The Spark Loves: Women’s Day Edition
Happy International Women’s Day!
oday we take time to celebrate, honour, and appreciate women everywhere, recognizing how far we have come in terms of achieving rights for all humans, regardless of gender. All over the world, men and women are taking part in events, both large and small, to celebrate and to influence positive change. However, today is also a day when we must recognize how far we still have to go in order to achieve social, economic, and political parity worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, gender is a significant determinant of mental health, and cites that negative risk factors for common mental health disorders disproportionately affect women. Today, The Spark Institute celebrates women, and we have compiled a few things to commemorate the day and inspire you to do the same!
1) “For Every Girl, For Every Boy” Poster
We just love this poster (adapted from a poem by Nancy R Smith) because it reminds us that gender inequality affects all of us – not just women and girls. Empowerment for all, we love it!
This is an AMAZING international art project that is helping to raise awareness about gender-based street harassment. Tatyana is a Brooklyn-based artist who is known for her oil paintings, but she recently branched out as a muralist, taking her art directly to the streets. She speaks to the unwanted attention, comments, and harrassment that she and thousands of women are subjected to on a daily basis in New York – and everywhere! She draws the portraits of women whom she has spoken to and who have personally experienced such harassment, painting them on the streets, directly in the place where the offenses took place. She aims to create a female presence in the very areas that have become unsafe and uncomfortable for women. Check out her website here, and make sure you watch the introduction video below. Love, love, love!
‘Artifact’ is an amazing line of super clean, super healthy, natural skin care products. From face masks to lip balms, they have all the good stuff! Being a small company, all Artifact products are made by hand in small batches – AND their products are made with all the love! We have personally used many of their products, and vouch that they not only smell and feel great, but that we are fairly sure they probably taste great too! (Disclaimer: We haven’t actually eaten any Artifact products, and we don’t suggest you do either). We love their ingredients, their products, and what they’re all about.
Our number one recommendation is the mint-clementine lip balm – we literally can’t go anywhere without it!
We absolutely love celebrating International Women’s Day, and all the beautiful, strong, inspirational women around the world, but we encourage everyone to keep the conversation going with both the women AND men in your life. Because equality isn’t just about women – it is about creating a world in which everyone has the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities, REGARDLESS of their gender. To learn more about this year’s International Women’s Day campaign, visit the website here.
A very happy International Women’s Day from all of us at The Spark Institute!
