When is International Women's Day, International Women's Day theme #EmbraceEquity and why we celebrate

The theme of this year's International Women's Day is #EmbraceEquity. Cr: International Women's Day.

There have been huge strides over the past decade, however, there are still many significant inequalities to address.

Back in 2015, the overall gender pay gap in Scotland stood at 14.8%, with women overrepresented in informal, temporary and part time work, and more likely to be paid below the living wage, according to the Scottish Human Rights Commission.

That said, there are so many reasons we celebrate women’s achievements and this is why each year people around the globe come together to celebrate International Women’s Day. With a new theme, new ways to celebrate and #EmbraceEquity to get behind in 2023, there are plenty of things to get involved in and support this year.

Here’s more about 2023 theme and how you can get involved.

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When is International Women’s Day 2023

IWD 2023 is on Wednesday March 8th, 2023 which is also the second week of Women’s History Month.

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Why do we celebrate International Women's Day

The idea of International Women’s Day is to celebrate the achievements of women in all areas of society.

IWD organisers focus on several mission, in particular:

- Women and Technology

- Women At Work

- Women Forging Change

- Women Creatives

- Women’s Empowerment

- Women’s Health

- Women and Sport

You can find out more and get involved in some International Women’s Day events by taking a look at the website, with a wide range of event idea inspiration and organised national events from the IWD team to choose from in 2023.

International Women’s Day Logo 2023

The logo for 2023 International Women’s Day logo (found here) is made to symbolise the hope and action surrounding women's equality. The International Women's Day logo is a looping arrow which is circled with the female gender symbol at the inset.

International Women’s Day 2023 Theme

Each year, International Women’s Day chooses a new theme to celebrate and 2023 is no different.

In 2023, the theme is #EmbraceEquity. The organisers are also asking people to strike the #EmbraceEquity pose, which can be found here. You can also find various resources to plan your own IWD activity here.

On the theme of the year, the official IWD website stating: “The aim of the IWD 2023 #EmbraceEquity campaign theme is to get the world talking about Why equal opportunities aren't enough. People start from different places, so true inclusion and belonging require equitable action.

"Equity isn't just a nice-to-have, it's a must-have. A focus on gender equity needs to be part of every society's DNA. And it's critical to understand the difference between equity and equality.”

The 2022 theme of #BreakTheBias saw thousands of men and women across the globe submit photos showing their support for the theme which served to “elevate a global focus on identifying and calling out conscious and unconscious bias in order to help drive positive change for women worldwide.”