To close International Women’s Month we decided to give our employees a special gift in recognition of the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. We teamed up with three female artists and asked them to create a unique Non-Fungible Token (NFT) around the International Women’s Day 2022 campaign theme: #BreakTheBias. We dropped one NFT from this limited edition collection to the 400+ employees who registered to say thank you for helping us “break the bias” and give back to our community by further supporting women in the arts. 

For IWD 2022, #BreakTheBias means a gender equal world. A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. A world that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated. Individually, we're all responsible for our own thoughts and actions which means we have the power to break the bias in our communities, in our workplaces, in our schools, colleges, and universities. By working together, we can break the bias this International Women’s Day and beyond (IWD 2022).

This theme goes hand in hand with some of our own core values at Consensys:

  • We act with kindness. We believe this is a strength and we embody it with intention across our company, communities and ecosystem. 

  • We cultivate community. We are all interconnected and believe that our true potential and success is unlocked through the continued cultivation of ‘we’.

This culture of kindness and fostering community is clear when you look at our recent Employee Engagement Survey where 85% of Consensys employees feel a sense of belonging, 86% feel they can be their authentic selves at work, and 91% are proud to work for Consensys. Beyond the data, we also just launched a company-wide pronoun initiative led by our DEI Council to ensure we are fostering an environment of respect and awareness. 

When asking our artists to create an NFT around the theme #BreakTheBias we saw the concept represented differently in all of their work drawing from their own personal experiences. We interviewed each of them to ask about the inspiration behind their NFT and what “break the bias” means to them. Read on to find out more…  

Yinkore, “Enough”

I think we always talk about the need to learn, but very few people mention how equally important it is to unlearn. Through this theme, “Break the bias,” I’m depicting the unlearning of my own prejudices.

I grew up in a highly patriarchal society, where they ever so often equated being feminine to being weak. As a result, I began to disassociate myself from these things to prove that I was stronger than more hyper feminine women. That I was more competent and more deserving of respect.

And I saw other people around me who thought the same, that women should only be one thing if they wanted to succeed.

These boxes we assign ourselves and others, just enable a toxic system and take away from the one singular truth - we are all deserving, as is.

A woman is deserving and worthy of positions of power and equal opportunities, regardless of how she chooses to express herself. She is enough.

ArinaBB, "Bravery" 

The inspiration behind this artwork was capturing the feeling of breaking down biases. Destroying biases is about empowerment, and “Bravery” exudes it. Two characters with entirely different backgrounds, coming together to walk towards the same bright future. The power emerges from feeling your world expand as you destroy old assumptions and are rewarded with new allies and a bigger worldview. The flowers represent the capability to emerge solid and beautiful from past hardships. That’s the thing about flowers: they can bloom from even the smallest crack in the concrete. They remind me of how I see females: constantly tumbling obstacles—staying strong yet maintaining a sensual delicateness at the same time. It is an inspiring combination I see in all the women who work selflessly every day to build a better world for themselves and future generations.

Blacksneakers, “Together Under the Kaleidoscope Sun”

As a young woman who is still growing  and understanding what it means to experience womanhood, I believe there’s something awe-inspiring and powerful about such a thing. Women and female identifying individuals hold a mystique about them that adheres to this power, and with that we’re able to put forth it into whatever we do. For International Women’s Day, a celebration is in order to recognize what being a woman can be and interpreted as, and for this piece it shows the honoring and commemoration of women.  

Thank you for helping us #BreakTheBias this International Women’s Month and beyond!

If you are interested in learning more about Yinkore, ArinaBB and Blacksneakers follow the artists at their social links below or support them through OpenSea!

Blacksneakers

ArinaBB

Yinkore