On October 24 in Paris, Business at OECD/BIAC hosted its third workshop on gender equality, addressing the third “E” of the OECD Project on Gender — “Education.” The workshop presented business initiatives that promote lifelong training and education of women, explored questions related to soft skills and career preferences, and discussed the impact of the digital economy and developments in technology for women at work. This year’s workshop was sponsored by Deloitte and Dell.
The focus was on STEM education. Keynote remarks were delivered by Dame Julia Goodfellow, vice chancellor of the University of Kent, who discussed the differences in subjects studied by women and men at universities (almost 70 percent of students studying languages are female, while almost 80 percent of students studying computer science are men), as well as obstacles women face in the later stages of their careers.
USCIB Senior Counsel Ronnie Goldberg provided on overview from the business perspective. She recounted that the first BIAC gender equality workshop had focused on “Employment,” including the “leaking pipeline” of female leadership. The second BIAC workshop shifted its gaze to “Entrepreneurship,” addressing women in the ICT sector and key activities for companies around the world in supporting women entrepreneurs, such as providing finance, mentoring and leadership. Goldberg discussed how since these two workshops, progress on gender equality has not come as fast as desired. She said this is because changes involve not only policy, but also shifts in social and cultural attitudes.
The first panel was full of updates by ambassadors to the OECD from Canada, Germany and Chile, as well as from the OECD secretariat. They discussed the status of women at work in their respective countries, and outlined various initiatives taken by government to support girls and women in STEM fields. The second panel looked at soft skills, training and education, and how to leverage gender balance for business success. Speakers, including USCIB member Coca-Cola, discussed efforts to mitigate unconscious and implicit bias, the link between having female leadership to better understand consumers, who are often women, and once again, understanding the reasons for the “leaking pipeline” and how to prevent such leaks.
A working lunch was led by representatives from Deloitte, who discussed the lack of women in STEM subjects not related to healthcare, using the United Kingdom as an example, and how to change this outlook for women in STEM. Suggestions included starting in early schooling, by giving young girls greater exposure to female professionals working in STEM and mitigating unconscious reinforcement of gender stereotypes.
The last session centered on the impact of the digital economy — on women in ICT sectors, how companies are educating women on technology, and how both women and companies are using technology to grow professionally. ICT company representatives, such as USCIB members IBM, Google and Dell, emphasized the benefits of having female employees, and discussed individual company initiatives to encourage young women to enter digital careers. Speakers stressed the importance of encouraging young girls’ confidence about their skills in STEM subjects, and the importance of demystifying the actual skills needed to succeed in the digital economy.
BIAC will release a report of the workshop and the issues raised during discussions. Reports from the previous workshops can be found here.
A recent report published by the United Nations argues that low-income countries should be allowed to override pharmaceuticals patents so they can access a cheaper supply of generic drugs.
“As a fellow in the USCIB and CBHR program I received a full array of practical training on the many instances where business and human rights intersect. In today’s business world, leaders at the most successful companies are discovering that human rights issues impact multiple facets of their business model. Our fellowship trainings prepared me well to understand and address these issues in a way that can create value for the company as well as society.” – Nancy 
“The Fellowship was a great opportunity to see firsthand how the operations of a multinational corporation can impact the human rights of people around the world. Like many apparel and footwear brands, New Balance is beginning to devote more resources to addressing this impact. As a Fellow, I was able to work on embedding human rights thinking into New Balance’s business practices and develop processes to better identify and mitigate existing human rights issues. The field of business and human rights is rapidly growing, and this Fellowship gave me the opportunity to get in on the ground floor and gain valuable experience.” – Jeff 
“Through the USCIB-Stern Fellowship at PepsiCo, I was able to put theory into practice. Although I was very interested in issues concerning business and human rights prior to this summer, my experience in tackling such issues were primarily academic. At PepsiCo, I was able to see first-hand how human rights considerations are taken in tandem with critical business decisions. The fellows’ training that supplemented my day to day projects further exposed me to the cross-industry work being done on business and human rights issues. Over the last 12 weeks, I have had the privilege of working with passionate individuals who have inspired me to continue working in social impact and responsibility within corporations.” – Kimi