For this year’s International Women’s Day, the Beyond Green team tried something different to bring independent and invisible women from history to the fore, so we could explore, understand and discuss their ground breaking achievements despite facing many barriers. 

We used a board game called “Dreams for Rebel Girls” (designed by Simone Luciani), which is in turn based on a book series of nighttime stories for children, the first being called “Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls” by Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo. Lisa and Evelin adapted the game to play it remotely and in the context of International Women’s Day (IWD), putting more focus on learning about the women in the process of gameplay. You can read more about the background of the game on our LinkedIn Post.

What did we discover?

Well, a lot of unfamiliar stories, from our starting group of eight women spanning different areas of achievement and parts of the world. The women represented different countries, cultures, and ethnicities, and areas of life from politics (Eva Peron), the arts and music (Melba Liston), medicine and science (Maria Montessori & Matilde Montoya), writing (Cora Coralina), Sport (cyclist: Alfonsina Strada), activism (Harriet Tubman) & Political leadership (Lozen). 

What they all had in common, is fighting for women’s rights, independence from society’s shackles and more broadly a just society where all are treated with respect. Most of the women were born in the 19th century and early 20th century when their activities would have been generally considered unacceptable. They had to overcome discrimination and derision by their male contemporaries, such as Alfonsina being called the Devil in a Dress because she was a faster cyclist than the male competitors! 

They Gave, we Gain

It is because of these women and others that women’s suffrage and rights could develop. For women, especially trans women, there is still a long way to go in terms of equity in law, in business and society. It is not a linear journey, and the progress we have made is not set in stone.

Nevertheless, we can and are building on their foundations and pillars of strength to bring parity. And the work is not down only to women, men are essential allies in breaking down the barriers, speaking out and at the very least have women’s backs in the home, school, workplace and social settings too.

Avoiding IWD Tokenism

Some women feel increasingly disconnected from IWD because there’s a lot of tokenism which diminishes the essence of IWD. And often it’s the women who do the emotional and invisible labour behind the scenes to shout about IWD, with little recognition for their work and often little impact.

It’s why we wanted to try out a different approach in using a game, and why we invited some of our clients into the room. From the conversations about the women in the game, we discovered women that inspired us and importantly strengthened allyship from male colleagues to voice the achievements of past and present women that are making a difference every day. 

Here are some of our takeaways:

What I found fantastic was that this is the most I’ve ever heard about IWD not only via work but my friends outside work too. Seems like a positive step to recognising the achievements and impact of many great women and to push for gender equality”

This board game is about Women in history who created space for themselves in worlds dominated by men. I must admit, most of these women were completely new to me. It was a friendly and collaborative space to learn, reflect and celebrate women who have broken boundaries so the rest of us have more opportunities.”

What about next year?

We were joined in this friendly space by Lynsey Mackenzie from J. Smart & Co. (Contractors) PLC and her colleagues where we discussed clues, uncovered the identities of these women, and pieced together their achievements. Maybe next year we can widen our audience and invite more people from our community to join the conversation and discover more courageous women from history. 

In preparation, we’d like to share another insightful resource: the book “Women who Dared” edited by Sara Sheridan, which covers over 40 short extracts obtained from the Dangerous Women Project at the University of Edinburgh.

The post International Women’s Day (IWD) 2026 first appeared on Beyond Green.

This newsletter, we’re sharing a case study on our work with Vegware on the Green Claims Code, and talk about B Corp Month, International Women’s Day, and how we can make a difference as a business for disabled and trans employees and communities.

Vegware Case Study – Green Claims Code

Founded in 2006, Vegware is an Edinburgh-based food packaging company like no other. They specialise in certified compostable ”Packaging made from plants”. With their pre-sales advice and market education, followed by their after-sales support with the Close the Loop service, their passion is to maximise food packaging becoming compost.

We have been supporting them with their certification to ISO14001 and ISO9001 for Environment and Quality Management since 2013 – in 2024, we expanded the depth and breadth of our internal compliance audit of Vegware’s market and customer communication to evaluate compliance against the 13 aspects of the Green Claims Code (GCC). You can read our case study on the project on our website here.

Here is what Kelly Falconer, Head of Marketing at Vegware, had to say on our work together:

“Working with Beyond Green is invaluable in keeping us on the right track with our communications. They help us ensure we’re using clear, transparent language and avoid making bold claims that can’t be backed up. Their guidance gives us confidence that we’re communicating responsibly and effectively. I always enjoy our sessions as they are insightful, practical and a real asset to our work at Vegware.”

B Corp Month

Last month was B Corp Month. This year’s theme was #GenB or Generation B – being part of a generation of businesses aiming to have a positive impact on the world.

The theme of generations of changemakers is a very relevant topic in sustainability conversations, so for this year, we decided to focus on different aspects of the role different generations play in driving change in business and in sustainability. Here are some of our thoughts on the topic:

• “When we forget that our present grew out of the seeds sown by people coming before us, we forget that it is never just on one generation to create change.” (What came before – LinkedIn) 
• “We must all pull on the levers for change.” (A Generation for Good – Blog Post)
• What practical actions to support intergenerational collaboration are we taking as a business to make a difference? (LinkedIn)

International Women’s Day 2025

The theme for International Women’s Day this year was #AccelerateAction. Inspired by the theme for B Corp Month this year, we reflected on how different generations can work together in accelerating action for women’s rights, within our shared space of sustainability work.

We’ve reached out to women in our professional networks to get some of their thoughts on what they’ve gained from working with different generations of people, and on what they’d like to see for the future. Read our blog post for International Women’s Day 2025 here.

Making A Difference

After all this talk about being a business for a good, we feel it is only appropriate to share a couple of the areas where we see an urgent need for action.

Disability Benefits Cuts

As a B Corp as well as a Disability Confident Leader, the news of the planned benefit cuts for ill and disabled people and the huge impact the cuts would have on the most vulnerable populations is difficult to see. The wider conversation is often skewed towards individual responsibility, without accounting for the systemic barriers to work for disabled employees or the role of organisations in addressing them. We’ve shared some of our thoughts on the responsibility of businesses to support our disabled employees on LinkedIn.

It is also on us as businesses to speak up, and to support our employees in doing so if they would like to. Disability Rights UK has pulled together resources on how to take action against the proposed disability benefits cuts.

Support for Trans Women

With the recent UK Supreme Court ruling on ‘woman’ as an identity being based on biological sex, it is now more important than ever to think about how we can support our trans employees, co-workers, and connections in our community.

The ruling and the uncertainties around what comes next will have a significant impact on a lot of people’s lives and mental wellbeing. Staying informed and checking in on your trans contacts can make a world of a difference during a time when they may be made to feel unwelcome and isolated.

In addition, a good first step to making a difference is to share resources, appropriate training materials and opinions from people directly impacted, so these are some of the resources we’ve found helpful:

• This excellent list of support resources for trans people, pulled together by the Good Law Project 
• Disability Rights UK’s blog posts on the connections between disabled and trans experiences
• Biological Science Rejects the Sex Binary (Article) – “The data-driven bottom line is that “man/woman” and “masculine/feminine” are neither biological terms nor rooted exclusively in biology.” 

At Beyond Green, we’ve been focused on accessibility and general inclusion in our social sustainability work over the last few years, but the current situation has highlighted to us that trans rights should be its own theme within our advocacy for responsible business practices.

The post Beyond Green Sustainability Newsletter Spring 2025 first appeared on Beyond Green.

The theme for International Women’s Day this year is #AccelerateAction. Inspired by the theme for B Corp Month this year, we’d like to reflect on how different generations can work together in accelerating action for women’s rights, within our shared space of sustainability work. 

We’ve reached out to women in our professional networks to get some of their thoughts on what they’ve gained from working with different generations of people, and on what they’d like to see for the future. We’re sharing their thoughts below.

What is one thing you feel you have gained from working with a different generation from your own?  

“The younger generation are keen to contribute and willing to share their knowledge around digital technology. Without their willingness to take me on the digital journey with them, I would certainly not be as advanced or exposed to so many ways that can help me do my job better.” – Leigh Dempsey, George Leslie Ltd

“I have learned a lot from working with different generations.  Older generations bring knowledge and wisdom and help younger generations work out difficult issues that they haven’t come across before.  Younger generations bring a different perspective and innovative ways to work.” – Jane Oliver, J. Smart & Co. (Contractors) PLC

“Perspective and knowledge.  Working with different generations, you can gain different viewpoints on each scenario/project, meaning the outcomes are well researched and robust.” – Lynsey Mackenzie, J. Smart & Co. (Contractors) PLC

“In my 50’s, after many years in the corporate world, I was part of a team comprised of a group of young people in their 20’s and myself.  I learned more from them during that time about collaborative team work than at any other time in my life and I am working to those principles and more open to new ideas about how people can work together.” – Pamela Candea, The Surefoot Effect

What change would you like to see for the future in how different generations work together for women’s rights and women’s involvement in sustainability?

“I would like to see more men of all generations get involved with women’s rights and sustainability.  We need strong male advocates from all generations to bring women’s issues to the forefront of decision makers’ consciousness and integrate them into every day conversations.” – Jane Oliver, J. Smart & Co. (Contractors) PLC

“Collaboration.  Not just amongst women, but involving men and those of all generations – to recognise the steps we can all do to raise awareness to reduce bias, remove barriers and support women .  Sharing knowledge and encouragement with others is key.” – Lynsey Mackenzie, J. Smart & Co. (Contractors) PLC

“Diversity in the workplace becomes the norm, not because it’s enforced, but because it’s recognised it creates the strongest team. We all bring something different and need to work together to achieve a sustainable future. Alone we can achieve a little, but together we can achieve a lot.” – Leigh Dempsey, George Leslie Ltd

“Now in my 60’s, my observation is that most people younger than me have grown up in an environment where the ideal is that women are seen as equals, even if it doesn’t always translate in practice – still.  I would love to see people, of all ages, genders, races, backgrounds, and abilities working together toward a sustainable, equitable future.” – Pamela Candea, The Surefoot Effect

Collaboration and Inclusivity

Across both questions, the core themes of collaboration and learning from our differences have consistently emerged. We can learn from each other’s practical work experience, our approach to work, and our engagement with new tools. 

In terms of vision for the future, there’s a strong need for a more inclusive way forward that includes lived experiences of different generations, of disability, race, and other intersectional experiences that shape the way we navigate the world. 

There is also a clear call for allies to co-lead the progress for women’s rights and women’s inclusion in the sustainability sector, raise the topic in spaces women may not otherwise have a voice in, and bolster the call to decision-makers to support a more inclusive and equitable future.

A strong message from the shared views is the role of men in helping accelerate action through allyship with women across generations, whether in the home, workplace, or our communities. Men need to defend the space women need to express their thoughts when collaborating, explicitly acknowledge their valuable contribution in solving problems, give hope to the younger generation that we are equals, and be role models for inclusivity. 

With the recent renaissance of the strongman, the everyday man’s allyship is critical to empowering women to be leaders and essential that we have the whole of humanity around the table to co-design our response to the pressing challenges we face. 

Moving Forward 

What are some practical actions we can take now? It may seem overwhelming to tackle the changes we’d like to see, but it all starts with being more mindful of how we engage in conversations and with each other.

• Create space to listen to women, and amplify their voices – especially women from different generations from you that may otherwise not be given the room to speak.
• Being an ally is not being a hero, it’s backing up women in the room. This might look like ensuring the contributions of other women are visible, or asking follow-up questions to ensure different perspectives are given the space to be shared.
• Be kind to ourselves, as with any transition, we will trip up and there are resources to help – we’re sharing some below

Resources

To end off with, we’d like to share a couple of resources on the topic that we’ve found valuable. 

• Rivers of Reflection Zine: Feminisms Streams Through Generations
• Male Allies UK – providing workplace training and resources, as well as thought provoking social media posts on becoming a better ally, like Sexism isn’t the shark. Sexism is the water.

The post International Women’s Day 2025 – Accelerating Action first appeared on Beyond Green.

Welcoming Rebecca and Evelin to the team

Our small team has grown with two new trainee sustainability advisors joining us this year! 

Welcome Rebecca

Rebecca has an extensive background in legal research and a comprehensive understanding of both national and international legal frameworks relating to the energy sector. She brings specialist knowledge of legislation, policy, regulations, and procedures to Beyond Green and has a passion for issues of environmental ethics, sustainability, and energy security. Her professional background has given her experience in project management, client communication, teaching, quality assurance, marketing, and networking.

With a background in teaching, training, and creating online art courses, Rebecca possesses transferable skills applicable to delivering sustainability workshops and advising on energy efficiency measures. Her experience includes delivering live lessons, grading, and providing feedback, supported by a TESOL certification. Rebecca joined Beyond Green in December ‘23 and is already assisting in the production and delivery of Net Zero projects, ESOS compliance reports, and has been working with various SMEs, providing advice and recommendations on energy efficiency measures.

Welcome Evelin

Evelin brings extensive experience in accounting analysis. She has leveraged her numerical skills in Beyond Green and is quickly catching up on activities like calculating efficiency measures. Evelin also brings more recent studies around SDGs and SBTi to achieve Net Zero. She has a keen interest in incorporating her skills and learning how to support businesses to reduce their carbon emissions by making more sustainable decisions.

She joined Beyond Green in January 2024 and has been assisting with calculations from energy consumption to reduction of energy loss with different measures. She has also supported the creation and delivery of Net Zero projects with clients, and is currently contributing on evaluation and improvement of data gathering processes for carbon reporting.

Awards news

It’s been an exciting year so far for Beyond Green, with positive outcomes from 3 awards.

Celebrating Small Business Awards – Winner

We are delighted to announce we’re the winner for the Diversity and Inclusion category in the Celebrating Small Business Awards for the Scotland region! 

We’re incredibly proud of the work we’ve invested in becoming a more inclusive and accessible employer, through our B Corp membership, our Disability Confident Leader status and our successful move to a 4 Day Working Week. To have our commitment be recognized feels like a milestone in our continuous journey of being a business that has a positive impact on the world and helps other businesses to do the same.

Congratulations to all the regional winners! You can read more about the awards and the Scotland region winners here.

MELCC – Winner

We’re very proud to have won the ‘Micro Business of the Year’ award at the Midlothian and East Lothian Business Awards 2024! 

It’s the culmination of a year of pushing ourselves to go beyond, to find new ways of doing business that support our values and our work – we may be micro but our team’s impact to reduce emissions is anything but small; we have expanded to support multifunctional teams at larger businesses and leading Scottish organisations. Throughout 2024, we will continue to innovate to create value and help more organisations progress to Net Zero and make a meaningful contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals.Find our more about the other winners here.

Small Awards – Finalist

We’re excited to announce we’re a finalist in the Small Awards in the Net Hero category for best sustainability-focused business that recognises a small business with an exceptional commitment to environmental sustainability. Winners will be announced in May, so wish us good luck!

International Women’s Day 2024

In celebrating International Women’s Day, we’ve taken the time to acknowledge and reaffirm our commitment to building a world where women have equal opportunities to thrive. We have tackled many interesting and difficult conversations about the everyday challenges faced by women, and the social norms which enable these issues to persist. Our conversations have highlighted the importance of maintaining a space to discuss these barriers, to learn from one another, and raise awareness of the intersectionality within women’s experiences, so we can become better allies and recognise the assumptions we make about what we are capable of. 

You can find more of Beyond Green’s conversations around International Women’s Day in our blog post on our website.

The post Beyond Green Sustainability Newsletter Spring 2024 first appeared on Beyond Green.

International Women’s Day (IWD) is an annual global celebration on 8th March recognising the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. It also serves as a call to action for accelerating gender equality. The day has now been observed for over a century and is marked by various activities, including rallies, marches, conferences, art exhibitions, and more, and is aimed at raising awareness about women’s issues and rights worldwide. Every year International Women’s Day has a specific theme, 2024’s theme is #InspireInclusion.

How we’re Inspiring Inclusion at Beyond Green

As a small and passionate team, we are dedicated to creating a better, more efficient, sustainable, and equitable future for everyone. We are committed to addressing and challenging inequalities in all forms, and with International Women’s Day on the horizon, we have engaged in thoughtful discussions about the difficulties and experiences faced by women in society.

During these discussions, we delved deep into many issues, from workplace biases to societal expectations. We recognise the importance of creating a space where women can flourish both personally and professionally, where they feel supported and empowered to pursue their goals. To illustrate these conversations, our team collaboratively created a diagram, shared below, which highlights the areas we identified that contribute to the problem of women being excluded or underrepresented.

The text-only version of this diagram is available here.

The key themes we discussed were: lack of access to healthcare and ableism, less access to education, gender based violence, work-life balance, lack of representation, and stereotypes and biases surrounding gender identity. All of these areas tie into the broader issue of women frequently being excluded, overlooked or not feeling empowered to contribute their ideas and opinions.

Often subconscious biases drive and enable these issues to persist; these biases are deeply ingrained in our social norms and experiences, and can influence how all of us, regardless of our own gender, perceive and interact with women. These biases can manifest both in subtle and more discernible ways, such as interrupting or dismissing female colleagues in meetings and other social settings, such as when making a big purchase when accompanied by a male partner. We discussed personal examples relating to buying a car, and booking a holiday, where the salespersons ignored and excluded the woman in the conversation, automatically addressing the male, despite the women in these situations being the purchaser. Such biases are harmful, creating barriers to mutual support and hindering women’s ability to contribute and advocate for their own interests.

The stigma surrounding women’s health issues was also an interesting point of conversation. Cultural norms and taboos can discourage women from seeking care or discussing their concerns openly, and healthcare professionals are not always aware of women’s health issues due to a lack of research availability and training. If health issues are left unaddressed this can lead to further issues and social isolation; exacerbating feelings of anxiety, depression, trauma and the worsening of physical health conditions.

Promoting diversity and inclusion aligns with the core values of sustainability,  as it represents principles of equality, fairness and social justice.

In the sustainability, environment, and consulting sectors, there is a concerning trend of dominance by individuals from privileged backgrounds, leading to the exclusion of marginalised groups. This lack of diversity not only limits the range of perspectives and solutions, but also perpetuates inequalities. Marginalised women, including those from ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ communities, and economically disadvantaged backgrounds, often face additional barriers to entry and fewer opportunities for progression. 

From the perspective of our company, addressing this issue is vital for a number of reasons. Diversity encourages innovation and creativity and enables the development of more holistic and effective sustainability strategies. Promoting diversity and inclusion aligns with the core values of sustainability,  as it represents principles of equality, fairness and social justice. Finally, by ensuring fair representation, companies can better understand and reflect the needs of diverse stakeholders, leading to more inclusive and impactful actions. 

We recognise the importance of supporting one another, fostering an environment of inclusivity, honesty, and understanding. By emphasising the importance of learning, sharing our experiences, and challenging social biases, we aim to create a fairer society and make time for these important discussions. Nurturing a safe space for open dialogue and mutual respect, we seek to contribute to dismantling barriers that hold women back from participating, and realising their full potential. 

The Riddle

As part of our discussions we found the following riddle, why not give it a go for yourself? The answer will be revealed at the end of the blog.

A father is about to bring his son to a job interview, applying for a position at a large stock-brokers company in the city. Just as he arrives at the company’s parking lot, the son’s phone rings. He looks at his father who says “Go ahead, answer it.” The caller is the trading company’s CEO who says “Good luck son, you’ve got this!” The son ends the call and once again looks at his father, who is still next to him in the car. 

How is this possible?

Women Who Inspire Us

We would like to highlight some remarkable women in the sustainability and accessibility spaces who inspire us with their tenacity, dedication and achievements:

Jo Harvey 

Jo Harvey has made huge contributions to the community project Sustainable Wantage over the last 10 years. Just take a look at the website and you’ll see they have delivered: over 23,000 food parcels to 500 vulnerable families in the community, saved 165 tonnes of good food from landfill, and the repair cafe has rehomed 550 laptops and refurbished 50 bikes; though Jo is delivering impact faster than the website can be updated! She persists to remove unnecessary obstacles to build a better world.  

“The website cannot convey the challenges, struggles, and barriers Jo has overcome to put Sustainable Wantage on a secure footing.  Downloading those challenges has taken us up many a steep hill!  Jo drives the ethos and inspires the volunteer community to do what they can, when they can. My ask to those with influence and power is: when Jo comes to you for support, with an idea to strengthen a community’s or organisation’s resilience, be an ally! Remove those barriers for her, reduce the energy she needs to invest to succeed, and be an ally to all the other ‘Jo’s’ you come across.”  – Paul Adderley, BG Founder and Director

Jane Goodall

Jane Goodall’s work has included animal and environmental research, conservation, education and she has had a big impact on the world, leading with her compassion and love for nature and the planet. In 1994, Goodall founded the Lake Tanganyika Catchment Reforestation and Education (TACARE or “Take Care”) pilot project to protect chimpanzees’ habitat from deforestation by reforesting hills around Gombe, while simultaneously educating neighbouring communities on sustainability and agriculture training. The TACARE project also supports young girls by offering them access to reproductive health education and through scholarships to finance their college tuition. 

“My inspirational woman is Jane Goodall, she has worked on many projects in Africa, where I was born, so I have always felt connected to her. I developed an interest in conservation as a child running WWF conservation awareness groups and taking inspiration from people like her.”  – Sally, BG Business Development Specialist

Imani Barbarin 

Imani Barbarin is a disabled human rights activist who also delves into the intersections between being a woman, being disabled, and being black. Her work often involves unpicking the language and narratives used in politics, news, and general conversations, and how they justify or reinforce systemic oppression. 

Monica Bota-Moisin

Monica Bota-Moisin is an Intellectual Property Lawyer, and founder of the Intellectual Property Rights Initiative, which supports indigenous communities to protect their Traditional designs from being exploited in the fashion industry. Preserving these designs not only respects the intellectual property rights of indigenous peoples, but also helps protect and maintain their cultural identity, heritage, and economic autonomy.

Elizabeth Cripps

Elizabeth Cripps is an Edinburgh-based philosopher known for her insightful work on climate justice and ethical considerations related to environmental issues. She has become a leading voice in the field of climate ethics. In her book “What Climate Justice Means and Why We Should Care,” she explores the moral obligations that individuals and societies have in addressing climate change. Cripps combines meticulous philosophical analysis with a passionate commitment to addressing pressing global challenges. Her work inspires and empowers individuals to take meaningful action towards a more just and sustainable future; encouraging critical engagement with environmental issues and the prioritisation of justice in climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts.

Martha Nussbaum 

Martha Nussbaum has made groundbreaking contributions in the world of philosophy, her ‘capabilities approach’ to human development advocates for a more nuanced understanding of flourishing, beyond only economic indicators. As an inspirational woman, Nussbaum has fearlessly tackled complex societal issues such as justice, equality and the role of emotions in ethical reasoning. Her advocacy for the rights of women, LGBT+ individuals and people with disabilities, has had a profound impact in both academics and public policy. Her commitment to social justice and compassion continues to inspire future generations to pursue philosophical inquiry.

In addition to these inspiring women we should remember that it’s not only women who are making an impact in the wider world who deserve recognition; but our female relatives, co-workers, friends, and other women that play key roles in our personal lives. Taking a moment to appreciate the hard work, dedication and joy they bring to their families and the people around them. 

The depth of understanding that women provide to other women in their lives, through shared experiences of gendered challenges and societal pressures, fosters solidarity; providing validation, nuanced advice, and emotional support in a world shaped by gender dynamics. Whether it’s through family, friendship, mentorship, or advocacy, this bond is a powerful force for empowerment, resilience and collective progress. 

Allies also play an important role in advancing gender equality. Their support and advocacy are essential in challenging patriarchal systems and dismantling harmful stereotypes and biases. By actively listening to women’s experiences, understanding their perspectives, and amplifying their voices, allies play a key role in contributing to more inclusive and fair spaces. Not only helping to raise awareness of women’s issues, but also fostering collaboration and solidarity in the pursuit of justice and empowerment for all.

Back to the Riddle

The answer:

The CEO is his mother.

This riddle is designed to reveal subconscious biases. A lot of people, ourselves included, did not successfully recognise the correct answer to this riddle. Even after all of our discussions about International Women’s Day, as a team filled with motivated, ambitious and driven women, we did not realise that his mother was the CEO! 

This riddle does a good job of revealing how deeply ingrained our own assumptions about gender roles are, even when trying to be aware and more conscious of these problems. As such, we’ll continue to challenge our own subconscious biases and assumptions. Maybe, if the answer to this riddle was a surprise to you, as it was to us, you will too. If you’d like to challenge your friends with this riddle, there’s a YouTube version of the riddle here that you can easily share.

Conclusion

In celebrating IWD, we’ve taken the time to acknowledge and reaffirm our commitment to building a world where women have equal opportunities to thrive. We have tackled many interesting and difficult conversations about the everyday challenges faced by women, and the social norms which enable these issues to persist. Our conversations have highlighted the importance of maintaining a space to discuss these barriers, to learn from one another, and raise awareness of the intersectionality within women’s experiences, so we can become better allies and recognise the assumptions we make about what we are capable of. 

Many of us will impose restrictions and limitations on what we can achieve due to internalised messages about our roles in society. Reflecting on these notions and challenging our own assumptions is key to unlocking our full potential. The only way to work towards a truly sustainable world is by collectively addressing our biases, focusing on promoting diversity and inclusion for all, at work and at home, and by recognising the value of what everyone experiences and has to contribute equally. 

Together, let’s continue to challenge norms, break down barriers, and work towards a future that is truly sustainable and inclusive for all.

Happy International Women’s Day!

The Beyond Green Team

Resources

We want to share some valuable resources with you if you are keen to learn more about IWD.

• Statistics on Gender inequality: Data Explorer: Gender Equality & Human Development
• IWD 2024 50 Ways to Fight Bias resource and training program: Ways to Fight Bias (PDF)
• Pledge cards: International Women’s Day #InspireInclusion pledge cards
• Customisable Social Media cards: Create IWD 2024 social media cards
• Email signature to use in March: Download IWD Advocacy Email Signature Blocks
• Previous blog posts from Beyond Green: Choose Challenge (2021), Women’s Inclusion in the Workplace (2022)

The post International Women’s Day: How We’re Inspiring Inclusion at Beyond Green first appeared on Beyond Green.

Livi’s Perspective

Context

The pandemic has undoubtedly set women in the workplace back, with the suggestion that 25 years of progress have been lost. That’s like me, who was born in the 21st century, being a member of the workforce in the socioeconomic situation of the 1990s. Women across the world of my age are not just back to square one, we are back to square -7; if 25 years of progress have been lost, that means all the strides made throughout my entire lifetime are gone, as well as those over the several years before I was born.

It’s not all bad

It’s easy to feel despondent, reading these statements, however it also allows me to appreciate what I do have the fortune of experiencing now, things which 18-year-old women 25 years ago may not have experienced: I have a plethora of empowering TV shows to watch where women’s stories are centred and celebrated and I have female role models in all walks of life to look up to. Furthermore, this academic year the undergraduate degree that I am going to start studying in September has for the first time recorded a higher number of female students than male.

Not being complacent

While we can recognise and revel in the joys of social change, our work is never done. The reality is that the situation for women in the workplace has deteriorated over the past two years. Throughout the pandemic women have taken on much of the childcare responsibilities and household chores; pre-COVID-19 it is estimated that for every hour of care and domestic work performed by men, women did three. That number has since risen. Women are now dropping out of the workforce at an alarming rate, and this is likely due to their increased burdens at home.

This pandemic has drilled home that the world’s economies and our daily lives simply cannot function without the unpaid care and domestic work that is predominantly borne by women and girls.

UN brief, Whose Time to Care? Unpaid Care and Domestic Work During COVID-19, Page 10

Knock-on effects in the workplace

From my own experience I can see that our unconscious and conscious biases have manifested themselves in these more ‘traditional’ family dynamics and working patterns, patterns that I thought (well, hoped) were a thing of the past. I see women missing zoom meetings because they simply can’t care for their children and perform necessary domestic work whilst simultaneously working full time and outputting the same productivity as someone with much fewer household burdens. We need to ask ourselves why we see it as acceptable for a man to work full time and come home and rest, whilst a woman does the same, comes home and picks up household chores, sometimes equating in hours to a fulltime job. When people work two paid jobs we shower them with admiration and sympathy, when a woman works one paid job and the equivalent in housework and childcare we see that not just as normal, but as expected.

How can we change

The situation is, in quite an understatement, subpar. These are not the attitudes I ever wanted to surround my career as I enter my undergraduate degree. Then what can we do about it? In short, we all need to address our internal biases and question why we think things that really shouldn’t be ok are ok in our eyes, and use this to inform the steps we take moving forward. As always, we need to think intersectionally, and recognise that the experiences of women up and down the country and around the world are going to be vastly different. The attitudes experienced throughout the pandemic by women of different races, socioeconomic backgrounds and sexual orientations although exhibiting some commonalities will never be identical, and we must recognise this.

The entire issue relates back to the Sustainable Development Goals, more specifically goal 5: Gender Equality which recognises the need for the empowerment of women in moving forward to build a better future.

Paul’s Reflection

How Beyond Green is taking steps

Reading Livi’s views above, I can see how our Beyond Green current policies, training and support can help lessen the inequalities experienced by women in the workplace, though are they enough? This also raises a boundary issue: when does an employer’s actions move from being supportive to being intrusive?  Where is the transition for the employer to make reasonable adjustments and when the male family members need to step up to the plate? As an employer, there are clear ways in which we can provide support:

• Flexible working – having a robust flexible working policy that supports team members in balancing their priorities
• Collaboration across the team – avoiding team members being isolated or carrying too much responsibility alone
• Contingency time – planning in contingency time to remove pressure and allow for more flexibility
• Unconscious Bias training – to allow us to see the assumptions we might make, and support women better

Still two full time jobs

However useful I think our approaches are, Livi raises a powerful point about flexible working: “if you are a working woman, you have two full time jobs, one paid and one at home cleaning, cooking and caring then no matter how you carve that up you are still working two full time jobs!” 

Flexible working it’s not just for women to get through the million tasks they have for the week, it’s for people of all genders to take up equal responsibility for unpaid work and therefore even the workload.

However, if men see the dual role of many women as the expected, rather than the two full time jobs they really have, then are they less likely to request flexible working to ensure the unpaid work is shared equally? 

Bringing a woman’s two worlds together

Livi explained to me that, for many women, they feel like they live in two separate worlds of work and home, and for them the responsibilities they have for each are non-negotiable. They are not the team member or business leader 9-5 Monday to Friday, and then the housewife, mother, and carer at all other times. They are actually all of these things 24/7, 365days a year; the whole person comes to work and goes home in one world not two.

Employers have a role to play to help bring these two worlds closer together by facilitating broad conversations about what it is like to be a working woman, how the homelife impacts on their ability to work effectively and to flourish in their career. This conversation can be expanded further to understand that women’s health concerns may differ from men’s, and that with advance planning the types of tasks, the energy levels required, the working hours, etc can be adjusted to fit their specific pattern and they flourish. This mindset can also support women in the menopause phase of their life, and furthermore help men understand how they can support by using flexible working policies for women in their life. 

Two Conclusions

Paul’s Conclusion 

Since the pandemic, the home or workplace has not adjusted to the changing situation that women are disproportionately taking more of the household responsibilities, and beginning to give up on their professional careers.  As I write, I don’t know how we will implement the changes required, though I know the first step is to open the conversation, share information and help facilitate the unlocking of our collective unconscious bias.   

I have learnt from Beyond Green becoming a Disability Confident employer that it is the responsibility of the employer to make the work environment fit the person not the person fit the workplace. I think this principle equally applies to ensuring women and men can both work together and equally share responsibilities in one world not two. 

Livi’s Conclusion

As a young person I am hopeful for the future; progress is being made but our work is never done. We need to raise awareness and value the unpaid care and domestic work, largely undertaken by women, that the economy and society would struggle to survive without. By appreciating and supporting the women in our lives and in our workplaces we can see the situation firsthand, and help out in small ways and big.

We shouldn’t just assume that women can, and should, do it all. 

The post IWD 2022 – Women’s Inclusion in the workplace first appeared on Beyond Green.

“I founded Beyond Green, partly to align my values and ethics with the organisation I work for and lead. This blog post outlines my personal journey of aspiring to live our values, in particular fairness, compassion and honesty, in relation to gender equality.” – Paul Adderley  

My Sustainable Development Goal is Reduce Inequalities (Goal 10), and I recognize the importance of goal 5: Gender Equality because the idea that roughly 50% of humanity, people I value as work colleagues, friends or relatives, are treated badly purely based on their gender saddens me deeply.  

The theme of International Women’s Day 2021, ‘Choose Challenge’, resonates with me because it encapsulates the personal and professional journey I have taken since 2014. There are some key moments where I chose challenge, and to my shame many where I did not. In this blog, I wish to share the four  main phases in my journey ; I hope it is an upward spiral where I grow with each rotation though there’s a bit of snakes and ladders too. In fact, writing this blog is a moment to Choose Challenge as I could have excused myself from a task where I feel vulnerable.

1. Accept the Challenge – Own it

This is where my journey begins. It’s 5pm and we are about to finish up festive holidays in December 2014; I wish to email season’s greetings to our network. Here’s the draft graphic designed by a man, and accepted by a man (me). Before sending, I shared with my female colleague who I had recently hired.

What followed was 15 minutes of us going around in circles for me to understand her observation: “Why do we have a man on it?”, to which I responded “It’s our sustainability guide he’s there to help…..”, “Yes, but why a man…?”, “It’s our….” etc. This continued until she calmly said, “ But it doesn’t represent me?” (there were only two of us in the company then). I had an epiphany – “You’re right, it doesn’t”, I said; and a light shone in the greyness of my blind spots of unconscious bias. Within 15 minutes, we worked together to amend the image that worked for us, and at 5:30pm we were on holiday!

Over the festive period, I reflected on this episode and a wave of shame rolled over me with thoughts of all the female friends, relatives and colleagues I will have casually dismissed or whose view and worth I’ve ignored. I honestly know this was not out of malice, but I didn’t see it, hear it or recognise it as diminishing women.  

There is an expectation that women, and especially those women in marginalised groups, will teach others to understand them, often without the majority (i.e generally men) making the effort to understand. I only began to change because I accepted that I had to rewire my brain. Of course I seek support from others, but I own the challenge.

2. Challenging myself – Rewiring my brain

We all have unconscious bias (blind spots). It’s not bad per se, it is how our brain takes shortcuts to process the vast volume of incoming information and how school, family and culture conditions us. But, it is wrong not to take personal action to uncover our bias. I know it took a female colleague to point out some of my blind spots, however the triggering event, noted earlier, helped me start to see the world differently.   

One example is how I had perceived the technical, analytical and numeracy skills of women; embarrassingly I trained as a Chartered Accountant with many women! Previously, I had referred to a male colleague as the “technical expert”, without recognising hundreds of resource efficiency reports female colleagues wrote to a high technical level. My increasing awareness, from more self reflection, uncovered this blind spot; and the more women I actively listen to with meaningful conversations about gender bias, and the more widely I read, the more I will see.  

I started to consciously rewire my brain, feeling the cogs shift, to express their numerical and analytical competency. On one occasion, my co-director, the female colleague from earlier, identified an error in my management accounts! Being more mindful of my thoughts and behaviors rather than dismissing her insight because I am “the accountant”, I could listen to her point. Though change is like the game of snakes and ladders, and I once had been unfair in taking over her calculation. The difference this time was that I quickly recognised my behaviour and apologized which was compassionately accepted. 

And a core lesson with challenging myself is to be kind to myself because I will fail in the process. Forgiveness is part of personal growth of accepting the wrong we do and its impact on others. Forgiveness allows us to take responsibility and identify what small steps we can do now. This personal development gave me confidence to challenge others for their diminishing comments to women and degrading behaviour towards them. 

3. Challenge Others – Confront the Stag

With greater awareness I could see how women were diminished in adverts, presentations, and jokes. However, many comments are so unexpected and subtle that the conversation has moved on before I had a chance to react. It is made more difficult to speak up when everyone else also tends to be unresponsive to the comments made. It’s like a summer breeze, fleeting. 

In one meeting, I heard a man say “The trouble with suppliers is that their sales team are ladies without technical knowledge of the products”; I did nothing because it was so unexpected. 

This sentiment resonates with women who experience the daily wave of comments that undermine 50% of humanity; and I feel ashamed I didn’t correct this prejudice in the moment. Though there are two occasions when I Chose to Challenge. 

Rebalancing Power Differentials

We hear more often about the power disparity between men and women especially in the workplace. Some years ago, my co-director and I had a series of meetings with senior businessmen. Although the meetings were constructive, there was a subtle undertone which made me feel uncomfortable. It was really old jokes, the ones my Dad tells and I used to laugh at. But not now as I felt how these jokes belittled women. After one meeting I decided, I need to have a conversation. How would I approach this, I wondered?  Our values, in particular fairness and compassion, gave me a framework of how to plan the conversation and my SDG: Reduce Inequalities was a pillar of support. I calmly expressed my observations, how their behaviour does not align with our values, and made my request for change. They listened, they acknowledged the wrong and changed so the uncomfortable undertone was absent in our future meetings.        

Confronting the Stag

On the train to Penrith for the weekend away in the Lakes District, I had an unpleasant sight; a stag party with a man wearing just a fluorescent thong! There’s a time and place for many things, but an afternoon train with broad spectrum passengers, including two teenage girls, is definitely not the place. It took me an hour to build up the courage! With my stop fast approaching and my heart pounding, I calmly expressed my discomfort of his apparel, and how would he feel if his female relatives had such a view? Without any aggression from anyone, he quietly re-dressed, and as we pulled into Penrith I thanked him for responding to my request. He recognised his behaviour was wrong; and hopefully has changed. 

By challenging others through our daily interactions, we will gradually change the cultures that govern our social norms and in turn the systems that govern us.

4. Challenge to Change the System  

The systems that govern our lives are run by families, institutions, and cultures and will not change through one person alone but collectively. However, systems are only a representation of the people they serve and who serve them. If every man takes courage to challenge their unconscious bias and behaviours, calls out unacceptable behaviours with kindness when we witness women and marginalised people being treated badly then the system will change as those it represents changed.   

I need to continue to challenge myself and others by widening my conversations and knowledge to be more aware of the injustice and inequality a lot of women experience on a regular basis; further compounded by race, ethnicity, disability and LGBTQIA+ identities which all marginalise women further. If we don’t accept the challenge to change for the better, then we risk missing crucial knowledge, intelligence and wisdom held by 50% of humanity that we desperately need to solve the challenges ahead. By employing and celebrating the skills, value and insight women bring to all organisations and wider society, we can achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Self-compassion is a vital tool in this process, because if a challenge feels too great we risk being overwhelmed so then take on a smaller one. Be kind to others who are unaware that their behaviour needs to change while calling out misogynistic attitudes and banter that diminishes women and people who present as feminine. I believe every human being can make valuable contributions to help the world become a better place; however, I realise now that only by choosing to challenge I can be part of making that belief a reality.

Grateful and Compassionate Conversations

I hope this blog post opens up opportunities to have more and deeper conversations with people regardless of where they are in their personal journey; and to provide a basis for how we at Beyond Green become comfortable in speaking about experiences so we continually improve our awareness.  

I am grateful to the female friends, relatives and colleagues who shared their views and to other men who wrote about their experiences in the public domain; it gave me courage to add this blog to the dialogue.  And thank you to the stag on 13:15 train to Penrith for accepting my challenge and literally changing, because it gave me hope to continue my journey. 

It’s all about everyone having compassionate conversations to help each other to Choose Challenge, and to build a community that includes all of humanity.  

The post Choose Challenge – Choose Inclusiveness and Equality first appeared on Beyond Green.