Girlguiding UK Provided me with Role Models

Earlier this week Girlguiding UK launched their research Girls Attitudes Explored…Role Models – findings which highlighted the lack of positive role models from a broad spectrum of fields. This research was picked right across the media with articles in the: Telegraph, Daily Mail, BBC, Daily Star, Independent, Metro, Times of India and more.

Taking a look at these articles make me despair at the role the media plays in all this – the majority are just propagating the whole issue they are reporting on. Instead of mentioning some amazing women who are successful in their areas (and also relatively well-known already) such as Lynne Featherstone, Jessica Ennis and Karen Brady, they plaster their articles with scantily clad images of the girls from TOWIE. I’m sorry media, but if you give no coverage at all to the diverse, accomplished women that girls and young women need to know about then you are the problem and not part of the solution.

I like to think of myself of someone who does look for positive role models and avoids reality TV at all costs, but I could probably still recognise more names in a list of ex-big brother contestants than one of the England women’s football squad. That is because celebrity for fames sake permeates our lives and amazing women are still sidelined to the point they are invisible until you specifically look for them.

I draw my inspiration for who I want to be like from role models beyond celebrity, but these are actually people I have met and I think the importance of that is shown by Mums being the highest ranked role model in the research. I can say that I aspire to emulate the likes of Lynne Featherstone, Leymah Gbowee and Michelle Bachelet but few 21 year olds are in the position where they’ve spoken to all three in person.

I most definitely have Girlguiding UK and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts to thanks for the role models they have provided me with – not only politicians, but also the leaders who supported and guided me growing up and those who gave me the responsibilities which ultimately stretched my ambitions. Sod the media – this movement has the potential to deliver strong, positive female role models to girls and young women every week. This is the thought behind our next exhibition project – ‘Made of Stars’

Aiming to focus on women who have contributed to science, technology, engineering and maths, ‘Made of Stars’ will bring lots of unknown women to the attention of today’s girls and young women. I want to show people the range of women already achieving in this field, how it can be fun, and how it contributes to so many different career paths. I’m not saying that every girl should go out and become an aeronautical engineer, but rather that every young person needs to realise that they can achieve whatever they set their mind to, and need not limit themselves only to the jobs that are stereotyped as gender appropriate.