This week, Bucks is celebrating the achievements and sharing the views of our female leaders, students, and staff for International Women's Day (IWD).

IWD is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. This year’s theme is Each for Equal, with the aim that an equal world is an enabled world.

Second-year BA (Hons) Creative Advertising student Kia Wing is a social media activist and the Women’s Officer for Bucks Students' Union and she has written about her role and the importance of IWD.

“I am going to be heavily involved in International Women’s Day. It means a lot to me because it’s a day to celebrate ourselves and what women have achieved throughout history.

“Being a woman, for many, is not about fluffiness, pink, and hearts. It’s about being the person you want to be, without letting anyone else hold you back.

“It’s just a gender but it has picked up a lot of stigmas and stereotypes through the years. Those don’t apply to all of us and that’s what it’s about for me. It’s about celebrating that we are all different. I’d like our IWD celebrations to be highly inclusive, and to celebrate diversity in a group where the only thing that brings us together is our self-assigned gender identity.

“I have decided to transform the role of Women’s Officer in to a more gender-based role, covering gender-based issues as well as just women’s. The title remains Women’s Officer, however my focuses are different.

“It is important for me as a feminist (which should and most certainly means equality) to also highlight the harassment and oppression that also comes with the trans, gender, non-conforming and non-binary community, as well as typical male problems such as the stigma behind emotion and the awful phrase ‘man up’.

“My first campaign as Women’s Officer which ran this Valentine’s Day was called #IAmEnough and was about self-love and appreciating yourself, which is something universal. This was a very inclusive and diverse campaign for all to get involved in. It was based on a universal flaw in today’s society; being unable to recognise your own positive features, whether that be personality, work ethic, social skills, or anything else.”

Follow Bucks New University’s website and social media this week to see our activity for IWD 2020.

Please also share news and information about your events by linking to the University's Twitter feed at @bucksnewuni and Bucks Students' Union's at @buckssu using #IWD2020 and #EachforEqual.