Canada's liberal government was officially sworn in last year on a bright and unseasonably warm November day. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau emerged from Rideau Hall to present his new cabinet to the cheering crowd that had gathered on the grounds of the Governor General's residence. With 15 men and 15 women, he boasted it was the first gender-balanced ministerial team in the country's history and "a cabinet that looks like Canada." When asked why gender parity was important, the prime minister replied with his now famous quip: "Because it's 2015."
Despite the positive gesture, gender parity remains a concern in the political arena and indeed in most other spheres. In the corporate world, women hold only a third of senior management positions and account for one-fifth of board seats at major Canadian corporations, according to Catalyst Canada, a research and advocacy organization that promotes the advancement of women in the workplace.
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