The initial response from Fiach probably demonstrated some of the perils of Twitter - 140 characters does not allow for any nuance or subtlety but I think the open letter from The Abbey to the arts community is an exemplar of how mistakes should be acknowledged and dealt with. In the open and calling for open debate. Not like in the game and tech community where it is brushed aside, ignored or descends into such harmful trolling (SXSW showing another good way to deal with controversy).

I look forward to the coming debate on Thursday (details here) and to the contribution that it will make to moving the agenda forward so that women will be better represented in Irelands cultural landscape in the future. And I congratulate and thank all of the women who have been part of the #wakingthefeminists campaign.

But I also think that it should be noted that in acknowledging a big mistake, remaining open to debate, hosting,  attending and participating in that debate demonstrates the kind of leadership from Fiach that I for one would welcome seeing much more of in the tech and gaming community. We need men to provide visible leadership most especially when they have made a mistake. It’s the lack of this that creates the current structures that make changing the ratio such a battle.