Marie Claire Editor-in-Chief Nikki Ognaike and Clé de Peau Beauté Chief Brand Officer Mizuki Hashimoto joined forces to celebrate International Girls' Day and honor Girls Who Code CEO Reshma Saujani.

Marie Claire's power play luncheon provided the necessary mimosas and photo opportunities, but more importantly, it served as a backdrop for the powerful group of women to elevate each other at the Fifth Avenue Hotel.

Tiffany Duf, president of the Tory Burch Foundation, mingled with Saujani and panelist Phoebe Robinson, author, publisher, and comedian (you may have laughed at her podcast-turned-HBO series “Two Dope Queens”). PrueLure founder Krischelle Lim and Clé de Peau Beauté global color director Benjamin Packey gathered in one corner, while some guests tried to sneak in some time with Laura Ogunnaik, author of Marie Claire's Halle Berry cover story.

Whether speaking with content creators, journalists, or tech founders, the invisible thread that ran through the venue was a key tenet of Marie Claire's power play events: the belief that there is power in women supporting women. For 30 years, Marie Claire has given voice to the issues that matter most to women. We have been, and always will be, champions of women's empowerment,” Ogunnaik said in her opening remarks. Clé de Peau Beauté is a global luxury skincare and makeup brand committed to pioneering science-based breakthroughs and empowering the next generation of young women to pursue careers in STEM fields.”

Saujani has made the latter her mission, fighting for the economic empowerment of women and girls, working to close the gender gap in the tech sector, and more recently, advocating for policies to help mothers affected by pandemics through her nonprofit organization, Moms First. It is for this very reason that she was honored with Clé de Peau Beauté's Power Radiance Award and delivered the afternoon's keynote address.

Her inspiring speech focused on the work of Neha Shulka, a 19-year-old student who launched a tech platform for social good with Girls Who Code (check out SixFeetApart and the PA Homeless Guide app), and each spurred meaningful conversation at the table.

I spoke with Shilpa Yarlagadda, founder of Shiffonco and former speaker at Marie Claire's Power Play, about how her jewelry brand has been a powerful entry point for women entrepreneurs to gain equal access to start-up capital I noticed that. Names such as Kamala Harris, Gloria Steinem, Michelle Obama, and Serena Williams came up frequently in the conversation.

For the Ognike, Saujani, Dufour, and Robinson discussions, it took quite a few taps of the spoon on the glass to draw guests away from the engaging conversation (and delicious halibut). The panel discussion featured discussions by Ognaike, Saujani, Dufu, and Robinson. The panel discussion covered all sorts of topics, including how the Ognike group is empowering the next generation, leaders who have made a difference in their own lives, and even a little wisdom for the audience.

My favorite takeaway was an idea that Saujani instilled in Duf a few years ago: “If you want to make real change in the world, you have to learn how to stay out of line. You have to trust your gut, hold fast to your convictions, and push the boundaries on International Girls' Day and every day, no matter who is in the room.