Finding Women’s Power Within

Featured in the Spring 2022 Newsletter »

This year’s Women in Power Conference asked participants to find “the power within,” whether it comes from their community, their professional lives, spirituality, technology, or elsewhere.

Organizers curated deeply personal stories from within and outside the Harvard community, asking speakers how they shattered boundaries in different walks of life, said conference co-chair Ikita Gupta. Keynote speakers included fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg; Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui; actress Leyna Bloom; Audrey P. Marks, Jamaica’s thirteenth Ambassador to the United States of America and the Permanent Representative of Jamaica to the Organization of American States; and Indian Para Badminton Player Manasi Joshi.

Held on April 23-24, this year’s conference followed a hybrid model, with attendees participating in person at Harvard Kennedy School’s campus and virtually from around the world. Activities took different formats as well, from traditional seminars and panel discussions to musical performances and workshops on dance, negotiation, and male allyship.

The Belfer Center was among the core sponsors for the conference. It also provided logistical support. “Each year we have the opportunity to partner with HKS student organizers in developing panels and recruiting speakers to highlight women leaders at every career stage,” said Belfer Center Executive Director Natalie Colbert.

Belfer’s involvement this year included Cyber Project Executive Director Lauren Zabierek coordinating speakers for the panel on Defending Democracy, co-hosted with Women in Defense, Diplomacy, and Development (W3D). The Belfer Center also connected conference organizers to the Women in Power Fellows program at the Belfer Center for Innovation & Social Impact - 92nd Street Y [not affiliated with HKS Belfer Center]. An Ask Me Anything session featured fellows from that program: Param-Preet Singh of Human Rights Watch; Deanna Bitetti of UNHCR, and Lauren Weiner of the ACLU.

Technology and Public Purpose (TAPP) Fellow Francella Ochillo participated in a panel on Power Within Tech, which looked at the power that lies in shaping future technology choices. Ochillo said that the theme of this year’s Women in Power Conference – “the power within” –  is “apropos in light of the deep-rooted and varied challenges that interfere with gender equality.”

“Particularly in technology fields where women occupying less than ten percent of chief leadership positions and six out of ten men getting paid more for the same jobs are celebrated as milestones, women have no other choice but to harness our power wherever we are, knowing that that is precisely where we belong,” Ochillo said.

TAPP Associate Director Amritha Jayanti moderated the panel on Power Within Tech. She said she was honored to participate in the conference and to help elevate ideas about using individual power to encourage positive change in tech product development, policy, and advocacy.

“Large scale, sustainable change often starts with individual action; and, as individuals, speaking truth to power often requires us to recognize the potential within each of us to champion our values, convictions, and lived experiences,” Jayanti said in an email. “That’s why the topic of ‘Power Within’ is so important, especially for women and gender minorities.”

“Our experience and perspectives are so often minimized or unrepresented, including in the technology sector, but they are necessary if we want to build inclusive and public-oriented products,” Jayanti said.