While we know women deserve celebration and recognition every day, International Women’s Day shines the spotlight on women’s contributions as well as their fight for equality. On this women’s empowerment day, people across the world gather to celebrate women’s strengths and recognize the ways gender equality and women’s rights can improve.
When Is International Women’s Day?
Every year, people gather on March 8 to celebrate International Women’s Day. While women have long been deserving of celebration, in 1975 the United Nations declared March 8 a day to recognize women’s rights, celebrate women’s achievements, and push for an equal future. This year, International Women’s Day falls on Tuesday, March 8.
History of International Women’s Day
While 1975 was the start of the modern International Women’s Day, women had been fighting for gender equality wayyyy before then.
On March 8, 1908, more than 15,000 female garment workers went on strike in New York City. They marched to dispute their horrid working conditions and push for an end to sexual harassment and unequal pay. These strikes spurred the Socialist Party of America to declare February 28, 1909 as the first National Women’s Day.
At the same time these working-class women continued the fight for their rights, women around the world were pushing for greater gender equality. German socialist Clara Zetkin pitched the idea of an International Women’s Day at the 1910 International Conference of Working Women, and women representatives from around the world supported her idea.
Next year, women took to the streets to celebrate the first International Women’s Day and fight for their rights. Since then, women around the world have continued to declare “Women’s rights are human rights!”
International Women’s Day 2022
Each year, the United Nations sets a theme to go along with the big day. This year, they’re focusing on women’s contributions to the climate crisis with the theme Gender Equality for a Sustainable Tomorrow.
This theme celebrates female climate change activists like Greta Thunberg, Txai Suruí, and Varshini Prakash and their contributions to the fight for a more sustainable future. These changemakers continue to develop sustainability initiatives, even as others try to shut them down.
It also recognizes that women worldwide must be given equal rights if we want climate change adaptation and resiliency measures to improve.
How to Celebrate International Women’s Day
Whew. We know all this can sound a bit heavy…so take a deep breath and let it all out. Remember, March 8 is a day to celebrate!
If you’re wondering how to celebrate International Women’s Day, we’ve got a few ideas for you.
- Send thank you flowers to some women in your life…friends, mentors, partners, neighbors, and more! Just don’t forget to select flowers from a company that respects and empowers its women.
- Spend an afternoon volunteering at your local women’s shelter, or drop off some much-needed items like laundry detergent, shampoo, and diapers. And to really brighten these women’s days, send flowers just because.
- Support a women-owned business in your area. This could involve getting a new haircut, picking out a piece of handmade jewelry, or ordering a cake from a local bakery.
Education yourself about gender equality in the workplace by learning your companies’ policies regarding parental leave, mentorship opportunities for women, and females in leadership positions.
- Get together with some women in your life to discuss your accomplishments as well as how you can support each other in the future.
- Embrace the 2022 theme by supporting women who work to make the world a more sustainable place. Take a moment to research leaders in your area and send a note or one of the best thank you gifts to those who are pushing for a more sustainable and inclusive world.
Celebrate with Movies and Books
If you’re looking for reminders of women’s strength and their ability to overcome challenges, check out these movies and books.
Movies
Some will make you laugh, others will make you cry. Above all, these movies will remind you of the struggles women face as well as their ability to overcome.
- Hidden Figures
- Wonder Woman
- The Help
- Clueless
- Miss Congeniality
- North Country
Books
Whether you read them by yourself or grab some of your friends for a book club, these tales center on women’s day topics.
- Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
- Becoming by Michelle Obama
- Wild by Cheryl Strayed
- Thick: And Other Essays by Tressie McMillan Cottom
- My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem
- I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Celebrating International Women’s Day With The Talented Women of The Bouqs Co
The Bouqs Company is proud to support the many women leaders running our farms and florist locations in the U.S. and South America. With International Women’s Day coming up on March 8, we wanted to shine a light on three women who rock!
We asked farmer-owners Maria and Juanita, and florists Jennifer and Nicole what it’s like being female business owners. Their hard work, dedication, and knack for design are what help make our Bouqs great. Check out their inspiring responses below.
1. As a female business owner, how do you see your role impacting or empowering women?
Juanita: I think that women are playing a stronger role in today’s world. I’d like to think that examples of women as CEOs around the world provide some support for future generations to see that gender, although different, does not make us more or less. Hard work and results go hand-in-hand.
Maria: I really consider there is no difference between a woman or a man owning a business professionally; it doesn’t have any impact. However, running a flower business and being a woman does make a difference when talking about sensitivity and the feeling expressed with our product.
Jennifer & Nicole: As female business owners, we are excited that we can play a small part in offering women the career opportunities they deserve. Within the floral business is a lovely sisterhood where we all try to help guide and support each other’s creativity.
2. Are there any difficulties you have faced as a female entrepreneur/business owner?
Juanita: I would say that, particularly in Latin American countries where culturally our older generations grew up with more of a “macho” culture, women entrepreneurs faced a bit of resistance from society. However, I think that this is changing quite a bit and today you see quite a few women business owners that relate very well to people and inspire, and I think this is what’s really important.
Maria: I have faced several difficulties, some easier to overcome than others. But the most difficult one I could say is how to share my time among all the responsibilities I have as a business owner, mother, and wife.
Jennifer & Nicole: Sadly, yes. As awareness of inequality issues for working women grows and evolves, there are still so many challenges for us in regards to career paths and business ownership. I think the key to weathering some of these challenges is to have conviction and always stay true to what you believe.
3. What are you proudest of as a female business owner?
Juanita: I am really proud of the company which I have run for over 20 years. Proud of what we have grown thanks to thousands of female hands that every day leave their homes to bring better opportunities to their families and give our company their best handmade products to satisfy our customers. They are our big treasure, they are the heart of this company.
Maria: I am able to teach our workers the fundamentals of floral compositions, color combinations, and textures. Our farm is surrounded by mango, cacao, and bananas plantations, where the machete was the instrument known by the communities around.
Jennifer & Nicole: We are so proud of our Fiore family, our connections with extremely talented and generous people. We have the honor of collaborating with lovely women who help nurture our design process and help find our own voices as creative forces. The strength of our working bond is the result of our ever-evolving friendship.
4. What, or who motivates you every day?
Juanita: I think that my three children are a great source of motivation and have been all my life. But finding new ways of doing things in a 40-year-old industry is rewarding as well. Watching the new generation of children involved in the business is also inspiring.
Maria: I value the trust and enthusiasm of my team and the continuity of the family business I established with my husband.
Jennifer & Nicole: I think all of us at Fiore motivate each other. We support one another, fuel each other’s ideas and creativity, and wholeheartedly have each other’s backs! Fiore Designs is a beautiful manifestation of our love for the creative process, nature, art, collaboration and producing… an evolving collection of inspirations.
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