Every March, we kick off International Women’s Day celebrations with our International Women’s Day Festival. This is a three-day event packed with activities and content for customers, employees, Amazon sellers and partners. The festival celebrates those who are challenging gender stereotypes and building a more equitable world for women globally.
The celebrations are led by our Women at Amazon affinity group in partnership with teams across our business including Amazon Fresh, Prime Video, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon Music, Alexa and more.
The teams will be facilitating panel discussions, career coaching, fitness and meditation classes, music events and charity initiatives that everyone can get involved with. The celebrations aim to raise awareness of gender bias, call out discrimination, challenge gender stereotypes and champion inclusion.
Customers can head to Amazon.co.uk/IWD from 6 March to access a range of events and curated content from small businesses, Prime Video, Audible and more.
The work we do today could improve the likelihood of gender equity for future generations.
“At Amazon we’re joining the International Women’s Day celebrations to promote a culture of inclusivity, actively challenge stereotypes and speak out when biases and prejudice surface,” said Ines van Gennip, Leader of Women@ Amazon UK & Head of Amazon Shipping EU.
“The work we do today could improve the likelihood of gender equity for future generations. As a mother of two little girls, I’m passionate about this day and encourage my colleagues to get involved in the fantastic activities organised by our Women at Amazon group.”
Keep reading to discover all the ways Amazon will be celebrating women this month, and how to get involved.
Join us at our International Women’s Day Festival
For anyone interested in promoting equity within their organisation, attending our Customer Leader Panel with Tauja Randery, Amazon’s VP of Commercial Sales is a great opportunity to learn and network. The event on 8 March is open to all Amazon partners and customers, who can attend in person at our London offices or virtually.
Speakers include Claire Hamon who is Group CIO at Arriva Group, Sam Everington, CEO of Engine at Starling Bank, Karen Bullen, Head of Technology Network and Hosting at EasyJet and Paul Hammond, Chief Technology Officer at Zoopla and Trustee of Tech She Can.
The event aims to provide actionable insights and best practices for promoting equity within organisations, and attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and network.
On the evening of 8 March, there is also an opportunity to attend our panel event, Women in the Lead: In conversation with inspiring leaders making an impact. The panel will be held at our London offices and will explore themes around being a career woman, climbing the career ladder, advice to your younger self, intersectionality in the gender equity conversation and what it truly means to embrace equity in 2023.
Amazon launches campaign to highlight how women are changing the game in sport
For International Women’s Day 2023, Amazon Prime Video & Amazon Web Services (AWS) have collaborated on a campaign designed to highlight role models who are rising in the sport industry and how we can all #EmbraceEquity for women’s sport.
The campaign shines a spotlight on a host of inspirational women in sport, ranging from those behind and in-front of the camera, business-side and pitch-side, to celebrate how they are driving diversity, equity and inclusion within their own networks.
Those featured include Gabby Logan MBE, presenter and former international rhythmic gymnast, who highlights how International Women’s Day is about recognising how far women have come within the sporting fields, but also what work still needs to be done.
“Equity means possibility and it means opportunity,” said Gabby. “If these possibilities and opportunities are not the same for both men and women then there’s a problem. There’s something that we’ve got to address.”
Supporting women-owned businesses who sell on Amazon
In 40% of economies, women’s early-stage entrepreneurial activity is half or less than half of that of men’s (UN women.org). Amazon aims to empower small businesses in the UK, particularly female owned.
During the celebrations, we’ll be spotlighting women-owned small businesses on the Amazon Small Business Storefront. Customers can discover unique and inspiring products from several featured businesses, including Absolute Collagen, Toothbuckle and Scentered, and learn more about the amazing women behind the brands.
“Alexa, tell me about an incredible woman”
To mark International Women’s Day, Alexa devices will be showcasing the ‘Incredible Woman’ of the day between 8 – 10 March. Customers can ask, “Alexa, tell me about an incredible woman” each day to hear about prominent women.
Women featured include, Dame Claire Bertschinger, an Anglo-Swiss nurse and advocate on behalf of suffering people in the developing world, Ada Lovelace, a pioneer of computing science, Elena Gorolová, a human rights lawyer who campaigned against forced sterilization and discrimination against Roma women in Czechia, and many more.
Amazon’s Alexa also has a literary treat in store for customers this International Women’s Day. Acclaimed writer and actor Sudha Bhuchar has partnered with Alexa to bring us Evening Conversations, a warm-hearted monologue.
Customers just need to ask; ‘Alexa, read Evening Conversations by Sudha Bhuchar’. Join Sudha as she investigates her own sense of home and her place in the world. Listen for free on Alexa through March 2023.
Embracing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion all year round with Amazon
From the Amazon employees who serve our customers each day, to women and girls in the communities we operate in, Amazon has a longstanding commitment to gender equity. Along with our commitments, we have launched several initiatives designed to support, connect and empower women from all backgrounds and create a more equitable future for women and girls.
One example is Amazon Future Engineer, a comprehensive childhood-to-career programme that inspires, educates and enables young people from lower-income backgrounds to realise their potential in computer science with the help of workshops and bursaries for women. Another is AWS GetIT, an initiative designed by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to encourage girls aged 12-13 to consider a career in tech and to challenge long standing gender stereotypes.
Find out more about Amazon’s initiatives to support girls and women.
Visit Amazon.co.uk/IWD from 7 March to access a range of events and curated content from small businesses, Prime Video, Audible, books and more.
