Our mission of making the world more open and connected influences the way we work at Facebook in unique and meaningful ways. This sense of purpose is what inspires us to connect over a billion active users every day. This past month Facebook celebrated International Women's History month by raising the visibility of women of small businesses and the voices of women across the globe as a whole. Here's more abut these initiatives.

Two awe-inspiring movements launched on Facebook and Instagram, #SheMeansBusiness and #MyStory.

#SheMeansBusiness is a movement lead by Facebook, that kicked off in the Asia-Pacific to celebrate women-owned small businesses making a difference in society. But why does Facebook's #SheMeanBusiness campaign matter so much?

The truth is, the top executives, and business owners of most industries around the globe, are still mostly men. That doesn't mean it's how it should be. In fact, studies show that women-led businesses actually benefit more.

A study by the World Bank highlighted how women entrepreneurs greatly boost economic growth, while substantially reducing global poverty. In fact, the United Nations estimates that women have the potential to add $89 billion to the Asia-Pacific economy each year. Data proving that having a diverse workforce in turn creates a more profitable and successful business shows the importance of movements like #SheMeansBusiness.

As the new Facebook website, SheMeansBusiness.fb.com reads:

But on top of celebrating women in businesses, there was a second campaign launched on International Women's Day to bring a voice to women on Instagram - the #MyStory campaign.

#MyStory celebrates the power and importance of women's storytelling. Every day, women use Instagram to tell their stories in a way that transcends language, geography or age. #MyStory shines a spotlight on these women, who are breaking stereotypes and overturning clichés through personal and profound storytelling.

You can follow more inspiring stories on Instagram now using the hashtag #MyStory, and discover amazing women-owned small businesses around the globe using the hashtag #SheMeansBusiness, and find more interactive insights and videos on Facebook's newly launched site SheMeansBusiness.fb.com