International Women's Day

March 8 is International Women’s Day, a time to celebrate the contributions of women and girls everywhere; to recognize women who inspire us all; and to renew discussion about the importance of gender equality in Canada and around the world.

International Women’s Day 2025 campaign theme is #AccelerateAction

Content extracted directly from www.internationalwomensday.com/

Collectively, we can Accelerate Action for gender equality.

Step forward in solidarity for International Women's Day (IWD) 2025 on March 8 to help #AccelerateAction.

At the current rate of progress, it will take until 2158, which is roughly five generations from now, to reach full gender parity, according to data from the World Economic Forum.

Focusing on the need to Accelerate Action emphasizes the importance of taking swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality. It calls for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres.

So, together, let's Accelerate Action to speed up the rate of progress worldwide.

Together, let's #AccelerateAction for gender equality

One of the best ways to forge gender equality is to understand what works and to do more of this, faster.

Accelerate Action is a worldwide call to acknowledge strategies, resources, and activity that positively impact women's advancement, and to support and elevate their implementation.

Significant barriers to gender equality remain, yet with the right action and support, positive progress can be made for women everywhere.

Support the Supporters

And one of the biggest ways to help Accelerate Action for gender equality is to Support the Supporters.

With so many impactful groups across the world delivering critical work that assists women and girls, we can all lend our support in solidarity.

That's why for 2025, IWD sees a big call-to-action for all IWD events to incorporate an element of women-focused fundraising.

From grassroots groups to large-scale bodies, philanthropic entities are working tirelessly to support and advance women and girls. So let's step forward in solidarity and commit to helping these groups #AccelerateAction for IWD 2025 and beyond.

Through IWD GIVING, together let's make March 8 one of the biggest GIVING DAYS of the year. And remember, it's not solely large global charities calling for financial donations on IWD. There are thousands of grassroots charities working tenaciously for women's advancement where funds can be directed as well.

How can you help Accelerate Action?

As individuals, we can all take steps in our daily lives to positively impact women's advancement.

We can call out stereotypes, challenge discrimination, question bias, celebrate women's success, and so much more. Additionally, sharing our knowledge and encouragement with others is key.

Impactful organizations and groups across the world deliver an array of effective strategies, resources, and activity that help #AccelerateAction in many areas including:

• forging women's economic empowerment

• recruiting, retaining and developing diverse talent

• supporting women and girls into leadership, decision-making, business and STEM

• designing and building infrastructure meeting the needs of women and girls

• helping women and girls make informed decisions about their health

• involving women and girls in sustainable agriculture and food security

• providing women and girls with access to quality education and training

• elevating women and girl's participation and achievement in sport

• promoting creative and artistic talent of women and girls

• addressing further areas supporting the advancement of women and girls

Everyone everywhere can Accelerate Action

Remember, all IWD is activity is valid.

That's what makes IWD so inclusive, not exclusive.

IWD remains an important opportunity for elevating and amplifying the focus on gender equality.

As such, IWD belongs to all groups, everywhere.

Strike the #AccelerateAction pose

Are you in? Will you help Accelerate Action?

Strike the #AccelerateAction pose to show solidarity.

Encourage others to help accelerate action within their own sphere of influence by sharing your #AccelerateAction image and statement across social media throughout the year using #IWD2025 #AccelerateAction.

Submit your #AccelerateAction image and statement here.

Build on IWD's century-plus history

With well over a century of history and change, the first International Women's Day (IWD) was held in March 1911.

Read more about the IWD timeline here.

Organizations, groups, and individuals worldwide can all play a part - in the community, at work, at home, and beyond.

IWD isn't country, group or organization specific. It's a day of collective global activism and celebration that belongs to all those committed to forging gender equality.

World-renowned feminist, journalist and activist, Gloria Steinem, reportedly once explained: "The story of women's struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist nor to any one organization but to the collective efforts of all who care about human rights."

Groups can choose to mark IWD in whatever manner they deem most relevant, engaging, and impactful for their specific context, objectives, and audiences.

IWD is about gender equality in all its forms. For some, IWD is about fighting for women's rights. For others, IWD is about reinforcing key commitments, while for some IWD is about celebrating success. And for others, IWD means festive gatherings and parties.

Whatever choices are made, all choices matter, and all choices are valid.

All activity can help contribute to, and form part of, the thriving global movement focused on women's advancement.

IWD is a truly inclusive, diverse, and eclectic moment of impact worldwide.

Elevate your commitment to Accelerate Action

Send in your #AccelerateAction image and statement to potentially be featured in the IWD Gallery and across the IWD social media feeds throughout the year.

Executive leaders are also invited to submit an IWD 2025 Statement reinforcing how their organization supports a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion.

Plus, send in your #AccelerateAction videos to be featured and promoted.

Share your #AccelerateAction resources with others

Interested in providing relevant professional resources that support the #AccelerateAction campaign?

Submissions are invited throughout the year from suitable partners worldwide for white papers, articles, reports, tools, resources, projects, campaigns, activities, artistic creations, videos and more that support the #AccelerateAction campaign as useful references, to be co-published on the International Women's Day website.

Help others #AccelerateAction through your resources.

Further details and specifications are available upon request.

Step forward in solidarity

So together, let's all help fight the good fight.

Collectively, let's #AccelerateAction for women and girls everywhere.

Join in solidarity and make IWD your day by doing what you can to support and advance women.

So, are you in?

Suggested Activities: Celebrating International Women’s Day

Much of the content is compiled from the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario

The following is a list of suggestions to help you celebrate International Women’s Day and the week of March 8^th. To help ensure success of any organized event or activity with your students, choose something that suits both your audience and your purpose. Almost every idea can be adapted to suit a classroom setting.

• Discuss with students the history of International Women’s Day and the purpose for celebrating such a special day.

• Ask that an announcement be made in the school, along with a brief history of the reason for the day.

• Write a special diary entry celebrating your won achievements as a woman and what contributions you have made to education.

• Consider your own economic security. Do you know the facts about your family economics?

• Read the Alberta Teachers’ Association article, Examining Women in Educational Leadership in the Teaching Profession found on the Canadian Teachers Federation website.

• Explore statistical information about women in the workforce with your older students.

• Have students make posters to display on International Women’s Day.

• Share the information you learn about it with someone you think does not understand the need for an “International Women’s Day.”

• Organize a fundraiser and send the proceeds to support a cause related to the Status of Women. For example, Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, which is a Canadian volunteer solidarity group committed to raising awareness to the plight of women in Afghanistan.

• Spread the word about International Women’s Day by sending an email or e-card greeting to friends, family, and colleagues that includes a link to the Women and Gender Equality Canada website.

• Place a special message on your fax cover sheet, your voicemail, your website, your email signature, on your computer screen saver, or on your employees’ pay envelopes.

• Use International Women's Day's Resources and social media shareables.

• Produce and display your own International Women’s Day poster.

• Show an appropriate video for your audience on issues of concern to women and hold a discussion afterwards. You may even want to have a special guest participate and lead the discussion.

• Network and exchange information with local community groups that work to promote women’s equality and rights.

• Hold a discussion on a topic of concern to the women in your workplace or community. Topics could include: Women and the Internet, Women and the Media, Women in Non-traditional Roles, Wage Gap between Women and Men, Stereotyping and Socio-sexual Roles, Women’s Struggles and Challenges, Balancing Work and Family Responsibilities, Career Choices, Education and Training for Women, Women and Sports, Human Rights of Women, Women and Armed Conflict, Women and the Peace Process, Women and Globalization, Violence against Women, Women and Poverty, Women’s Health Issues, Sharing Power and Decision-Making, Feminism, Gender Relations, Women and Science, Women and the Environment, Women and Research, Women and Volunteer Work.

• Set up an information fair with displays featuring local resources for women.

• Hold a “brown-bag” lunch and invite women from several generations to share their personal experiences and efforts to achieve women’s equality.

• Interview women who have made a positive difference for women in your community or globally. Write an article about them for a local paper or newsletter.

• Present a show, concert, or a play related to women’s struggles for equality and donate the proceeds to a women’s organization.

• Organize a photo or art exhibit in your local library, the cafeteria at work or school, etc. featuring works created by women. Invite women’s organizations and the general public to attend the activity.

• Organize a fundraising event for a women’s organization or shelter.

• Ask the students to work on a project about women’s challenges or gender equality. They could write a composition, a poem, a book report, a speech, or do a research paper.

• Lead a discussion on what students can do in their home, at school or in the community to bring women closer to equality.

• Launch a photography, video, drawing, poetry, or essay contest in your school. Perhaps a local store could offer a prize.

• Watch the documentary, The Secret Marathon.

• Learn more about implicit bias and take the implicit bias test.

• Subscribe to DEFY Magazine – a digital magazine for unapologetic women.

• Visit the gender section on the Micropedia, a resource to learn more about microaggressions and their impact.