From Coronavirus to Climate Change, Women are Leading the Way

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In anticipation of celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8, I have been reflecting on the theme for 2021, “Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World.” I am struck by how aligned this focus is with the Coalition’s vision statement:

We are united in elevating women’s leadership worldwide by educating and empowering our students to be ethical, globally minded changemakers.

As we envision a more equal future, it is critical to educate girls to become the women we need to help solve the world’s biggest challenges from pandemics to climate change; racial injustice to gender inequality.

Why is educating girls to be ethical, globally minded changemakers so essential to driving the change we need? Because women are already leading the way, and the girls in our schools will continue the charge.

Women are in the Lead

My friend Cheryl Giovannoni, CEO of the Girls’ Day School Trust in the UK, recently noted that among the many things COVID-19 has revealed is how important female leadership is on the world stage. Leading the way in responding most effectively to the COVID-19 pandemic are countries with women at the helm: Mette Frederiksen of Denmark, Sanna Marin of Finland, Angela Merkel of Germany, Katrin Jakobsdottir of Iceland, Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand, Erna Solberg of Norway, and Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan.

Women around the world have also made an enormous contribution toward the effort to combat COVID-19 on the front lines and in labs. A recent article noted, “Not only do women make up 70% of the world’s health workers and first responders, women in STEM fields have been leading research into the virus, creating trackers and developing vaccines.”

In terms of climate change, some of the most important environmental activists throughout history have been women: from Rachel Carson who is credited with launching the global environmental movement to Greta Thunberg who since the age of 16 has easily become the most recognizable climate activist in the world. Girls’ education, research shows, is key to building greater environmental awareness and containing climate change.

And who are the leading advocates for social change and an end to racial injustice? As stated in Forbes, “Black women have steadily led the way for centuries. Black women led the Underground Railroad, were the unsung leaders of the suffrage movement, organized freedom riders, [and] paved the way for constitutional protections against sex discrimination…” Today, we have women like Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi who started the #BlackLivesMatter movement, which has grown into a global network. And Tarana Burke who founded #MeToo to empower women around the world to speak up against sexual violence and harassment. In South Africa, Zulaikha Patel became an activist at the age of 13 when she took a stand against Black hair discrimination in her school, and today she is a leading voice challenging the legacy of apartheid and gender-based violence. Abeer Sinder, a Sudanese activist living in Qatar, uses her large social media following to raise awareness about discrimination against Black Arabs.

Graduating Global Changemakers

The next generation of women changemakers will continue driving the conversation forward. Girls’ schools inspire young women to be informed, engaged global citizens who lead with courage, competence, and empathy. Research tells us girls’ school graduates, when compared to their coeducated peers, have stronger community involvement, greater cultural competency, and increased political engagement. Our graduates are more likely to:

  • Become involved in environmental programs
  • Deem it essential to participate in community social action programs
  • Help promote racial understanding
  • Value improving their understanding of other countries and cultures
  • Consider their desire to understand other with different beliefs as a strength
  • View their ability to work cooperatively with diverse people as a strength
  • Value influencing political structures
  • Publicly communicate their opinion about a cause

We see this in action daily within girls’ schools.

Making a Difference Now

Girls’ school students are empowered every day to use their voices now to help shape a better world. Students like Josie H., The Brearley School Class of 2022, who is the founder and executive director of Black Students Demanding Change, an organization dedicated to amplifying BIPOC voices and partnering with independent schools to establish a new standard of inclusive education across the United States. Zoya H., The Hockaday School Class of 2023, was inspired to develop HiStory Retold©, a student-led initiative committed to diversifying US History curriculum by highlighting the stories of Americans from a myriad of diverse backgrounds. Year 10 and 12 students at Meriden in Australia, to help combat the spread of misinformation on social media about coronavirus, designed a digital poster series titled, “Just Mask It” that presented evidence-based information about the effectiveness of different mask materials. In addition, some of the girls created a video highlighting the importance of masks in combating community transmission of COVID-19. And 5th grade students at Miss Edgar’s & Miss Cramp’s School in Canada pivoted their plans to make bars of soap that were originally going to be sold to the school community into a donation project for area shelters during the pandemic.

Young women like these and so many more in our schools are making their positive impact on the world now. This gives me enormous hope for a brighter, more equitable future for all of us.


Megan Murphy, Executive Director, National Coalition of Girls’ Schools


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