Goals > Goal 5

Goal 5: Gender Equality

Goal 5: Gender Equality

We believe that political, economic, and social equality benefits all citizens, as gender bias results in wasted human potential.

Through our Rural Democracy programs, we’re working to ensure all of our neighbors feel represented and prepared to participate in the decision making processes in their community – especially those who identify as women or nonbinary.

Through Resilient Community Grants, we provide grants to organizations working to support gender equity.

Our region’s early care and education system is experiencing a great shortage of workers, and research shows this is primarily due to the wage disparity. We cannot ignore that women make up the majority of the workforce that provides care, including home-based child care businesses.

Through grants, loans, and community organizing, our staff is engaged at all levels to make lasting change. Our economy depends on it.

We support community funds in their pursuit of their local and global goals.

For more than a decade, we provided grant programs to business and education institutions to provide training for available skilled positions. This programming was effective, providing streamlined connections between trainers and trainees and assisting employers in continuously training their workforce as production methods changed. Once these pathways were well-established, the program was discontinued.

  • Be aware of gender stereotypes. Recognize them, avoid them, and educate others about them.
  • Ensure your role models, leaders, and positions of authority in your community have equal representation, especially women and those who do not conform to binary gender.
  • Stand up against harassment. When you see or become aware of it, raise your voice against it, whether it’s at your workplace, community, home, or online space.
  • Share the workload at home. Sharing domestic responsibilities ensures the work burden doesn’t fall on a single person and teaches both gender equality and essential life skills to children.
  • Change your language. When you encounter gendered language, have it changed or make the point of using another term.

Explore the map below: More indicators are available to view by expanding that menu at the left. Click on each county to see the data for each indicator.

This information was made available through a partnership with U-Spatial, a department of the University of Minnesota.

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Related Metrics and Progress for: All West Central Minnesota Counties

Goal 5: Gender Equality
Goal 5: Gender Equality
0.70 wage gap, women's earnings compared to men's
Needs Work