08/03/2025
Happy Women's Day! Here featuring our very own GFF e.V. Vice-President Dr. GRACIE BORDEOUS International Women's Day speech during the ECO GLOBAL UNIVERSE Inspirational Women Awards 2025 in the Netherlands last March 1, 2025.
Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed guests, fellow awardees, organizers of the Eco Global Universe Inspirational Women Award 2025 and most importantly, the incredible women and girls joining us today, I would like to direct my speech today to the theme of this years International Womens Day celeberation which is „For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment“
Today, we stand together under a banner of strength, unity, and unwavering determination. We gather here not just to celebrate women but to champion a cause greater than any one of us—the cause of Rights. Equality. Empowerment. These are not just words. They are a declaration, a call to action, a demand that cannot wait any longer.
For centuries, women and girls have fought against the tides of discrimination, exclusion, and injustice. We have battled for our voices to be heard, for our choices to be respected, for our futures to be our own. Moreover, while we have made remarkable progress, the journey is far from over. The question we must ask ourselves today is not whether equality is possible—it is how quickly we can make it a reality for all women and girls, everywhere.
Empowerment begins with recognition. It begins with acknowledging that every woman, regardless of her background, race, social status, or nationality, deserves the same opportunities as her male counterparts. It begins with understanding that a girl’s potential is limitless when she is given the tools, the education, and the freedom to shape her own destiny. We cannot speak of progress while millions of girls are still denied education, while women continue to be underrepresented in leadership, and while gender-based violence remains an epidemic that society too often turns a blind eye to.
We must remind the world that women do not need permission to lead. We have always been leaders. We have led movements. We have led families. We have led revolutions. Yet, despite this, we remain grossly underrepresented in politics, in business, and in decision-making spaces. Why? Because the structures built to sustain inequality have not been dismantled. Because we are still asked to wait. Because we are still told we are too ambitious, too emotional, too much.
Let me be clear—there is no such thing as too much when it comes to fighting for justice. Women belong in every room where decisions are made. Women belong in parliaments, in boardrooms, in courtrooms, in classrooms, and in laboratories. Women belong in the media, in sports, in technology, in diplomacy. And not just a few women—all women. We must move beyond token representation. It is not enough to have one woman at the table when there is room for many. It is not enough to celebrate the achievements of a select few while millions remain unheard.
And to the young girls listening today, dreaming of a future where they are not told what they can or cannot do—I say to you: Take up space. Own your voice. Challenge the narratives that tell you that you are less than. You are powerful, you are brilliant, and you are enough just as you are. Do not wait for the world to grant you a seat at the table. Build your own table. Break the doors down if you must. Because the world does not change when we ask politely—it changes when we demand what is rightfully ours.
This fight is not just for women alone. To the men standing with us today, to the allies in this movement, I say this: Your role is critical. Equality is not a favor; it is a fundamental human right. Challenge the biases you see. Speak up when women are silenced. Recognize your privilege and use it to uplift those who have been denied the same opportunities. When we speak of empowering women, we are not speaking of taking power away from men. We are speaking of building a world that is fairer, just, and better for everyone.
And so, let this International Women’s Day not just be a moment of reflection but a moment of action. Let us commit—each and every one of us—to accelerating the change that women and girls across the world deserve. Let us push for policies that ensure equal pay, let us demand laws that protect women from violence, let us work to eliminate the barriers that keep women from achieving their full potential. Let us never accept the excuse that change takes time.
Time is not a luxury that women and girls can afford. Equality delayed is equality denied. And we refuse to wait any longer.
This is our time. This is our moment. And together, we will not stop until every woman and every girl, in every corner of the world, can stand tall knowing that she is valued, she is respected, and she is free.
Thank you.
DR. GRACIE BURDEOUS, Keynote Speaker
EGU Inspirational Women Awards 2025
BEST WOMAN SCIENTIST OF THE YEAR
