IWD 2021 #ChoosetoChallenge
SMR News
SMR Architects has a core Company Value of working with Honesty, Integrity and in an Inclusive manner. This flows into our recruitment style and has led to SMR attracting a diverse, talented and high-performing team that each of our clients benefits.
For #IWD several in our team listed some of their own female influencers: –
Andra (Architect) – I am always inspired by the greatest person in my life: my Mum. She is one of the people who would enjoy her long hours work and still come home and raise 2 children with songs, poems or dance while cooking delicious meals for us all. Her firm positivity combined with joy shaped my idea of home that should always be within myself rather than a place. On another note, Anita O’Day, ‘The Jezebel of Jazz’ has always been an example of courage, discipline, and teamwork within such a controversial world of jazz music at that time.
Migena (Architectural Assistant PII) – The first female inspiration to me is my mother, who came to the UK to escape and flee from the war in Kosovo in 1999. I admire her strength every day and appreciate the sacrifices she has made to flee her family and home for a better future for our family.
The second female who is an inspiration to me is the female President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani at only 38 years of age, who climbed the political mountain and runs on an anti-crime and anti-corruption platform for the better and brighter future for Kosovo. She is known for her contribution to Kosovo’s independence gained in 2008, serving as the main representative of Kosovo at a case in the International Court of Justice. Women’s presence in parliament in Kosovo has significantly increased since the war ended, with Osmani becoming the second female president. What she has achieved in Kosovo in a very unsettled and hostile environment at such a young age, accompanied with her determination is something I admire and look up to!
Amanda (Director) – Many women have inspired me during my lifetime, one of the earliest was my little 4ft 11’ Nana, she was a strong-minded, hard-working woman, who encouraged her whole family to be loving and to reach for the stars. Another woman who influenced me, and I hate to note politics, was Margaret Thatcher. She was the ultimate marmite Politician! Being single-minded, shining in a man’s world, and then becoming the UK’s first female Prime Minister. In the end, she changed U.K. politics forever and showed that if you focus on a plan, you could accomplish so much.
Dayang (Architect) – My two female inspirations are Jacinda Ahern, the current NZ Prime Minister who proves a very successful career and a family are not mutually exclusive; and Malala Yousafzai, a girls’ education activist who shows us that education is a powerful tool to change lives.
