27 February 2020

Celebrating International Women’s Day 2020

Free events are being held across campus to help celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) 2020.

Join us in celebrating International Women’s Day 2020

Officially marked on Sunday 8 March, celebrations on campus are being held across four days.  

Digital leaders from professional services company Accenture and the universities of Leeds and Sheffield will share their experiences about working in tech and what the landscape could look like for future generations.

They will explore the myths about women in technology and what the reality is during the event in Nexus, our innovation centre, running from 9.30-11am on Monday 9 March.

Hosted by our IT Service and Accenture, and chaired by Nik Williams, IT HR lead at Leeds, the panel for the ‘Celebrating Women in Technology, Inspiring Future Generations’ event includes:

  • Bella Abrams, IT Director, University of Sheffield
  • Laura Webb, Managing Director for Health and Public Services, Accenture
  • Dr Charisma Choudhury, Turing Fellow and Associate Professor in the Institute for Transport Studies and School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds
  • Christina Lovelock, Business Analysis and Solution Architecture Manager, University of Leeds;
  • Hannah Love, Head of Digital Communications, University of Leeds.

Other speakers to be confirmed.

Register your place through Eventbrite.

Keynote speaker

The School of Food Science and Nutrition is hosting an event from 1-2pm on Friday 6 March.

Hear from women of all backgrounds, races and seniority at Leeds, with plenty of opportunity for discussion and audience interaction.

Keynote speaker is Professor Pippa Chapman, Chair in Biogeochemistry in the School of Geography.

Fellow panel members are:

  • Janet Cade, Professor of Nutritional Epidemiology and Public Health (School of Food Science and Nutrition)
  • Sabiha Patel, Head of Equality and Inclusion at Leeds
  • Dr Izzy Jayasinghe, UKRI Future Leader Fellow (School of Biomedical Sciences); and
  • Dr Anna Hogg, NERC Knowledge Exchange Fellow, University Academic Fellow (School of Earth and Environment).

This event will be held in Mechanical Engineering, LT B (2.37). Register your place through Eventbrite.

Gender issues

Leeds University Union (LUU) is also staging a discussion to mark the occasion.

She Leads: Challenging Gender Bias in the 21st Century will debate what it means to be a woman in the modern world, challenging stereotypes, fighting bias and broadening perceptions.

Rebecca Barclay – President of Women Breaking Barriers and a final year Law student – will be the moderator, with the panel also featuring:

  • Aqila Choudhry – Founder of Love in Care
  • Natasha Babar-Evans – Regional Entrepreneurial Director at NatWest; and
  • Farhat Yaqoob – Muslim Student Advisor and Founder of the Unity Network.

There will also be the opportunity to network with speakers at the end of the event, and refreshments will be provided.

Part of the World Unite Festival, the event – running from 3-5pm on Monday 9 March in Room 6, LUU – is sponsored by LUBS. Register your place through Eventbrite.

Women’s Liberation Movement

You can also celebrate IWD 2020 with the Feminist Archive North at the Treasures of Brotherton.

2020 marks 50 years since the first national conference of the Women’s Liberation Movement.

Drop by anytime between 11am and 4pm on Friday 6 March to learn about the movement and how it affected great change throughout the world.

Discover the history of feminist campaigning and the Feminist Archive North. On display will be items including feminist journals, posters, badges, banner and t-shirts.

There’s no need to book for this event.

Taking over Twitter

The Women at Leeds Network (W@LN) is taking over Twitter on Friday 6 March to share the contribution of women across our University.

W@LN is seeking photos and 250-character messages sharing the commitment, hard work and efforts of female colleagues in all roles (with their permission). Email submissions to W@LN and follow #IWDUniLeeds on the day itself.

Shining a light on suffragettes

Parkinson Building will also be lit up in suffragette colours – purple, green and white – on Monday 9 March to mark IWD 2020.

Further information

More details about IWD 2020 and this year’s campaign theme – #EachforEqual – can be found on the IWD website.

Promote your event

Are you hosting an event at Leeds to mark International Women’s Day 2020? If so, email Internal Comms so we can help promote it for you.

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