Women with skills can change the world

In 2011, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly declared 11 October as the International Day of the Girl Child, and this year's 2015 theme put forward a call to support opportunities for girls to fulfil their potential as key contributors to achieving a sustainable and equitable world. One of the highlighted recommendations - noted by the UN as "critical" - is the need to invest in high quality education, skills, training, access to technology, and other learning initiatives that prepare girls for life, jobs, and leadership. The WorldSkills movement fully supports this call to action, and we are proud to include women among the Competitors, Champions, Experts, and many individuals around the world participating in WorldSkills.

WorldSkills celebrates all Champions, and among the many who achieved distinction at WorldSkills São Paulo 2015 were two young women representing Team UK: Rianne Chester and Rebecca Wilson. Rianne credits her Mum as her key influence in considering a career in beauty therapy. On her induction day at Warrington Collegiate Rianne recalls, “I fell in love with it, and couldn’t imagine doing anything else.” Rianne began training and competing through WorldSkills UK, and while she didn’t compete at WorldSkills Leipzig 2013, she continued her dedication and training - winning a Silver Medal at EuroSkills Lille 2014, and being selected as a member of Team UK for WorldSkills São Paulo 2015. In Brazil, Rianne’s passion and persistence - and skills excellence! - carried her through to recognition as a doubly-honoured Champion, winning both the Gold Medal in Beauty Therapy and the Albert Vidal Award. The Albert Vidal Award is named after the founder of WorldSkills International, and is presented to the individuals who reach the highest point score in the Competition. In Brazil, Rianne tied with the highest score, and was one of three Champions recognized as winners of this prestigious award. “Being involved with WorldSkills has changed my life completely,” says Rianne. “Before I started competing I was working in a salon, and now I have my own business - Beauty by Rianne. I want to grow my business and maybe go into teaching so I can pass on my skills and encourage young people to participate in WorldSkills.”

Rebecca Wilson chose a very different skill in which to excel. Rebecca’s Dad encouraged her interest in cars, and was a major influence in her choosing to develop world-class excellence in Car Painting. Rebecca credits her manager for mentoring her through an intense programme of training and development, her ability to interact with industry experts all over the UK, and her experience competing through WorldSkills as factors contributing to her success. Qualifying for Team UK and having the opportunity to match skills with Competitors from outside the UK are memorable for Rebecca. Plus, she reached a huge milestone - coming away from WorldSkills São Paulo 2015 with a Bronze Medal in Car Painting -quite a journey so far. And another milestone on her journey: Responding to a question about whether or not training for WorldSkills helped her progress in her skill, Rebecca replies, “It certainly has…it helped me get a new job!”

Rebecca and Rianne are two among the many incredibly talented young female Champions in WorldSkills. Their stories make us proud - not only of them, but also of the opportunity participating in WorldSkills affords young women to explore and excel in a skill, with confidence in their ability to improve the world with the power of their skills.