Tomorrow's leaders are today's women (both young and old) inspired by the stories of those who've gone before them, living remarkable lives of progress and advancement.
Women's History Month is a reminder to look back, reflect and remember, and carry forward the legacy left by our foremothers. Here are several ways to learn more about inspirational women:
HerStory Website
From 1917-1920 -- the final four years women fought to win the right to vote -- there were many stories of courage, passion, determination, and suspense as women overcame the final obstacles to ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Imagine if you came across a scrapbook belonging to your great or great-great grandmother -- an ardent women's rights supporter -- who kept every clipping she could find from the nation's top newspaper chronicling the suffrage movement.
That's what the HerStory Scrapbook is -- an online collection of hundred of items from The New York Times including articles, editorials, and letters about the women who were fighting for, and against, suffrage. The HerStory Scrapbook includes more than 900 of the most interesting pieces -- actual scans of the original articles from The Times saved as PDF files. It's a fascinating look back, and an extraordinary free resource.
And new this year, to mark 2010's significance as the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month and the 90th anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment, is the HerStory 360° Challenge, a collection of 90 short descriptions of women involved in women's suffrage.
International Women of Distinction Trading Cards
What a great idea -- trading cards featuring women.Why didn't somebody think of this sooner?
A small trading card company based in Canada -- which has had success with Black History trading cards -- developed the idea for Women's History Month this year.
According to company founder Luanga Nuwame, the International Women of Distinction trading cards are designed "to help young girls see the accomplishments of strong women throughout history....I created this 20-card set on great women after parents asked me to make such a product...based on notable women of the past."
What I especially like about the cards is that they offer a global perspective, with inspirational women from around the world in a variety of fields. They include Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (Africa's first elected woman president), Hillary Clinton, Benazir Bhutto, Indira Gandhi, Rosa Parks (seen in photo), Sojourner Truth, Coco Chanel, and Grace Murray Hopper (the pionerring computer programmer behind COBAL.)
The cards feature a photo on the front and a short biography on the back. They are $12.99 per 20-card set and 50 cents from each sale will be donated to breast cancer research. The women's trading cards can be ordered from the Azikwe Toys website.
Women Making History
Unlike other websites, the Women's Media Center is focusing on contemporary women who are currently making history and reshaping the world as we know it. Their blog featuring "30 Women Making History" highlights a new woman each day in March in recognition of the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month.
Junior League on Twitter
Even women's civic organizations have stories to share about remarkable women. And the Junior League has come up with a clever way to use new media to tell their stories.
On Twitter, if you follow @JuniorLeague, each day you'll see an interesting fact about a Junior League member -- some famous, some not -- who exemplifies civic leadership.
Junior League members have included Sandra Day O'Connor, first woman on the Supreme Court; actress Margaret Hamilton, best known for her portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz; Katharine Hepburn; First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt; Margaret Chase Smith, first woman elected to U.S. Senate; and Eudora Welty, author and Pulitzer Prize winner.
More than 160,000 women participate in 292 Junior Leagues throughout Canada, Mexico, the UK and the US.
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