Celebrate International Women's Day

Today, March 8, is International Women's Day, a day for recognizing women's contribution to societies around the globe, both past and present, and for discussing their need for equal rights. While each country or entity celebrating the Day can select its own theme each year, the United Nations has named the theme of the Day for 2010, "Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all."

International Women's Day has been celebrated for almost 100 years. The first International Women's Day occurred in 1911 at the initiative of Clara Zetkin, leader of the Women's Office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany. Zetkin introduced the idea of setting aside a day to recognize women at the second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen in 1910. The more than 100 attendees at the conference, representing unions, socialist parties and working women's clubs from 17 countries, as well as the Finnish parliament, unanimously supported Zetkin's proposal.

Hundreds of events occur around the world to recognize the Day; there are 732 events currently scheduled. Of these, 124 are planned in cities and towns around the United States, such as a women's tea in Denver, a film screening in Cape Cod and a solidarity march in Dayton, to name a few.

The Day also represents an opportunity to take action. Women are important contributors to the global economy, growing 60 to 80 percent of the food in developing nations and serving as breadwinners in 1 in 3 homes worldwide, according to the World Food Programme. Even so, women and children in poor countries are most vulnerable to food insecurity, so emergency food relief programs and other interventions are particularly important to their survival and well-being. You can send a message of solidarity or find other ways to help, including volunteering at a women's shelter, girls' empowerment organization or other related agency near you.

Photo by babasteve via Flickr, logo courtesy of Aurora GCM Limited.