Critical Components for Advancing Young Women’s Leadership

Abstract

Reflecting on the research for our project described in Chapter 1, this chapter presents our findings around the barriers to young women’s leadership and effective ways of supporting and advancing young women’s leadership. Having provided this overview, we then explore in detail one key theme regularly cited by young women as central to their leadership practice and development: safe spaces. Examining the concept and practice of safe spaces is essential, since young women are often sidelined from leadership opportunities that privilege older males, yet programmes aimed at ‘youth’ or ‘women’ also often marginalise young women.