Sports teams are often defined by a particular colour scheme, and we're no different, with McLaren inextricably linked to papaya.

The importance and impact of colour in Formula 1 is why we chose to use paint to convey a key message: an inspirational reminder to women and young girls that they can be whomever they want to be.

We teamed up with our friends at AkzoNobel as part of our sustainability journey to raise awareness for gender equality and to have an important conversation around diversity and inclusion.

Ahead of the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, we used Latin America’s largest sustainability festival, Virada Sustentável, as a key opportunity to work towards this target.

The initiative centred around an eye-catching mural that represented and promoted the importance of gender equality. The mural was created for us by Brazilian visual artist Mari Pavanelli, using products from AkzoNobel's Coral brand, and painted using our papaya colourway. Once completed, it was presented at a Community Centre near the São Paulo-based circuit.

Our team were in São Paulo for the unveiling ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, where they met Mari Pavanelli and discussed the artwork’s role in promoting gender equality.

“Mari’s mural will hopefully leave a positive legacy for girls and women in the community and also start a wider conversation across the globe,” said Kat Czekaj, Senior Specialist, Technology Partnerships. “We hope it inspires those who see it to be whomever they want to be.”

Lucy Holmes, Manager, Partnerships, added: “It was great to see the mural in person. It represents the fact that there should be no barriers to participating in the world of motorsport, or in other careers that are not typically gender diverse."

Driving representation is at the core of our sustainability project, with one of the four pillars of our sustainability report dedicated to Diversity, Equality and Inclusion.

Through our work as part of that pillar, we found that women make up 13% of our overall workforce - up from 12% in 2020 - and 17% of our Senior Leadership Team. This figure was taken from our most recent Gender Pay Gap report and is in line with the motorsport sector.

However, whilst that displays an improvement, it also makes clear that a lot of work still needs to be done. Those numbers are better, but still not high enough, and through schemes such as McLaren Racing Engage and our own hiring practices, we’re hoping to have 40% of our employees come from under-represented groups by 2030.

One of the ways in which AkzoNobel are attempting to empower women is through their Women in Colour programme, which is a vocational course that has 28 graduates to date and is dedicated to helping empower women to build careers in the decorative paints and vehicle refinishes industries.

Members from that course joined us at the unveiling, and AkzoNobel's Silvana Martins Cestaro said that she hoped their presence could help to inspire others.

“It was fantastic to welcome the graduates," she said. "At AkzoNobel, we’re constantly looking for ways to create equal opportunities for career development.

"It’s something we're keen to drive forward a lot faster, so joining forces with McLaren will certainly help us to do that. We truly hope the mural leaves a lasting legacy and sends an inspirational message to all those who see it."

Learn how AkzoNobel are the most sustainable paints company and how they have been inventing the future for more than two centuries.

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