The Latest Evolution in Feminism: 10 Signs that She’s Rising Up
In 1848 three-hundred primarily white women assembled at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York. One of the organizers, activist and abolitionist Elizabeth Cady Stanton, began the meeting with a speech:
We are assembled to protest against a form of government, existing without the consent of the governed—to declare our right to be free as man is free, to be represented in the government which we are taxed to support, to have such disgraceful laws as give man the power to chastise and imprison his wife, to take the wages which she earns, the property which she inherits, and, in case of separation, the children of her love…
Thus began the feminist movement. After 72 long years of organized struggle, American women finally achieved the same rights as men at the polling box when, in 1920, women won the right to vote with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. That year, more than 8 million women cast their votes in the presidential election. These voters included Black women, though many others were prevented from voting by discriminatory state laws, and intimidation tactics. Native American women (and men) did not secure suffrage until four years later. It wasn’t until 1965––117 years after that first assembly of women activists that the Voting Rights Act ensured the right to vote for all Americans.
That same decade heralded another wave of feminism which called for a reevaluation of traditional gender roles in society and an end to sex discrimination. However, this wave had more to learn, as, like it’s predecessor, it was largely concerned with the welfare of privileged white women. Hence as a society evolved, so did the feminist movements, resulting in several subsequent waves.
The concept of the “waves of feminism” surfaced during this second wave as a way of differentiating the phases, distinctions, and evolving concerns emerging within the women’s movement over time. We feminists now stand on the shoulders of the waves that have come before…
First Wave: 1848 – 1920
Instigation: Widespread domesticviolence and inequality for women
Known for: Guaranteeing white women the right to vote
Second Wave: 1963 – 1980s
Instigation: Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement
Known for: Roe v. Wade, The Pill, (reproductive freedom), burning bras, Ms. magazine
Third Wave: 1990s – 2000s
Instigation: Anita Hill testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee about her accusations of sexual harassment against Supreme Court nominee Clearance Thomas
Known for: Trans rights, intersectionality, rebellion, “riot grrl” groups like Bikini Kill, Bratmobile, and Heavens to Betsy
Fourth Wave: 2010 - 2014
Instigation: Exposure of sexual misconduct of influential film producer Harvey Weinstein and others
Known for: #MeToo, punk feminist pop icons like Pussy Riot, social media fueled activism, sex- and body-positivity
Fifth Wave: 2014 - present
Instigation: Epstein and Gamergate, Roe v. Wade overturned, George Floyd, Trump elected
Known for: Education, inclusion, return to nature, LandBack, large scale change-making
*Some suggest that the Fifth Wave is still the Fourth Wave.
Reasonable minds could argue that feminism is feminism, period, and that by definition,feminism is inherently evolutionary so why divide it into categories? Critics of the “wave” concept argue that it oversimplifies a more complicated history by suggesting that only one distinct type of feminism exists at any one time in history. In reality, each wave includes the aspects of the one previous and also includes smaller, overlapping sub-groups (which can sometimes be at odds with each other). While the wave concept is certainly imperfect and lines are more blurred, it remains a helpful tool in identifying important aspects of its transformation over time, as this maps an important societal trajectory.
Each wave is instigated by some kind of significant event, which in turn evokes its next phase. As I described at length in my essay The Portal in the natural world, evolution happens through “disruption”. Put simply, disruption causes a chain reaction of events that provoke an organism or system to transform: dismantling, reorganizing, and then bouncing forward into a new, more evolved form.
Similarly, each new wave of the feminist movement, has been instigated by some kind of disruption––George Floyd, the Vietnam War, Roe v. Wade (it’s ruling in ’73 and its being overturn in ’22)––are all examples of events that bounced the movement into a new iteration, more capable of addressing emerging social issues, and stronger than its predecessor.
In recent years we’ve experienced a spate of disruptors––the Trump election, Covid, the rollback of women’s rights, increased gender-based violence in the US and around the world, surging misogyny, resurgence of white male supremacy, bro culture, and the looming dread of 2025––the year we will start to lose everything.
Enter stage left: the next Wave. And she’s a big one.
I’ve been immersed in feminist spaces for a while now. Additionally, most of my clients are women. In the 25+ years of listening closely to women’s hopes, fears, dreams, rage, grief, and ambitions, I’m discovering a powerful sea-change among women roiling just under the radar, beneath the surface of daily life, tucked quietly out of the crosshairs of conventional opposition.
What makes this wave distinct from the rest is how ubiquitous it is across sectors and dimensionsof modern life.
Here are 10 ways She is rising:
1. Owning businesses – women are leaving the traditional workforce and creating their own businesses. And not just any business either. They are forces for change and for good. Women are doing business differently, implementing justice-forward, non- exploitive and non-extractive models. Women-owned and minority-women-owned businesses are creative acts of rebellion and opposing the status quo. Not only are they successful, they leave positive change in their wakes. According to B Lab, the organization responsible for certifying B Corps businesses, women-owned businesses are more likely to certify as B Corps. In fact, over 25% of B Corps are women-owned. Compared to ordinary businesses, B Corps globally are 1.6 times more likely to have Boards of Directors comprised of a women majority. In 2022, 41% of new B Corps in the U.S. and Canada were women-owned businesses.
2. Owning land – current research reveals that more women are finding ways to own land. In so doing, they are learning the art of “custodianship”, striving to be in right relationship to land, standing outside of the “ownership” paradigm. Instead of taking from the land, they practice regeneration to restore soil, water and ecosystems. They are listening to the land and engaging in a powerful collaboration with it.
3. Raising good kids – many women have been left to raise their children alone. The upside of that is they had full unfettered influence, teaching their children to be good world citizens, awake to difference, be compassionate to others, and care about the planet. They raise their boys to remain sensitive. They raise their girls to be outspoken.
4. Owning our bodies – Women are examining their sexual orientation outside of a heteronormative, compulsory sexuality norm. They are embracing who they are within a spectrum of sexual expression. And in the face of abuse, they’re finding creative ways to say “no!”. Many Korean women, in response to escalating violence against women and girls launched the 4B movement to force change. The four tenets to the movement are bisekseu (no sex), bichulsan (no birth), biyeonae (no dating men), and bihon (no marriage to men). It is gaining traction around the world where women have exhausted other avenues for change.
5. Being a good relative – Women are spearheading movements that place us in right relationship to indigenous peoples. This includes avoiding cultural appropriation, being respectful in the spaces of cross-cultural learning, redistributing wealth, and learning about the indigenous peoples that originally inhabited the region where they live. The Land Back, an Indigenous women-fueled movement that empowers the return of unceded land back to local Indigenous peoples. And the return is largely instigated by women landholders. For example, in 2021 Zarna Carter, a non-Indigenous woman, freely gave the Nukunu Wapma Thura NWT) Aboriginal Corporation her 30-acre property in the Flinders Ranges of Australia. And in 2024 EQUUS, a woman-owned and woman-run organization bequeathed half of its property back to the Tesuque Pueblo people through an established Trust.
6. Reclaiming and redefining data – Data, science, and research has historically shaped itself around white male inputs, which in turn shaped all aspects of daily life from policy, to AI, to architecture. Women have spotted it and are making strides to make science and data reflect a more accurate portrayal of humanity.
7. Reappropriating history and changing the narrative – History is told through the white male narrative. Women historians are digging into the established stories of our past and unearthing other, more accurate perspectives.
8. Reconnecting with nature – The biomimicry movement is spearheaded largely by women, who use the science of nature to solve human challenges, from product engineering to social innovation. Evolving beyond the “subject / object” perspective of conventional ecology whereby humans are seen as separate from nature, standing outside of it and observing it, women are listening to nature, connecting to nature, and consulting with nature, and leading the conversation that recognizes we are nature itself.
9. Healing our relationship to men – #MeToo was the beginning of an honest conversation with the male population. Women’s righteous anger was an important first step towards reconciliation. While there is much more work to be done, this wave is evolving towards “calling men in” instead of “calling them out”, through education and healing. Many more candid and frank healing conversations are happening at the kitchen table between women and their “good” husbands, brothers and sons, helping to bring them along as allies in the fight against misogyny and sexism.
10. Coming out of the spiritual closet – Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s new President, didn’t just step into power—she stepped into it with intention, publicly undergoing an indigenous limpia ceremony during her inauguration. Surrounded by sacred smoke and a powerful circle of female Otomí and Nahua shamans, Sheinbaum partnered with the ancient forces of nature to clear her energy, release negativity, and align her spirit with the strength of her ancestors.
The burning copal, healing herbs, and invocation of earth, wind, fire, and water sent one clear message: Sheinbaum is stepping into her role with not just political power, but spiritual force. It’s an unapologetic statement of strength, showing that her journey is fortified by ancient forces, and she’s ready to lead with purpose, power, and spiritual clarity. This event reflects a new era for women’s leadership, where female empowerment, connection to nature, and ancestral wisdom intertwine to pave the way for a transformative future.
All over the world, women in leadership positions are stepping forward in similar brave gestures of solidarity with nature. When previously women have felt they’ve needed to “Trojan Horse” their spirituality into the workplace through repackaging it as soft skills, now many, like Sheinbaum, are calling in ancestors, acknowledging Traditional carers of unceded lands, and putting nature into their strategic plans.
What seems to be happening here is that feminism is becoming allies to nature, and in so doing returning home to Nature as nature Herself. This wave is distinct from the ones previous in the ways that women are not striving for equality within a man’s world but stepping into another world altogether. It’s evolving into a movement where the advocacy is not just for women, but for the earth, for all peoples. Even women (and men) who don’t necessarily consider themselves feminists, are a part of this ground swell.
Profoundly, this emergence is not reliant on a just Supreme Court, it is not beholden to corporate interests, it has no reliance on politicians’ votes, it needs no permission, nor figure head, nor masses to take to the streets.
Of course men are participating in many of these actions too. There are plenty of men raising good kids, forging non-exploitive businesses, and regenerating soils, but what marks this movement is how connected to the feminine it is. Even the fact that men are engaging in many of these activities signals that the feminist movement is closing the gender gap, absorbing the tension between masculine and feminine, and expressing itself as the Feminine, rather than merely feminism.
Perhaps her final evolution is a merging between humans and Nature herself, a singularia of masculine and feminine reconnected to Nature as a united force to bring back the planet from the brink. For Nature is by definition, free, fierce, compassionate, loving and conscious. She will not remain domesticated; She will not stay trapped in toxicity and imbalance. She will have her way.
