International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer: Why the Green Cooling Revolution Needs More Women
By Blossom Ukoha A cooler world is not simply about turning on an air conditioner. Behind every refrigerator preserving food, every hospital storing vaccines, every cold room protecting agricultural produce and every building made safer during extreme heat is a rapidly evolving global industry — one that needs more women. As the world marks the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer on 16 September 2026, the focus is increasingly shifting from protecting the ozone layer to building a sustainable cooling economy. The 2026 theme, “Global action for a cooler planet,” marks ten years of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol and its drive to phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), powerful greenhouse gases used in cooling. For women, this transition represents more than an environmental agenda. It is an opportunity to participate in one of the world’s essential and expanding sectors, as engineers, technicians, entrepreneurs, researchers, policymakers and business leaders. A…
International Day of Democracy: When Women Have a Voice, Democracy Works Better
By Blossom Ukoha Every year on 15 September, the world marks the International Day of Democracy, a day dedicated to one of the fundamental…
Chantal Umutoni Kagame: The Woman Who Turned Phones Into Bank Accounts for Millions
By Blossom Ukoha For millions of people, a mobile phone is simply a device for communication. In Rwanda, under the leadership of Chantal Umutoni…
Meet the Inventors Behind Wearables Designed Just for Women’s Bodies
By Blossom Ukoha For years, women have worn smartwatches that could count their steps, measure their heart rates and analyse their sleep, yet offered…
Campaigning as a Woman: The Costs Nobody Talks About
“Women themselves have not even understood that [violence] is not the cost of participating in politics.”— Sandra Pepera, National Democratic Institute Running for office…
Global Funding Windows Every Female Founder Should Know About
By Laura Jones “The deeper concern isn’t just that women receive only 2 percent of VC funding. It is that this 2 percent still…
International Literacy Day 2026: 60 Years On, the Fight for Women’s Literacy Continues
By Blossom Ukoha At 42, a woman in a rural community in northern Nigeria sits with a notebook on her lap, slowly tracing letters…
From Intern to CEO: Celebrating Karen Carter’s Historic New Chapter
By Blossom Ukoha “I am deeply honored to assume the role of CEO and lead Dow into our next chapter… Our focus remains unwavering:…
Heidi O’Neill Takes the Helm: Inside Lululemon’s New CEO Playbook
By Blossom Ukoha “As I step into the C.E.O. role in September, my job will be to build on that foundation — to accelerate…
The Working Woman’s Guide to a Home That Actually Relaxes You
After a long day of meetings, deadlines, emails, caregiving and countless decisions, coming home should feel like a release. Yet for many working women,…
Charlyne Brumskine: A New Voice for Justice on West Africa’s Regional Bench
By Blossom Ukoha “Today, I speak not as a woman who is a lawyer, I speak as a lawyer who happens to be a…
Ahunna Eziakonwa: The Nigerian Woman Taking Africa’s Voice to the UN’s Top Table
By Blossom Ukoha “Africa is shaped like a question mark, but it has the answer the world is looking for.” For Ahunna Eziakonwa, Africa is…
