Equal Measures 2030 and Tableau Foundation team up on new fellowship to support women data journalists to drive change for women and girls

REYKJAVIK, Iceland, Nov. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Equal Measures 2030 (EM2030) and Tableau Foundation, a philanthropic initiative of Tableau Software, announced a new data journalism fellowship to help 15 aspiring journalists in India and Kenya gain skills and experience to tell stories through data that can make meaningful change for women and girls.

Unveiled at the Reykjavik Global Forum for Women Leaders, the new fellowship will provide a cohort of data journalists in both countries with Tableau's industry-leading analytics platform, training, mentoring, and access to EM2030's data and tools including the SDG Gender Index data.

Combining access to data with a full continuum of learning on data analysis and visualisation, and connections to local gender equality advocates, will enable these new data journalists to produce stories and content that drive change for women and girls.

"EM2030's own SDG Gender Index data shows that women continue to be under-represented online and in STEM fields. Supporting women data journalists to build skills and break barriers will help to ensure data is used to drive action on gender equality," said Alison Holder, Director of Equal Measures 2030.

In addition to the data journalism fellowship, Tableau Foundation is joining EM2030's network of leading regional and global organizations, bringing together civil society, development and the private sector.  The coalition works with grassroots women's organizations to connect data and evidence with advocacy and action to ensure governments deliver on the promise of gender equality by 2030. Tableau Foundation is a philanthropic, employee-led initiative from Tableau Software, a Salesforce company.

Fellowship participants will use EM2030's data and tools including the SDG Gender Index data as a use case to develop data storytelling capabilities. Programme participants will have access to Tableau training, mentorship, and software to produce stories and influential content that drive change for women and girls.

"Effective data journalism can bring together moving stories about the experiences of women and girls globally with the analysis of trends, policies, and opportunities that are shaping their lives," said Ashley Monson, program lead for Tableau Foundation's Gender Equality portfolio. "We're thrilled to grow our partnership with EM2030 and invest in the next generation of storytellers in India and Kenya through this fellowship."

In its third year, the Reykjavik Global Forum for Women Leaders brings together women leaders from across sectors to advance women's leadership and parity in decision making. This year's event will be framed by COVID-19 disruption, giving attendees an opportunity to discuss the risks created by the pandemic and response that could set gender equality progress back by decades.

Even before the pandemic, the EM2030 partnership sounded the alarm that no country has yet reached gender equality and half of countries — home to 2.1 billion girls and women — won't meet a set of the most important gender equality targets by 2030 if the current pace continues.

However, the release of the 2020 Reykjavik Index for Leadership showed reasons for hope. The Index found broad public support, across a number of countries, for equality for women in leadership in media and tech/AI sectors. Eighty-one percent of people said women and men are equally suited for leadership positions in the media/entertainment sector and 78 percent said the same for the tech/AI sector. There is room for improvement, but broad-based public support exists for women in leadership in these sectors.

A 2019 study from researchers at Ghent University in Belgium found that women felt their technological competence was often doubted and they had to prove their digital skills twice as much as their male colleagues. This study reinforces earlier research on gender construction in data journalism in the Journal of Applied Journalism and Media Studies that found "the challenges for women data journalists have been described as "the traditional glass ceiling…accompanied by… a coding ceiling."

About Tableau Foundation
The Tableau Foundation is a philanthropic initiative led by Tableau Software employees that encourages the use of facts and analytical reasoning to solve the world's problems. Tableau Foundation grants combine Tableau's two most valuable resources – its people and its products – with financial support to nonprofits that are using data to reshape communities around the globe. To learn more, visit www.tableaufoundation.org.

About Equal Measures 2030
EM2030 is a joint effort of leading regional and global organizations from civil society and the development and private sectors who believe data can expose inequality and injustice, motivate policy change, and drive accountability. We work together to connect data and evidence with advocacy and action to ensure governments deliver on the promise of gender equality by 2030. The current partnership includes: the African Women's Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women (ARROW), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Comité de América Latina y El Caribe para la Defensa de los Derechos de la Mujer (CLADEM), Data2X, the International Women's Health Coalition (IWHC), KPMG, ONE Campaign, Plan International, Tableau and Women Deliver.

SOURCE Tableau Foundation; Equal Measures 2030

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