The World has failed Women. The World losing unprecedented Opportunity

286 years! That's the time needed to promote, enforce and monitor gender equality in public life. This stark reality and the fate of SDG 5 on gender equality, are to be achieved by 2030. It was so stated by a multi-agency programme of the United Nations called 'UN Woman'. - Seven years from now. We are not only far away from meeting this goal, but we have failed 50% of the population on the earth. We failed to utilise the full potential of women and young girls on the earth. Had we done that the world would have been a different place?

Women make up only 22% of artificial intelligence workers globally. A survey of women journalists from 125 countries found that 73% had suffered online violence in the course of their work. That's additional statistics stated by 'UN Women' in its report.

Let us not go into history where women were treated in an inhuman manner. No other living species on this planet have shown such gender discrimination since the time when life evolved billions of years before. Humanity has refused to learn lessons from other species, under the pretext that humans are the super species with smart brains.

Women have made untold contributions to the digital world in which we now live, apparently comfortably. But their untold sufferings and the heavy odds that they worked for their contributions are neither acknowledged nor appreciated. That clearly shows where the world would have reached without gender equality.

The persistent gender gap in digital access keeps women from unlocking AI and IoT's full potential. The gap in their representation in education aimed at sustainable development and related careers remains a major stumbling block that keeps away their participation in technology development, application and governance. Sadly enough women are now abused through online gender-based violence that has no legal recourse mainly because the legal system is dominated by men. Women are forced out of the legal governance system and from the digital spaces they occupy.

Fortunately, digital technology is opening new pathways for the global empowerment of women and girls that would be of immense help to address climate change and particularly 'net zero'.

There has been a surge of climate pledges to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions from countries, cities and regions, companies, and investors which collectively represent 25% of global CO2 emissions and over 50% of GDP. A global network of universities promoted by Green TERRE Foundation. The global network is called Smart Campus Cloud Network-SCCN. It has the power to reduce that emission through gender-equality-driven efforts mastered by the skills developed on the University campus.

In India, it is now a well-established trend that girls in secondary school stand far above the boys in terms of their ability to master STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) essential foundation for net zero. Girls are even better leaders when they enter Higher Educational Institutes (HEIs). SCCN deploys that potential without a gender-biased approach to localise the Net Zero exercise on university campuses. Digital technologies that SCCN encourages the bridging of the gender gap.

Director General of UNESCO Audrey Azoulay, in her message for this year's International Women's Day of 8^th March, said, "This year, on International Women's Day, I would like to applaud this new generation of young women – for their courage in speaking out, inspiring others and mobilizing their peers, for a more sustainable tomorrow." I would only add to this statement a need for accessibility for open data to make this world Net Zero'.

 Dr Rajendra Shende

Former Director UNEP, IIT Alumni

Founder Director, Green TERRE Foundation

Prime Mover Smart Campus Cloud Network 

Coordinating lead author of IPCC.