summary ofInvisible WomenBook by Caroline Criado Perez

first KEY POINT

Data is a decisive argument in the fight for equality

What do fewer conflicts and better education have in common? The answer is higher participation of women as policymakers. Numerous cases confirm the outstanding outcomes of female leaders. When they join negotiations with countries at war, the probability that a peace agreement will last over 14 years rises by 35%. Similarly, Portugal's expenditure on schools has increased with more female members of parliament. Although the positive results of women's contributions are undeniable, many male-dominated fields resist gender equality.After hearing about female protests against discrimination, men often complain, “There are too many conversations about gender.” They consider the world already equal for everyone. This belief is hardly surprising; the gulf between the sexes is tricky. While women experience it daily, men seldom witness or read about it due to the data gap. The latter stems from two factors. Firstly, scientists collect less information about the female lifestyle (we will discover the reasons for this soon). Secondly, even when their research includes women, they rarely separate data by sex.Why is it a problem? Data is a powerful leverage for transformation and decision-making. For example, when Google discovered that new mothers quit at twice the rate of other employees, it prolonged maternity leave at full pay. The number of dismissals dropped by 50%. As long as half of humanity is invisible in statistics, its needs and challenges will remain a niche knowledge.

Let's investigate how data gaps impede societies thriving and discover worldwide recipes for coping with this challenge. The findings will impress you.