Gender equality

and she helped us understand some of the history and social dynamics shaping life in what is famously the world's happiest country.

We talk about Finland's complicated history with Sweden and Russia, gender equality and how that impacts dating.

why so many finns choose to live alone the birth rate and the pressure women face around fertility we also get into drinking happiness depression finland's hatred of small talk and of course sauna culture this was the very first interview we recorded in helsinki it was more of a casual conversation than usual but there's so much good stuff i have to share it Elizabeth started by telling us about Saumalina Island, a historic sea fortress, which was indeed a very cool place to visit.

So let's start there, with Elizabeth explaining why island life, isolation, and a little bit of struggle might be the keys to understanding the Finnish psyche.

Oh, we gotta go.

Yeah, but when it opened, it only had female dolls.

Because here we talk a lot about gender equality, so we were a little bit like, why only female dolls? Yeah.

Hey privates, let's be real, okay? Every guy wants to finish strong.

And joining me to discuss this is Caroline Lennon, co-chair of Balance for Better Business.

Caroline, first off, Minister Peter Burke has said Ireland has made significant progress in increasing gender balance in business leadership.

Can you tell me what that progress is, please?

Good morning, Susan.

Yeah, Ireland now ranks fifth in the EU for women on boards of the largest listed companies, and that's up from 16th place when Balance for Better Business was first established eight years ago.

Women now hold 40% of board seats in the ISAC 20 companies, and that 40% is a threshold set out by the EU's Gender Balance and Corporate Boards Directive.

And again, that's up a landmark.

24 percentage points in female representation since Balance for Better Business was founded back in 2018.

That's what I would, I would make that claim.

So, but yeah, like, but here's the thing, is that, you know, in order for you to actually do a male sex strike, you would actually have to assume gender equality.

That's how fucking stupid this thing is.

You have to assume gender equality.

You would have to assume, you'd have to be projecting your own sexuality, basically, as a man onto women, and assume that's true, in order for you to actually participate in a male sex strike.

Which

But you know, this is ultimately why, okay, well, I'll just back up.

The assumption that women are just like them is one of the most stupidest things ever.

The long game, gender equity, global stakes and why it can't wait.

The United Nations has identified Gender Equality Sustainable Development Goal 5 as the goal that makes all other 16 development goals possible.

Progress towards it has been built, sustained and defended year after year by communities willing to keep showing up.

Today's guest has spent her career doing exactly that.

And today we're gonna talk about why your continued commitment matters more than ever.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, I'm sure you've heard of them.

Number five is a particular favourite of mine, which is obviously gender equality.

And what we know is that this goal is really the one that underpins all the 16 other goals.

Okay, so on the first piece, let me just say, yes, I mean, an important framework in my book is social reproduction.

And I wanted to do a number of things in the book, which is to... for me on a personal level, to be able to review my research and my thinking over the years on the question of paid domestic work and its relationship to women's equality in general and in this region.

And to do that, I wanted to pull out a social reproductive framework.

I could have chosen other frameworks for this, but I thought that it was important to work with the idea of a social reproduction.

Everyone gets the same thing no matter what age gender height weight Nationality everybody gets the same thing.

So here's a box of 10 bits Equality would be for me to give everyone in the masala the same portion Doesn't matter who or what you are.

Everybody gets the same that is equality equity Let's make an example with these, with the donuts.

Or someone's older.

She gets one or two.

Fork in the road.

Justice is going back to what? Equality or, everyone understand? Everybody clear on this or not? All right, once again, equality, same, same, no difference.

Equity, based off of what's appropriate.

It is of course about the Sabarimala case, which has repeatedly caused headlines in recent months.

My question is, do you think that we have gone too far with the concept of gender equality, that we throw a lot of our own mythological beliefs overboard, as well as cultural norms and values, just to prove ourselves?

So there is no such thing as going too far with gender equality.

Gender equality means equality.

How can you go too far? I don't think you can go too far with it.

Gender equality must be there, no question.

But in the name of gender equality, What's your name? Okay.

He wants to go to a women's toilet.