Celebrating International Women’s Day

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On March 8th every year around the world, International Women’s Day is celebrated. It is a day for recognizing the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, and for raising awareness about women’s equality. The theme for 2022 for all United Nations observances is “Gender equality for a sustainable tomorrow”.

Without gender equality, we will not be able to achieve a sustainable, equal future. This year is pivotal for achieving gender equality in the context of climate change and environmental and disaster risk reduction, which are among the greatest global challenges of the twenty-first century. It is so important to celebrate the women and girls who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation and response and to honor their leadership and contributions towards a sustainable future.

In support of this theme, today we are hosting a high-level panel discussion at 13:00 Montreal time to highlight the importance of current and future roles of women in driving sustainability in the aviation industry. The conversations in this session are an opportunity to celebrate the contribution of women around the world who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, and who are working to build a more sustainable future for the aviation industry.

While the COVID-19 crisis has brought huge losses for the aviation industry, it also presents an opportunity for working towards a more sustainable future. Post-pandemic, the sustainability of the sector will not only rely on greening aviation, but also on greater progress towards gender equality and empowerment of women, as the presence of women at all levels, including in decision-making roles, will contribute to being a game-changer. Having more women in the aviation workforce will translate into greater opportunities for environmental initiatives to be more inclusive, amplify results and increase effectiveness.

The High-Level Panel Discussions will feature the ICAO President and Secretary General, together with high-level dignitaries from across the industry and Council Members, as well as the ICAO passionate staff who through their daily work contribute to advancing ICAO’s work around environmental sustainability. Among the topics to be covered:

  • The important contributions of women as decision-makers, stakeholders, experts, and educators across aviation and at all levels can lead to successful, long-term solutions to sustainability and climate change;
  • The critical role of diversity in the workforce to prevent a narrow and restricted view of the way sustainability objectives are identified, prioritized and implemented in the aviation industry;
  • The importance of identifying and filling data gaps to inform more robust gender-responsive environmental policymaking and planning.
The theme of #IWD2022 provides an opportunity to recall how increasing and reflecting the share of female transport workers and users therefore can lead to unleashing the knowledge and capability of women in crafting effective climate change solutions for the benefit of the sector.
In the context of aviation, the celebration of International Women’s Day is also an opportune moment to renew commitment towards gender equality in line with the Sustainable Development Goal 5 and ICAO Resolution A39-30, as we look forward to building a more resilient and sustainable future for our industry as the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The programme is available here. Though it is too late to register for the 90-minute event, we are sharing the recording on ICAO TV (live and replay) here.