Author: LiisBeth

LiisBeth Dispatch #25

VIEWPOINT

Growing up, the master bedroom, or more precisely, my mother’s room, was strictly off limits.

Our two-bedroom apartment was our home, but her room was her castle. Important ideas and future plans were hatched in that room, daily journals were filled describing vexing personal dramas. As a single parent, it was where she would talk for hours with her girlfriends, door closed, sharing secrets and frustrations over the phone after we had gone to bed.

Sometimes in the evening, mostly on weekends, she would allow us to come into her room, and sit quietly on her bed while she got dressed for work at her second job as a steakhouse restaurant hostess or for the occasional date.

We really looked forward to those evenings. We considered it a high honour — a rare glimpse into the grownup world. Plus her room was to us at least, magical.

The walls were deep purple, and the long shag rug, light purple. There were real sheepskin rugs on top of her bedspread, and at the foot of her bedside. The exotic replica Louis the IX mirrored dresser from Sears had several styrofoam heads with eyes painted on, sporting wigs of many styles and colours. Abstract art hung on the walls, including a large one by Sal, a handsome man 10 years her junior who she had loved at one time. Yoga books, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, and Jacqueline Susann novels were piled up on her bedside table. The room smelled of hairspray, cigarette smoke, and incense. The vanity table by the door, the best part, was a treasure chest that held lipsticks in every colour, false eyelashes, tools of terror (like tweezers and eyelash curlers), and nail polish. I remember thinking that being a grownup woman was clearly a very complex affair.

While our lives evolved over the years, her room continued to serve as a manifest extension of who she was — colourful, confident, creative, energetic, and fascinating.

Then one day, she remarried. This required combining assets and moving into a big house with a pool, so she sold most of her belongings. Her room was now their room. And it was so different.

It’s decor, catalogue conventional. The walls? Beige. The furniture, big, unisex, and functional. Even new linens seemed to reflect some sort of compromise (yellow stripes). The wigs were gone. The room smelled of air freshener. The dainty white vanity made the cut, but was tucked away into a corner, and looked out of place. And as time went on, so did my mother.

In this new life, she became a different person, almost unrecognizable to those who knew her from before. I didn’t know how to explain what happened at the time, but I do now.

She had lost herself in the name of love and marriage.

This story describes a common experience for many women who get lost in love. Sometimes they lose themselves in their love for another person, but for entrepreneurs, their love is often for a venture.

Some telltale signs that you have lost yourself in your venture include the following:

1. You’re not eating right, working out or taking the time to make the art that feeds your soul, but you love what you do so much you just can’t bring yourself to call it quits.

2. You know something is wrong, but you defend your venture at all costs to accountants, lawyers, clients, suppliers and employees — and lose your integrity doing it.

3. You find yourself downsizing, or selling long-term assets to keep the venture fed, safe, and looking good to the outside world.

In my mother’s case, the marriage ended. And while she partnered up again a few years later, she never lost herself for love again — or for anything else for that matter.

If you recognize that you are losing yourself for your venture, check in and be honest with yourself. This stage will take time. Then, when clarity prevails, talk to friends, mentors and professional advisors to get help untangling yourself in a constructive way.

Whether you fall for another person or an enterprise, it can feel like you are being slowly absorbed by something beautiful that beckons. But in both cases, the consequences can be devastating.

THIS WEEK ON LIISBETH

Germaine Greer’s controversial, and groundbreaking 1970 book The Female Eunuch is a recognized text within the feminist canon and makes for great Valentine’s Day reading.

In the book, Greer argued, among other things, that women’s ability to express their true sexuality has been tragically denied by social norms defined by patriarchy (defined as “an unjust social system that enforces gender roles and is oppressive to both men and women”).

Forty-seven years and Fifty Shades Darker, we can all be grateful that the earth moved forward in that department. And thankfully, things are changing still.

This week, join LiisBeth contributor Sue Nador speaks with Judy Ke, sexpreneur, innovator and co-founder of Oasis Aqualounge, an upscale, female-positive Toronto sex club venture, which now grosses over $2.5M per year and attracts over 1,000 male and female customers per week. Essentially, it offers a safe place for consenting women (and men) seeking casual or spicier couple sex.

It’s risky for a woman to take someone home or go to the home of someone she hardly knows. Clubs like Oasis offer a safer alternative. Nador says that doing the story “really challenged her assumptions about modern sex clubs.” To find out more read “Revitalizing Women’s Sexuality, One Member At a Time” today on LiisBeth.

And if you like what you read, note that you still have time to change your plans for Valentine’s Day. 😉

It’s February; it’s cold; and Trump is still penning jaw-dropping executive orders. So we thought it was time for a bit of a break from all that chafes.

This week, LiisBeth partnered with Urbanology, a Toronto-based urban lifestyle magazine co-founded by LiisBeth contributor Priya Ramanujam and Urbanology music reviewer and author Sade Powell to create a thoughtfully curated, feminist-inspired playlist. Entitled “The Cure for Chaos“, this playlist will soothe your heart and mind. It will also introduce you to diverse, emerging and talented performers that we think you will enjoy.

You can access and learn about the playlist here or via our Spotify account here.

LIISBETH FIELD NOTES

If you are not into the commercialization of Valentine’s Day, or Valentine’s Day at all, you can still use the attention-raising occasion to make a difference in the world by supporting V-Day, a movement dedicated to eradicating violence against women. V-Day, founded by political playwright and activist/entrepreneur Eve Ensler (author of the Vagina Monologues), is best known for its 1 Billion Rising campaign, which raised over $100M to tackle systemic violence against women globally. Today, the organization is also tackling sub-minimal wage practices in the restaurant business. You can donate to V-Day instead of buying a Valentine’s card, and learn more about it here.

Last Wednesday evening, I had the opportunity to attend an impressive panel talk held by Women Get On Board (WGOB), an 18-month-old membership-driven venture co-founded by Deborah Rosati, and Susan Varty. As the title suggests, their mission is to help women get on to public, private and nonprofit boards. Every ambitious woman knows that it is a career and status enhancer to be appointed to large multi-national, public or nonprofit boards. But our question is: once women have their seats, do they leverage it to advance equality and inclusion in society? It turns out, it depends on the person you ask. To find out more about WGOB, click here.

How Securities Regulators Are Working to Advance Gender Equity on Public Company Boards

As a startup entrepreneur you may not know this, but it’s still important that you do — especially if you plan to grow your company to the point of going public, or want to use your buying power to send the message that gender equity performance matters to you.

On Dec. 14, 2014, the securities regulator in most jurisdictions in Canada implemented a rule that required all public companies (large or small) listed on stock exchanges in their jurisdiction to annually disclose the following:

1. the number and percentage of women on the issuer’s board of directors and in executive officer positions;
2. director term limits or other mechanisms of board renewal;
3. policies relating to the identification and nomination of women directors;
4. consideration of the representation of women in the director identification and nomination process and in executive officer appointments; and
5. targets for women on boards and in executive officer positions.

Furthermore, the rule amendments state that “if a non-venture issuer has not adopted the above mechanisms, policies, or targets or does not consider the representation of women, it is required to explain its reasons for not doing so.”

Reporting by companies started in 2015. But apparently, by 2016, the Ontario Securities Commission felt companies were not doing a good enough job.

Did efforts to improve gender equity on public company boards on the part of securities regulators have an impact?

According to Paul Gryglewicz, senior partner with Global Governance Advisors, who reviews up to 300 prospectus offerings per year and speaker at the recent Women Get On Board event says “Many large-cap companies have done a great job achieving diversity, but there are still many boards that are still highly male-dominant and non-diversified.”

The explanation clause is apparently, overused. Women represented only 12 per cent of executive and board positions of companies listed on the TSE (which represents approximately 600 companies), and 20.8 per cent for public companies listed on exchanges in Canada overall. Globally, women held only 15 per cent of board seats, according to Catalyst reports.

Advocacy to improve the gender ratio has been going on for two decades, and blue ribbon consulting companies today still generate report after report selling the business case for gender diversity — and of course their services to help. But even then, little has changed.

If anyone is wondering why Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne turned to quota targets (Bill C-25) to move the needle forward faster, this is why. The voluntary approach is clearly not working.

To download and read the entire 2015 Securities Administrator’s status report, click here.

What To Do When There is Nothing New on Netflix?

Here a few articles we think are worth reading in case you missed them last week:

1. The Case Against Contemporary Feminism by Jia Tolentino published in the New York Times: The key word here is contemporary. Essentially, she argues that contemporary feminism involves too much commercialism and individualism, and not enough commitment to the idea of feminism as a powerful movement for social change. And in our view, she isn’t wrong. Her thesis is also very similar to the one well-argued in Andi Zeisler’s book We Were Feminists Once. It looks like we have yet another point on which some feminists agree.

2. How a Fractious Women’s Movement Came to Lead the Left by Amanda Hess, published in the New York Times Magazine: Hess writes “Women led the resistance, and everyone followed. A march for women managed to crowd a broad opposition force onto its platform. In the weeks since the march, that energy has only spread.” The main gist of this piece? If you want to organize a movement for social, economic or political change, assign the job to today’s intersectional feminists.

3. Another new demographic-specific incubator was created in Chicago last month. A Chicago Tribune article says this initiative received $3.4M (USD) in grants to start the program. Jon Gray, a Highland Park native who is head of global real estate at Blackstone, which invests capital for public pension funds and paid $1.3 billion for the Willis Tower in 2015, says in the article, “The desire to be an entrepreneur is universal, but the access isn’t.”

To win in the innovation game, we need to engage and develop all entrepreneurial talent, not just the ones who fit the narrowly defined, venture capital driven Silicon Valley mold. Supporting incubators who meet entrepreneurs where they are, and meet their needs is good economic policy.

CAN’T MISS EVENTS

February 28 to March 2: Canadian Crowdfunding Summit at OneEleven and MaRS Discovery District, Toronto. Learn about portals and platforms that can help you fund your new venture. To register, click here.
March 2: She Started It: A Film Screening, JLABS @ Toronto, 5-8 p.m. “She Started It” is a new documentary film that follows five trailblazing young female entrepreneurs through their journeys of entrepreneurship. To register, click here.
March 8: It’s International Women’s Day! Check out events in your city!
March 9: Indigenous awareness training seminar hosted by LiisBeth and Women on the Move in partnership with Bear Standing Tall and Associates, 2111 Dundas Street West, Toronto, 5-8:30 p.m. The three-and-a-half-hour holistic seminar using the medicine wheel framework covers topics including the Truth and Reconciliation process; treaty relationships 101; challenges created by Canada’s Indian Act, and how it in particular affects indigenous women; plus the status and challenges faced by indigenous women entrepreneurs (51 per cent of indigenous women either wholly or partly own a business in Canada versus 47 per cent of non-indigenous women). $35 ($25 for LiisBeth member subscribers). To register, click here.
March 16: Roxanne Gay, author, introduces her new book Feminism & Difficult Women, Toronto Public Library, 7-8:30 p.m. To register, click here.

That’s it for this week! And if you are not already doing so, please consider increasing your support of what we do in the form of a paid subscription. Subscription options are $3/month, $7/month and $10/month. We accept PayPal and credit cards. Funds go directly towards paying writers, editors, proofreaders, photo permissions and illustrators.

Our goal is to get to 1,000 email subscribers by March 31!! So please share this newsletter to those you know who might be interested.

The next newsletter is scheduled for Feb. 27.

See you in two weeks!

Sample Newsletter

LiisBeth Dispatch #24

(Illustration by Shepard Fairey)

VIEWPOINT

Wow, what a week.

With so much in the news about POTUS (President of the United States) Trump’s extreme behaviours and astonishing executive orders this past week, combined with the horrific Quebec mosque attack, it is easy to believe we are all sharing a bad dream. If you add to that the fact that the Globe and Mail still publishes Margaret Wente’s shock jock journalism, including her Jan. 28 piece telling women to check their privilege, we could justifiably call it a full-fledged nightmare.

But not so fast. There is hope in the promise of resistance.

The phrase “Resistance is futile” is a well known to Borg-loving Star Trek fans, and perhaps even the universe beyond. But here on earth, resistance, especially passionate resistance, is fertile. History tells us time and time again, that it feeds, energizes and gives life to overdue social change.

History also shows us that thoughtful stewardship of our collective resistance energy over time is the key to achieving our desired change. With an inclusive and ecosystem approach, it can raise the roof on civic engagement and incite the otherwise complacent to swell with concern and transform into potent community leaders, or better yet, run for and be elected to public office. Civil resistance works. Especially when women get really pissed off; consider the 1789 Women’s March on Versailles? But it has to run deep and long if it is going to have an impact.

Resistance can also take many forms—some large, some small—but they all add up. This can include writing an op-ed, calling out unacceptable behaviour at work or on the subway, tattooing a slogan on your body to forge personal commitment to a cause (Yes, I know someone who did this), helping to organize a march, demonstrating, publishing a book, blogging, spending your money differently, and hosting a salon for local influencers. Although you may not typically consider this, resistance can even take the form of initiating a new enterprise or organization.

Enter the Age of the Activist (Resistance) Entrepreneur

Activist entrepreneurs are not new. But they are rarely included in discussions about entrepreneurship, and there are certainly no incubators or accelerators in Canada dedicated to this genre. It is easy to see why.

Activist entrepreneurs design enterprises or organizations whose core purpose is to challenge norms, re-write laws, hold governments and misbehaving corporations accountable, conduct research, work to change the narrative, make the invisible visible, educate, and enable challenging conversations. The fact is, those who do well under the current system are unlikely to spend time let alone money challenging a system that works well for them. The fact that activism tends to repel financial investors or careerists makes activist entrepreneurs a poor fit for most startup incubator programs.

While conjoined in some areas, activist entrepreneurs don’t fit in with social entrepreneurs either. Activist entrepreneurs work to change the system. Social entrepreneurs work to heal the cracks in the system. Activist entrepreneurs strive for independence from the system, whereas social entrepreneurs, and especially enterprising nonprofits (nonprofits with small businesses on the side as revenue diversification schemes) are often financially dependent on the system (e.g. government grants, corporate sponsorships, or instruments like government-held social impact bonds, etc.).

The fact is, activist entrepreneurship is an outlier. Much of what is offered up by most startup ecosystems, including social entrepreneur programs, lacks relevance for activist entrepreneurs.

But still, they rise.

Some examples of activist entrepreneurial ventures include Rabble.ca (a media enterprise), the Transition Towns Network (a process innovation), and Idle No More (a grassroots movement). All three were founded in part, or entirely by women.

Rabble.ca, an indie, alternative online news magazine, and now a nonprofit venture, set out to combine activism with journalism and counter the status quo. Rabble.ca was founded in 2001 by women’s rights activist Judy Rebick with support from internet activist Mark Surman, novelist Judy MacDonald, plus well known Canadian activists, including Stephen Lewis and David Suzuki. The site launched by raising $120,000 from the Atkinson Foundation (a Toronto-based foundation focused on social and economic justice) and $80,000 from unions and prominent Canadians. Today the site reports that it averages 450,000 unique visitors per month. The site’s content is free of charge, and it generates revenues through advertising and reader contributions.

While Louise Rooney and Catherine Dunne were students of activist Rob Hopkins in the U.K. in 2004, they developed the Transition Towns concept. The Transition Network, further developed and popularized by Hopkins, helps communities move from oil dependence to local resilience. Today the network has more than 400 recognized member communities around the world and runs a thriving media enterprise, producing books and films sold worldwide.

The Idle No More movement, which opposes resource exploitation on First Nations territory became widely known during Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence’s hunger strike. Founded by four women, Nina Wilson, Sheelah Mclean, Sylvia McAdam, and Jessica Gordon in 2012, the still nascent but strong grassroots movement works a bit like a no-fee, loosely run franchise, and continues to operate on donated funds and volunteer management.

These are but a few examples. We quickly could add more. Consider the SlutWalk movement (which went international), founded by Toronto’s Sonya Barnett and Heather Jarvis (how’s that for exporting?), or the recent 2017 Woman’s March, launched by Hawaiian retiree Theresa Shook. Shook simply put up a Facebook page and it took off–a classic hockey stick rise not dissimilar to the kinds of growth patterns we have seen with famous tech startups. Today the organizers are working on how to grow the movement post-march, and sustain it. These examples are but a few. There are hundreds more. We like to think LiisBeth, our little fledgling startup, is another.

Activist entrepreneurship is a distinct form of entrepreneurship. For starters, they are not sparked by commercial market opportunity; they are instead called to serve in response to a form of systems level injustice that they care deeply about. They need mentors with experience with organizing sustainable resistance or movements (veterans like David Suzuki, Judy Rebick), public interest lawyers versus corporate lawyers, plus expert guidance on how to raise and steward donated money, or how to design a grassroots transmedia campaign to publicize their story. But where will they go for this support?

Not likely mainstream incubators and accelerators.

To advance systems change, or deal with reactionary regimes, we need those who march, demonstrate, or run for office, but we also need activist entrepreneurs. If we want to see change, we must be prepared to support them by paying attention to them, engaging with them, sharing organization creation, leadership and governance expertise, helping them implement best practices, and, of course, seed them with a little cash.

THIS WEEK ON LIISBETH

Back in December, LiisBeth contributor Mai Nguyen said, “Have I got a story for you!”

Meet Halifax entrepreneur Katelyn Bourgoin whose startup journey involved crying and throwing up on the bathroom floor, followed by successfully raising $350,000. Whaat??? Yes, pretty impressive! So don’t miss her story on LiisBeth this week and find out more about her new service called “Squads”, an online community of women entrepreneurs who provide each other with objective criticism and feedback via video conferencing.

Also, we hope you enjoy the short Q & A with Sadaf Jamal, founder of Move’n Improve, about her experience attending the Women’s March in Washington D.C. with Moxie Trades CEO Marissa McTasney and her group. Jamal is pictured above–wearing a pink hijab.

Coming soon, a special feature for the month of love (February) by writer Sue Nador on sex-positive entrepreneur Judy K, majority co-owner of the upscale Toronto sex club Oasis Aqualounge. Nador says that researching the story certainly challenged many of her assumptions. Let’s see if the story ends up also challenging yours.

LIISBETH FIELD NOTES

With all the President’s men in the news over the past week, you may be feeling discouraged, but I see a lot of hope in the form of woke and lit startup entrepreneurs working to build a more inclusive, kinder, and equitable world–and earn a living doing it. Here a few of the women I met this week:

As a 26-year-old student and mother of a two- and a four-year-old, Phylicia is busier than most women her age. But that has not stopped her from launching an intimate apparel and loungewear company, Grace & Finesse, for new moms and expectant mothers, which is eco-friendly, stylish, and practical. Carmona says motherhood influenced her decision to pursue entrepreneurship. “I wanted to be a positive role model for my daughter and my son and teach them they can do more than people expect them to be able to do.”

Anum Ayub, 22, founder of Henna Hues provides temporary body art and henna-inspired art products to spread her passion for this traditional South Asian artform to a wider, non-South Asian audience while providing an experience that is fun and relaxing. She has been practicing henna art since the age of six. Ayub hopes to employ additional associates in the next three years.

Suzanne Barr, is the founder and co-owner of a fabulous Riverdale resto, Saturday Dinette. Barr says she was motivated to become a natural whole food chef after losing her mother to cancer. As a supporter of Black Lives Matter, she is also passionate about advancing equality and inclusion. Barr participated as a panelist at the successful launch of the “Kitchen Bitches” conference where over three hundred industry professionals gathered to discuss gender and transgender inequality within one of the fastest growing industries–food.

Mother of two, Thornton, 27, and founder of Grime Queen, is well spoken, passionate—and believe me, there is nothing grimy about her. A photographer and urbex aficionado (also known as “roof and tunnel hacking”), she creates events in urban, abandoned places. Her company’s focus is on empowering and encouraging underrepresented gender minorities to “actively participate and profit from their passion for the Arts.” Thornton identifies as a feminist entrepreneur, and says this is becoming less and less of a “dirty word”, but it still creates additional challenges. Watch for upcoming Grime Festivals later this year.

Thirty-year-old Carolyn Palmer knows something about having “Her Way”. Her company Her Way is the creator of a new and innovative adult toy, specifically designed to help couples who are exploring sexual options post-physical trauma to women’s genitalia. The product enables an enjoyable sexual experience for couples while limiting the impact to female genitalia, which in turn, promotes intimacy during physically and emotionally challenging times.

Adriana Reyes, 23, wants Durham small-to-medium-sized businesses to grow, and she created Brilliant Marketing to help them do just that. However, at the moment she is somehow holding three jobs to make ends meet while starting her enterprise.

Did you catch the Jan. 30 Globe and Mail article “Why Some Women Are Rejecting Women-Only Start Up Initiatives” by Tracey Lindeman?

Lindeman also spoke to LiisBeth while she was researching the topic.

One women tech entrepreneur told Lindeman that she would never participate in a women-only startup incubator because she feared it would “ghettoize” her. She asked what our thoughts were on this subject.Essentially, our perspective on this was well summarized by SheEO founder Vicki Saunders who commented that women don’t need an investor, incubator or accelerator to ghettoize them. “They’re already ghettoized,” she says.

The article goes on to note that “The startup community has failed to become more inclusive through self-policing, but it bristles at the thought of government-imposed quotas. And so women have been faced with a choice: Do we continue to wait and hope for a favourable outcome, or do we do something about it? “Doing something about it” has resulted in women-focused programming like SheEO, developed in some ways as a stop-gap measure for the time when parity remains out of reach.

If pay equity or the percentage of corporate procurement dollars going to women-led firms (around 4% after 30 years of lobbying according to WeConnect) are an indication, it looks like it could be decades.Can women entrepreneurs, or our economy, afford to wait? The numbers are out there. We are nowhere near parity in the startup space. Not an alternative fact. So how to move forward?

One set of recommendations for achieving these outcomes can be found in the Women Entrepreneurs Ontario task force report published Nov. 2017 which you can download here.

For additional information about women startup equity around the globe, download the most recent Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2015 Women’s Entrepreneurship report here.

CAN’T MISS EVENTS

Feb 8: Women On The Move Workshop with LiisBethian Patti Pokorchak, “Get More Clients NOW — Without Being Pushy or Salesy!” In this session, you can practise your value proposition—and if you do not know what your value proposition is, you really need to attend this dynamic interactive workshop. Get feedback on what works and what does not in a safe environment. Learn negotiation techniques and how to overcome objections. Go from sales fear to sales fun, guaranteed. Learn how to easily ask for the order and get it! 1-2:30 p.m.
Feb 10: The Toronto Feminist Collective presents Galentines at the Steady. Galentines is a party that celebrates femme friendships. Tickets are $5. You can register here. 8 p.m.-2 a.m.
March 2: She Started It: A Film Screening; JLABS @ Toronto, 5-8 p.m. “She Started It” is a new documentary film that follows five trailblazing young female entrepreneurs through their journeys of entrepreneurship. To register, click here.
March 9: Bear Standing Tall and Associates will host a three-hour holistic indigenous awareness training seminar using the medicine wheel framework. The seminar will have an emphasis on the role of women in indigenous life, and the state of indigenous women’s entrepreneurship today. Hold the date! The Eventbrite link will be up soon!
March 16: Roxanne Gay, author, introduces her new book Feminism & Difficult Women, 7-8:30 p.m., Toronto Public Library. Register here.

Well, you did it again! You made it to the end! And we really appreciate it! We know your time and attention is valuable, so we work hard to make worthwhile content. As always, if we can improve, tell us. And if we have done well, tell us that too!

We can also use your support in the form of a paid subscription. Subscriptions options are $3/month, $7/month and $10/month. We accept Paypal and credit cards. Funds go directly towards paying writers, editors, proofreaders, photo permissions, and illustrators.

Our goal is to get to 1000 email subscribers by March 31st!! So please share this newsletter to those you know who might be interested.

The next newsletter is scheduled for Feb. 14. Valentine’s Day! In the meantime, keep resisting in your own way, take care of yourself and others. We need all LiisBethians, wherever you are in the world, to be strong for the long haul.

See you in two weeks!

Petra Kassun-Mutch
Founding Publisher, LiisBeth

Tags Activist Entrepreneur, feminist entrepreneur

Sample Newsletter

LiisBeth Dispatch #23

VIEWPOINT

Are you a women in tech founder? Have you heard about the #movethedial movement? Neither had we. Until three days ago. So let’s tell you a bit about it.

What is #movethedial?

#movethedial is a new Toronto-based initiative created to advance women in tech by bringing “…great people, minds, ideas and opportunities together to build connections that promote benefits for women tech leaders, the tech sector, and the economy.”

The kick-off was held on Monday, Jan 16th at MaRS Discovery District. The organizer’s Twitter post said the event attracted 400 women of which 225 were said to be executives, 112 founders (18 women founders were pictured in the post event Twitter photo), and 39 self-identified investors. There were also 100+ men present. Panelist Janet Bannister, General Partner at Real Ventures, noticed this while up on stage and ardently congratulated the men in attendance for showing up, as if it were an act of courage or an unusual demonstration of humanity. In my opinion, that gesture seemed a little odd. However, perhaps the fact that there are only three out of 16 people at Real Ventures who are women (two in administrator roles, plus Bannister) has something to do with it.

Who is behind this new initiative?

The event was mounted by an organization called Acetech Ontario (Acetech), an established (2013) nonprofit member-based organization whose mission is to create “conversations that matter.” Acetech was described by one attendee as a tech version of YPO (Young Presidents Organization). Membership fees are $4950 for a CEO and $1800 for an executive. They offer power sessions and networking opportunities for qualified tech executives, venture capitalists, and founders (men and women). Their member statistics page states the membership in aggregate represents $550M in revenues and over 4,700 people employed in Ontario. There are no gender-related metrics (e.g.: the number of women on members’ boards or percentage ) noted.

Acetech’s CEO and four operational staff (community animators, business development, and programming/event management roles) are all women. However, 11 out of 12, or 92%, of their board members are men.

Sponsors of the #movethedial event included DMZ, Start_Up Toronto, and MaRS. Curiously, the event was never listed on the MaRS event calendar.

At The Event

Speakers recounted the usual dismal statistics regarding women in tech, and among other things suggested that to succeed, the tech community in Toronto had to collaborate with other tech communities internationally, like those in Israel (considered to be exemplary).

During one of the sessions, four women industry leaders serving as panelists were asked to “spotlight” and write down the name of one (or more) woman in tech that they admire and would like everyone in the audience to learn about. Three out of four panelists provided names; the fourth drew (literally, on a white board which was held up) a question mark. She apparently could not identify a single one. This was unfortunate given that the point of the evening was to celebrate the achievements of women in tech in the room, and especially so given all panelists were sent the questions in advance of the event.

After the Event

In a contributed article submitted to the Globe and Mail (a Canadian nationally distributed newspaper) the morning after the event, Acetech CEO and former lawyer, Jodi Kovitz wrote “What we are missing [in tech] are diversity and collaboration. That means men and women working together as one Canadian ecosystem.” Kovitz says they are planning a series of #movethedial events and activities nationally.

Our Thoughts?

If success were measured by attendance, then this would certainly be a successful start to the #movethedial initiative. And a great opportunity to catch up with colleagues around a good cause. However, the event left me scratching my head. Is a series of conferences going to really move a systemically entrenched dial?

Recent women in tech studies combined with a few decades of lived experience and attending conferences focused on this topic tell us they don’t.

How to Really Move The Dial? Be the Change.

How can Acetech make a visible dent? It could start by truly leveraging the fact that its members are CEOs with the decision making power to act, and holding them accountable.

How? Start with data.

Acetech could launch an initiative to collect gender-based data on its own members’ companies, share this information for the purposes of defining where the needle is today (benchmarking), and report on the pace at which its community is moving the dial as compared to those outside the community.

How gender-balanced Acetech’s membership today? Does it know? What is their collective target? Apart from conferences, what is the organization doing policy-wise to motivate its member organizations or CEOs to achieve gender parity in their companies? Will Acetech require members to comply with Ontario Premier Wynne’s 30% women on boards target by the end of 2017? Will Acetech itself comply (remember 11/12 board members are men)? Does Acetech have a sponsorship or partner code that requires a minimum gender equity standard or at least demonstrates the existence of a plan to improve, as part of eligibility requirements? Does Acetech have a diversity procurement program? Does it encourage its members to adopt one?

If they do have such policies in place, it was not mentioned at the event, and if you search its own website for the term gender equity, you will come up empty. The CEO membership application asks for data on sales volume but does not ask members to report on gender parity at board levels.

It’s great to see new commitments to address the women in tech gender gap. However, in my opinion, if Acetech wants to be seen as a credible and effective advocate for gender equality, it would be strategically wise for them to set the bar, implement best practices in their organization, and establish a plan for accountability. Acetech itself need to be the change it wants to see in the tech sector, not just facilitate talks about it.

LIISBETH FIELD NOTES

LiisBeth Does the DC Women’s March on Snapchat!

Introducing 23-year-old Cailley Formichello, activist, entertainer and now, LiisBeth Snapchat journalist and contributor.

Formichello’s first assignment with LiisBeth will be to cover the Women’s March on Washington using Snapchat Story. If you can’t make it to the march, but want to experience it on your own time, we got you covered! It is also a great way to engage your teenage sons and daughters to participate in this historic event-without even leaving the couch.

To get the LiisBeth Snapchat story you need to first sign up to Snapchat on your smartphone. Then, search for liisbethhq, and add us to your friend list on Snapchat. You will receive notification of the DC Women’s March story as posts are made, including short videos.

Of course, with Snapchat, you have to view the story within 24 hours of it being posted. That said, we will be saving it under Snapchat’s new Memories feature, which will allow us to archive it.

If you haven’t had a chance to try Snapchat, but have been curious about giving it a go, this is a reason to start! Download the app on your smartphone here. Or ask your nearest 15-year-old!

New feminist press startup in Toronto: LiisBeth loves to support everyone, emergent and established, in the feminist press space. So this week, we had the opportunity to meet Patty Hails, founder of a launch-stage startup feminist press called Nasty Women ’s Press. Her editorial vision is for Nasty Women’s Press to reflect its readership: smart and direct. Think Slate.com for women, with a dash of flair from Vanity Fair. Hails moved from Saskatoon to Toronto with her partner last May. She currently has a Kickstarter crowdfunding effort underway. You can check it out here.

Weekly featured research paper: “Class Advantage, Commitment Penalty: The Gendered Effect of Social Class Signals in an Elite Labor Market” by Lauren A. Rivera and Andras Tilcsik. The punchline? “Despite myths of a classless society, social class of origin plays an enduring role in shaping individuals’ life chances and economic trajectories,” according to the authors. “Although men benefit from signals of a higher social class background, the class advantages higher-class women experience are negated by a commitment penalty.” You can find the study here. While this study is based on the practices of law firms, we believe they apply to women entrepreneurs looking to raise capital as well.

Learn more about working with indigenous peoples in Canada: LiisBeth in collaboration with Women On The Move and Bear Standing Tall & Associates is excited to announce that on Thursday, March 9 from 5:30-8:30, we will be presenting a three-hour holistic indigenous awareness training seminar using the medicine wheel framework. The seminar will have an emphasis on the role of women in indigenous life, and the state of indigenous women’s entrepreneurship today. The session is ideal for anyone who is interested in learning more about indigenous culture, and who currently works with or is planning to work with Indigenous Peoples in Canada and wants to expand their knowledge. The Eventbrite link will be posted soon! In the meantime, hold the date in your calendar! Oh, and due to limited space, we are going to have give Liisbeth subscribers first shot at the tickets. If you are not a subscriber yet-you could be! In minutes! Starting at $36/year or $3/month. Just sayin’!

B Lab releases its inclusive economy metrics set: As you know, LiisBeth is a B Corp. We wanted to share this high-level summary of the highest impact metrics from B Lab here. It may help you identify opportunities to improve equity, inclusion, and equality in your company. You can download the document here. And of course, we would love feedback.

CAN’T MISS EVENTS

Jan. 21: Feminist Art Conference, OCAD U. Features seminars, performances, and a maker market. All day Saturday, Jan 21. Register here. LiisBeth Panel on Gender, Entrepreneurship & Innovation from 4-5:30 p.m.
Feb 8: Women On The Move Workshop with LiisBethian Patti Pokorchak, “Get More Clients NOW — Without Being Pushy nor Salesy!” In this session, you can practice your value proposition and if you do not know what your value proposition is—you really need to attend this dynamic interactive workshop. Get feedback on what works and what does not in a safe environment. Learn negotiation techniques and how to overcome objections. Go from sales fear to sales fun, guaranteed. Learn how to easily ask for the order and get it! 1-2:30 p.m.
March 2: She Started It: A Film Screening; JLABS @ Toronto, 5-8 p.m. “She Started It” is a new documentary film that follows five trailblazing young female entrepreneurs through their journeys of entrepreneurship. To register, click here.
March 16: Roxanne Gay, author, introduces her new book Feminism & Difficult Women,7-8:30 p.m., Toronto Public Library. Register here.

That’s it! And if you are here that means you read the whole thing! (hugs). The next newsletter will be published Jan. 31st. Our next feature article will profile the amazing Katelyn Bourgoin, founder of a very cool online network of female entrepreneurs called Vendeve. And of course, there will be much more.

See you at the march!

Petra Kassun-Mutch
Founding Publisher, LiisBeth

Tags #movethedial, feminist entrepreneur, womens march

Sample Newsletter Uncategorized

Dispatch #22

VIEWPOINT

Last week, The Economist released “The World in 2017“, its annual collection of opinionated predictions for the year ahead. This 31st edition advertised forecasts from some personalities of note, including Justin Trudeau and member of the Russian female protest group Pussy Riot, Maria Alyokhina. It also includes predictions from George Clooney. (Oooh la la! I hoped his prediction came with a photo!)

In last year’s edition, The Economist predicted that 2016 would “be summed up in three words: woes, women and wins”. The woes referred to the worsening situation in Syria. The wins noted were sports and tech-related. And, the part about women referred to the impact of women coming into powerful roles for the first time, like Hillary Clinton’s bid for the White House (the 2016 cover featuring future world leaders didn’t even include Donald Trump-they assumed she would win), Janet Yellen’s work at the Federal Reserve, and how Angela Merkel will respond to the migrant crisis.

Turns out they were not entirely wrong in their prognostications -except for the Hillary Clinton part. Looking back, the 2016 edition was also light on predictions regarding the future for 50% of the planet’s population, women and girls. In fact only one out of the 100+ predictions that related to the role and state of women and girls on the planet; A piece on the importance of educating girls. In the world’s poorest countries, still, only 20 percent of girls complete Grade 8 education.

The 2017 edition, however, is markedly different. First, it includes not one but seven predictions out of 100+ that speak to the fight for gender equality, including one with the actual word “feminism” in the title. And second, the predictions related to the advancement of women this time are more about broad social shifts, versus an emphasis on a handful of individual women-in-power ‘firsts’.

Social and culture gender-related predictions noted include the increasing acceptance of a fluid approach to gender, the rise of “nuanced feminism”, 2017 as a breakthrough year for women in the boardroom due to quotas and public opinion, and the advent of “marketplace diversity and inclusion”. Andi Zeisler describes in We Were Feminists Once how companies have increasingly used feminism in their advertising to sell us stuff while their overall company leadership and policies continue to show they are at their core, un-feminist, or worse, “unwoke”. In a similar way, this same trend is being seen across other areas of diversity and inclusion.

Out of the seven predictions related to gender equality, a piece worthy of both further note and criticism is “A Feminism for All” by millennial writer Louise O’Neill (also the author of Asking for It, a novel examining gender and sexism). First, it’s great to see feminism included in the predictions at all. And we agree with O’Neill when she writes feminism today is for “women of all races and religions, it’s for transgender people, it’s for men, it’s for straight, gay people and everyone in between.” We also agree with O’Neill’s idea of “nuanced” feminism, which says feminist issues are complex and not given to simple answers. However, with her emphasis on how individuals embrace feminism today, O’Neill misses the opportunity to underscore that feminism is not just a mindset; it’s also about actively working for change, and in particular, systems change. We found that oversight disappointing.

If feminism is about working for deep-seated social change, then it will require much more than a countable increase in the number of “woke” fan girls (or fan guys, and everyone in between) posting selfies of their feminist selves. I guess one could argue that this is at least a start, but for feminism to truly matter, it will eventually need people who are prepared to really dig in, unlearn media’s skewed representation of feminism, relearn the movements’ real history and roots (including it’s issues i.e. white feminism), read everything they can about feminist thought leadership today, and engage meaningfully in efforts to power system and institutional change.

But then again, posting a selfie is easier.

Overall, as a long-time Economist reader, I was pleased to see these topics make the 2017 prediction list. And I hope the curators are as close to right about their forecast as they were with their 2016 list.

As for George Clooney, sadly, there was only a small illustration of his head beside the article, mostly written by someone else.

THIS WEEK ON LIISBETH

This week, we interview Dimple Mukherjee, founder of Whole Self Consulting, an advocate for the benefit of women-only spaces, and creator of the Bindi Parlour experience. The Bindi Parlour is described as a “girls night out at home”, an idea we thought was timely given the approaching holiday season.

We loved Dimple’s very personal, and grassroots story about how she came to entrepreneurship. We hope you do as well. You can find the article here.

52FEMINISTS

Sometimes you just gotta love Twitter. For without it, I would not have been introduced to so many fabulous feminist entrepreneurs over the past few months who by chance, saw our feed and decided to reach out because of common ground.

Who is this fab woman? Meet Eileen Scully, an accomplished woman in tech, founder of The Rising Tide s, a diversity and inclusion consultancy based in Connecticut, and creator of a fabulous sideline website called 52feminists.com.

The website profiles at present, 52 feminists and the list is growing. I asked Scully why she started this initiative. Scully explained in an emailed response that “In July 2016, it began to feel as though so much of the progress we had made towards advancing the rights of women were slipping away. Every day I work with businesses helping them achieve gender parity, but I needed an outlet for the social and political aspects of women’s equality. 52feminists is a platform to expand the definition of what is a feminist, through the stories of ordinary people. Each week features a different feminist on each of our feeds, and to our subscriber base.”

To check it out, visit 52feminists.com and submit your profile! You can also join her twitter feed @52feminists.

DO QUOTAS HELP OR HINDER?

Check out Sarah Kaplan’s (Director, Institute for Gender & the Economy, Rotman School of Management) timely new research brief “The Debate About Quotas” where she explores both sides of the gender diversity quota debate. The brief notes that “Policy makers and organizations have been working toward achieving gender diversity for many decades, but progress has been slow and is perhaps even stagnating.”

Are quotas the answer? Learn about the pros and cons here.

THE CANADIAN WOMEN’S MARCH ON WASHINGTON

It was freezing cold Toronto’s City Hall on Wednesday, December 11, but we showed up anyway. The occasion? A photo shoot arranged by Toronto march organizer Marissa McTasney (Founder of Moxie Trades). The purpose was to join other communities around the world doing the same–showing support for the Women’s March on Washington event planned for Sunday, January 21st, the day after the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th POTUS (President of the United States). To see similar photos from around the world, use #whyimarch. You can also watch “Why I March” declarations here.

To check out the Metro News article on the gathering, click here. Yes, and by the way, NONE of us are soccer moms (they are making a correction).

The January 21st event promises to be a historical event by all accounts. All across Canada, and around the world, women (and men) are preparing to participate in the march as a show of solidarity for diversity, equality, and inclusion. To find out about a march near you, visit http://canadianwomenmarch.ca/local-marches/. To get a seat on one of the buses departing from Toronto for Washington, visit http://canadianwomenmarch.ca. Tickets are $150.00 per person.

MEET SOPHIA

LiisBethian Vicki Saunders (Founder, SheEO) sent us a link to this incredible article titled “Selfless Devotion” by Janna Avner on why engineers are giving robots “feminine” personalities. And what this says about how femininity is perceived in our society.

Janna Avner is a creative technologist living in Los Angeles who recently co-created Femmebit, a yearly digital new media festival celebrating women artists. Janna graduated from Yale in 2012, and is currently a gallery director who curates shows, exhibits paintings, and writes as much as time permits.

In the article Avner provides us with insight in the humanoid development space.

Avner writes “Sophia,” created by Hanson Robotics, is one of the several fair-skinned cis-appearing female prototypes on the company’s official website. She possesses uncannily human facial expressions, but though she may look capable of understanding, her cognitive abilities are still limited.”

Further on, Avner also notes “Looking at female humanoid robots shows me what the market has wanted of me, what traits code me as profitably feminine. Like a Turing Test in reverse, the female bot personality becomes the measure of living women. Is my personality sufficiently hemmed to theirs? This test might indicate my future economic success, which will be based on such simple soft skills as properly recognizing and reacting to facial expressions and demonstrating the basic hospitality skills of getting along with any sort of person.”

Believe me; it’s worth the time read. Thanks, Vicki!

CAN’T MISS EVENTS

Does your plan for 2017 include launching a social enterprise? The Community Innovation Lab has just launched their 2017 Social Enterprise Accelerator program. This early stage, co-ed incubation and training program will run from February 2017 to June 2017 and aims to support and enrich the learning experiences of social entrepreneurs in Durham Region, Northumberland, and the Kawarthas. Learn more here. And to apply click here. Only 25 spaces are available.
Women on the Move presents “Entrepreneurship on a Shoestring: Where to Spend your Marketing Dollars, Wednesday, January 11, 2017 from 1:00-2:30pm. Register here.
The Institute for Gender & the Economy presents Sallie Krawcheck, Co-Founder and CEO, Ellevest Digital Investment Platform; Chair, Ellevate Network; former CEO of Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch Wealth Management; former CFO, Citigroup; Author, January 12, 5pm-6pm, Desautels Hall (Second Floor, South Building) | map Rotman School of Management, U of Toronto, 105 St George Street. Tickets are $36 and include a copy of Sallie’s book “Own It: The Power of Women At Work“.
Feminist Art Conference (FAC) is a hidden gem of an event. This year it will be from Jan. 10 to Jan. 21, 2017. Tickets are free but space is limited. Register here. Note: LiisBeth is also moderating a panel on Gender & Entrepreneurship.
If you want something to look forward to in the New Year after the mad rush of celebrations and resolutions, consider joining Dimple Mukerjee’s 10 Day Morning Rituals Challenge in February 2017. It’s quite the ride, and there’s absolutely no right or wrong way to do it. You’ll connect with other like-minded people, and maybe even plant another seed for your wellness, just waiting to sprout and grow. Click on the link above to get a heads up when it gets closer.

That’s it for the December newsletter. And we are also taking a short break from our publishing schedule so all can enjoy the holidays.

We will resume our newsletter and monthly publishing schedule on January 17th, 2017. What’s ahead? We kick things off with a inspiring article by Margaret Webb about a group of “Bold Betties” in Colorado, a rousing video interview with Dr. Patricia Green (Paul T. Babson Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies and Academic Director Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses and 10,000 Women) on feminist entrepreneurship, followed by an interview with Dr. Candida Brush (Babson professor of entrepreneurship and Vice Provost of Global Entrepreneurial Leadership) about the need for more relevant curriculum for women entrepreneurs. In January, we also feature Katelyn Bourgoin, founder of a very cool online network of female entrepreneurs called Vendeve. And of course, there will be much more.

In case you feel like a LiisBeth fix during our break, and in case you missed them the first time around, we recommend checking out our 2016 most-read articles (according to Google) by category:

Service articles:
1. Invasion of the Brain Pickers: 9 Ways to Deal with Requests for Free Advice, by Rona Maynard
2. How to Embed Feminist Values In Your Company, by Valerie Hussey
3. Why We Need Diverse Approaches to Start Up Incubation, by Priya Ramanujam
4. Bridge Over Tricky Waters: Love, Business and Good Governance, by Sue Nador

Activism:
1. When Those Who Lead Fall Behind, by Petra Kassun-Mutch
2. Who Erased Claudia Hepburn, by Petra Kassun-Mutch
3. Entrepreneurs by Choice; Activists by Necessity, by Cynthia MacDonald

And finally, for most read profile, check out All Jacked Up, by Margaret Webb.

All in all, we published 55 original articles in 2016 plus 22 newsletters.

Regardless of web statistics, we are super proud of the work created by all contributors, illustrators, and freelance editors. Big hugs to each and all. We will see more of their work along with the introduction of new contributors in 2017.

If you have not subscribed to LiisBeth, but have valued our work, please help us continue by signing up as a paid subscriber here.

In the meantime, dear readers, subscribers and LiisBeth website visitors, have a terrific holiday season.

See you again on January 17th. And as always, if you have comments, thoughts, story ideas or tips to share, please send them our way to [email protected].

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Tags 52feminists, Canadian Women's March, Dimple Mukherjee, Eileen Scully, feminist entrepreneur, feminist magazine, Hanson Robotics, Institute for Gender + the Economy, Janna Avner, moxie trades, Salli Krawcheck, Sarah Kaplan, sophia, Vendeve

Sample Newsletter

Dispatch #21

superwoman — Ilene Sova, Superwoman, 2013

VIEWPOINT

Why start a business in an industry in crisis (publishing, media, journalism), targeting a demographic (feminist entrepreneurs and business owners) that adds up to a hyper-niche space, and that few, if any advertisers care about (their enterprises tend to be small; read: they have no money).

Because, as Leonard Cohen says, “There is a crack, a crack in everything; That’s how the light gets in.”

Creating Cracks

I recently picked up the book Making Feminist Media by Elizabeth Groeneveld (2016) at the library. The book is about Groeneveld’s insight into feminist media after studying five significant “third wave” feminist publications (B itch 1996-present, B ust (1993-present), HUES (1992-1999), ROCKRGRL from 1995-2006, Venus Zine (1994-2010), Canada’s S hameless (2004-present), and the only online publication studied R ookie (2010-present).

While their feminisms diverge, what they all have in common is that they aimed to cleave cracks in the steely grey morass we call the system to advance an agenda of social, political, and economic gender equity and equality. Despite the operating challenges and hate mail they received (a phenomenon even before the age of internet trolls), they still triumphantly created vibrant and life-changing media spaces where women and girls could have authentic conversations that matter to them.

Groeneveld notes that these magazines demonstrate, by the nature and stories of their very existence, “what the capitalist market can and cannot sustain.” Their history also shows us why it is so important that healthy societies ensure alternative narratives are heard: These stories become the fodder for the coffeehouse or kitchen table debates that sometimes later lead to the founding of new movements, inventions, businesses or community initiatives that better our world. These magazines didn’t just retread safe consumer narratives—they inspired new ones that catalyzed social change.

If They are so Important, Why is Feminist Media so Hard to Fund?

Feminist media in North America has been around since the early 1700s. A study by Kathleen Endres and Therese Lueck, referenced in Groenveld’s book, which catalogued 76 feminist publications, notes that over one-third of them were defunct after 10 years. Most hung by a financial thread (even in the ‘good old days’ of periodical publishing). If they play such an important role in the lives of women, and our collective path to gender equity, we have to ask why they are so unsustainable.

For starters, enterprises of all sorts generally do better when they address huge markets with big consumer-minded audiences, and in comparison, the number of people who engage with feminist media is low. The fact that the community is also fractured exacerbates the addressable market size problem. There is no one feminism. While many have a base of loyal paying subscribers, there never seems to be enough of them to make the reader-supported model work on its own. Also, many feminists have (with good reason) been historically suspicious of corporate funding, if not outright anti-capitalist and anti-consumer in their worldviews, and this has not helped the bottom line. Magazines who started to become too commercial in an effort to survive were sometimes punished by their own readers (read: unsubscribed).

However, this appears to be changing. Feminist entrepreneurs, in particular, generally agree that the new imperative is not to ignore capitalist economics, or capitalism as mass culture, but to invent a feminist interpretation of what capitalism could be like if guided by different values. For “how to” inspiration, many look to the social innovation and evolving social enterprise space. New organizational models (e.g.non-hierarchical network organizations or collective impact organizations) and transformative funding models (e.g. community bonds, impact investors, crowdsourcing) are part of today’s feminist changemakers toolkit.

While market realities still befall many, the few recent success stories referenced in the book demonstrate that it is possible to craft an acceptable collage of compromise between sustaining an independent medium for feminist audiences and running a financially viable enterprise that can pay editors, illustrators and writers at the very least, a living wage.

This is good news for the future of feminist media and anyone interested in advancing gender equality and equity. The reality is that new worlds start with new stories. We need feminist media and storytellers. In fact, it would seem, given recent world events and troubling trends, that we need these outlets and voices more than ever before.

“…reading feminist magazines is much more than the consumption of information or entertainment; it is a profoundly intimate and political activity that shapes how readers understand themselves and each other as feminist thinkers.”–Elizabeth Groeneveld

As a feminist business magazine, LiisBeth is also engaged in navigating this tricky feminist media enterprise design, operating and funding terrain. And as a result we too are working to craft our own unique pastiche of sustainability. For example, rather than accept the either/or options of becoming a nonprofit or for profit, we customized our articles to reflect a for-profit/non-profit hybrid. We chose to further our commitment to social purpose by becoming a certified B Corp. And like others in the feminist media sisterhood, we also look to leverage new funding sources (e.g. crowdsourcing) along with innovative and aligned sponsorships, swaps (SwapcityB2B, Bunz) and partnerships to build and sustain what we started.

For now, with just over 600 subscribers, we are not yet a bonafide crack—just a chisel mark. But with your continued support, we can indeed become one of the many cracks that lets the light in.

(To subscribe to LiisBeth today, click here)

Other feminist media to consider this holiday season:
http://gutsmagazine.ca/

Home

http://roommagazine.com/
https://mcclungs.ca/
http://www.broadsidefeminist.com/ (Now defunct, but amazing archive online)
http://www.lennyletter.com/

LiisBeth Field Notes

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/video/2016/jan/13/marlon-james-are-you-racist-video

We think this video featuring Marlon James (author of the 2015 Man-Booker-prize-winning A Brief History of Seven Killings) is one worth watching—and showing your kids. In this video, he talks about the difference between being a non-racist and an anti-racist. Being a non-racist facilitates inaction—perhaps you don’t discriminate, but you also don’t actively work to stop discrimination. He makes a strong case. Simply standing on the sidelines by being non-racist is not enough.

To go a level deeper on understanding the distinctions regarding where one is on a spectrum of non-racist to anti-racist advocacy is also well illustrated in this chart prepared by Rina Campbell of Campbell Consulting in Chicago. In Campbell’s chart, she looks at the difference between a passive non-racist, active non-racist, ally behavior, and anti-racist advocacy, at the individual, community, educational and systemic levels.

After reviewing Campbell’s chart, think about where to you fit in. And then think about how this spectrum framework would apply to your relationship with feminism. We think the same logic can also be applied to other forms of discrimination like gender inequity. Are you sexist? Non-sexist? Or anti-sexist?

Gifts That Keep On Giving: Introducing the B-CORP Gift Guide

Okay, if you are going to buy gifts this holiday season, here is an opportunity to spend your shopping dollars in ways that matter. You can get to the Canadian B Corps online gift guide here. B Corps are businesses committed to positive social and environmental impact. And guess what?! We’re in there!

Other Cool Links to Nifty Gifts:

1. LiisBeth Bookshelf—recommended reads by LiisBeth (when you order via our website, you help us out too!)

2. Mashable’s feminist gift guide

Can’t Miss Events

LiisBeth attended the Feminist Art Conference (FAC) last year and became a fan of this hidden gem of an event. This year it will be from Jan. 10 to Jan. 21, 2017. They usually sell out, so hurry and register here.

The Feminist Art Conference of Toronto is a volunteer-based organization that brings together artists, academics, and activists to consider feminist issues through art.

LiisBeth is hosting one of the community panels at the FAC on Saturday, Jan. 21, entitled Gender, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation. Panelists include Jack Jackson (All Jacked Up), Renishaki Kamal (Fidget Toys), Emily Rose Antflick (Shecosystem) and more!

And for Your Calendar in 2017, Don’t Forget to Mark:

Canadian Women’s March to Washington, Jan. 21. This event has been organized to support women’s issues in the USA and has now become a Global Movement.A small group of dedicated volunteers are leading the Canadian Initiative and will support these efforts across Canada including a Delegation to Washington, DC. Want to join in? Register here!
Forum for Women Entrepreneurs Pitch for the Purse event, Feb. 20, Vancouver, B.C.
International Women’s Day March, March 8, 2017
Ontario Pay Equity Day, April 19, 2017
Digifest is a three-day conference located on Toronto’s waterfront that focuses on the future of education, creativity, entrepreneurship, gaming, and technology; organized by George Brown College. It also features a pitch competition. April 27-29, 2017

Wow! Here you are at the end! If you want to receive our newsletter right into your inbox, sign up here today (Free!)

Tags FAC, feminist entrepreneur, feminist media, Ilene Sova, marlon james, newsletter

Sample Newsletter

Dispatch #20

VIEW POINT

Re-learning the Vocabulary of Character

I recently found exactly what I was looking for when I was least expecting it. It came in the form of a book given to me by a fellow friend and entrepreneur whom I nicknamed “Fozzie.” When the conversation inevitably turned to Donald Trump’s win, he handed me the book.

The book “The Road to Character” was written over a year ago by David Brooks, an American conservative author, and columnist for the New York Times. I hadn’t heard of it, but it was, in fact, the second time Brooks’ name was mentioned to me that day. I pay attention to those kinds of celestial cues. I went home and started reading it that night.

The book is about character and why we should live life as we ought to, as kind, compassionate people, and not how societies’ most recent narrative or systems tell us to. To make the point, Brooks researches the lives of outstanding people and explains why deeper “Little Me” values and concerns for a better future for all of humanity should inform our lives, rather than the “Big Me,” which emphasizes shallowness, popularity and resume virtues. Brooks’ narrative shows us what it takes to build, and what it looks like to be anchored by strong inner character (Spoiler alert-its hard). He says, ‘’Life cannot be organized like a business plan” or succeed on an “individual autonomy” platform.

His study of the topic also leads him to observe that the road to moral character “involves moments of moral crisis, confrontation, and recovery.” If Brooks’ book, and before him, Leonard Cohen’s entire body of work teaches us anything, it’s that being good is not an exercise in perfection, it’s also about embracing and productively wrestling with our dark sides.

I am not surprised that Fozzie had this book on his shelf. He IS this book. Self-effacing, soothing, gracious, always questioning, and refreshingly funny and honest about how frustrating it can be when the rewards of trying to live a life of character are so invisible, sometimes even to family and friends, especially given the work and sacrifice required to sometimes really live it.

Yes, it’s hard for any business working towards financial sustainability, to have to fire an otherwise valuable leader in your company due to repeated misogynistic behavior. It takes courage to write an op-ed that you know some of your funders will disagree with. And it is especially gutsy to say no thanks to a “this will make our year” deal with a clearly racist client who treats your frontline multicultural staff inappropriately. Try to explain any one of these to your shareholders, or your kids who are hoping for something other than a “staycation” this year. Taking a stand that that advances society, but not necessarily your business or family pocketbook is hard. But that’s what people like Fozzie do.

Life cannot be organized like a business plan or succeed on an individual autonomy platform.

Not everyone appreciates Brooks’ moralizing prose. But that day, Fozzie’s gift —and what I took from it—uplifted me. It inspired me to step up my personal efforts to wade in even deeper, and work harder to embrace my still stumbling “Little Me.”

As I read, I also thought about the coming Trump era. Notably, a sense of hope emerged. With Brexit, Trump, and OMG, the growing audience for politicians like Kellie Leitch in Canada, we cannot deny that we have entered a new era that has clearly affected many of us personally, and will impact our communities and enterprises in many ways in the coming years. However, how we allow it to affect us is going to be the result of the strength of the connection between values, character, and action.
For me, Brooks’ prose strengthened my commitment to stand up, engage, and continue to collaborate with others to tackle outdated norms and systemic biases to foster a truly just, equitable and inclusive society.

Thomas Merton wrote, “Souls are like athletes that need an opponent worthy of them, if they are to be tried, and extended and pushed to the full use of their powers.”

Well, we now have a worthy opponent.

Perhaps openly misogynistic, racist and “Big Me” leaders like Trump, Bannon, and others of the same ilk, may well end up, weirdly, doing a kind of good in the long run. A bit like drinking a bottle of castor oil for good health and to relieve constipation. The reality is that we have not come very far when it comes to achieving social equity and justice, and so, we are now are the having much needed but uncomfortable conversations that we might not have had if Clinton had won. This could be a turning point for the better, but only if we use this time to learn, widen our repertoire of knowledge and ideas, have the courage to act when we see evil, and as Brooks says, recommit to, and “relearn the vocabulary of character.”

This Week on LiisBeth

relearn-the-vocabulary-of-character-liisbeth-jj-steeves — Illustration by JJ Steeves

It’s Heeeeeere! Holiday season!

For many of us, it’s a busy time for ourselves and our enterprises. Often, it represents the make-or- break sales season of the year. It is a time for decorating the store, seasonal sales campaigns, company celebrations, employee bonuses, and customer appreciation cards and gifts.

But is your approach inclusive enough?

Find out in “Have Yourself a Merry Little All-Inclusive Holiday Season” in which author Valerie Hussey notes, “Designing your approach to holiday celebrations to achieve the social and cultural goals of your work and business communities makes good sense.”

Bring on Chrismukkahwanzamawlid*!

Wait! There’s more!

Also this week, Amy Kopelan is back with her column “Inside the Tent” where she offers straight up advice about how to pitch your company successfully and with confidence in front of “the boys with money”.

In the second part of “Not Your Incubator’s Entrepreneur“, contributor Priya Ramanujam’s two-part article on what starting out as an entrepreneur is like for young women of colour, we speak with innovators who are doing the work to change the start-up space for these women, and hear what the government could do more of to ensure their multi-million dollar programs are inclusive.

LIISBETH FIELD NOTES

Understanding the Contemporary Canadian Feminist Landscape

Don’t miss this month’s Walrus article, “Whose Side Are You On, Anyway” by Lauren McKeon. In the article, Lauren investigates the world of Canadian anti-feminist organizations, bloggers, and media personalities. The article is an excerpt from her forthcoming book, which explores contemporary Canadian views on feminism.

As a person who believes the time is right for a feminist business media voice, that feminism is about gender equity for all, and that United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal #5 (Gender Equality) and #10 (Reduced Inequalities), if achieved, would solve the other 15 goals on the list, I have to admit I found the article hard to swallow.

What McKeon points out in her article with double-down force is that the anti-feminist voices at work in our society have “YUUGE” and growing audiences. For example, Judgy Bitch, a Northern Ontario-based anti-feminist blog with five million plus hits evangelizes the notion that granting women the right to vote was a big mistake. Meanwhile, pro-feminist voices like Herizon, a longtime venerated Canadian feminist magazine, has just 10,000 readers. (In case you are wondering, LiisBeth readers number just over 600).

I find an increase in these Canadian anti-feminist Breitbart-style media voices and audiences very troubling. But not surprising. Especially when so many professional women in high-profile leadership positions, also dubbed as today’s role models, are themselves quick to throw feminism under the bus.

An example of this occurred at the March 2016 Canadian Club’s Women Entrepreneurs–Canada’s Untapped Economic Engine luncheon, also the opening scene for the article. Many LiisBethians were there, including me. In fact, I was the one that asked the question “Do you consider yourself a feminist? If not, why not? Justin Trudeau does.” To find out how the panel answered, you will have to read the article. Or listen to the 45-minute podcast, an audio recording of the entire discussion.

So why do so many professional women reject feminism? In my travels, I find that often the problem is ignorance about women’s history, the movement’s history and a lack of informed appreciation about the role feminism played in opening up the many possibilities we enjoy today. Many rely on sketchy 1970s media portrayals of feminism as anti-male, and anti-woman for that matter. The fact is feminism is anything but. In my view, it is an incredibly robust, responsive and evolving movement that will keep on evolving and being as long as inequality continues to be an important social issue.

So I have three challenges for women who don’t feel comfortable with the word feminist. First, ask yourself why. Second, pick up a book and read about it. And third, if you are invited to speak about your success on a podium, begin your talk by thanking the feminists who came before you. For even if you reject feminism, the very least you can do is thank those who did not.

Toronto Anti-Trump March

Several LiisBethians decided to take part in the Anti-Trump march held on Saturday, Nov. 19. We asked those who participated to let us know what it was like. One LiisBethian was disappointed, in that for her; the rally rhetoric was not as it was billed, but about “doing away with capitalism” and that “Trump cannot be President,” which is of course not only a done deal but what the American democratic process yielded.

LiisBethian Ruth Mandel had a different take. “It felt for myself and the other three fully adult, super smart, mature women I was with partly like a demonstration of resistance and partly a celebration of what we need Canada to be, without being naive about what it is but certainly confident that it remains remarkable and emblematic and needs to keep going in its expansive directions.

For Mandel, it was all: LOVE TRUMP’S HATE. She added “Then we sang ‘Oh Canada’ outside the Trump Hotel (not owned by Trump but mired in debt and controversy, of course). It was fabulous to sing our anthem!”

For those of you who missed it, and would like another opportunity to express you views, LiisBethian Marissa McTasney, founder of Moxie Trades, award-winning entrepreneur and Start Up Durham, Durham region’s chapter of Start Up Canada, is organizing an opportunity for women to join the “Women’s March on Washington” being held on Jan. 21, 2017. The organizers of this march aim to “send a bold message to our new administration on their first day in office, and to the world that women’s rights are human rights. Standing together and recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us.”

Details about this event will be available on Monday, Nov. 28 at www.canadianwomenmarch.ca. You can also email [email protected]. Marissa is just now working on the registration web page. We will let you all know when it’s up!

A Feminist Business Model Canvas?

Most of us have heard of Osterwalder’s Business Model Canvas tool—but what do we do for Feminist Businesses? Is there a Feminist Canvas?

There are! Two of them, in fact. And a third on the way! There’s a Feminist Canvas for co-creating projects with your stakeholders, and a Feminist Canvas for scoping out a feminist product. Soon, there will also be a Feminist Canvas to help you map out your enterprise, by helping you consider more deeply things like governance, ownership structure, and power dynamics, plus how justice, equity, and systems change can be added into the design of the enterprise.

The Feminist Project Canvas and the Feminist Product Canvas are the work of CV Harquail, PhD, faculty affiliate at the Steven’s Institute of Technology (Hoboken NJ) and Lex Schroeder, feminist entrepreneur and business strategist. Together, CV and Lex are co-founders of Feminists At Work, a consultancy that is creating tools to help us take action, build products, and create businesses that put feminist values and perspectives into practice at work.

Like the Osterwalder business model Canvas and other templates, the Feminist Canvases help entrepreneurs clarify, organize and get their business ideas down on paper. Template in hand, and entrepreneur can easily share her ideas with collaborators, stakeholders, investors, and her community,building support for her vision.

What’s unique about the Feminist Canvases is that they are explicitly designed to help you work in ways that demonstrate feminist values.

LiisBeth is pretty excited about The Feminist Business Canvases — You can expect to hear more about them in the coming months. Even better, we’re planning workshops later this winter where you’ll be invited to test drive, revise, and help co-create these Canvases so that they are even more effective for supporting your own revolutionary businesses. If you want to learn more about The Feminist Project Canvas before we announce our plans, click here.

CAN’T MISS EVENTS

💃 Women on the Move is hosting its Million $ Gal-a on Thursday, Nov. 24 from 7 to 9 p.m. at their coworking space at 2111 Dundas St. W. The open event features a champagne bar sponsored by Intuit, plus speaker Julie Cole of Mabel’s Labels. If you have not been to their space, I would recommend it as well! You can register here.

✊ Calling all Social Entrepreneurs! The Community Innovation Lab has just launched their 2017 Social Enterprise Accelerator program. This early stage, co-ed incubation and training program will run from January 2017 to July 2017 and aims to support and enrich the learning experiences of social entrepreneurs in Durham Region, Northumberland, and the Kawarthas. Learn more here. And to apply click here. Only 25 spaces are available.

🎬 Gender & The Economy Film Night at Innis College! Thursday, Dec. 1, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. The film Equity will be screened from 7 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. and followed by two speakers, Carrie Blair (film investor and EVP, Sun Life Financial) and Sarah Kaplan (Professor of Strategic Management, Rotman School of Management). $13.50 plus HST.

Whew! That’s it for our end of November newsletter! We will see you again on December 8th.

In the meantime, if you have comments, thoughts, story ideas or tips to share, please send them our way to [email protected].

Be fearless,

Petra Kassun-Mutch
Founding Publisher, LiisBeth

Tags David Brooks, Donald Trump, Election2016, Feminist Business Model

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