While we can all agree that we should be celebrating women all year round, the first week of March is still a pretty fun time in our calendars. March 8 marks International Women’s Day, which is celebrated every year around the world to commemorate women’s strength, achievements and legacies. The theme of this year’s celebrations is Balance for Better, promoting gender balance and equality across the world and different industries.

Here in Ireland, there will be plenty of ways to celebrate the day, with events taking place across the country celebrating women and promoting discussion and advocacy for equal rights. If you fancy indulging in everything feminine this week, here are the best places to go.

This weekend

Friday: Get walking at the #TimeforEquality march at O’Connell Bridge

On the day itself, stand in solidarity with women around the world and head out to the #Time4Equality march in Dublin city centre. Starting from O’Connell Bridge at 3 pm, the march is calling for a number of issues regarding women’s equality to be addressed; including ending gender-based violence and harassment, ending the gender pay gap, ending precarious conditions in work and housing, standing with the struggle for abortion rights in the North and standing in solidarity with struggles against oppression, and workers’ struggles at home and abroad. A worthy way to spend your International Women’s Day.

On Friday: Look to the future at And Still, I Rise at the Rotunda

While the name alone is enough to light a fire in the feminist belly, And Still, I Rise has some absolutely brilliant content to back it up. Hosted in the Pillar Room at the Rotunda, the evening’s performances feature a stellar line-up of speakers, poets, singers and artists, and is all MC’d by author and political journalist Martina Fitzgerald. Tickets are astoundingly still available, but hurry — doors open at 6 pm.

Friday: Show some RESPECT to the Queen of Soul at the Sugar Club

If your perfect International Women’s Day involves belting songs at the top of your lungs with a few cocktails in hand (this absolutely appeals to us too), then the Sugar Club is where you want to be tonight. The Dublin club is hosting an Aretha Franklin night, with the Queen of Soul’s best and most beloved hits being sung all night long by some of Ireland’s best female vocalists. Grab the tickets while you can.

Friday – Sunday: Have some fun at the International Women’s Weekender at The Shaw 2019

A lot of us would be spending the weekend at the Bernard Shaw anyway, but this weekend, they’ve got a lot going on to keep us coming. Their International Women’s Weekender is going on all weekend in the venue, with everything from music to food to shopping, as well as a massive panel discussion with some brilliant guests (and hosted by Tara Stewart). Oh and of course…

Sunday: Get on the decks at Glitter Tits Inclusive DJ Course

…there’s Glitter Tits too. If you spend your nights out wishing you could be up on the decks instead of the DJ that’s playing the Top 40 over and over, now’s your chance to get trained up. Sunday at the Bernard Shaw sees the Glitter Tits Inclusive DJ Course take to the stage, giving a DJ crash course to lucky students from the talented Aimie Mallon of Le Boom. Oh, and it’s free. Perfect way to round off the weekend with learning an unreal new hobby.

More like this:

• How one speech by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie brought feminism to the masses… here.