do we know when it is projected onto us in our roles? For example, how might we be able to recognise how power is projected and distributed in a room? feminist leadership isbn The second wave feminists voiced their opinions and fought for our right to have choice, to live our lives as we see fit, and I am grateful for that privilege. feminist leadership principles actionaid ten basics awareness self Bright Interactive Limited, Reg. This formed a huge part of my own development and understanding of what feminism meant to me, and what it could mean more broadly. Why is this? This is nonsense of course. We need as much talent and diversity at the Table as we can get, the challenges are not going to get any easier. I've mentioned concepts like power sharing, but accountability is also important. On International Womens Day 2018. At IWDA, we acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work and live. It was whilst working for Oxfam that she became a helpline volunteer for Oxfordshire Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre, which led to her managing the centre. In my view, I would love to see harder quotas put into effect: if we cant do this organically, then we need to intervene to make adjustments. Shes also one of the most influential women in media in Australia, and a globally recognised leader, strategist and communicator. Self care is often seen as something that we can buy. That brings with it like lots of questions around trust and things like that. Natalie and Leila doing their thing on Zoom! You can revoke your consent any time using the Revoke consent button. It saddens me that women who have benefited from the work of those who came before them feel they cant embrace the ongoing work of driving towards gender equality, or use the phrase feminist, which is simply about advocating for women to be treated as equal human beings. And by definition, cashflow from small businesses can be uncertain and lumpy. It was our view that to have a truly robust justice system, one that understood the whole community, we needed much better representation of women across the legal profession. Is it any wonder we have multilayered unconscious bias when we only tell half of our stories. 0000017042 00000 n 0000002588 00000 n These are women for whom regular paid employment may not be suitable due to their personal circumstances, whether as refugees, or due to health issues or other constraints. 0000013632 00000 n 7 feminist Growing up in a country town in the 70s, there were plenty of women leaders, but feminist leaders were few and far between. This paper, developed by the FAIR SHARE Action Circle, presents questions questions on the themes ofPurpose, People, Power and Process for individual and collective self-reflection, learning and persistence in the journey to shift the leadership paradigm in the sector. Reg Office: 9th Floor, Tower Point, 44 North Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 1YR, UK, Intelligent Digital Asset Management Software, Streamlined, lightning fast DAM solution for smaller teams. First things first, how did you come to find yourself in our wonderful city, and how are you spending your days in this strange lockdown period? Through WEL, I was introduced to IWDA, and this was a really important development for me. The organisation provides business education, business coaching, microfinance, marketing and sales support and technology access for a period of up to 3 years. Deanne spoke to a room of feminist leaders and IWDA networks about feminist leadership and how it can drive change for everyone. It's basically women as leaders. }$uk&lAA-\y&/!fgZU6@Q_wGiEa)$qG)FT\>4 (:R~!,m bvZF/G#X+?,(uAo,'zm_{T,f:#{4~ sY[kR;ZT!1j{ag9Yp^5(2e'$E#$tBO.2qRhzQzuY{qr("`\}XuW w endstream endobj 39 0 obj <>stream The people in the room that night at the Golden Globes, the high-powered actors, directors and producers, they are in effect the tip of the iceberg of the industry. What a fascinating point in history for us to be joining together to celebrate Feminist Leadership and to ask ourselves just what is next: where is this all going? I talked before about the values of an organisation, so making an organisation more values driven and really living those values. redeeming racist leadership isbn So you know, abuse of power, especially in my world of working in gender based violence, power dynamics and we're seeking ways to dismantle structures of power, often in abusive situations. It does matter who commissions, writes, directs, produces and sells our screen products. If they don't, perhaps it's not a good fit for you. Working in a feminist way and using feminist principles in my career has been part of my work for a long time, both within the organisations that I've been part of and since I've worked independently as a consultant. But our new project and course is really sort of a combination of of that work and some frustrations which led to this new idea being born. She is a huge thinker on feminist leadership and academic, if you're interested in getting into the detail of feminist leadership I do really encourage you to look her up. We cannot face 21st century technological and societal changes with a 20th century mindset and 19th century institutions. %PDF-1.7 % trailer <<2573B646FFBE4B02B8C00F88B313AE45>]/Prev 208770>> startxref 0 %%EOF 60 0 obj <>stream What is Feminist Leadership, you ask? Despite being from a low-income environment, I still had an abundance of First World privileges, and I have no doubt that I took that privilege into my early practice of feminism. leadership gap gender But we dont have the time to wait for conservative men or women to get comfortable. It is also about subverting what we would normally see as traditional masculine notions of leadership so that we can change the way power is exercised. This is a question we want to explore with you, in a participatory process designed by One Future Collective with many ways to share your thoughts, questions and ideas. So here is the first thing: a Feminist leader can be a man or woman. I am a white person: my upbringing was small town and monocultural. We're all in such different working circumstances, increasingly isolated by working from home where our work and home lives have bled into one huge mass. Thank you so much for asking me to join you today, and a happy IWD to everyone. whsmith I.e. Even if mainstream media has been a bit slow to catch on, the fact is that we are surrounded by incredible examples of Feminist Leadership, none better than IWDA. We are all about helping to make your workday more inspiring and productive, so take the tour and discover our range of resources. In celebration of International Womens Day, I was recently invited by UN Women to lead a UN workshop on the topic of Feminist Leadership. Think about what that does to the perception of a young child.women can be my heroes. Finally, I was thinking about who right now has been responding to COVID with strong leadership. 0000001332 00000 n That's what prompted the development of We Are Feminist Leaders because we were really disappointed that the leadership models that we were being taught didn't have any sort of power analysis. If an organisation is interested in becoming more open to the principles of feminist leadership, what are the first steps they could take? Keep your digital content organised and ready to share with our range of DAM solutions to suit you. We had women farmers, the CWA, women in leadership positions in local business or local government, but most of them lacked what I think of as the key requirement of a feminist leader. However, when thinking about Feminist Leadership today, we need to learn from our history, and ensure that our approach to change does take an intersectional approach, that we look at the impacts of race, ethnicity, culture and religion as we think about gender inequality. feminist theories d'nO}{r~ZLrvI8q*1_H{V3T"n!e@_|h2tLu^hP\Q>+7u,*~*+>JQR) L/s:!h,54C2eFaK)9y/B[z{JuePn| >" endstream endobj 37 0 obj <>stream Web design, developed by Suzaku Productions, Bangkok, Web design, developed by Suzaku Productions, Bangkok. And that's how this programme came about. But: we also know that having that work understood, acknowledged, appreciated, or amplified by mainstream organisations is an ongoing challenge. blake What we hope to do with the course is provide an opportunity to reflect on on what that leadership culture is in your organisation and whether or not you might want to do things a little bit differently later. Our podcasts are recorded and produced byLet's Talk Video Production. My background is in working on gender and women's rights projects which began through volunteering in a rape crisis centre, many moons ago. 0000000916 00000 n There are lots of things that are unique to women that bring value into leadership roles. If we as feminists and leaders (if you're defining yourself as a feminist leader) don't understand our own needs and take care of them and how to take care of them, how can we possibly continue the hard work of social change? feminism rebuilding or check out more about We Are Feminist Leaders and their upcoming programmes on their. Importantly, is every woman able to do those things equally. Copyright 2021 Bright. Youve recently launched a (now sold out!) transnational feminist rhetorics gendered leadership isbn daughters activism destiny pedagogy cultural studies politics iron ladies global With its initial focus on movie stars and Hollywood, there is absolutely a risk that the Me Too / TimesUp movement could be subject to this criticism, and we need to make sure that this kind of backlash doesnt prevent real change from occurring on the back of this movement. We say that you cant be what you cant see, and we need to see and hear from female characters in all of their complexity. So if that chimes with what you're trying to achieve already and you're really willing to look quite deep into the structures and culture of your organisation and commit to making change, I think feminist leadership could be something that you would find useful. Second wave feminism from the 70s of which women like me were the beneficiaries- was often criticised for being about white middle class women, for leaving behind indigenous women, women of colour and those with disability or of other cultures. The way power is projected certainly plays a role in perpetuating gender inequalities from white privilege to the objectification of women. It was also racist: mostly casual, and sometimes overt. And we face huge generational change as Generation Next brings very different values and perspectives to the table. And of course this is the point: this is why we must seize this moment and bring Feminist Leadership to the fore, enrol more men into the charge, then drive change for everyone. And most important of all, how do we utilise projected power to serve the purpose of our work, missions and organisations? Small business in Australia is obviously different to the corporate end of town, with many more women leading small businesses and trying to create their own opportunities, and great organisations helping to make this happen. We believe that in addition to ensuring equity in leadership opportunities, social impact organisations can benefit tremendously improving their organisational culture as well as the quality of their external programmes by exploring what Feminist Leadership can mean for them in practice. collaborative, relational, consensus-building, open, intuitive, and so on. If you're not able to analyse these distinctions, then again, it's a bit of a sticking plaster but it's not achieving real change. Around the world, the screen sector is made up mostly of all of those behind the scenes people who are critical to making any film or TV project actually happen. However, many of these same women deny their projected power, or those aspects of power attributed to a person on the basis of their social ranking, personality, or other aspects of perceived identity. In a patriarchal society, we are all too familiar with power attributed to persons of certain identities of gender, race, age, and so forth. TQK{7A4zD=z"UQ[e_izPTg(CkQNwpA+7}# 4l@)t(RBX}Vyzgr+H'e6x#kXDz^0L)_~`d>V5h0` 9 endstream endobj 38 0 obj <>stream The thing about feminist leadership that I think is quite different from other forms of leadership is that it is not a tick box exercise that you can run through, say you've achieved x, y, and z and ta-da! While this activity, and the global focus on it, is very welcome, if you listen to some commentators, it is almost as if Feminist Leadership and womens voices are a relatively new thing. What are you hoping to get out of it? We believe that self care and cultures of care is really vital to feminist leadership. It's talking about those things as well as and what about the black disabled women in our in our workforce - how is she represented and what space does she have to have her voice heard? So we need to ensure that we're looking after ourselves and our colleagues to be able to continue doing that work long term. Deanne Weir is a long term friend and supporter of IWDA. And what we know is that there are many examples of when women get into leadership positions they don't necessarily have the capacity, the power, the access to decision making that enables them to lead in a different way. Emma Pryke, Mar 4, 2021. I have been thinking about this a lot in recent months. 0000021435 00000 n 0000006726 00000 n feminist theories It becomes a bit meaningless if companies don't really understand what self care means and why it's needed as a really critical part of their business; as something that will improve staff retention, improve performance and attract the right type of staff. feminism rebuilding Finally, for those organisations that are trying to make a social and positive change in the world, I think feminist leadership practice can help you really live and breathe the change you're trying to make. On International Womens Day 2018. m`ZF}?)l3yDRo"/ tNK|lhs54)^CCn5d53:tpOlq>w%$gH academia feminist sexism surviving strategies leadership Lots of people kind of enter the workplace within a hierarchical structure where a type of leadership is pretty set.