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March is recognized globally as International Women’s History Month, a time to honour the women who paved the way for progress, challenged injustice, and expanded rights and opportunities for generations to come. At YWCA Regina, this recognition extends far beyond a single month to all year round, every day.
For more than 115 years, YWCA Regina has worked alongside women and families to advance gender equity, advocate for systemic change, and create safer, more inclusive communities.
Honouring women’s history means more than remembering the past, it also means continuing the work they began. This March 8, 2026, on International Women’s Day, the theme, Give To Gain, invites individuals, organizations, and communities to invest in gender equity through generosity and collaboration. Whether through donations, education, mentoring, advocacy, infrastructure, or leadership, contributing to women’s advancement strengthens communities and builds a more equitable future.
When women thrive, we all rise.
At YWCA Regina, honouring women means investing in solutions. Our program, services and advocacy work focus on prevention, education, advocacy, and direct support that address both immediate needs and long-term systemic change.
Our programs and services include:
By honouring women’s experiences and advancing practical solutions, we help create conditions where women, families, and communities can thrive.
Feminist leadership is at the core of how organizations like YWCA Regina create meaningful change. This recent article from The Philanthropist explores how feminist leadership shows up in practice.
Women across Canada have driven change through courage, persistence, and leadership. From grassroots organizers to national leaders, women have shaped public policy, strengthened communities, and challenged systems that excluded them.
Honouring these women means recognizing that progress has never been accidental. It has been built through collective action, solidarity, and the refusal to accept inequity as inevitable.
Here in Saskatchewan, women continue to lead boldly across every sector of community life. Each year, YWCA Regina’s Women of Distinction Awards highlights women and gender-diverse leaders from across Southern Saskatchewan whose work strengthens families, organizations, and the broader community.
Women have led transformative progress in:
These leaders remind us that leadership does not look one way. It looks like resilience, care, innovation, advocacy, and courage. Their impact demonstrates how local leadership fuels national progress and how honouring women’s contributions helps advance meaningful change close to home.
Honouring women also requires honesty about the barriers that remain. Despite progress, gender inequality continues to shape women’s lived experiences across Canada.
Source: Canada.ca
Here are some key facts that underscore why advancing change is urgent:
On average women earn 23% less than men globally with wider gaps for Indigenous women, racialized women, and women with disabilities
One in five people who menstruate in Canada say they foresee being unable to afford period products at some point in the next 12 months
Over 50% of women and gender-diverse people reduce their online presence or self-censor to avoid harm.
Only 17% of Canadian small and medium-sized businesses are owned by women. Women are more likely to own businesses in young, small, low-growth and underfinanced sectors, such as retail trade, and other service sectors. These factors make it harder for women to access financing.
Women in Canada report spending significantly more time caring for adults (4 more hours a week) and children (8 more hours a week) in an average week, limiting economic security and leadership opportunities
Women hold nearly half of all Canadian jobs (47.4%) but only 36.4% of managerial roles and less than 29% of senior management and legislative positions.
On average women earn 23% less than men globally with wider gaps for Indigenous women, racialized women, and women with disabilities
Women in Canada are more likely than men to live in housing that is unaffordable and/or falls below acceptable housing standards.
Women from historically marginalized groups are less represented in senior leadership roles, including:
Indigenous women (0.4%)
2SLGBTQIA+ (0.7%)
Black women (0.8%)
Women with disabilities (0.3%)
61% of women and gender-diverse people in Canada have faced gendered digital harm, compared to 53% of the general population.
International Women’s History Month invites reflection and advancing equitable change requires participation. This month, on International Women’s Day, and all year round, here are some ways you can honour women’s leadership and contribute to gender equity today.
Donating to YWCA Regina supports ongoing advocacy, programs, and services that strengthen safety, leadership, and opportunity for women and families. Giving is not a loss. It is intentional multiplication.
When we give, we gain.
Education transforms awareness into action. YWCA Regina’s Upstander Training equips individuals, workplaces, and communities with the skills to recognize harm, intervene safely, and contribute to cultures of accountability and care.
Learning to be an upstander is one way to honour women’s experiences while advancing real change.
Change happens when people choose to stand for something.
Becoming a YWCA Regina Person with a Purpose is a simple, powerful way to show your commitment to gender equity, safety, and opportunity in our community. Membership is open to anyone who believes in advancing women’s rights and strengthening families.
As a member, you are publicly standing with YWCA Regina’s mission, values, and advocacy, and adding your voice to a collective movement that has driven change in Regina for more than 115 years.
Membership is not about status. It is about solidarity.
Join as a Person with a Purpose and be part of the work to honour women and advance change all year long, become a voting member on the strategic direction of YWCA Regina and enjoy other membership perks.
Honouring women also means showing up, listening, and building community. Throughout March and beyond, local events create space for connection, leadership, and learning.