As we head into this new year, let’s take a moment to revisit a few of the ways women made history throughout 2023. From breaking barriers at the Academy Awards to winning a Nobel Prize, here are just a few of the ways women have paved the way for future change-makers.

1. In February, Michelle Yeoh won Best Leading Actress for her performance in Everything Everywhere All At Once at the 95th Academy Awards, becoming the first Asian performer and the second woman of color to win the category. The film was the most awarded of the night, with seven wins. Not to mention the other historic moments from this year’s ceremony.
2. Greta Gerwig’s Barbie painted the town pink and made history multiple-times over. The film premiered with the highest box-office opening by a woman director. It went on to become the highest grossing film by a woman director ever and the highest grossing film of the year.
3. The 2023 Women’s World Cup boasted record attendance. FIFA reported that nearly 2 million people attended the 64 matches in New Zealand and Austria. This a substantial increase from the 2019 tournament in France which had a total attendance of 1.1 million. The matches themselves included historic moments as well, such as Jamaica’s first-ever point in the WWC and Spain’s first championship.
4. Speaking of sports, Simone Biles returned to competition after a two-year hiatus. Among her accomplishments, Biles became the first gymnast to win eight U.S. all-around titles and the first woman gymnast to land what was previously known as the Yurchenko double pike on vault. Its new name? The “Biles II.”
5. While we are still far from gender parity among business leaders, this year we saw progress on the Fortune 500. In 2023, women CEOs led a record 10.4% of America’s largest companies. We have a ways to go until we reach equal representation, but this is an 18% increase from 2022. Hopefully, in 2024, we’ll see continued progress in the industry.
6. Women in Iceland organized the first all-day women’s strike in nearly 50 years. In 1975, they went on strike and refused to participate in both paid and unpaid work to demonstrate the value of their labor and protest workplace discrimination. This year’s strike also called attention to the wage gap, as well as gender-based violence.
7. 93 people have won the Nobel Prize in Economics. Among those, Claudia Goldin made history this year as the first solo woman to receive the honor. Goldin is only the third woman overall. Her research examined women at work and was awarded for “having advanced our understanding of women’s labor market outcomes.”

Take Action! Find inspiration and hope in these incredible accomplishments as you look to 2024.