Beyond the Hashtag: Why Action Matters More Than Awareness When It Comes to Gender Equality
The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day (March 8) is to accelerate action toward gender equality, supporting progress toward a more inclusive world free from gender bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. I wanted to offer a different perspective on how we achieve this.
The Importance of Autonomy and Empowerment
In a time when women’s rights are being challenged, when autonomy over our own bodies is under threat, and when a new generation of women are growing up seeing “trad wife” trends on Instagram as something to aspire to, the mission we have set ourselves at Everee Women™ — to empower women in their own lives — has never felt more important.
A critical part of autonomy and empowerment is our equal participation in the workforce and our ability to establish financial systems that support our own needs. Looking back over my own career, I’ve faced many challenges simply being in the room, let alone being taken seriously.
Challenging the Status Quo
I have actively chosen to work in industries that have historically been male-dominated: healthcare, agriculture, and biotech. This choice has been about doing work I am genuinely good at — but also deeply passionate about, and where I know I can make the most difference.
After decades of trying to make myself more palatable, laughing along when something felt deeply off, and adjusting myself to fit what men in the room were comfortable with, I’ve reached a clear conclusion:
I am done with “leaning in” or “getting comfortable with being uncomfortable”. And you should be too!
Leaning Out of Broken Systems
The idea that women should have to “lean in” to systems that were never designed for them — instead of questioning why those systems remain exclusionary — is something I challenge every person and organisation to reflect on.
The problem isn’t that women lack ambition, confidence, or leadership skills. We don’t need more Women in Leadership courses to teach women how to “fit in”. The issue is that patriarchal systems continue to dominate workplaces, leadership, and society at large.
Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In was intended to encourage women to assert themselves (and it’s a worthwhile read), but it places the burden on women to fix systems that actively work against them. It doesn’t address structural barriers like unequal pay, lack of parental leave, workplace harassment, or deeply ingrained bias. Instead, it implies that if women simply push harder, they’ll be rewarded — but that’s not how systemic oppression works.
The alternative isn’t giving up — it’s recognising that the system itself needs to change. Women should have the freedom to lean out of toxic environments and instead build, demand, and shape spaces where they are respected and valued on their own terms.
The real conversation should be about dismantling patriarchal structures, not squeezing more women into them while they remain fundamentally unchanged.
Leaving the Room to Create Change
Throughout my career, I’ve seen women demonstrate extraordinary resilience, courage, and capability. The issue is that so much of that energy is spent just being “allowed” into the room. Imagine what we could achieve if we didn’t have to fight for that permission.
Sometimes the most powerful response is, in the most Kiwi way possible: “Yeah, nah… I’m not contributing to this ongoing bullshit.”
My personal commitment this year, in the spirit of accelerating action, is to leave the room. That may sound counterintuitive, but I’ve learned my energy is far better spent creating change elsewhere than fighting to be seen in spaces where I shouldn’t have to fight.
As a woman in business, I will no longer engage with people who behave in misogynistic or mansplaining ways. I’ve got better things to do.
I encourage you to consider the same. The women around me — including the 15 extraordinary women employed by Tertiary Extracts and Everee Women™ — deserve this commitment. When we model not tolerating it, we give others permission to do the same.
A Story of Women Supporting Women
Six years ago, I attended a trade tour of Malaysia and Singapore with the ASIANZ Foundation. At the time, I was navigating particularly challenging personal circumstances. On that trip, I met an extraordinary woman named Sharee. You can read more about Sharee’s story here.
Over the years, we’ve quietly supported one another — sharing knowledge, offering contacts, and cheering each other on. Sometimes, that quiet support makes all the difference.
Sharee and her business, Moka Eco Fibre, have gone on to develop the world’s first non-toxic eyelash glue — an extraordinary achievement from concept through to scientific execution.
In parallel, I’ve been part of the team behind Ovitage®, helped build Everee Women™, and developed products specifically designed to support women at every life stage.
These outcomes have been possible, in no small part, because of the confidence and support we’ve given one another as women supporting women.
