What is leadership to you? When it comes to determining an individual’s ability to lead, does gender matter? How can you become a future leader?
Last Thursday night (November 28), beijingkids got answers to all those questions from the graduation ceremony of 2019 Venture Education’s Future Female Leaders (FFL) at the British Ambassador’s Residence.
This year, there were 30 participants in total. Among this group of 13 to 17-year olds, ten different schools in Beijing were represented, such as Harrow Beijing, Dulwich College Beijing, Yew Chung International School of Beijing (YCIS Beijing), and No. 171 Public High School. The participants also represented a diverse range of perspectives, with eight nationalities from five continents featured.
READ MORE: 8-Week Mentorship Program Helps Beijing Teen Girls Become Future Female Leaders
An Overview of the Event
The night kicked off with with an informative and interactive keynote speech by Danae Dholakia of the British Embassy Beijing, Candice Zhao of Educating Girls of Rural China, Danielle Byrnes of Harrow Beijing, and Charlotte Smith of Venture Education.
Ms. Dholakia shared her personal story of African adventure and being “naughty” and creative in the face of adversity. She laid out key strategies and reminders for living, working, and thriving authentically in the face of any challenge or setback.
As for “what is leadership?”, Ms. Zhao explained it with a saying from the famous Chinese book the Art of War, “Leadership is a matter of intelligence, trustworthiness, humaneness, courage, and discipline.”
Ms. Byrnes fully encourages female students to take the lead, and she’s really proud that they have learned so much through this program.
Ms. Smith mentioned the Plan International’s report “Taking the lead”, a global study of 10,000 girls and women, which reveals that while 76 percent of girls aspire to be leaders, there are many contributing factors that deter girls from following or achieving these aspirations.
“Connecting female students with female role models grants permission for these experiences to be shared in an understanding and supportive environment.” She believes seeing the reality of powerful women is the first step towards believing in the possibility for themselves.
As well as a celebration of the program, the event was also a launch of Venture Education’s latest report, “Girls’ and Women’s Education in the UK”, which highlights existing gender disparities in education and showcases UK examples of best practice on how to address them.
FFL participants were awarded certificates for their efforts and achievements, and and then a few were selected to participate in a panel discussion to provide their personal reflections and feedback.
Highlights of the Panel Discussion
From the panel discussion, we were impressed by the detailed and thoughtful answers shared by the panelists. Here is a selection of their responses.
On the importance of female leadership
Dora from Harrow Beijing, said, “Although now in the society sexism has been improved and not as big of a problem as in the past, it still exists. Female-led companies make up only 4 percent of the Fortune 500 companies. And that is not because we don’t have the ability, but we are still not being valued.”
On a dream career
Daniella from Daystar Academy said her massive love for animals will not change any time soon as to what her career would entail. Two of her favorite quotes from the program are “You are told your university and degree choice is the most important choice of your life, but the reality is it can influence your path, but learning does not stop when you step out of the classroom.” and “What you are told that you’ve got to get it right the first time, but the reality is to do your research, talk to people who have come before you. Don’t be afraid to change direction, and try to get as much diversified experience as possible.”
On the characteristics that a successful female leader should have
Thembekile from Pakistan Embassy College Beijing, believes a successful female leader should be someone that is confident, creative, emotionally intelligent, never gives up, and doesn’t only dream big but dreams small; as it takes a series of small steps to achieve a goal as big as gender equality.
Photos: Courtesy of Venture Education
