For many of us who grew up in the 70s and 80s, the recent passing of Olivia Newton-John was sad. My sister and I watched her in one of our favorite movies, Grease, play the goodie-two-shoes Sandra Dee character. As much as I loved Sandra Dee, I related much more to black-clad Rizzo, the leader of the Pink Ladies gang, played by Stockard Channing. Rizzo was the badass who “didn’t take any crap from nobody.” She had a protective exterior but was also vulnerable and empathetic. She had street smarts and grit and wasn’t easily swayed, not even by the innocent Sandra Dee. “She looks too pure to be pink.” Was it Iggy Pop who said the most punk color is pink? Rizzo was very punk.
Why am I writing about Betty “Rizzo” on a food blog? I thought Rizzo was a liberated woman—a woman for the times when the women’s rights movement was underway in which women were fighting for equal rights and opportunities and greater personal freedom. Women are still fighting for their rights and freedoms. Now, more than ever. The overturning of Roe v Wade is downright heartbreaking, but I will not lose hope. I am surrounded by incredible women who continue to fight the good fight in my personal and work life. Our team consists of almost all women, and they are amazing beings. We have a lot of Rizzos on our team! They give me inspiration and perspective. They teach me new angles about how to see the world and our place in it. They are pushing for different rights in new contexts and situations in a more complex world.
Food system leader Corinna Hawkes authored a recent Lancet paper along with a smorgasbord of fantastic women leaders and indicated that we still have a long way to go in recognizing the importance of women in food systems leadership: “… in global food systems organisations, less than 34% of senior management positions are held by women and only 6% of chief executive officers and board chairs are women from low-income and middle-income countries.” Dismal.
The Next Gen(D)eration Leadership Collective is an initiative trying to change that. They are building on the experience of professional women working in the field of nutrition and food systems globally. Many women have signed up to be a part of the collective, and a 12-women task team shepherds the collective. Rizzo galore! In my view, they give voice and agency to the many young women working on food system issues, and I think the platform is “unleashing the power of women!” They may not be donning pink, but they are definitely punk.
And women are giving voice to women who may not have the opportunities that some of us do. For example, three stellar women scientists published an important piece of work in Nature advocating for funds directed towards international food assistance to prioritize women and girls. They wrote, “This food crisis is not the last crisis the world will face, but it should be the last one in which women and girls carry this grossly unequal burden. Now is the time to transform the food system to create more opportunities for women and girls, leading to greater gender equality.” Well said.
I am a middle-aged woman, and I am still learning what that means and how much it matters. I am consistently inspired by the women around me and all they are doing to make the world more equitable and meaningful for everyone. We have a long way to go, but we have come so far. So, let’s keep going. As Rizzo said, “Okay girls, let’s go get ‘em.