Education and Skills

There's a new range of Barbie dolls that celebrate female icons

Mattel's newly-introduced News Anchor Barbie (L) and Computer Engineer Barbie are shown in front of a display of career-doll Barbies at the Toy Fair in New York February 12, 2010. REUTERS/Jeff Zelevansky (UNITED STATES - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT SOCIETY BUSINESS IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Amelia Earhart, Frida Kahlo and Bindi Irwin are just some of Barbie's new range. Image: REUTERS/Jeff Zelevansky

Daniel Boan

Ahead of International Women's Day on Thursday, Mattel has unveiled two new lines of Barbie dolls based on modern-day role models and inspirational women from history.

The first is called the "Global Shero" line, which honors women who have broken boundaries and serve as positive influences for their young fan-base. These dolls are all currently one-of-a-kinds and won't be on sale.

These dolls are not available for sale but instead are part of the Image: BI
A diverse range of women are represented, from chefs to directors. Image: BI

Though these dolls aren't available for sale, the brand is hoping to shed light on these women's achievements by making them "honorees" of the Shero line.

"Girls have always been able to play out different roles and careers with Barbie and we are thrilled to shine a light on real life role models to remind them that they can be anything," the brand's Senior Vice President and General Manager Lisa McKnight said in a statement provided to INSIDER.

The 14 dolls include women in the arts, the culinary industry, and sports. The doll for Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim comes complete with a snowboard.

Kim became the youngest woman to win an Olympic snowboarding medal at age 17. Image: BI

Steve Irwin's daughter Bindi Irwin is also part of the line for her dedication to wildlife conservation.

Bindi Irwin has dedicated her life to Australia Zoo Image: BI

While Gal Gadot has already received the doll treatment as Wonder Woman, it's now time for director Patty Jenkins to join the ranks as well — especially since "Wonder Woman" is now the biggest grossing live-action film directed by a woman.

Image: BI

The doll stirring up the most buzz is one you can actually buy: legendary artist and activist Frida Kahlo. She is part of the brand new "Inspiring Women" line alongside famous aviator Amelia Earhart and NASA icon Katherine Johnson, which will all be for sale.

Historical women are also a part of the new range. Image: BI

The internet seems to be most excited about the prospect of finally owning a Kahlo doll.

Have you read?

The "Inspiring Women" Barbies will be released throughout the year, starting with the Frida Kahlo doll on Thursday. The Ameila Earhart doll will be released on April 8, with the Katherine Johnson doll following on May 10.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

Sign up for free

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Stay up to date:

Education

Related topics:
Education and SkillsEquity, Diversity and InclusionIndustries in Depth
Share:
The Big Picture
Explore and monitor how Education is affecting economies, industries and global issues
A hand holding a looking glass by a lake
Crowdsource Innovation
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
World Economic Forum logo
Global Agenda

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

How 'green education' could speed up the net-zero transition

Sonia Ben Jaafar

November 22, 2024

Systems thinking has great potential in education. Here are 5 ways to deliver it

About us

Engage with us

  • Sign in
  • Partner with us
  • Become a member
  • Sign up for our press releases
  • Subscribe to our newsletters
  • Contact us

Quick links

Language editions

Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

Sitemap

© 2024 World Economic Forum