Challenging the status quo and testing assumptions is intrinsic to good design. At Buchan, we push every day for a culture of inclusivity, within our walls and beyond in the environments, we are privileged to help create. Choosing to challenge and strive for better is what we are all about, and this International Women’s Day we support and celebrate every act great and small that drives a world free of bias and inequality.
“As a mum I have just supported my eldest daughter through a vocational high school trade certificate and now she has just started as a first-year Apprentice Mechanic with Audi. She is challenging the norm and we are proud of her resilience to do what she loves even though it is far from the norm.” – Anne Rigby
“International Women’s Day celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. Celebration on this day sends a priority message; “be equal”. Be fair and open; be committed to this ideal, be transparent and supportive in all we do, engender opportunity to everyone, whether in our professional or personal lives. IWD is recognising the relevance of fairness, of thinking laterally and of working together, regardless of gender, race or religion. The Buchan community is vast and diverse; inter-related and interactive at all levels – we don’t stop to check gender, we get on as One Team, to achieve our shared goals. That’s the Buchan that I’m proud to be part of.” – Stephen Auld
“Equality is the backbone of progress and I choose to challenge any variance from an open-hearted equality across gender, race, religion or lifestyle choice. If we embrace our differences and eradicate any sense of supremacy, we will all enjoy a full life.” – Laraine Sperling
“There are no exceptions to equitable justice. As James Baldwin says, not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” – Will Lakin
“Those of us who shape the built environment have a responsibility to design on behalf of the entire community, not just for the majority. We owe it to the future generations of women who will inherit not only the built forms but also the institutions and cultures that we leave behind, to support one another and to continue turning up the volume of female voices in our industry.” – Rebecca DiNapoli
“I choose to challenge ‘token’ inclusions. We’re not going to move to a world where gender or race don’t matter if we’re still only including people for the sake of including people.” – Gemma Young
“Equality in the workplace is the foundation of how learn to grow as a society. In design, we have the opportunity to integrate our values into the community and learn to move forward together as one.'” – Adrian Vocale
“I choose to challenge gender roles for both my son and my daughter and their future. Let them grow into a world where expectations aren’t placed on a person based on gender but rather on interest, skill or talent.” – Katrina Tolhurst
“Gender diversity in the workplace is essential, and we can challenge by ensuring mixed teams are evident at every level of the company.” – Marie Giglia
“We all have more potential than is perceived. As such, women deserve the same rights and opportunities as men and until that happens, we’ll continue to raise awareness on International Women’s Day!” – Michael Curtis, Rion Wibowo, Melody Le Tong, Alexander Lim, Evan Chan, Chiara Kamamaneas, Emma Cormick and Lee-Hwee Chong from our Sydney Studio
“It starts with us, the ‘every day’ person to hold those seemingly in a position of power to account. Equality isn’t an option anymore, it’s a necessity. ” – Hayden Federico
“The differences in human beings is what creates character and flavour in our world. How dreary it would be if we were all the same ‘perfect’ human being. To strive for harmony is to embrace the differences, whether gender/ race/ religion. Embrace diversity.” – Zona Quinton
“I choose to challenge social media and the unrealistic expectations we place on women to be perfect.” – Lauren Lee
“We acknowledge the diversity of equality that defines International Women’s Day. Strong foundations are built by everyone that chooses to challenge traditions that limit us and chooses to pursue equal rights and opportunities for all. We raise our hands to encourage awareness and action.” – Shane Tua’i, Karina Ellis and Goran Butorac from our Sydney Studio
“Right person, right role, right outcomes…right? I’m proud to support IWD and #ChoseToChallenge in an effort to encourage a diverse and inclusive Buchan.” – Grant Withers
“2020 presented many challenges for Brand Experience. It provided opportunities for learning and upskilling, which has made Bx more diverse in the services we provide, while also remaining current and skilled in this everchanging industry. I am currently working on museum installations for the Locomotive Workshop, providing digital and projection media – a skill I didn’t have last year! It has been an amazing challenge and an incredible learning experience and I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved.” – Toni Do
“I choose to challenge myself every day! As a woman coming from a background where it is still not so common for women to work, I challenge myself to work & succeed in my industry. Being used to a system where one person/boss says, others follow’, it is challenging (but exciting!) to be in an ‘everybody shares their ideas’ system and learn from it. I owe it to many successful women whom I work within Buchan every day – to make this transition quick and easy.” – Anu Chembrolu
“Everyone is created equal and has equal potential to change the world. To think in some way that anyone isn’t capable of creating miracles, even changing the world, amounts to cheating the potential of humanity as a whole. The women of the world are the most remarkable people who have ever existed, and that is something that needs to be acknowledged and celebrated.” – David McCarroll
“I choose to challenge because value judgement should be derived from one’s ambition and not their gender. From my experiences in co-curricular activities while studying architecture at university I came across characters who awarded opportunities based on gender rather than based on merit of ideas. These encounters drove me to recognise my own self-worth, and to recognise value beyond gender. I learnt lessons that were challenging to deal with at the time, but most importantly I learnt about perseverance. I know now that every thought, sketch and scribble is valuable, even those that are out of the ordinary because every extraordinary designer is faced with criticism. Persistence is always rewarded.” – Isabella Etna
“For the longest time, I didn’t understand why we needed an International Women’s Day. After all ‘Girls can do Anything’ and why shouldn’t they. Then I realised many women were not as lucky as me, did not have the benefit of a government campaign in the 80’s that supported their personal development, did not have a husband that allowed them to both have children and a career, and, did not have mentors who helped open the doors to opportunity. For me equality is not gender biased, many people every day are treated with inequality for many different reasons – as my husband is for being an at-home dad. International Women’s Day is just one way and one day in which the issues surrounding inequality can be brought to the forefront of the mind, and that is why I support it.” – Raylene McEwan
“Diversity is any dimension that can be used to differentiate groups and people from one another. In a nutshell, it’s about empowering people by respecting and appreciating what makes them different, in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, education, and national origin.” – Rob Watson
“In the words of Gloria Steinem, Women are not going to be equal outside the home until men are equal in it.” – Our Brisbane Studio
