After years of sharing our language learning online, my friends and fellow language obsessionadas Kerstin Cable, Shannon Kennedy and I began to notice something: there’s a lot more polyglot men than women it seems. Time to make change. Presenting an all new online language event – Women In Language.

I’m really excited to share this event with you but before we dive in, let’s start at the beginning.

When I was a wee lass…

My early memories of language learning – the French lessons in primary school, the French and Spanish lessons at secondary school, the school trips to Normandy and Brittany to spend a week with a French family pretty much just happened.

Of course, if you were a 13 year old English girl you stayed with the family of a 13 year old French girl, not a 13 year old French boy because, you know, hormones.

But, really, I never thought much about gender.

I never felt that I couldn’t learn a language because I was a girl.

I never felt that I couldn’t study those languages to pass those exams to use them for work because I was a girl.

I never thought I’d be writing this all these years later announcing a brand new online language event called Women In Language with an all-female lineup of speakers.

So what changed?

Here’s the thing – I still don’t feel those things.

I still feel that I can learn, study, and work with languages, regardless of the fact that I’m a woman. (Yes, at some point in all those years I passed that Britney Spears I’m-Not-A-Girl-Not-Yet-A-Woman phase and got to an age where I decided that much like Britney nowadays, I’m past that and can probably call myself a woman instead of a girl. For the win.)

But lately, with the heightened awareness of gender in politics and world events (I’m looking at you, Women’s March and The Weinstein Effect, to name just two examples) I’ve realised that I’m in a position of privilege to feel that way.

Not every female around the world is in a position to feel that she can learn languages (or anything for that matter) on an equal footing with males.

Not every female around the world feels that her voice is valuable and deserves to be heard.

Not every female around the world would feel confident enough to put herself and her language learning out there for all the world to see.

Representation is important. When we see people that we can relate to doing things that we want to, we realise that it’s possible for us to do those things too.

However, on and offline, there is a noticeable higher percentage of public-facing males in this space.

How is this possible when A) the global population is roughly 50/50 male and female and B) there are so many incredible women out there doing amazing things with language?

Things need to change.

Women often hold back, are belittled, overlooked, and don’t grow up with the belief that their opinions matter. So an event like this will show all those who are uncertain that it’s more than ok to be a woman on a conference panel or stage.

With Women In Language, we are opening the doors to a range of diverse new voices who we’ve known about for a while, be it on Instagram, Facebook or elsewhere across the web and the world, but most of whom we’ve never heard speak at a language event on or offline.

There may be some familiar faces but hopefully some new ones too.

Oh, and if you haven’t figured it out by now, all of these voices are female!

Introducing Women In Language

Women In Language is a unique online event designed to champion, celebrate, and amplify the voices of women in language learning.

This is a new event in 2018 so we’re really excited about the potential impact of Women In Language.

We’ve gathered an inspiring all female lineup of over 25 speakers who are experts from all walks of language life: polyglots, industry veterans, full-time world travellers, teaching experts, academic professors, and innovators.

Presentations are based around four key areas:

Starting Languages – perfect if you’re just in the early stages and need a leg up to learn languages better on your own

Mastering Languages – exactly what you need if you’ve already studied a couple of languages or one to a reasonable level and you’re ready to take things further

Living with Languages – a great range of presentations about language in your everyday life. From positive language learning for kids to living abroad

Working with Languages – curious about the various ways you can bring languages into your working life? There’s plenty here for you too

Why Should I come to Women In Language?

By attending Women In Language, you’re aligning yourself with a positive message that shows you support diversity of voices in language. This is a strong message that can only have a ‘ripple effect’ to increase the diversity of public-facing language folk in the future. Woop!

Secondly, all the presentations are live, not pre-recorded, meaning that you’ve got the benefit of being able to ask questions and share your own opinions and thoughts in the discussion for each presentation.

Thirdly, with the purchase of a ticket, you’re entitled to attend as many of the presentations as you wish live.

You’ll also receive recordings of the presentations, a digital notebook for the event, and access to a private Facebook Group before, during and for 6 weeks after the event.

And finally, with 10% of profits from ticket sales going to Kiva, a charity supporting international entrepreneurs, you know you’re helping budding entrepreneurs across the world. Woop!

When does the event start and finish?

The Women in Language online event starts March 8 and ends March 11! But when you purchase your ticket, you get access to the video replays so that you can watch them at your convenience.

What happens once I enroll?

Click here to enroll and then here’s what happens next…

1. You click “Register” above and are taken to the checkout.

2. Once you’ve purchased your ticket, we’ll send you an email right away with details about the event and your free Women In Language Calendar so you don’t miss your favourite talk.

3. You get ready to join us when Women In Language kicks off on 8th March!

Who is this event for?

Sounds great! I just don’t know if it’s for me… Totally fine! We want you to be sure about attending Women In Language before you purchase your ticket. Let’s help you to make your decision. This event is for you if…

• You are learning a language at any level (or want to) and would love to hear some expert voices discuss topics to help you go further and do more with your languages
• You work with languages (or want to) within any capacity and enjoy hearing different perspectives and knowledge on working with languages
• You live abroad (or want to!) and are keen to learn about the experiences and tips of others in your shoes
• You want to learn from a broad range of female voices within language learning.

I’m a man/gender non-binary/I don’t identify as a woman. Can I still attend?

Absolutely. This is an event designed to showcase some of the many women doing many amazing things in the world of languages. That means that although the speakers are all female, the audience is definitely not. In fact, we encourage you to attend regardless of your gender. It’s important everyone sees how much awesome stuff is being done by women in language.

What if I’m busy between 8th and 11th March and can’t attend all the talks?

No problem! You will have lifetime access to all the talks after the event so can catch up as and when suits you. Also, before, during, and for the 6 weeks following the event, you will have free access to the Women In Language Facebook Group that will be a place you can ask questions to Kerstin, Shannon, Lindsay, and even some of the speakers at the event. So you won’t be left behind!

Remind me, what is this event all about?

Women In Language is a brand new live online event. Over 25 speakers. 4 days. 1 unforgettable showcase of awesome women doing amazing things in language.

I need a ticket!

Tickets for the 2018 event cost $29 and will only be available for purchase before and during the event. That’s just over a dollar per speaker!

Oh, and it goes without saying, men (and anyone else who doesn’t identify as a woman) are not only welcome to attend Women In Language, but encouraged to do so.

The event is of interest to anyone who loves language, regardless of your gender. Woohoo!

To learn more about the presentations and the speakers, click here to get your ticket.

See you there!

I hope you’re feeling inspired and looking forward to Women In Language! It’s going to be a blast! Have you got your ticket? Who are you looking forward to hearing from? Share in the comments below!