Centennial of International Women's Day

March 8, 2011 marks the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day (IWD). First celebrated on March 19, 1911 by more than one million people in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland after a proposal by Clara Zetkin [1857-1933] in 1910 at the second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen, IWD is now observed in many nations throughout the world.

The United Nations first began celebrating March 8 as IWD during International Women's Year in 1975, and in 1977 approved a resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace for member states. 2011 will also be the first IWD for UN Women, a new UN entity established in 2010 for gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Featured in the video above is Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women. The UN's theme for IWD 2011 is "Equal Access to Education, Training, and Science and Technology: Pathway to Decent Work for Women."