Gender Equity: Taking a local lens on an international issue

According to a 2020 study by the Pew Research Center, a median of 94% of people across 34 countries think it is important for women in their country to have the same rights as men, with 74% saying this is very important.

In the U.S., 79% of adults say it is very important for women to have equal rights with men and 18% say it is somewhat important. 64% of women said that the U.S. has not gone far enough in providing women with equal rights, compared to 49% of men.

Gender Equality Index / Source: Creative Commons

Gender equity has been and continues to be a significant topic of conversation around the globe and this fall, I’m looking forward to diving into gender and gender equity on a smaller scale, within the greater Ithaca and Tompkins County region.

During my three years so far at Ithaca College, including my work with The Ithacan and The Ithaca Voice, I’ve enjoyed getting to know the local Ithaca community on a deeper level. Outside of my reporting experiences, I’ve also become more invested in gender equity in other areas, like women’s sports, because of my time at the Women’s Sports Foundation and The Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sports.

I’m excited to dive into a variety of topics over the course of the fall, and equally excited to showcase how gender and gender equity impacts these topics on any scale.

During my work with The Ithacan, I’ve mainly been focused on news reporting, so I’m looking forward to using my news background to aid in my reporting while focusing on other areas of reporting that are not inherently news-based, like culture and arts and hyper-local stories.

The Ithaca Commons / Source: Syd Pierre

Some areas that I’m interested in covering include: The arts scene for women and queer artists in Ithaca, women-owned businesses and how gender equity impacts opportunities for everyone in the community.

As I start digging more into my beat, I want to hear from you: what issues in the Ithaca community would you like to see covered? How does gender equity and diversity impact you in the Ithaca community? Reach out and let me know!