Women in Cotton

Women in cotton is a working group developed by the ICA to try and increase diversity amongst its members and within the industry as a whole.

What is the group’s mission?

To increase engagement and the impact of women within the industry by giving them a stronger voice, sharing and learning from each other’s experiences and helping networking amongst women in the global cotton community.

Our 2023 objectives include:

Increase the representatives of women on ICA committees to 50% by 2025, as well as women speakers in high profile Industry event.
Grow the Social Media community by 50% and Engage with the community at least twice a week.
Organize virtual events every 6 weeks with attendance of at least 50 people.
Create a Mentorship program.
Identify and Measure the incidence and progress of Women in the Industry.

Women in Cotton Events

Chats for Change

Online events for men and women in the cotton industry which focus on professional development and overcoming gender barriers.

Find out about the latest event >

Global Café

These online events usually follow Chats for Change and give participants a chance to network and carry on the discussion. They are open to men and women in the industry.

Women in Action

New online events spotlighting women sharing their industry knowledge with participants.

Find out about the latest event >

2023 Calendar of Events:

6 April: Chats for Change – Taking stock of gender biases: Where are we now and where do we go from here?
18 May: Women in Action – Featuring Marcela Albanez
29 June: Women in Action- More details coming soon…
10 August: Chats for Change – More details coming soon…
21 September: Women in Action – More details coming soon…
23 November: Women in Action – Pollyana Morais

View previous WiC online events on our YouTube Playlist here >

How can you get involved?

Whether you are a man or a woman in the industry, you can:

Join our Women in Cotton LinkedIn group here >
Sign up to our eNewsletter to be the first to know about upcoming events here >
You can also show your support by adding the Women in Cotton virtual ‘button’ to your email Signatures. If you are interested, simply email wic@ica-ltd.org and we will send you the imagery with a quick guide for installing.

Are you in a leadership position?

We ask you to take this pledge and become a ‘Cotton Champion for Change’:

I pledge daily to respect women & encourage them into positions of influence in my business, I commit to identifying opportunities for three women within my organisation to advance their career paths, to add to diversity & create positive change.

Five simple steps you can take to support women in cotton:

Check & challenge your company’s current diversity policy
Approach a colleague to encourage them to join the Women in Cotton LinkedIn group (request to join the group >)
Talk to your male & female colleagues about the benefits of diversity
Implement compensation equality
Promote work/life balance & workplace flexibility

Share your support and stories of actions you have taken with the hashtags

#Change4cotton and #WomeninCotton