By Jackie Irvine, Marketing Manager, Plexpack Corp.

Wow, what a show! Said to be the best PACK EXPO to date by many, here is a recap of Las Vegas 2019.

Emerging Leaders, Emerging Feminists (whether they know it or not)

As a new member of the Emerging Leaders Committee, I got a great glimpse into the... dare I say it?...feminist landscape of men and women during the Young Professionals Networking Reception. While professional events usually imply a professional code of conduct, I can account for an ever-rising number of instances where I was objectified (“I can just see her talking biz in her bikini, holding a cocktail…” *sigh), saw other women being objectified (it’s awkward and creepy when men wolf whistle at dinner entertainment; typically at female dancers less than half their age), or blatantly depreciated for being a woman (“I think she might be too emotional for the job; she’s a woman, that’s how they are”). It brings me such pleasure to say that I observed no such behavior at the Young Professionals Reception.

I was genuinely interested to see how I would be received, dressed in a belted, black Wilfred dress and some very uncomfortable Steve Madden pumps; nails done, hair done, everything did--I’m of the mind that a woman shouldn’t have to downplay appearance to be taken seriously… and happy to report: I was. Greeted by friends on the committee and otherwise; I had such a genuinely fun time. We danced, we sang, talked biz (no bikinis required) and did something considerably powerful that night: create a space of advocates. I think people forget how easy it is to do that: just have fun, don’t accost anyone, and treat everyone with the respect they fundamentally deserve. It was a relief to be there and feel like there were women supporting women, men supporting women, and people just generally supporting people; regardless of sexual orientation or gender.

It was a delight to also be able to talk with my peers about things like 4th wave feminism and how it is so important right now. While getting ready for the reception I’d seen an advertisement that claimed men had become weaker, less dominating and sexually inadequate since the end of WWII; they concluded that across the whole of the USA, men’s testosterone levels were drastically declining—this, of course, was an ad for a testosterone stimulant. What fear mongering, toxic masculinity promoting, inflammatory propaganda! I hope that everyone knows 4th wave feminism seeks to promote equality across genders and to ubiquitously dismantle gender stereotypes. Those who discussed the ad with me all felt it was in poor taste and really was damaging to the cis male ego by asserting a unilateral view of masculinity. As a new member of both the PPWLN Committee and the Emerging Leaders Committee, it was empowering to be able to discuss this because it meant that our industry was evidently becoming critical of damaging rhetoric around gender stereotypes. Between feeling like I was being taken seriously despite being a well-dressed (I thought, anyway!) woman, and having such stimulating and progressive conversations about feminism, I left the Young Professionals Reception feeling invigorated and genuinely hopeful for the diversified future of the packaging and processing industry.

PPWLN Networking Breakfast

The next morning diversity only further permeated through my PACK EXPO experience as I went to the PPWLN networking breakfast where Ellen Ochoa was speaking. For those reading who might not know, Ellen Ochoa is the first Hispanic woman to go to space. Ellen was a very compelling speaker, and the child in me was thrilled to be hearing from an astronaut (I’ve always had a fascination with space and frequented the Ontario Science Center as a youngster). What really struck me about Ellen’s story was that she had men who really advocated for her prowess as an engineer and astronaut. Coincidentally, before PACK EXPO Las Vegas I had talked to several men who had planned on attending the PPWLN breakfast. I smiled when I walked in; the room had a multifarious group of attendees. I once had someone from the industry tell me they thought that they worried about PPWLN as they felt it could be exclusive of men. The networking breakfast was evidence to the contrary, which I loved. And as Ellen spoke candidly about space and the nuances of being a woman in a male dominated industry, I was reminded of the importance of advocacy. She had support from her male peers and look where it got her; advocacy literally sent her to space. Ellen’s story also showed that it doesn’t take a lot to be an advocate for equal rights; acknowledgement of merit is the first place to start. The second, more difficult part: correcting yourself when you say or think something that is maybe not-so-progressive—hey, we are only human and believe it or not, we are not our brains. Upon reflection, this sort of idiom would resound through some of my experiences with, and while observing other women at PACK EXPO.

Let’s Get Really Real

To be truly unfiltered in my recap of PACK EXPO; I wish I had seen women being more supportive of one another. I couldn’t help but notice at different times throughout the show or networking event, that women (of all the people!) were not very reliable in their way of treating each other with respect and celebration. We must celebrate that we’ve made it into an industry that is not very diverse yet (only 11% of people who came to our booth were women). It seems that women sometimes have an inexplicably callous reaction to other women (overheard: “I don’t like her; I can already tell”) and we absolutely must erase that. I believe and hope that this is some other kind of bizarre cognitive function that was built in our early days, maybe when we had to compete for food or to reproduce (*insert shoulder shrug here), who knows. Whatever it is, we need to work as hard at diminishing this reaction as we do at being recognized for our professional accomplishments. We will not gain equality if we contradict ourselves and allow hypocrisy to remain prevalent. If the Little Rascals taught me anything; it’s that girls win with their girl gang—and everyone wins with an integrated gang. So, let’s channel our inner Darla’s; win races and make our merit unignorable, integrate our girl gang with the boy’s club and be so much more than beautiful (to meeeee).

Until next time!