Exceptional women

They will join more than 100 exceptional women from diverse sectors including business, academia, and community services at the event organised by Newcastle City Council today (Friday, 7 March).

The University colleagues were nominated by city residents are:

• Professor Judith Rankin, Newcastle University’s Dean of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and Professor of Maternal and Child Health
• Dr Elaine Lopez, Lecturer in Applied Linguistics, School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences
• Maryam Mosleh, Postgraduate Teaching Assistant, School of Computing
• Dr Vicky Fawcett, Research Associate in Astrophysics, School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics
• Zoe Hingston, Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
• Eleanor Farrington, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisor, Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering
• Beth Gould, PGR, School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics
• Yujia Xu, PGR, School of Geography, Politics and Sociology
• Hamde Nazar, Professor of Pharmacy Education and Primary Care Research, School of Pharmacy
• Dr Ruth Houghton, Senior Lecturer in Law, Newcastle Law School

Accelerate Action

Professor Rankin said: “Congratulations to all those who have been nominated and will be celebrated today. This is even more special as nominations have been from city residents. It is important not only today but everyday, to acknowledge all the amazing women at the University who are working hard to advance gender equality.  This year’s IWD campaign theme is ‘Accelerate Action’ – we can all play a role in taking actions to address the systemic barriers that women still face.”

Cllr Karen Kilgour, Leader of Newcastle City Council, said: “It gives me great pride to see and hear all the amazing stories of the inspirational women from across the city and beyond who are making such a positive difference to our communities.

“We have strong and influential women in a variety of prominent positions, from our own Chief Executive here at the council, the North East Mayor and many MPs in the North East, to women at the helm of a range of important businesses, sectors and community positions all around us.

“That doesn’t mean, however, that we live in an equal society, and there is still significant progress to be made, such as the gender pay gap as one example. That's why I'm committed to breaking down the barriers people face with protected characteristics, of which sex is just one.

“This International Women’s Day we are incredibly excited to be holding this celebration of influential women from Newcastle and the wider region. Their stories are truly remarkable, and I have no doubt they will inspire others to go on and achieve their own successes.”

International Women’s Day takes place on Saturday 8 March and a number of events are taking place across the University to mark the occasion. They include a quiz and charity collection and a webinar featuring female leaders from our Newcastle, Malaysia and  Singapore campuses discussing leadership. A special edition of the University’s FROM podcast with Simone Roche MBE is now available to listen to.