Gender Parity in Canada: A Way Forward

By: Glynis Middleton

Please consider joining us for the first session in our Gender Parity Series on July 21. More details here, we hope to see you there.

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CMC-Canada, let's move the needle on gender parity in Canada!

BACKGROUND

For the last fifteen years, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has been tracking and reporting on how well nations across the globe are doing at attaining gender parity. You see, the WEF has found that Gender Parity is a dimension of the globe’s social and economic sustainability and well-being.

In those fifteen years, Canada has ranked in the top 30 of nations around the world in aspects of gender parity. However, in the 2021 study, Canada lost traction and fell several positions to become 24th in the world according to the World Economic Forum’s annual Global Gender Gap index rankings. This in a year where, of the 156 countries ranked, 101 improved their scores from the 2019 index. This report concluded that at the current rate of change, gender parity might be achieved in approximately 135 years. 

Are we prepared to wait that long, or rather, shall CMC Canada take action and accelerate this national imperative? Who better than CMC-Canada’s cadre of organizational and societal change agents to lead this exceptional change management application?

MISSION

Our MISSION with this initiative is to provide CMC-Canada’s membership the opportunity to increase the profession’s public profile and to lever change management expertise by leading and advancing Canadian society into a world leadership position in the area of gender parity as measured by World Economic Forum’s Annual Global Gender Gap Index. The GOAL is to move Canada from 19th in the world in 2020 to within the top 10 of the WEF Global Gender Gap Index annual rankings by 2030.

PATHWAYS

We have determined a pathway to gender parity in Canada that might involve a three-pronged focus.

Who needs to be influenced?

• Corporations
• Policy Makers
• Public
• Media

Who needs to be onboard?

• Change Facilitators
• Thinkers
• Doers
• Policy Makers
• Change Influencers

• Taskforce
• Communications
• Policy Guides
• Implementation Guides

NEXT STEPS

In order to make progress in this multi-year, intergenerational initiative, we are going to need many change agents who are ready to engage and take a journey through next steps that may look like the key steps of Engagement, Communication, and Leadership.
 

Engagement

• Find those who share a similar passion
• Find those who wish to participate in a high impact change initiative
• Find those who wish to collaborate in a multi-year, intergenerational task force with clear objectives
• Engage media, corporations, and policy makers

Communication

• Inform the association, members’ clientele, and other associate stakeholders, as well as the public of the imperative nature of gender parity

Leadership

• Form a multi-year, intergenerational taskforce 
• Work with that task force to set clear objectives, formulate a tactical plan, and to undertake the execution of that tactical plan
• Devise and execute a plan to connect with and influence corporations, policymakers, and the media on issues of gender parity

The Ask

Where do you see yourself in this initiative? Where do your natural talents and passions lie? Do you like to write? Are you a lobbyist with deep connections to policy makers? Perhaps you’re a natural leader with administrative talents to inspire, organize, and lead people. There is a place for you in this initiative. 

Come explore the conversation that is kicking off on Wednesday July 21st, at 2pm Eastern. We will kick off our GENDER PARITY IN CANADA Discussion Series with our inaugural bimonthly roundtable discussion.

Please register for this FREE workshop here.