Women are everywhere. No surprise, right? They do, after all,make up 50 percent of the world's population. Yet, everywhere welook, women are a topic of conversation. Michelle Obama's outfitchoices on a recent tour of Japan are proclaimed to break downfemale stereotypes. Sweaty, jiggling, and fabulous women exercisingon our screens chant “This girl can.” A woman's mob killing inAfghanistan sparks a global#JusticeForFarkhunda movement. The banningof “India's Daughter,” a documentary about the gang rape in Delhi,raises hackles across the globe. Meanwhile, Ellen Pao's lawsuitagainst venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins sheds light on sexismin Silicon Valley, even if she lost.

Why so much activity stirring around the boundaries of gender?And why now? As cultural insight mavens, we see somethingfundamental taking place. Some people are calling it the FourthWave of Feminism. Fed up with everyday sexism and forged by otherforms of activism, women are empowered by social media and othercommunications technologies. They are speaking up across allsectors, countries, and societies.

This is a cultural movement that is bringing the diversity andcomplexity of women's lives to the fore. It is pushing politics,culture, and brands to tackle the thorny issues of educational andjob equality, freedom from violence, bias, and so much more.

Of course “womanhood” in India is very different from the sameconcept in Indianapolis. Women in the U.S. have made tremendousprogress in economic independence. The gender pay gap isnarrowing. Women-owned firms now account for 30 percent of allenterprises, though you'd never guess it from the make-up ofthe investment industry. (Just 6 percent of partners at VC firms arewomen, for example.) The issues in emerging markets like India,Turkey, and Colombia are quite different as women suffer both frominadequate economic and social opportunity.

But the underlying global forces are shifting in similardirections. Solidarity movements like #HeForShe areadopting a counterpoint narrative in order to advance publicpolicy . The movement speaks to male leaders: imploring everyCEO to close the pay gap; encouraging every head of state to makesure legislation does not discriminate against women; asking everyfather to ensure that his girls go to school. And smart brands tooare getting in on the conversation—recognizing and honoring themultifaceted nature of womanhood and the complex ways itsrepresentations are evolving in culture. When 60 to70 percent of women feel misunderstood by marketers, there ismuch to be gained by proving the contrary:

Learn more about why Leslie Pascaud, vice president of Added Valuefeels brands should do more to get in on the gender conversationgoing on now by reading her complete Forbes.com article.