Northern Gas Networks (NGN), the gas distributor for the North of England, has paid its own tribute to International Women’s Day by asking four of its female staff members to blog about the women that inspire them in their lives today.
This year’s annual celebration of women is ‘embracing equity’ so its no surprise that our collection of stories feature a wide range of role models who all demonstrate the importance of equity in societies, families and workplaces.
Dionne Allick, Payroll Advisor, HR
“Mayo Angelou inspires me. Born in 1928 in Missouri she experienced racial prejudices and discrimination as well as a difficult childhood. She went on to become known as a world-famous author, civil rights and equality activist, recipient of fifty honorary degrees, teacher and worked in the performing arts during her lifetime. I find a lot of her quotes uplifting. She was never hesitant to speak her mind and passionately defended the rights of women, young people and the ignored.
“The topic that mostly resonates with me is advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women. Being an Afro-Caribbean woman, I have been subjected to sexism and racism from all genders. Working in the utility sector all my life I have seen substantial changes but ongoing improvement is still required.
“Since World War 1 the work and home life balance were introduced and went against primal instincts. Women are super-heroes. I would be depicted as an empath in a super-hero movie.”
Bina Dixon, Regulatory Reporting Manager
“I was asked to talk about a woman who inspired me and that person for me was and is my older sister. She was the first female I knew who went away to university and broadened both mine and my younger sister’s horizons. She paved the way for us to move away from home to pursue our education. Education was the key for me to lead an independent life and allowed me the ability to choose my own path.
“I was brought up in a very male orientated culture and it has always been important to me that both male and females are treated the same. As a mother to a son now, it is important that we teach the new generation that females and males are equal. As women working in utilities, it is up to us to be seen as role models and for this to be normalised. When I was young there were no women in industry that we could aspire to be, and it is great to see academies like STEM giving us a platform to be able to reach the new generation.”
Heather Sheffield, Head of Strategic Planning
“I’ve worked in the utility sector for nearly 20 years and have held predominantly male dominated roles. What’s most important to me is supporting other women to achieve and excel in their careers and overall work life balance. I see myself as a cheerleader for all women I work with, and I would not have achieved what I have in my career without the support of other women in what is a male dominated sector.
“I’m really passionate about women prioritising professional development, networking, mentoring and tackling our imposter syndrome! It’s really important to me that I am authentic as a person at work and championing equality and diversity is part of my core values. I truly believe that you need to be able to see diversity at work and in leadership to give you the inspiration, courage and belief that you can achieve it!
“Another passion of mine is encouraging women and girls to play sport. I am actively involved in the development of Women and Girls cricket in West Yorkshire and I coordinate and captain our local Women’s team. Sport builds confidence and resilience and having an option for older girls and women to continue playing a team sport like cricket brings multiple benefits including confidence in what they can achieve.”
Mahliqa Nisar, Business Sustainability Lead
Until the age of 6 I lived with my grandma Sultana Bibi Hamid. She was small by size with a huge heart of gold, an energy that brought peace and calm. Her main hobbies were sneaking her grandkids Werthers Originals, uniting all walks of people over a divine home cooked meal and hoarding!
Fast forward, I’m in year 9, I’ve been tasked with writing a biography, I chose my nan. The day I interviewed my nan was emotional to say the least. The warm, loving woman I knew all those years had lived through the Partition of India: seeing and experiencing brutality, losing 85% of her family and uprooting her whole life to migrate to Pakistan. Sultana then later migrated to the UK with my grandad where they lost 4 children, though blessed with 6. When their youngest child was 3, Sultana lost her husband to cancer: in a foreign environment, unable to speak English and a single mother to 6 children, giving up wasn’t an option.
She wept though, she persevered and it was her drive and fight that left her an international landlord and straight up boss! My nan is a true warrior and inspiration to me and my entire family. She never gave up, never took no for an answer, fearlessly continued to strive for more and it’s because of her fight I’m here today: standing proud of who I am and where I come from, giving my all to every opportunity, seeking challenge and hosting an expensive amount of home dinners.
I wouldn’t be who or where I am if it wasn’t for Sultana.
