BySenators Kuderer, Wellman, Hunt, Rolfes, Wilson, C., Takko, Palumbo, Keiser, Nguyen, Randall, Darneille, Das, Cleveland, Frockt, Mullet, Pedersen, Hobbs, Sheldon, Carlyle, McCoy, Billig, King, Liias, Van De Wege, Conway, and Salomon

WHEREAS, Women In Cloud is a community-led initiative supporting female technology entrepreneurs; and

WHEREAS, Women In Cloud creates access to partnership opportunities, programs that accelerate business growth in the cloud, and strategic alliances that advance the success of women in tech; and

WHEREAS, Women In Cloud celebrates female entrepreneurs in the tech world and empowers women in Washington and beyond, helping them to realize their potential and reach new growth through leading industry, community, and government partners; and

WHEREAS, Only five percent of leadership positions in the technology industry are held by women and more than two-thirds of US start-ups have no women at all on their board of directors; and

WHEREAS, According to a new World Economic Forum report, the global gender gap will take one hundred years to close at the current rate of change; and

WHEREAS, Women In Cloud is building a global plan to create access in enabling one billion dollars in economic opportunities in alignment with United Nations Sustainable Goal #5, to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls and United Nations Sustainable Goal #12, to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns; and

WHEREAS, Kauffman Foundation research shows that tech companies led by women achieve a thirty-five percent higher return on investment than firms led by men; and

WHEREAS, Forbes found that women tech entrepreneurs, despite having received fifty percent less venture capital funding, produce twenty percent higher revenues than their male equivalent; and

WHEREAS, Fortune found that female founders received two percent of all venture capital funding; and

WHEREAS, The underrepresentation of women in technology leadership harms technological development and societal and economic growth, and is unacceptable in the 21st century;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate recognize the value of this initiative to inspire, empower, and accelerate the growth of women-led technology companies and promote the efforts of women entrepreneurs and leaders; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Women In Cloud Annual Summit 2019, to be held in Redmond, Washington on January 26, 2019.