The Magenta Project awarded for global work in social sustainability
by The Magenta Project 16 Nov 2023 03:19 PST
Andrew Pindar winner of the 11th Hour Racing Sustainability Award for The Magenta Project presented by Alexandra Rickham at the World Sailing Awards , Malaga, Spain on 14th November © Mark Lloyd / World Sailing
Today, METSTRADE Show opened the 2023 exhibit honouring innovation in the industry with presentation of the DAME awards.
The Magenta Project was selected by METSTRADE as the DAME Charity of the Year, recognising the charity as an industry leader in equity and inclusion, and was awarded an impactful donation courtesy of the DAME award proceeds.
"The leisure marine industry is rightfully moving towards greater accessibility and inclusion. METSTRADE is making waves in this regard with the Women Leadership Breakfast, career coaching for young professionals in the new METSTRADE Career Zone, and the new Start-up Pavilion. Aiming to diversify the industry and boost the industry's crucial talent retention objectives. And to underline our commitment to accessibility and inclusion we are very pleased to have the Magenta Project accepting the DAME Awards charity today," said Niels Klarenbeek, Director METSTRADE.
Yesterday, The Magenta Project was also honoured in Spain at the World Sailing Awards, receiving the 11th Hour Sustainability Award for Magenta's global work in social sustainability.
"Organisations are beginning to cue in that social policies are integral to true sustainability strategies. We see that equity and inclusion is an industry-wide responsibility, something men and women alike must all get behind. The Magenta Project is proud to bring the global sailing community together to achieve our shared social sustainability goals," said Andrew Pindar, The Magenta Project Trustee, founding partner of GAC Pindar, and esteemed advocate for women in sailing.
"We are extremely grateful to receive these honours and critical funds for our global charity's programmes. It has been a tough year for women in professional sailing, but there have also been a lot of wins - this being one of them! The support from the industry has been the greatest and most effective changemaker, and we look forward to continuing the progress with our community partners," said Jonquil Hackenberg, Chair of The Magenta Project.
The Magenta Project was founded in 2015 by members of the all-female Volvo Ocean Race Team SCA to advance global support for women in performance sailing. In 2018, The Magenta Project established its annual flagship mentoring programme, which has helped over 200 women develop their careers in the sailing industry worldwide. The Mentoring Programme is offered remotely, and covers all career pathways in the industry, from inshore, offshore and foiling to STEM, onshore and support roles.
This year, The Magenta Project's flagship mentoring programme began to scale up its programme to include grassroots and corporate organisations so as to champion the development of women at local and organisational levels around the world. In partnership with German-based organisations Offshoreseglerinnen and Float Magazine, The Magenta Project has offered remote access to mentor resources, events, and networking connections to advance local German talent at a global level.
The Magenta Project is working with Future Fibres to support the company's mission to recruit and train more female talent in a traditionally male-dominated industry. As part of this, The Magenta Project and Future Fibres will co-host a special career pathway and recruitment workshop at METSTRADE on Friday this week. Future Fibres is already leading the way with 30% of their workforce being female, which is over twice the industry average of 14% of women in maritime specialist technical and operational roles, according to the Women in Maritime Survey by International Maritime Organisation. Future Fibres is committed to working towards increased gender parity across the industry, and a more socially sustainable future in Maritime STEM.
"The Magenta Project is doing its own 'magic' allowing people who are willing and enthusiastic to share an official platform to connect and talk to each other on a regular basis, so that they can dig into a deeper discussion towards their career progression," said Lily Xu, 2012 Rolex Female World Sailor of the Year and current Magenta Mentor. "We can already see the influence this project brings since it was founded by professional female sailors some years ago. It is continually expanding in many ways and helped many women to reach their goals in sailing, inshore or offshore, professionally or recreationally. "
The Magenta Project is currently looking for new partners and welcomes corporations, classes, events, and organisations interested in driving more equity and inclusion, and exploring its Mentorship Model, to get in touch:
www.themagentaproject.org