At UKClimbing we take great pride in having the busiest climbing and mountaineering website in the world, with a hugely diverse range of articles, news, videos, photography, as well as a thriving (not to mention controversial) forum. Our philosophy is simple: to create a site which we ourselves would want to visit. The top line figures suggest we're doing alright, but we think we can do better...
© Charlie Low
One aspect of the site that we have been proactively working towards is addressing the balance of male/female visitors. This began in earnest when we hired our now Editor-in-Chief Natalie Berry back in 2014, who has made a huge difference in the site's direction. At present UKC receives 40,000+ visits per day (compared to 30,000 back in 2014) and on average this is split 70:30 between men and women. We believe this figure can be improved on, but before we talk about how we plan to do so here's a bit of research:
Women in Adventure recently ran a survey with the aim of finding out what drives and inspires women, as well as looking at the barriers and issues that were making it difficult for women to get involved in outdoor sport. The survey highlighted some interesting points such as:
"Women were clear that the positive change they would like to see includes equal treatment of women and men. For example, coverage of women should be integrated, not through 'women's pages,' and should focus on an individual's achievements, not on their gender."
© Charlie Low Photography
© Charlie Low Photography
We agree and stand by this statement. We would never wish to see specific male/female areas on site, but we do wish to see a more even balance when it comes to the gear we review. Which follows on neatly to the next finding:
"At all abilities and levels of experience there was frustration about the limited range, functionality, and style of women's gear. The most frequent complaint was that clothing is too often restricted to pink and purple, reinforcing a perceived stereotype which is therefore unpopular. Other issues included restricted sizes, and much smaller ranges of women's gear. At advanced levels some women said that they can't always find the high-performance kit that they require."
In light of the above, we have recruited new members onto our test team with the aim of increasing our output. We are also encouraging the brands we work with to consider sending us a women's item of clothing instead of - or as well as - a men's item as default. Unsurprisingly, if you publish more men's reviews, more men will visit the site (and don't worry guys, we'll still be publishing plenty for you too). Whilst we don't anticipate being able to fit a women's specific Group Test within our 2018 schedule, this is something we are determined to achieve throughout 2019 (so please bear with us in the meanwhile).
© Charlie Low Photography
© Women's Climbing Symposium
"The Women's Climbing Symposium team are looking forward to working with UKC to further support women climbers. With more and more women active in climbing and the outdoors, it's so important to be developing opportunities for women to participate in its communities, engage with the climbing media, and celebrate their achievements."
Shauna Coxsey
World Bouldering Champion and Organiser + Founder of the Women's Climbing Symposium
'If she can see it, she can be it' - it's about seeing other women in the media, hearing their stories and opinions. What we see in the media is part of what shapes our ideas about the world; it shapes our aspirations and ideas of what's possible. That's why female representation matters.
In the climbing and outdoor media, it plays an important role in breaking down barriers to female participation. Where women are seen, celebrated and represented, they will feel supported, inspired, and part of the climbing and outdoor community.
This is part of what we aim to do at Women's Trad Festival. Participants see other women climb and hear their stories, they meet and climb with experienced women from diverse areas of work in the outdoors - from mountaineering instructors to clothing designers - role models of what's possible.
However, beyond our weekend, it's words, pictures, the Internet and media that can reach and inspire so many more. I am really glad to see UKC's commitment to taking real steps in this direction – an inclusive and diverse media can only be positive for everyone.
Ellie Fuller
Founder of the Women's Trad Festival
Women in Adventure was set up to drive positive change. Although our survey was completed by women, we were very clear that the end goal would always be an inclusive community with equal representation. When asked about the changes women wanted to see in the industry, there was a positive and clear message they would like to see equal treatment of women and men, and that things were moving in the right direction. It's fantastic to see UKC taking this on board and working with more women to put our findings into practice.
Hetty Key
One of the Founders of Women in Adventure
Click here to see the Overview of the 2016 Survey
Click here to see the Detailed Results of the 2016 Survey
At UKC we believe that to be a truly relevant site you must constantly reassess and evaluate your performance, not to mention listen to many differing opinions - if you have any suggestions or article ideas for us, don't hesitate to get in touch.
Upcoming articles with and about inspiring women:
- 'Reading Between the Lines' interview with Alpinist magazine Editor-in-Chief, Katie Ives
- Into the Mountain: A Life of Nan Shepherd - interview with author of Nan's biography, Charlotte Peacock
- 'The War is in the Mountains' - a Digital Feature on war correspondent Judith Matloff's experiences in conflict-torn mountain civilisations.
Check out the following UKC articles and interviews for inspiration:
- Climbing Free: Lynn Hill interview
- Molly Thompson-Smith interview
- Pushing Boundaries - Women's Climbing in Iran
- Climbing for Two: Pregnancy and Climbing
- DIGITAL FEATURE: Helen Mort - No Map Could Show Them
- Climbing Days: The Life and Climbs of Dorothy Pilley
- Women in the Rope Access Industry
- Reading Between the Lines: Bernadette McDonald
- Reading Between the Lines: Gwen Moffat
- Stéphanie Bodet interview: A Climbing Philosophy
- Eimir McSwiggan interview: Irish Ice Queen
Take part in our #HumansofClimbing social media series and share your story (both men and women!) by using the hashtag or submitting it for inclusion in our official series to natalie@ukclimbing.com. Read the first 10 stories in our Digital Feature.
Comments
Great to see UKC being pro-active about equal representation. Equality works for us all, not just women.
I've definitely noticed a positive change in the content on the site in the last couple of years and I think its brilliant. I feel the forums are a little behind on this, and there are still no go areas for me. It's a shame as I was a member of this site from the early days and it was a major source of encouragement for me when I first started climbing. I don't feel that there is anything like the same sense of community. Perhaps, with more women represented in UKC content, more female users will feel at home here, and help change the culture and balance in the forums. I hope so.
Can I ask why you feel unable to produce a women's specific group test within the next 10 months?
Surely if the will genuinely exists then a way should be found?
Part of the reason for our hesitancy was due to a sense of what was genuinely achievable: it's great to say you're going to do something, but if you don't actually do it then it becomes completely meaningless. Hence I would rather err on the side of caution, then deliver on exactly what we said we would, and look towards building on that for next year.
That said, we are working on this and if there is a way we can get one done in 2018 then trust me - we will.
Can we have more pink and purple mens clothing? I dislike black.