Growing up in a safe community in England surrounded by supportive family and friends I consider myself a very privileged and lucky woman. However, I and too many of the beautiful strong women I know have experienced some kind of discrimination, violence or sexual abuse at some point in our lives. This is the norm. Gender equality is well on the way to being a reality, but it is definitely not there yet. We have to keep fighting the battle, supporting one another and believing in change. 

It is a privilege that I have the choice to shave my head out of my own desire and that I know that I have power over my own body. This isn't the case for millions of women around the world who suffer unfairly everyday. There are women who are forced into child marriages, suffer in abusive relationships,  discriminated against in the workplace and live suppressed by the false idea that they are less worthy of happiness, success and safety because they are female.  

Global estimates show that over 1 in 3 women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime and this figure can be as high as 7 in 10 in some countries. In 2015 only 22% of all national parliamentarians were women and 15.8% of all parliamentary speakers were women. 43% of young women have experiences some form of street harassment in the past year and 55% of women were concerned about going to educational institutions after dark. This is barely scratching the surface of the injustices women face worldwide. This is NOT the way it should be. 

As a human collective we must be striving for equality on all levels, and as individuals we must speak up for whats right in everyday situations and support organisations that are fighting the battle on a global scale. 

UN Women work towards 5 main adjectives; Political empowerment, Economic empowerment, The elimination of violence, Leadership driven peace & security and Planning and budgeting. Their UN Women Programmes empower women and girls and give them a voice, to break down the barriers they face and to remove the social and cultural barriers that prevent women and girls from achieving their potential.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting something I am so passionate about. Anything you can give will make a difference, and if you can't give any money, take a moment to think of how you can help the cause with your voice and power.