Today is the 110th International Women's Day. What does the women's quota mean at SIRPLUS? What demands do we make for greater equality? How can you specifically advocate for women's rights? Why do we celebrate March 8th?

Why is there an International Women's Day?

International Women's Day isn't just marked in bold in our calendars because it's a public holiday in Berlin. Its significance is far more important: March 8th is also known as Women's Struggle Day for good reason. Women worldwide are fighting for equality, a sustainable future for generations to come, and against violence and oppression.

Originally stemming from the work of socialist organizations in the period before the First World War, International Women's Day initially focused primarily on demanding women's suffrage. In 1975, the United Nations officially designated March 8th as International Women's Day.

The global disadvantages faced by women become clear, for example, when looking at the food sector: In developing countries, according to our partner Welthungerhilfe, women produce up to 80% of the food, even though they own only one-fifth of the arable land. Significant gender inequalities also exist in Germany, as illustrated by the so-called gender pay gap. In 2019, women in Germany earned an average of 19% less than men (source: Destatis ).

Sustainability as an important issue for women is also reflected in the different behaviors of women and men in their everyday lives.

The United Nations has recognized that women are a key driver of sustainable development. One of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is "Gender Equality," thus addressing the important issue of women's rights.

This trend becomes clear when comparing vegetarian and vegan lifestyles by gender. Women are significantly ahead, making up 81% of vegans in Germany (source: ProVeg ). It's also evident in other areas that women place great value on sustainability. One example is business travel. A study by the German Travel Association revealed that 58% of women prefer train travel for longer journeys, compared to 9% fewer men.

Women's quota at SIRPLUS

We also fight for diversity and equality within our own company. 49% of our employees and a third of our management team are women. We are proud of this! At the same time, we are aware of how far we still have to go. As individuals and employers, we want to continue learning and growing in terms of social justice and equal opportunities. Actively fostering and increasing diversity within our team, including for women of color, is very important to us. We are working on it!

What does equality mean?

On International Women's Day, we ask ourselves and our community: What does equality mean to you? What still needs to be done? Why is this so important? We believe that social justice and equal opportunities are inconceivable without sustainable development. Not just on International Women's Day, we envision a world where everyone has enough to eat AND the same opportunities. A world where we no longer let outdated and toxic gender roles hold us back. Only together can we combat climate change, poverty, and hunger. Every person—regardless of gender, skin color, origin, sexual orientation, or disability—is important to our mission and our shared humanity.

Here's what four of our female employees have to say on the topic of equality:

What you can do for your fellow women

To help you do something practical for the empowerment and rights of women, we have selected some initiatives and organizations that you can support.

• Hildashaus eV is a young Berlin initiative that is committed to empowering women and helping them to overcome psychological, physical and learned obstacles, including financial ones.
• Plan.de is an aid organization that has been campaigning for equal opportunities and equal rights for girls and boys for years.
• Women for Women International is an NGO that supports women in war zones in building a new life for themselves.
• Mothers2Mothers is an organization that aims to prevent the spread of HIV between mothers and children through educational programs and medical support.
• UN Women fights to identify and overcome gender-specific barriers in the economy.
• The international organization Care is committed to fighting poverty and promotes the education and support of girls and women.
• DKMS LIFE offers free courses to female cancer patients on the topics of cosmetics, care and head coverings.

We wish you a strong International Women's Day and lots of courage to stand up for justice and climate protection!