International Women’s Day and Global Citizenship
The vision of our school, as part of the Dulwich College International group, is to ‘Live WorldWise’. At Dulwich International High School Suzhou, we encourage our students to ‘Grow in Dulwich and Thrive in Life’. This means we need to be fully aware of different events, initiatives, and issues around the globe so that the students in the school can ‘make a positive difference in the world’.
On 9th March 2021, Dulwich International High School Suzhou’s dining hall was transformed into a flurry of activity to mark International Women’s Day.
The earliest Women's Day was held on 28th February 1909 in New York, organized by the Socialist Party of America. Globally, International Women’s Day has been observed since 1911.
Today, International Women’s Day is observed in many corners of the globe as a chance to reflect, appreciate and resolve to improve the rights of women and girls everywhere. Glancing through some of the facts below highlights the present oppression women face globally:
One in three women worldwide will be beaten or sexually abused in their lifetime.
- Up to 200 million women and girls worldwide have been subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) - that’s more than triple the UK population.
- More than 250 million women alive today were married before their 15th birthday.
- Less than 40% of countries provide girls and boys with equal access to education.
International Women’s Day also provides a chance to reflect on the women who have shaped our experience, either in leadership or in walking alongside us.
we all move forward when we recognize how resilient and striking the women around us are
Students were encouraged to write a pledge or a reflection on the ‘choose to challenge’ window, nail painting for female students was on offer and the charity ‘Eden’ had a chance to promote some of its work with women in trafficking.
Students and staff also supported and engaged with many of the stalls showcasing student-led Sustainability, Global Citizenship and Service projects. One of the most popular stalls was led by Mr Webb and Mr MacKay who initiated a cycling-powered smoothie station where kinetic energy from the cycling efforts was utilized in the process of creating banana smoothies!
Everyone enjoyed tasty bites from different countries at the ‘Taste The Nations’ stalls and colourful displays provided a brilliant salutation to student efforts towards the ‘Teaspoons of Change’ agenda, in line with the United Nations Sustainability goals https://teaspoonsofchange.org/. If we all do ‘our bit’, together we truly can make a positive difference to the world!!