Diversifying Leadership = Better Governance

The 2017 municipal election takes place  on Oct. 16 and a quick look at the candidates in Lethbridge shows only two of the eleven announced so far are women. With women making up more than half of our community, what’s stopping them from running in civic politics? After all, Lethbridge is known for strong female leadership, with Shannon Phillips and Maria Fitzpatrick providing provincial representation, and Rachael Harder as the Member of Parliament in Ottawa. The issue is often seen as one of certainty: Women need to be asked in order to consider a run for political office. This isn’t about self-confidence, so much as removing barriers related to the role of women in public life—and from there, building better government.

The Facts About Diversity

Public Policy
Polling shows that women care about different issues. The United Nations says that a critical mass of at least 30 per cent women is needed before governments produce public policy representing women’s concerns and before political institutions begin to change the way they do business.
Economic Performance
The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report highlights the strong correlation between a country’s gender gap and its economic performance, making the case for gender equality: countries that want to remain competitive and inclusive will need to make gender equality a critical part of their human capital development.
Decision Making
The Women on Boards study by MSCI noted that, “While homogeneous groups felt more confident about their decisions than diverse groups, the former groups’ decisions were more often wrong compared to those of diverse groups.”
These are just a few examples. There’s a substantial amount of research that shows that diversified leadership leads to better organizations and better government. This type of success begins with stronger female leadership, which begins with more women running for public office.

Call to Action
As the Sept. 18 nomination deadline for municipal candidates approaches, consider this: If you know a strong female leader who would make an excellent candidate for local government, let her know. Talk to her about running. Sign her nomination papers. Volunteer to help with her campaign. Encourage her to take the next step. Because if women don’t run, they can’t win.

For More Information
For more information on running for civic government in Lethbridge, check out the City of Lethbridge’s informative elections page: http://www.lethbridge.ca/City-Government/Elections/Pages/default.aspx
 
About the Author
Lisa Skierka is Business Development Lead of Lethbridge’s Great Excavations Inc., which is building innovation and manufacturing capacity in amphibious equipment, with a focus on environmental remediation and reclamation. In her spare time, Ms. Skierka is Chair of Equal Voice Alberta South, an organization dedicated to electing more women to all levels of political office in Canada.