Every year, on March 8th, men and women come together to celebrate International Women's Day and encourage the advocacy for women's advancement everywhere in every way. This year the theme is inspiring change linking the advancement of women to positive changes in our society. 

Having played an active role in various women's networks including leading the Toronto Chapter and the National Chapter of TELUS's women's network for two years and one year respectively, I have attended numerous breakfast events, speaker series, networking events, mentoring groups and charity galas. For me, the benefit of these events is not to focus solely on gender equality but instead to focus on the power of diversity – the ability we have as women to break down traditional cultural, educational or language barriers and form strong connections. Connections that allow us to honour and respect our differences and harness these differences to drive exceptional change.

When I reflect back on the women who have inspired me over the years – they were each very unique in their own way, which is what made them so amazing and inspirational. They had the strength and determination to believe in themselves and not apologize for who they were and what they were able to accomplish.They did not try and fit into a box prescribed by our society but instead identified and understood their morales and values and allowed those to guide them on their journey.

These women inspired me to follow my dream and drive change through the formation of PurpleDirt – an organization focused on leveraging fashion as a platform for social enrichment and change. By connecting and supporting talented females our mission is to empower individuals to collectively make a difference. From the women we work with in Northern Nicaragua, to the clients of FINCA our partner charity, to the staff we have in Canada, to our fabulous customer base – we are a primarily female based organization forming an international community to drive change.

In honour of these women and the impact they have made on me and the formation of PurpleDirt, we have created You Are cards – six unique cards – each meant to honour an individual who has made an impact in your life. Whether the person can move mountains (unstoppable), has a radiant beauty both inside and out (beautiful), is unique in every way (one of a kind), wears their heart on their sleeve (kind-hearted), is a positive motivational force (dynamic) or simply just rocks your world (rock star) - the key is to acknowledge the diversity and value in each of us.

You can check out who else has received a card at ShopPurpleDirt.com/ourcommunity and sign your own name. A one dollar donation will be made to FINCA for each signature added to our community.

Give a card, receive a card, regift a card and keep the connections going!

Cheers,

Erin