High Country Life

Women were heavily limited in their career choices due to cultural norms and legal restrictions. Only educated women could pursue careers over jobs; it may be more challenging for daughters of such families to receive support in doing so.

NPF Inclusive Storytelling grants provide opportunities to explore women’s history through projects funded by NPF. Visit our National Park sites’ collections of women’s stories – both past and present – told in their own voices.

Women’s Role in Agriculture

Women play an essential role in agriculture economies worldwide, from breeding livestock and cultivating food crops, to raising poultry and small livestock, planting and harvesting, providing water services, sanitation solutions, feeding millions of people globally as well as offering various other services including sanitation (Jensen 1984). Unfortunately due to cultural and structural limitations limiting ownership of land (Jensen 1984).

On many farms in Southern Alberta, men and women were assigned distinct responsibilities and tasks; decisions on insurance and planning decisions were typically left solely up to men. Some observers saw this division of labor as inefficient from an agricultural perspective and detrimental to marital relations; however, more recently some women farmers are taking on leadership roles – an emerging trend across North America.

Women operating farms across the US increased significantly between 2012 and 2017, and primary farmers from this demographic are more prevalent than male counterparts in every state except California and Texas. Texas boasts one of the highest proportions of women primary farmers per state due to having many white female residents as its residents make up nearly 25% of primary farmers statewide. Although this data includes space for only one operator per farm (typically male), making it impossible to know precisely how many women farmers there are operating farms.

An emerging global movement seeks to provide women in agriculture an equal playing field by equipping them with the skills and resources they require for success, such as better access to finance, more secure sources of income, as well as enhanced social and political standing.

Gender inequality in developing countries results in 20%-30% lower farm yields for farms run by women than men, creating poverty for 238,000 Malawians, Ugandaans and Tanzaniaans each year. If this gap could be closed it could significantly alleviate poverty levels across these nations.

Women’s Role in Medicine

Women have long been engaged in medicine as early as the 1200s. Hildegard of Bingen was an internationally acclaimed medieval abbess and physician renowned for her use of natural therapies such as herbs. Hildegard wrote about these methods of healing in her Causae et Curae work. However, throughout history women occupying less medical practice than men depending on location, socioeconomic status and other factors.

More and more women are graduating medical schools each year, increasing the global population of female physicians. Yet their role remains complicated and dependent on multiple factors including implicit gender and maternal biases, workplace discrimination, work-life policies, cultural norms and expectations and structural barriers.

According to the Center for American Progress, female doctors face unique obstacles that impede both their professional and personal advancement. This is particularly true if they are mothers; also more frequently female doctors tend to hold less senior clinical roles than their male counterparts, which often results in lower salaries or limited opportunities for advancement or leadership roles.

Women often struggle to balance work/life demands and expectations more easily than their male colleagues; this may cause feelings of insecurity and reduced job satisfaction for those working in female-dominated fields.

Some of these problems can be remedied through changes to working conditions and evaluation criteria, such as changing how medical institutions recognize the unique contributions female doctors bring to healthcare delivery. Furthermore, physicians need mentors who will support them during the difficult stages of their careers.

Doctors interviewed for this article expressed great optimism about the future of women in medicine, emphasizing honesty, kindness, and humility as key components to success in this profession. Furthermore, they advised young female physicians to remain strong when fighting for what they believe in; finally they advised seeking out supportive environments while accepting challenging assignments.

Women’s Role in Politics

Kofi Annan has identified women’s empowerment as one of the most effective tools for development. Women-led civil society organizations and political leaders play a crucial role in forming strong institutions that ensure accountability and transparency – particularly post-conflict or transitional situations. Furthermore, women also play an invaluable role in peace-making processes by building public support while adding gender considerations into discussions of conflict resolution and peacekeeping processes.

American history is filled with women paving the way in various fields; Rebecca Latimer Felton made history when she became the first woman appointed to a senatorial seat and Florence Ellinwood Allen made history when she became the first female Supreme Court justice. More recently, an unprecedented record number of women ran for office in 2021 – more than 60 newly-elected members of Congress were added and it marked an all-female freshman class for the first time ever!

Clara Cressingham and Carrie C. Holly of Colorado were elected to state legislature, while Frances Klock and Martha Hughes Cannon became the first women ever to serve as leadership roles in Colorado Senate and House of Representatives respectively. Finally, Deb Haaland made history when she became the first Native American female cabinet secretary ever while Kamala Harris and Nancy Pelosi are two high-profile female politicians ever.

Despite these successes, an increasing share of women are increasingly skeptical that voters are ready to elect more women to leadership positions. Women are twice as likely as men to cite this factor as being responsible for why there are still so few female political officeholders.

Women participating in politics allow their voices and priorities to be represented in policies and legislation, especially where state action has direct repercussions for everyday lives, such as environmental protection or healthcare provision.

Rwanda Women Parliamentarians Forum was created to combat violence against women by including voices from local communities and men as equal partners in its process. Through advocacy efforts, 130 gender-related commitments were added into Rwanda’s peace agreement demonstrating the positive effect that having women participate in political negotiations has on creating sustainable peace agreements.

Women’s Role in Business

Women in business have quickly become essential elements in many fields from real estate and technology to healthcare. Their influence extends from how businesses run to which products and services they offer and the way that people collaborate together – yet there is still some distance between the reality of work for women and equality at work; studies indicate this trend may be changing slowly over time.

Women historically were often engaged in family and domestic businesses that went unaccounted for when historians compile data, altering our perspective of their contributions to global economic systems.

Women entering the business world were expected to fit seamlessly into a culture and structure created by men. Though this assumption might seem unwise in hindsight, it was widespread at the time and any woman aspiring to a leadership position must adopt masculine behaviors and styles in order to succeed.

At the same time, research indicates that women tend to be perceived as more nurturing, collaborative, affectionate and caring than men – traits which can prove invaluable in the business environment. Women have demonstrated exceptional skill at global leadership skills such as relationship-building and diplomacy.

Today, women-owned businesses have seen tremendous growth. Though women still remain underrepresented in leadership positions, progress is being made. According to one recent study, 11.6 million businesses owned by women occupy 14 percent of global self-financed businesses worldwide.

As the business landscape develops, more women may find success in their endeavors. Unfortunately, however, they will continue to face several hurdles, such as gender stereotyping and cultural discrimination that prevent equal treatment with male peers.

One major source of difficulty lies within traditional business environments that emulate hierarchies where processes tend to overshadow the focus on results. Furthermore, evidence indicates that an environment featuring high degrees of power distance, individualism and uncertainty avoidance may not be supportive for female entrepreneurs (Bullough et al. 2017).