Famous faces

This activity could be run for International Women’s Day, which is celebrated on the 8 March every year. International Women's Day (IWD) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day marks a call to action for accelerating women's equality. It can also be a great way to introduce young people to inspirational women. International Women's Day has occurred for well over a century, with the first IWD gathering in 1911 supported by over a million people. Find out more about Girls and Women in Scouts.

Women in Scouts are nothing new. We’ve always had female leaders, and Scouts is now open to people of all genders. Girls first joined Scouts in 1976 as Venture Scouts, the section that used to be for 15 to 20 year olds. We started welcoming girls into other sections in 1991; since 2007, groups have had to accept girls into all sections.

Sian Parton, was one of the first Scouts to join her Group in 1991 and later became a Beaver Scout Leader:

‘I was 11 at the time and joined at the first opportunity because I wanted more adventurous things to do. We would often be at local events and someone would address us as boys, either because they forgot girls were there or because they naturally used the term – I never took offence at this, but I always enjoyed correcting them!

‘All the boys in my Troop were brilliant and really looked out for us. I think there used to be leaders who believed girls could never do what the boys did, and that we were never going to be capable of doing an assault course or getting our hands dirty...

‘Being among one of the first girls in our group I can honestly say we all gave 100% to our Scouting and proved a lot of people wrong. Our group continues to have a successful mix of both boys and girls and has done for many, many years.

‘I believe girls joining Scouts was a positive step for the whole movement – there are lots of reasons for this, but I think the main one is that it’s made Scouts accessible to all. I think it’s also boosted numbers in many parts of the country (we have had more girls than boys in our section sometimes) and I think it made the Scouts more appealing and modern.’

HRH The Duchess of Cambridge

• She’s the first woman to hold the post of Joint President of Scouts in our 113-year history.
• She was a Beaver and Cub Scout Leader in Anglesey.
• She supports a variety of charities for young people, the arts and sports, and outdoor education.
• She’s particularly passionate about tackling the stigma around mental health, and launched the Heads Together initiative in 2017.

Amandla Stenberg

• They’re an actress and singer; they’ve starred in films like ‘The Hate You Give’, ‘Everything, Everything’ and ‘The Hunger Games’.
• In 2015, they released the YouTube video Don’t Cash Crop On My Cornrows, a powerful statement confronting the controversy of cultural appropriation, targeting white pop stars in particular. 
• They teamed up with Teen Vogue to create the #BlackGirlMagic campaign in 2016.
• They were named a ‘TIME Next Generation Leader’, received the 2019 Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award, and used their acceptance speech to advocate for LGBTQ+ visibility.

Anita Rani

• She’s one of our Scout Ambassadors.
• She’s an RST Award winning presenter, who hosts ‘Countryfile’, ‘War on Plastics’, ‘Four Rooms’ and is a regular team member on ‘The One Show’.
• In 2016 she visited the Zaatari Refugee camp in Jordan, creating a two-part documentary ‘The Refugee Camp: our desert home’ where refugees shared their stories.
• She also hosted the UNHCR Nansen Refugee Awards 2017in Geneva – an evening to celebrate the individuals and organisations providing outstanding service to refugees and displaced and stateless people.

Katie Piper

• She’s a best-selling author, TV presenter, podcast host and public speaker.
• In 2009, she shared her story of surviving and acid attack in a Channel 4 ‘Cutting Edge’ documentary.
• The same year, she created a charity to help people with burns and scars to reconnect with their lives and communities.
• In 2018, she opened a residential burn and scar rehabilitation centre.

Greta Thunberg

• She began a global movement in 2018 by spending her days camped out in front of the Swedish Parliament with a sign that said ‘school strike for climate’.
• Over the following 16 months, she addressed heads of state at the UN, met with the Pope, and challenged then US President Donald Trump on the reality of climate change and the urgent need for global action.
• She inspired 4 million people to join the global climate strike on September 20 2019, in what was the largest climate demonstration in human history. 
• She was named TIME Person of the Year 2019.

Malala Yousafzai

• When Taliban took control of her town in Swat Valley, Pakistan her school was closed down. In 2012, she spoke out against this, championing the right for girls to access education.
• Shortly after her speech, she was targeted and shot by a masked gunman.
• After many surgeries and long periods of rehabilitation, she joined her family in their new home in the U.K. and made the decision to keep fighting for girls’ rights to education.
• She established the Malala Fund, a charity dedicated to giving every girl an opportunity to achieve a future she chooses.
• She received the Nobel Peace Prize in December 2014, becoming the youngest-ever Nobel laureate.

Jazz Jennings

• She is an LGBTQ+ activist, YouTuber and TV star.
• She lobbied the US Soccer Federation into creating a trans-inclusive policy.
• She began sharing her transition journey at six years old. She made a documentary for the Oprah Winfrey Network and a reality series that started in 2015 and is in its sixth season.
• She is an honorary co-founder of TransKids Purple Rainbow Foundation, which aims to enhance the lives of transgender and gender non-conforming youth and their families.

Ellie Simmonds

• She’s one of our Scout Ambassadors.
• At just 13, she won two gold medals at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing; and the following year become the youngest person ever to receive an MBE.
• Now an OBE holder, she has won 13 world titles, 10 European titles, and three further gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Paralympics.
• She is a patron for Dwarf Sports Association UK and is a WaterAid ambassador.

Kamala Harris

• She became Vice President of the United States of America in January 2021; she’s the first women, the first Black American and the first Scout Asian American to hold this position.
• As San Francisco’s District Attorney from 2003 to 2010, she started a programme to provide first-time drug offenders second chances with the opportunity to earn a high school degree and find a job.
• After being elected California Attorney General in 2010, she won a $20 billion settlement for California homeowners against big banks that were unfairly taking possession of homes. She also worked to protect Obamacare, helped win marriage equality for all, defended California’s landmark climate change law and won a $1.1 billion settlement against a for-profit education company that scammed students and veterans.
• Since being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016, Kamala has introduced and co-sponsored legislation to increase the minimum wage to $15, reform cash bail, and defend the legal rights of refugees and immigrants.

Saray Khumalo

• She’s our newest Scout Ambassador.
• She’s an award-winning mountaineer who was the first Black African woman to reach the South Pole and the top of Mount Everest.
• Through mountaineering, she has raised over 1.5 million South African Rand towards literacy and education in Africa. She’s supported initiatives for Kids Haven and the Lunch Box Fund and she’d built four libraries as a Mandela Libraries ambassador.
• She created Summits with a Purpose to encourage African young people to participate in exploration, education, outdoor activities, and entrepreneurship as they contribute to the economic wellbeing of their communities.