Women’s Day, the daughter effect and other top gender stories

Welcome to your weekly digest of stories about how the gender gap plays out around the world – in business, health, education and politics. Subscribe here to receive this by email.

5 ways to close the gender gap. We’ll get there faster if business and government work together. (World Economic Forum)

And what really works around the world. Interviews with the Co-Chairs of our Gender Task Forces in Mexico and South Korea.

15 women changing the world in 2015. From an astronaut to an online activist, from scientists to social entrepreneurs. (World Economic Forum)

Equality is not a zero-sum game. Why men and women should #LeanInTogether (New York Times)

“I was blind to gender bias. Until having daughters opened my eyes.” Psychologist Adam Grant on the father effect. (LinkedIn)

Companies should invest in female farmers. Those that don’t will be left behind. (World Economic Forum)

John, Robert, William and James. Or the case for a more diverse boardroom. (World Economic Forum)

“Out of every 10 people we interviewed for a tech position, roughly nine were men.” The CEO of Hootsuite on how he’s pushing for change. (World Economic Forum)

Afghan men don burqas for women’s rights. Wearing a burqa felt “like a prison”. (Reuters)

Where is the best place in the world to be a working woman?Scandinavia, of course. Poland comes fourth. (The Economist)

Here’s an easy investment strategy. Female-led companies perform three times better than the S&P 500. (Fortune)

India’s ban of rape documentary sparks outrage. India’s Daughter should be compulsory viewing, says a prominent author. (NDTV)

Building a business from floodwater. Dakar women channel a deluge to grow herbs. (All Africa)

The woman who stands between Putin and Ukraine. Natalie Jaresko, Ukraine’s minister of finance, is as influential as the nation’s generals. (Bloomberg)

Medicating women’s feelings. Is the drug industry profiting from the stigma around emotional women? (New York Times) NYT readers react.

Work-life balance is dead. Long live work-life integration! (Fortune)

Statistic of the Week

Teen pregnancies dropped 40% between 1970 and 2012 across the globe. Over the same period, female secondary school enrollment rose from 35% to 72%.

Quote of the Week

“When one woman is a leader, it changes her. When more women are leaders, it changes politics and policies,” says Michelle Bachelet, the president of Chile.

Author: Ceri Parker is an Associate Director at the World Economic Forum, and edits the Agenda blog platform.

Image: A Chinese woman walks past the venue of an exhibition on advertising in Beijing. REUTERS/Wilson Chu