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Nuclear fission

Kevlar

Scotchgard

DNA structure

All of these and many, many more examples have two things in common — they changed the world in which we live and women played primarily roles in conceiving and developing these ideas.

Meitner, along with Otto Hahn and Otto Robert Frisch, led a group that discovered nuclear fission. Kevlar was developed by Kwolek, Scotchgard by Sherman and the DNA structure by Franklin.

And of course you can add to this list the likes of Maya Angelou, Rosa Parks, Sally Ride, Amelia Earhart, Gloria Steinem and Kamala Harris  — all of whom have contributed to the world in powerful and meaningful ways.

March 8 is International Women’s Day, and this month is International Women’s Month, worthy reminders to ruminate on the contributions of women to both our daily lives and personal lives.

Whether we are honoring the women mentioned above, those others unnamed or simply taking the time to recognize the work our mothers, grandmothers, aunts and sisters put in each day — it’s with great admiration that we bring women to the forefront to recognize their contributions.

At the same time, International Women’s Day is an opportunity to recognize the progress in women’s rights as well as understanding there is still so much to accomplish in the ever-evolving quest for true equality.

Women around the world play an integral role in our society, whether that’s on a personal level, a business level, national level or international level.

In a lot of ways, we don’t come as far as we have without their contributions.