Clare Szalay Timbo is the Director of Women Leaders in Eye Health (WLEH) and a member of the Women in Global Health Seattle Chapter. With a Master’s in International Studies, she specializes in health systems strengthening and gender equity and social inclusion (GESI), championing equity and leadership in global eye health.
The Hidden Disparity in Global Eye Health
As a gender expert working in global health, I’ve spent much of my career examining how power, identity, and systems shape people’s access to health care—particularly for women.
When I turned my focus to eye health, I noticed something striking: while women make up the majority of people affected by vision loss globally and contribute greatly as the health care professionals delivering care to millions, they are significantly underrepresented in leadership positions across the sector. Whether in hospitals, training institutions, research, or program leadership, women’s voices were too often missing from the rooms where decisions were being made.
Building Women Leaders in Eye Health (WLEH)
This imbalance motivated me to co-create Women Leaders in Eye Health (WLEH)—an initiative dedicated to shifting that dynamic. WLEH offered a space to not only recognize these disparities, but to actively challenge them through connection, mentorship, and collective action. I co-created this initiative because I believed in the vision: that equity in eye health leadership isn’t just about fairness—it’s about improving the system as a whole.
Since its launch, WLEH has sparked meaningful shifts across individual, institutional, and systemic levels in the eye health sector. By creating safe, supportive spaces for professional development, WLEH has empowered women at all stages of their careers to step into leadership roles with greater confidence and visibility. Participants report increased access to mentorship, career opportunities, and a stronger sense of belonging in a field where they had often felt isolated.
At the community level, WLEH is helping to challenge entrenched gender norms by elevating the profiles of women leaders and showcasing the value of gender-diverse leadership in improving eye health outcomes. Through storytelling, events, and strategic advocacy, WLEH is reframing what leadership in eye health looks like—and who it includes.
Institutionally, WLEH has engaged global partners to begin addressing gender gaps in recruitment, training, and promotion. It has also catalyzed dialogue around gender equity at major conferences and within key professional networks, laying the groundwork for longer-term policy and systems change.
The most powerful lesson I’ve learned is that when women are connected, uplifted, and truly visible, meaningful change takes root. That’s the essence of WLEH—and why I remain committed to championing this movement and inviting others to be part of it.
Navigating Resistance and Building Alliances
One of the key challenges WLEH faced was the widespread invisibility of gender disparities in the eye health sector. Because leadership gaps and gendered barriers were often unspoken or normalized, there was initial resistance from some stakeholders to acknowledge the need for change. To address this, WLEH focused on building a compelling evidence base—drawing from both global data and lived experiences—to clearly demonstrate how gender inequities impact the health workforce and the quality of care.
Another major obstacle was the lack of dedicated resources and infrastructure to support women’s professional growth in eye health. In response, WLEH launched small but strategic interventions, such as professional development grants, and coming soon- mentorship networks, and leadership circles. These low-barrier, high-impact initiatives created momentum and visibility, helping to shift mindsets and unlock greater institutional support.
Finally, reaching and engaging women in diverse roles, countries, and career stages required intentional outreach and inclusive design. WLEH prioritized co-creation with women from across the sector—listening to their needs, amplifying their voices, and creating programming that reflects their realities.
Through persistence, collaboration, and a focus on both systems and individuals, WLEH has continued to grow a movement that challenges inequity and champions women’s leadership in eye health.
