Inspire inclusion: Join the International Women's Day Care first webinar 

Care first, the University's provider of wellbeing support, runs a regular series of webinars open to all staff and students. In this article Care first shine a light on the significance of International Women's Day. Join the free webinar on Friday 8 March to learn more. 

International Women’s Day this year is on Friday 8 March 2024. International Women’s Day is celebrated all over the world, celebrating the social, economical, cultural and political achievements of women. In addition to this, the day marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. 

Inspire Inclusion 

This year’s theme is 'inspire inclusion' where we inspire others to understand and value women's inclusion, we forge a better world. When women themselves are inspired to be included, there's a sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment. In accordance with the International Women's Day website:

• When women aren't present, we must ask: "If not, why not?"
• When women are discriminated against, we must call out poor practice.
• When the treatment of women is not equitable, we must take action.
• And we must do this each time, every time. 

About International Women’s Day 

International Women’s Day began in 1911 and is an important day to improve women’s equality in all forms. Purple, green and white are the colours of International Women's Day. The colour purple represents justice, dignity and being loyal to the cause. The colour green symbolises hope and the colour white resembles purity. The choice of colours for the day originated from the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the United Kingdom in 1908. 

Every year on the 8th of March, International Women’s Day is one of the most important days of the year to:

• celebrate women's achievements
• educate and awareness raise for women's equality
• call for positive change advancing women
• lobby for accelerated gender parity
• fundraise for female-focused charities. 

The importance of International Women’s Day 

International Women’s Day provides the opportunity to highlight the work that remains to be completed to improve women’s rights. A study published in The Lancet found that women experienced worse social and economic consequences than men. A day such as International Women’s Day acknowledges facts such as this and raises awareness. In addition to this, the day is an opportunity to raise funds for women’s issues and encourages donations to organisations that work towards gender equality and women’s rights. The materials and information, as well as the awareness raised during International Women’s Day, help to educate society and communities about gender equality and women’s rights. 

The online website internationalwomensday.com contains a variety of resources and materials available to host events in schools or workplaces to raise awareness of the day. 

Get involved

The International Women’s Day website is a hub of information, full of materials 
and resources available to support this year’s theme of 'Inspire Inclusion'. From event packs to videos to social media cards, there is a library of materials available to help 
you raise awareness for International Women’s Day. 

Webinar 

If you would like to learn more about ‘International Women's Day’ then please join our webinar on Friday 8 March 2024 at 12noon-12pm. 

Register for the International Women's Day webinar here.

If you are unable to join the webinar live, a recording of the session can be accessed using the same link above after the webinar has taken place.

Get mental health and wellbeing support 

• Students can access wellbeing support through our WLV Student Life Connect platform, as well as support and advice available from the University at wlv.ac.uk/mhw. 
• Staff can find out more about Care first support offered through the Employee Assistance Programme on the HR Wellbeing Hub.