Illustration by Carin Goldberg

Analogy past Carin Goldberg

On December 11, according
to my doctors' best guesstimate, I am due to requite birth to a baby girl. My married man and I couldn't exist happier. Almost parents, however? They'd rather
have a boy.

By The Numbers

44%
the
increase in a U.S. woman's paycheck from 1970 to 2007

6%
the salary increase for an
American man over the same time

2024
the year when the average American woman may
outearn the average American man

45%
Swedish government officials who are women

51.4%
American managers who are women (manner up from a meager 26.ane% in 1980)

33
countries that have had a female person president. (Just non, of course, the U.S.!)

51%
U.Due south. personal wealth held by women

83%
U.S. consumer purchases made by women

$0.63
what a Wyoming adult female gets for every dollar a human being earns

$0.84
what a adult female gets in Vermont

v
average number of children for an American mother in the 1960s; it's down to 2.5 now

21
average historic period of a first-time mom in 1970; information technology's upwardly to 25 now

87
life expectancy (in
years) of the average Japanese adult female

8.5%
unemployment rate for U.S. women

nine.five%
unemployment rate for U.S. men

74%
women on teams that created ads for this article

3%
female artistic directors in the advertisement industry

Information technology may not be surprising that at that place's a lingering preference for baby boys over infant girls worldwide. What'south alarming, however, is that this
global inclination is manifesting more than strongly than ever. Historically, when nature is immune to decide sexual practice all on its own, nigh 105 boys are
born for every 100 girls (and because women live longer, the ratio of people on the planet evens out over time, even tilting slightly toward
females). Merely the residuum of nature has shifted in Asia, cheers to wider availability of affordable ultrasound equipment, which detects gender as
early every bit fifteen weeks, and widespread ballgame. In Prc, after 30-plus years of the state'southward One Child Policy, the ratio of boys to girls is a highly
unnatural 120:100 (it's fifty-fifty reached 150:100 in 1 province). In India, 109 boys are born for every 100 girls. Demographers summate that roughly
160 million Asian females have gone what they euphemistically categorize as "missing." There'southward growing evidence that this pattern of sex selection
is beingness followed in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, and like trends seem likely in Africa and the Middle East.

A 2011 Gallup poll revealed that 54% of American men between the ages of 18 and 49 would prefer
a boy.

Lest we recollect this is some sort of second- and third-world predicament, it turns out boys are still No. i in the U.s. likewise. A 2011 Gallup
poll revealed that if American men between the ages of 18 and 49 could have but one child, 54% would want a boy; "no preference," at 26%, beat out
girls, who rated a measly 19%. According to the same poll, women don't have a preference; simply since information technology takes ii to tango, as the vocal goes, that
makes for heavy pressure level in favor of "a masculine child," every bit Luca Brasi and so eloquently put it in The Godfather. These figures take remained
essentially unchanged for 70 years–the stats were the aforementioned in 1941. While information technology may be culturally taboo hither to openly refuse or arrest a child based
on gender, fears of second-class condition and doubts of a girl'south potential value are remarkably persistent.

In India and Communist china, the preference for sons is seen as pragmatic and economically sound, a choice often exercised by educated, upward mobile
parents, making this a class of "consumer eugenics" (a term coined by Mara Hvistendahl, the author of the 2011 volume Unnatural Selection).
Cultures with such a pronounced boy bias tend to also have a tradition of "patrilocality," where daughters become to live with their husbands' families,
while sons stay at dwelling and inherit holding. In Prc, where one-child families have been official policy since 1979, the aging population has
resulted in the so-called iv-2-ane trouble: four grandparents, two parents, and just one child. According to the one-time customs, that 1 child, the
economic mainstay, had better exist a boy. The situation in India is similar. Every bit i newspaper ad for sonograms put it: "Spend 500 rupees now or
500,000 rupees subsequently"–on a dowry.

That consumer preference turns into disaster when repeated across a social club. Unnatural Selection does a frightening, thorough job of
documenting the consequences for countries total of men: sex trafficking in Albania, mail service-society brides in Vietnam, law-breaking in "bachelor towns" in rural
Communist china. The hereafter portends aging populations short of nurses and teachers.

The preference for boys over girls turns into a disaster when repeated beyond a order.

Fact is, the desire and the data don't friction match up. In the 21st century, there'southward a compelling case for girls equally the equal–and in some cases,
optimal–gender for roles in leadership, innovation, and economic growth. Women excel in instruction, the near crucial factor in tomorrow's workforce;
nosotros are 56% of undergraduates in the U.S. and approaching parity in China and Bharat. Our socialization is geared toward the right stuff for the
changing requirements of success in the 21st century: Women are likely to have a more balanced, empathetic leadership manner, meliorate advice
skills, a knack for fostering innovation through collaboration. Consider the results of a recent written report by psychologists at MIT and Carnegie Mellon,
who divided people into teams and asked them to complete intelligence tasks together. The IQ scores of the groups' members barely afflicted
collective performance. The number of women on a team, nonetheless, affected information technology a lot–the more than women, the meliorate.

The evidence is mounting that baby girls are a potent investment. "An important future indicator for a developing economy is its treatment of
women," says Sheryl WuDunn, coauthor with hubby Nicholas Kristof of Half the Sky, a best seller turned PBS serial turned online game that
dubs daughter ability "the best manner to fight poverty and extremism." A country that gives girls equal opportunity has twice as much talent and brainpower
to draw on and is likely to be more than open up and flexible in means that promote international merchandise. World Bank numbers too show that development
dollars invested in projects that target girls and women show a 90% return; the figure for projects focused on men and boys hovers between 30% and
twoscore%. The Grameen Bank, the all-time-known microfinancier, makes 97% of its loans to women, whose repayment rates are much higher.

"A hereafter indicator for a developing economy is its treatment of women," says WuDunn.

Thankfully this kind of reasoning is gaining influence, resulting in many creative efforts to brighten the image of daughters. Cathay has attacked
the iv-2-ane problem head-on. The government has started a alimony program benefitting rural people over age threescore with daughters, and not sons. The
amounts match or beat what the typical son would send home to his folks from the metropolis. In the Chinese version of Medicare, insurance premiums are
now discounted or in some cases eliminated for the lucky parents of girls. Bharat offers the "Indira Gandhi Scholarship Scheme for Single Girl
Child"–simply only daughters may employ. And so far these well-meaning efforts have enjoyed express success. After 5 years, Mainland china's national Care for
Girls program has barely nudged the sexual practice imbalance.

Authorities incentives and private-sector funding are of import parts of an effort to rectify this problem. But at that place's also a place for branding;
in countries like Prc, India, and Republic of korea, pro-daughter advertising has been added to the mix–mostly simplistic propaganda. If better executed,
these ads could shape social attitudes in ways subtle and overt. "If handled correctly, the most sensitive event tin can be dealt with," says Priscilla
Natkins of the Ad Quango, which brought the world Rosie the Riveter and Smokey the Conduct. She points to recent successful U.S. campaigns well-nigh drunk
driving ("Friends Don't Let Friends . . ."), autism, and seat-belt use. "When we took on our seat-belt campaign, usage was in the low-xx
percents–now it'due south way up in the mid-80s. Advertizement didn't exercise that alone, but we planted the seed with consumers that led to legislation."

China'south Care for Girls plan has barely nudged the state'southward sex imbalance.

That's why, as a thought experiment, Fast Company asked some top ad, marketing, branding, and digital agencies to make the case
for babe girls in the language of the global consumer–a claiming they took very seriously.

"Equally nosotros tried to understand the issue better," says Rei Inamoto from AKQA, "we realized that this is non an outcome of daughters versus sons. It's
an consequence of the self-perpetuating and devastating belief that women take piffling value."

My girl will be brought up to understand her true value. That's a hope. Every bit for all the trivial girls to be born around the globe, the
creation of these ads is an effort to evidence how imagination can modify the conversation effectually their lives.


Slideshow: The Birth Of An Idea

Fast Company asked half-dozen of the near creative ad agencies in the world to rebrand babe girls. Their mock campaigns recast girls every bit the No.
1 choice for consumers from Cathay to the U.South.

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