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A Year in Review: Remarkable Female Leadership in 2020

  • Writer: Ingrid Guo
    Ingrid Guo
  • Feb 12, 2021
  • 4 min read

Author: Emmy Apfel ’22


2020. A year that brought immense challenges to so many. A year of new procedures and big adjustments. A year of unexpected twists and turns. But also, a year in which women shined. Here is my year in review, featuring four women who accomplished incredible things last year. I hope you find their leadership dynamic, sharp, and inspiring.


The first woman I’d like to focus on is Jacinda Ardern. Ardern currently serves as the Prime Minister of New Zealand after being elected unopposed. She became the world’s youngest female head of government at the age of 37, a truly exceptional accomplishment. In 2019, she led the country through the Christchurch mosque shooting, enacting swift gun control measures right after. Then, 2020 arrived, and Ardern’s capable leadership shined through. Her country’s response to the pandemic has left other government leaders in awe. Even before research emerged about the strength of the pandemic, Ardern enacted a complete lockdown on New Zealand’s borders. Non-citizens and non-permanent residents, beginning on March 15th, 2020, were not allowed into the country. Ardern said, “New Zealand has the widest ranging and toughest border restrictions of any country in the world.” These border restrictions still exist, nearly a year later. In March, New Zealanders themselves were under total lockdown for fourteen days. While some critics disagreed with such strict measures, Ardern’s response worked. Ardern’s leadership serves as an example to all young women about trusting one’s instincts. Even through criticism, Ardern has stood firm. She’s shown us girls what determined female political leadership looks like. New Zealand has had 2,200 COVID-19 cases in total, as of January 26th, 2021. Per day, the country has ten positive tests at most. There are many days where no one tests positive throughout the whole nation. Masks are not worn. Social distancing does not apply. Ardern eradicated COVID-19 in New Zealand, all by inspiring her citizens to comply for a short time. And she was just re-elected last week!


Up next is Christina Koch, an American engineer and NASA astronaut of the class of 2013. After two years of rigorous training, she became available for space missions in July 2015. In March 2019, Koch launched to the International Space Station as part of Expeditions 59, 60, and 61. Her journey took place on Soyuz MS-12 alongside two other astronauts. On another expedition, Koch and Jessica Meir were the first women to participate in an all-female spacewalk—an incredible feat that proves that women can handle space missions without male involvement. Then, on December 28th, 2019, Koch became the record holder for the longest continuous time in space by a woman, spending 328 consecutive days in space. She eventually came back from space in February 2020. In addition to her nomination for the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Invention of the Year award, she’s won the NASA Group Achievement Award due to her groundbreaking achievements in aeronautics.


January 2020 saw the rise of Major League Baseball coach Alyssa Nakken. Nakken, a former softball player herself, joined the San Francisco Giants organization. The four-time academic All-American is poised to make history as the first female MLB coach. Fellow Giants coach Mark Kapler remarked, “Nakken [is a] highly respected member of the organization and I’m delighted that [she] will now focus [her] talents on helping to build a winning culture in the clubhouse.” As games are being rescheduled and paused seasons resumed, I cannot wait to see Nakken make waves in the world of sports. She’s already set the precedent that women can, and will, participate in major franchises. Her accomplishments prove that elite female athletes can transfer the knowledge of their sport to the male arena; to me, this is an official declaration that women's sports are in no way inferior.


Last but most definitely not least is Stacey Abrams, the woman behind major Democratic party victories. A graduate of Yale Law School, Abrams has spent many years devoted to increasing voter turnout and political discourse, especially in her home state of Georgia. She ran for Governor of Georgia in 2018 with endorsements from Bernie Sanders and Barack Obama. However, due to a highly-disputing glitch in the voting system, Abrams was not elected. While most would shy away from politics after such a defeat, this loss provided Abrams with a unique opportunity to pivot. In August 2019, Abrams founded Fair Fight 2020, an organization that seeks to financially and technically build voter protection programs in twenty American states. After the 2020 Presidential Election went to the Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, due to a narrow victory in Georgia, Abrams’ work was highly praised. She’s credited by both the New York Times and the Washington Post with increasing Democratic voter turnout in Georgia by 800,000—possibly the factor that propelled Biden to victory. A huge turnout in the Georgia Senate runoff, sparked by Abrams’ activism, also led Democratic candidates to victory. Two Democratic senators won Georgia runoffs, firmly flipping the Senate blue. Abrams’ work is essential to the American political system, and her grip on her fellow Democratic Georgians is undeniable; she can motivate folks to turn up for their party and for their nation. Abrams is an inspiration to all young women. She’s shown two important life lessons: making the most out of career opportunities that don’t go my way and working extremely hard to make an impact on a group of people I care about.


These four women, Jacinda Ardern, Christina Koch, Alyssa Nakken, and Stacey Abrams are exceptional leaders. Not just female leaders. Leaders. Leaders amongst men, other women, and children. They hold their own in their respective fields, pushing the definition of what it means to inspire, to create action, and to make a lasting impact on the world.


Sources:


Image Sources:

Source 1: Alyssa Nakken

Source 2: Stacey Abrams

Source 3: Christina Koch



 
 
 

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