This Women’s History Month marks a year that has been highlighted by the need for leadership, innovation, and collaboration like never before due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Women everywhere – including a number of East Bay women – were part of history.
Headlining that group, Vice President Kamala Harris became the first woman, the first Black American, and the first South Asian American to be elected Vice President. Jennifer Doudna won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her pioneering work in CRISPR gene editing, advances which are now being used in the fight against the coronavirus. Congresswoman Barbara Lee continues to make history, serving on several committees for which she is the only African American woman in the 117th United States Congress. Corrina Gould is the tribal spokesperson for the Confederated Villages of Lisjan/Ohlone. Born and raised in her ancestral homeland, the Ohlone territory of Huchiun, she is a Co-Founder/Co-Director of the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust, which created the Shuumi Land Tax, a voluntary annual contribution that non-Indigenous people living on traditional Lisjan Ohlone territory make to support their critical work.
This was not just a time for women at the very top in business, government, or community. East Bay women scientists, doctors, nurses, healthcare providers, business owners, non-profit leaders, teachers, community members, artists, activists, and others were leaders of the landing of the Mars Perseverance Rover, cared for thousands during the COVID-19 pandemic, developed innovations that allowed businesses to survive and thrive, realized discoveries that led to the COVID-19 vaccine, educated students in and out of the classrooms, organized community efforts, stood at the vanguard of movements for racial justice, and more.
We invite you to be part of history by supporting these and many other organizations in and around the East Bay, to be a part of the success of women in the East Bay this month and beyond:
- AAPI Women Lead: Raises the visibility of Asian and Pacific Islander communities in the US through the leadership of self-identified Asian and Pacific Islander women;
- Alameda County Women’s Hall of Fame & Mary V. King “Leading the Way” Youth Scholarship Fund: Recognizes outstanding women and supporting nonprofit community partners that make Alameda County a better place and invest in our youth;
- AMBayArea’s Ambassador Partners: Supports companies and employees in outreaching to Bay Area youth and showcasing the value of a career in manufacturing;
- Anew America Women’s Business Center: Provides training, counseling and other support services to help women entrepreneurs start and successfully fully grow their businesses;
- Chabot Space & Science Center: Launches and inspires a future generation of scientists and science-literate adults through year-round programs;
- Contra Costa Commission for Women & Girls: Improves the overall quality of life for the women and girls in Contra Costa County;
- Renaissance Women’s Business Center: A partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) that provides business training, access to capital and markets and support strategies to women entrepreneurs;
- Scientific Adventures for Girls: provides hands-on STEAM summer camps and after-school programs with a special focus on girls and underserved youth;
- Select Global Women in Tech: Supports individuals engaged in the U.S. entrepreneurial ecosystem interested in being a mentor for an international female founder;
- Sogorea Te’ Land Trust: An urban, Indigenous women-led land trust that facilitates the return of Indigenous land to Indigenous people.