A message from Diane d’Arras, President of the International Water Association, on International Women’s Day:

Gloria Steinem, the world-renowned feminist, journalist and activist once explained, “The story of women’s struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist nor to any one organisation but to the collective efforts of all who care about human rights.”

Too many people have, at some time in their lives, found prejudice and discrimination blocking their way, and discrimination knows few boundaries. People are judged and treated unfairly based on nothing more than their gender, ethnicity, age, disability, sexuality or religion. This discrimination exists in every corner of our societies and expresses its malignant affects in many ways.

Today, International Women’s Day 2018, I am supporting the #PressforProgress campaign to advocate for gender parity, but the campaign’s goals could be applied universally to foster greater and better diversity:

1.maintain a gender parity mindset,

2.challenge stereotypes and bias

3.forge positive visibility of women

4.influence others’ beliefs / actions,

5.celebrate women’s achievements

These are goals we at the International Water Association wholeheartedly support. Promoting gender diversity and fundamental rights in the water sector is both critical for the sector but also a way to support diversity and human rights globally.

I am happy that on International Women’s day we can join together to campaign for greater justice, and also to celebrate living in a world full of diversity!