Round table «International Women's Day»
International Women’s Day is a holiday celebrated annually on March 8 in a number of countries around the world. It appeared as a day of women’s solidarity in the struggle for equal rights and emancipation. In 1975, the UN General Assembly proclaimed March 8 as a day to celebrate the achievements of women in all areas of life and protest against remnants of inequality.
In the 1910s, the suffragette movement began the struggle for universal suffrage for women and the improvement of working conditions for industrial workers. Since then, the women’s movement has made great strides. In most countries of the world, women have received the right to vote in elections, receive secondary and higher education, work and receive wages in the same amount as men, the right to marry at their choice. These are now considered to be basic human rights, and few can imagine that it once was otherwise.
However, despite these successes, it is still impossible to talk about the full and universal equality of men and women in the modern world. In a number of countries with a traditional way of life, women’s rights are still being violated, they are not allowed to lead positions, work is being done to reduce their reproductive freedom, and cases of forced marriage at a young age are not uncommon. In developed countries, women face other challenges. First of all, it is the so-called “glass ceiling” and underpayment compared to men, unrealistic and unhealthy standards created by the beauty industry for its own profit, as well as harassment on social networks and attacks on women because of their beliefs, appearance, lifestyle.
The role of women cannot be underestimated. The purpose of the round table is to highlight the world of women in the historical perspective and the present, to identify the successes of the women’s movement and current problems, and to find ways to solve them. The participants will be 1st year undergraduate students of the Institute of Environmental Engineering. The program of the round table “International Women’s Day” will include students’ presentations in English on the subject of the event, watching educational videos in English, and discussion on the topic.