5 Books to Read During Women's Month
March means it’s time to celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day! For those of us that spend so much time in this ecosystem, this month is a special time to celebrate those who came before us, those that inquire us today, and those we inspire to lead in the future. It is also a great time to raise awareness of the inequalities and the of consequences the lack of representation has on all of society. If you are looking for ways to brush up on the female-impact on everything from transportation and product design to government policy and climate change, here is a list of books to consider:
Women Driven Mobility: Rethinking the Way the World Moves
by Katelyn Shelby Davis (me) & Kristin Shaw
Where do women fit into the automotive industry? In every possible space—including those they have yet to invent. As Katelyn Shelby Davis and Kristin Shaw demonstrate in Women Driven Mobility, women are in leadership roles in all aspects of the industry. Once barriers are removed, women can expand their influence and create more impactful work. Davis and Shaw seek to bring awareness and reroute this through a series of case studies that elevates the voices of women working in 11 vital pillars of the mobility industry: awareness and community advocacy, design and engineering, funding, infrastructure, marketing and communications, mobility on demand, placemaking, policy and legislation, sustainability and climate resilience, talent and education, and technology and innovation.
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
by Caroline Criado Perez
Imagine a world where your phone is too big for your hand, where your doctor prescribes a drug that is wrong for your body, where in a car accident you are 47% more likely to be seriously injured, where every week the countless hours of work you do are not recognized or valued. If any of this sounds familiar, chances are that you’re a woman.
Invisible Women shows us how, in a world largely built for and by men, we are systematically ignoring half the population. It exposes the gender data gap – a gap in our knowledge that is at the root of perpetual, systemic discrimination against women, and that has created a pervasive but invisible bias with a profound effect on women’s lives.
Award-winning campaigner and writer Caroline Criado Perez brings together for the first time an impressive range of case studies, stories and new research from across the world that illustrate the hidden ways in which women are excluded from the very building blocks of the world we live in, and the impact this has on their health and wellbeing. From government policy and medical research, to technology, workplaces, urban planning and the media – Invisible Women reveals the biased data that excludes women. In making the case for change, this powerful and provocative book will make you see the world anew.
Mother of Invention: How Good Ideas Get Ignored In An Economy Built For Men
by Katrine Marçal
We live in a world shaped by gender. Virtually every aspect of our existence – from the cars we drive and the luggage we carry, to the defining inventions of our past and the ideas that shape our future - is affected by our deeply held beliefs about the role of men and women within society. It’s the reason why, every day, extraordinary inventions and innovative ideas are ignored by investors. And why it took more than 5,000 years to attach wheels to a suitcase. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
For too long we have underestimated the consequences of sexism in our economy, and the way it holds all of us – women and men - back. In Mother of Invention bestselling author Katrine Marçal sets the record straight and shows how, in a time of crisis, the ideas and ingenuity of women are the key to our future.
Secrets of the Sprakkar: Iceland's Extraordinary Women and How They Are Changing the World
by Eliza Reid
The Canadian first lady of Iceland pens a book about why this tiny nation is leading the charge in gender equality, in the vein of The Moment of Lift.
Iceland is the best place on earth to be a woman—but why? For the past twelve years, the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report has ranked Iceland number one on its list of countries closing the gap in equality between men and women. What is it about Iceland that enables its society to make such meaningful progress in this ongoing battle, from electing the world’s first female president to passing legislation specifically designed to help even the playing field at work and at home?
The answer is found in the country’s sprakkar, an ancient Icelandic word meaning extraordinary or outstanding women.
Eliza Reid—Canadian born and raised, and now first lady of Iceland—examines her adopted homeland’s attitude toward women: the deep-seated cultural sense of fairness, the influence of current and historical role models, and, crucially, the areas where Iceland still has room for improvement. Throughout, she interviews dozens of sprakkar to tell their inspirational stories, and expertly weaves in her own experiences as an immigrant from small-town Canada. The result is an illuminating discussion of what it means to move through the world as a woman and how the rules of society play more of a role in who we view as equal than we may understand.
In the Company of Women: Inspiration and Advice from over 100 Makers, Artists, and Entrepreneurs
by Grace Bonney
New York Times Bestseller; Named One of the Ten Best Books of the Year by Essence; and Named a Best Holiday Gift Book by Real Simple, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Boston Globe, and more
100 exceptional and influential women describe how they embraced their creative spirit, overcame adversity, and sparked a global movement of entrepreneurship. Media titans and ceramicists, hoteliers and tattoo artists, comedians and architects—taken together, these profiles paint a beautiful picture of what happens when we pursue our passions and dreams.
Recently Added to My Collection
This month I added two new books to my collection. Although I haven’t had the pleasure of reading either yet, I still wanted to share:
Intersection: Reimagining the Future of Mobility Across Traditional Boundaries
by Alisyn Malek
Mobility and transportation mean different things to people, even to those who work in various aspects of the ecosystem - from the movement of people or goods to the development of the infrastructure that enables mobility. For decades these different parts of the ecosystem have been approached as entirely independent industries, but the quickened pace of technological change has driven the need to reconsider how these distinct groups create the vibrant tapestry that is our mobility ecosystem. This book seeks to capture the varied perspectives as a collection of diverse views on the future of mobility, to provide a clearer view on the broad base of possibility and opportunity across this interconnected system.
What Do You Mean a Black Girl Can’t Design Cars?
by Emeline King
Inspiring, motivating phenomenal autobiography, detailing the life of Emeline King, the First African American Female Transportation Designer for Ford Motor Company. Tearing down racial and gender barriers this little girl from Detroit, Michigan chased relentlessly the dream of designing cars like her dad, for Ford Motor Company. You'll be inspireded by her struggles to blast through the glass ceiling. Her fight for equality and her historic accomplishments.