History is filled with inspirational stories of women making a real difference, yet too often we focus on their looks, what they wear and how much they weigh

We must focus on women�s achievements, not looks

The saying that “behind every great man is an even greater woman”, has become a cliché. Why? Because if you dig into history, it rings true.
Let’s go back to 1876. A Swedish newspaper advertisement read: “Wealthy, highly educated elderly gentleman seeks lady of mature age, versed in languages, as secretary and supervisor of household.”
It was Alfred Nobel, the founder of the Nobel Prizes, who at the age of 43 must have felt old and lonely given his workaholic tendencies. (I am reminded of another saying here: “Work can never love you back.”) An Austrian woman, Countess Bertha Kinsky, applied and was hired. She worked for Nobel for a short while before leaving for Austria to marry Count Arthur von Suttner. But Nobel continued to admire and care about the now Baroness Bertha von Suttner, and they exchanged letters. It is said that she influenced Nobel, an armaments manufacturer who invented dynamite, to establish a prize for peace.
“Inform me, convince me and then I will do something great for the movement,” Nobel told the baroness.
She also became the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, in 1905. She had long been a prominent figure in the peace movement and wrote the 1889 anti-war novel, Lay Down Your Arms.
A woman may have had a great influence on Nobel, but women are still underrepresented among Nobel Prize winners, as they are in many other areas.
Over and over we hear how women are paid less than their male colleagues in the same positions, and how their work often gets less recognition from both officialdom and the public.
For example, between 1901 and 2015, 874 laureates and 26 organisations have been awarded the Nobel Prize. The total number of female winners? Just 49.
The Polish scientist Marie Sklodowska Curie is the first person and the only woman to have been honoured twice, with the 1903 Nobel Prize in physics and the 1911 Nobel Prize in chemistry. She was the first woman to win in both categories as well.
And no wonder, considering her philosophy on life. Curie said: “Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and, above all, confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.”
Her daughter, Irène Joliot-Curie, followed in her mother’s footsteps and won the chemistry prize in 1935. But it took until 2009 before Elinor Ostrom became the first woman to receive the economics prize.
Some notable Peace Prize winners are Albania’s Mother Teresa in 1979, Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi in 1991 and Pakistan’s Malala Yousafzai in 2014.
When companies consistently fail to put women into leadership positions, a quota system has proven to be an effective remedy. In Norway, the representation of women on company boards jumped from 5 per cent in 2000 to 40 per cent in 2007 after an official quota was introduced.
In India, there was a rush to appoint female relatives to the boards of stock exchange-listed companies by the March 31 deadline set by the market regulator. The Securities and Exchange Board of India wanted companies to have at least one woman on their boards; many simply took the easiest route to this and appointed a female relative of an existing director.
Is this good or bad? Nepotism would appear to defeat the purpose of the quota system, which is to empower all women, but it is still a positive step forward. One has to start somewhere, even if it is within the family. Nepotism today, meritocracy tomorrow?
There are other ways in which women are recognised, including Forbes magazine’s list of most powerful women in the world, published since 2004. Emirati women regularly make it on to that list, proving that when there is government and public support, women do take up whatever opportunities are given to them and excel. Prizes and lists highlight work that may go unnoticed and might inspire others.
One of my favourite stories is about Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr, once known as the most beautiful woman in the world, who invented a frequency-hopping communication system used by the US in the Second World War. She didn’t get any recognition for what was the precursor to the wireless technologies we use today until just before her death in 2000.
History is filled with inspirational stories of women making a real difference, yet too often we focus on their looks, what they wear and how much they weigh.

thenational.ae

History is filled with inspirational stories of women making a real difference, yet too often we focus on their looks, what they wear and how much they weigh

We must focus on women�s achievements, not looks

The saying that behind every great man is an even greater woman, has become a clich. Why? Because if you dig into history, it rings true. Lets go back to 1876. A Swedish newspaper advertisement read: Wealthy, highly educated elderly gentleman seeks lady of mature age, versed in languages, as secretary and supervisor of household. It was Alfred Nobel, the founder of the Nobel Prizes, who at the age of 43 must have felt old and lonely given his workaholic tendencies. (I am reminded of another saying here: Work can never love you back.) An Austrian woman, Countess Bertha Kinsky, applied and was hired. She worked for Nobel for a short while before leaving for Austria to marry Count Arthur von Suttner. But Nobel continued to admire and care about the now Baroness Bertha von Suttner, and they exchanged letters. It is said that she influenced Nobel, an armaments manufacturer who invented dynamite, to establish a prize for peace. Inform me, convince me and then I will do something great for the movement, Nobel told the baroness. She also became the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, in 1905. She had long been a prominent figure in the peace movement and wrote the 1889 anti-war novel, Lay Down Your Arms. A woman may have had a great influence on Nobel, but women are still underrepresented among Nobel Prize winners, as they are in many other areas. Over and over we hear how women are paid less than their male colleagues in the same positions, and how their work often gets less recognition from both officialdom and the public. For example, between 1901 and 2015, 874 laureates and 26 organisations have been awarded the Nobel Prize. The total number of female winners? Just 49. The Polish scientist Marie Sklodowska Curie is the first person and the only woman to have been honoured twice, with the 1903 Nobel Prize in physics and the 1911 Nobel Prize in chemistry. She was the first woman to win in both categories as well. And no wonder, considering her philosophy on life. Curie said: Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and, above all, confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained. Her daughter, Irne Joliot-Curie, followed in her mothers footsteps and won the chemistry prize in 1935. But it took until 2009 before Elinor Ostrom became the first woman to receive the economics prize. Some notable Peace Prize winners are Albanias Mother Teresa in 1979, Myanmars Aung San Suu Kyi in 1991 and Pakistans Malala Yousafzai in 2014. When companies consistently fail to put women into leadership positions, a quota system has proven to be an effective remedy. In Norway, the representation of women on company boards jumped from 5 per cent in 2000 to 40 per cent in 2007 after an official quota was introduced. In India, there was a rush to appoint female relatives to the boards of stock exchange-listed companies by the March 31 deadline set by the market regulator. The Securities and Exchange Board of India wanted companies to have at least one woman on their boards; many simply took the easiest route to this and appointed a female relative of an existing director. Is this good or bad? Nepotism would appear to defeat the purpose of the quota system, which is to empower all women, but it is still a positive step forward. One has to start somewhere, even if it is within the family. Nepotism today, meritocracy tomorrow? There are other ways in which women are recognised, including Forbes magazines list of most powerful women in the world, published since 2004. Emirati women regularly make it on to that list, proving that when there is government and public support, women do take up whatever opportunities are given to them and excel. Prizes and lists highlight work that may go unnoticed and might inspire others. One of my favourite stories is about Hollywood star Hedy Lamarr, once known as the most beautiful woman in the world, who invented a frequency-hopping communication system used by the US in the Second World War. She didnt get any recognition for what was the precursor to the wireless technologies we use today until just before her death in 2000. History is filled with inspirational stories of women making a real difference, yet too often we focus on their looks, what they wear and how much they weigh. thenational.ae