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On International Women’s Day, KBN invites you to celebrate the achievements of women in all spheres of life. This year’s theme, Cultural Transformation, sets out to remind us that gender equality, inclusion and diversity remains a significant challenge, one that is hindering potential competitiveness, growth and prosperity. A lot of efforts and progress have been registered at regional, national and international levels towards achieving empowering women and elevating them politically, economically, socially, and culturally. In Kerry we look forward to a bright future with even more women in higher-wage jobs throughout high-growth sectors.

Our event, Cultural Transformation is comprised of a morning session of thought-provoking presentations held by inspirational women who are leaders in their field, followed by lunch in a dynamic networking environment.

One such leader is Orla Coughlan. Orla is member of the leadership team of 30% Club Ireland whose focus has become synonymous with building gender balance on boards. The 30% Club is working towards having women in 30% of key leadership positions by 2030. The club does not believe mandatory quotas are the right approach. Instead, it supports a voluntary approach in order to realise meaningful, sustainable change.

The event is open to all and not only highlighted by strong keynote speakers in the domains of women in business but also women changing the world in other spheres. Joanne O’Riordan, who will place emphasis on the need for inclusion, is a woman who spearheaded a campaign against cuts to disability which led to her appearance on RTÉ’s Late Late Show. Joanne is one of seven people suffering from a rare disease known as Tetra-amelia syndrome. The Irish Times described her TV appearance as "one of the guests on the show in recent years who has made the most impact on viewers". In 2012 Joanne received a standing ovation for her address to the United Nations on the use of technology, where she challenged those present to build a robot for her to use. Later her brother made a film on her life titled “No Limbs No Limits”.

Other speakers include Tammy Darcy, founder of the Shona Project. Shona has devoted her energies into ensuring that women and girls must have the tools they need to succeed. Sinéad Devlin from Belfast will cover the controversial topic of “Unconscious Bias”. The session investigates the unconscious feelings we have towards other people. Sinéad believes that unconscious feelings can play a strong part in influencing our judgement of certain people and groups, away from being balanced or even-handed in many different areas of life.

The morning aptly kicks off with Lisa Fingleton. Lisa is the Project Coordinator of Moving On, a new employment project for women in Kerry who wish to return to work. The project supports women through training, work experience and direct links with employers. Lisa has over 20 years experience in promoting equality and inclusion across all sectors.

MC for the event is Fiona Stack, General Manager of Kerry Radio and Fiona will also chair the panel discussion, which will allow delegates to engage with our guest speakers.

The event will be held in The Brehon Hotel in Killarney and starts at 9.30am with refreshments on arrival. Organisers and promoters of KBN say they are working diligently to encourage women to enter and succeed in the workforce while addressing the many barriers women still face in achieving economic success, including those that impede women’s access to capital, markets, and networking opportunities. Tickets for the event cost between €10 and €25 are available online at kbnwomensday.eventbrite.ie