International Women’s Day is often associated with celebration. But it is also an opportunity to pause and reflect on the role each of us plays in creating a more equitable and inclusive world.
This year’s United Nations theme — Rights, Justice, Action for ALL Women and Girls — is a powerful reminder that progress does not happen by chance. It happens when individuals and organisations choose to act.
For those of us working in communication, that responsibility is significant. Communication influences whose voices are heard, which stories are told, and how information about rights, policies and opportunities reaches people.
As a woman — and as someone from a culturally and linguistically diverse background — this is something I care deeply about. I’ve seen firsthand how communication can open doors, create understanding and elevate voices that might otherwise go unheard.
At the Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence, we believe communication has the power to build trust, strengthen understanding and contribute to positive change. That belief sits at the heart of the work we do with communication professionals and organisations around the world.
To mark International Women’s Day this year, we invited members of the CSCE community to share their reflections on three questions connected to communication and this year’s theme.
Before sharing their perspectives, I wanted to reflect on those questions myself.
One of the questions we posed was:
Whose voices are missing from our campaigns, media outreach and storytelling?
Too often the voices missing from our campaigns and storytelling are those closest to the issues being discussed.
Women whose experiences do not fit neatly into mainstream narratives — women from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, migrant women, women with disabilities, and women working in roles that rarely attract media attention — are frequently underrepresented in public conversations.
Communication professionals have a responsibility to ask a simple but powerful question: who isn’t in the room?
When we broaden who we listen to and who we amplify, the stories we tell become more representative, more authentic and ultimately more impactful. People deserve to see themselves reflected in the stories that shape our understanding of the world.
When misinformation undermines women’s rights, how should communication professionals respond?
Misinformation thrives in environments where facts are unclear or communication is absent.
Communication professionals have an important role to play in responding with clarity, evidence and integrity. Our responsibility is not only to correct falsehoods but also to ensure accurate, accessible information reaches people in ways they can understand and trust.
That means using plain language, credible sources and consistent messaging. It also requires the confidence to challenge narratives that distort or undermine women’s rights.
Responsible communication cannot be passive when rights are at stake.
What is one simple action communication professionals can take to make their work more inclusive of all women and girls?
Finally, we asked contributors to reflect on one simple action communication professionals can take to make their work more inclusive of all women and girls.
One of the most effective actions communication professionals can take is to involve diverse voices earlier in the process.
When communication is developed behind closed doors and presented as a finished product, important perspectives are often missed. But when women from different backgrounds are invited to contribute to the message, the language and the story being told, communication becomes more inclusive by design.
Inclusive communication is not just about representation at the end of the process. It begins with participation.
There is a principle I often return to and that is, people support what they help create. The same principle applies to communication that genuinely reflects the diversity of the communities we serve.
International Women’s Day reminds us that progress is built through everyday actions — including the way we communicate.
For communication professionals, advancing rights, justice and opportunity begins with thoughtful choices about whose voices we elevate, how we share information and how inclusive our communication practices are.
We are grateful to the members of the CSCE community who contributed their perspectives to this conversation and for the work they do every day to strengthen communication as a force for understanding, inclusion and positive change.
