100 Women (BBC)
100 Women is a BBC multi-format series established in 2013. The annual series examines the role of women in the 21st century and has included events in London and Mexico. Announcement of the list is the start of an international "BBC's women season", lasting three weeks including broadcast, online reports, debates and journalism on the topic of women. Women around the world are encouraged to participate via social media and comment on the list, as well as on the interviews and debates that follow release of the list.
History
After the 2012 Delhi gang rape, then BBC Controller Liliane Landor, BBC editor Fiona Crack and other journalists, were inspired to create a series focusing on the issues and achievements of women in society today. They felt that many of the issues women faced were not getting in-depth coverage, and in March 2013 a "flood of feedback from female listeners" was received by the BBC to the effect that the corporation should provide more "content from and about women."The BBC launched this series in 2013 to address the under-representation of women in the media. Women to participate in the first programme were chosen by survey in 26 different language services. Programming ran over the course of a month, culminating in a conference held on 25 October, in which 100 women from across the world discussed issues they shared. A wide range of topics were debated covering employment challenges, feminism, motherhood, and religion, to examine both the cultural and social challenges women faced in living their lives. One debate discussed whether being a feminist and a woman of faith was possible. The debate concluded with the majority thinking they excluded each other. The series included an interview with Malala and this was the first that had ever been broadcast.
The small team buddy-the women asking them to keep in touch with each other for at least twelve months. They have similar roles but the two experience those roles in different parts of the global society. The pairing is designed to make sure that the initiative has a legacy.
The series has since covered many topics, including education, healthcare, equal pay, genital mutilation, domestic violence, and sexual abuse and seeks to provide women with a platform to discuss how to improve the world and eliminate sexism. Women included on the list are from around the globe, and involved in diverse fields of endeavour. Women who are already famous are included, as well as people who are less known.
Laureates
2024
The 2024 list was released on 3 December and included women facing conflicts and humanitarian crises. The 2024 list was subdivided into five categories, including 11 in the category Climate Pioneers.Climate pioneers
Culture and education
Entertainment and sport
Politics and advocacy
Science, health and technology
2023
The 2023 list was released on 21 November and it included 21 women involved with climate change. The laureates included the Indian cricketer Harmanpreet Kaur, Aitana Bonmatí, Michelle Obama, Amal Clooney, Timnit Gebru, Trần Gấm and Huda Kattan. The list was subdivided into four categories: Culture & Education, Entertainment & Sport, Politics & Advocacy and Science, Health & Tech, with 28 of the laureates dubbed climate pioneers.Politics & Advocacy
Entertainment & Sport
Culture & Education
Science, Health & Tech
2022
The list for 2022 was released on 6 December. Women included this year were Olena Zelenska of Ukraine, Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah, the singer Billie Eilish, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Selma Blair, Lina Abu Akleh, Alla Pugacheva, Elnaz Rekabi and Yulimar Rojas. The list was subdivided into four categories: Culture & Sport, Activism & Advocacy, Politics & Education and Health & Science.Politics & Education
Culture & Sport
Activism & Advocacy
Health & Science
2021
The 2021 list was published on 7 December with special focus on Afghanistan. The year's keyword is reset, covering women who have contributed to "playing their part to reinvent our society, our culture and our world". The list was subdivided into four categories: Culture & Education, Entertainment & Sport, Politics & Activism and Science & Health, with half the total laureates being Afghan.Not everyone's real name was used for their safety; pseudonymised laureates are marked in the table below with an asterisk.
Culture & Education
Entertainment & Sport
Politics & Activism
Science & Health
2020
The 2020 list was described as "different" before it was scheduled to be announced on 24 November 2020, but it was released the day before. One name on the list was left blank as a tribute to the countless women around the world who had made sacrifices to help others. The list was subdivided into four categories: Knowledge, Leadership, Creativity and Identity.| Image | Name | Country of birth | Description |
| Unsung hero | Worldwide | Acknowledgement of the "countless women around the world" who "have made a sacrifice to help others" in this "extraordinary year," including those who "have lost their lives while making a difference." |
Knowledge
Leadership
Creativity
Identity
2019
The 2019 list was announced on 16 October 2019. The list of candidates was chosen from those nominated by the BBC's different language teams using the 2020 theme which was "The Female Future". The list was subdivided into six categories: Earth, Knowledge, Leadership, Creativity, Sport and Identity.Earth
Knowledge
Leadership
Creativity
Sport
Identity
2018
The 2018 list was announced in November 2018. The list included the 27th Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard, Stacey Cunningham who runs the New York Stock Exchange and Shaparak Shajarizadeh who challenged the Iranian law that requires women to wear the Hijab.| Image | Name | Country of birth | Description | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin | Social impact entrepreneur | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Esra'a Al Shafei |  RUSCUBGBR2017In 2017 the women on the list were part of a 100 Women Challenge, tackling some of the biggest problems facing women around the world. Coming together in four teams, the women shared their experiences and created innovative ways to tackle:
Women illiteracy teamStreet harassment teamSexism in sport team2016The 2016 theme was Defiance. Part of the 100 Women festival took place in Mexico City on this year. The main event took place at the Palacio de Bellas Artes, where artists like Julieta Venegas, Ángela Aguilar, Ali Gua Gua, Elis Paprika, Sofía Niño de Rivera, Ximena Sariñana, and Alexis De Anda performed live. The event also features debates with journalists Carmen Aristegui, and Denise Dresser, among others. The 2016 list was published in alphabetical order, but split by category into Creative, Defiant, Influential, Pioneering and Resilient with 20 women in each stream.CreativeDefiantInfluentialPioneeringResilient2015The BBC News 100 Women list in 2015 was made up of many notable international names, as well as women who were unknown, but who represented issues women face. This year the list focussed on octogenarians sharing life lessons; 'good girl' film-makers discussing expectations; nursing; five high-profile women; and '30 under 30' entrepreneurs.The women of 2015, were from 51 countries and were not necessarily those who would traditionally have been seen as role models—a woman with depression, a woman who advocates for equal access to bathroom facilities, a woman who encourages other women to avoid make-up, and a reindeer nomad. The 100 Women interviews (five high-profile women)30 under 30 entrepreneurs'Good girl' film-makersVintage ladies (octogenarians)NursesFurther inspiration2014The BBC News 100 Women list in 2014 continued the efforts of the first year's initiative.
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