Women Hold the Solutions

Thursday, March 4, 2010
5:30 - 7:30pm

Visual Arts Theater
333 West 23rd Street
between 8th and 9th Ave.
New York City

RSVP is required and space is limited: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . This event is SOLD OUT.

Celebrate International Women’s Day in New York City with the Global Fund for Women! Join us for a lively and thought-provoking evening featuring our grantee partners courageous women addressing critical issues in communities across the globe.

In addition, Nicholas Kristof, an advocate for women’s rights, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the New York Times and co-author of Half the Sky, will join us for an interview. We will also be sharing the latest updates from Haitian women’s rights activists on their long-term relief and rebuilding efforts.

Keynote speakers include Kavita N. Ramdas and representatives from our grantee partner organizations:

Women for Women's Human Rights (Turkey)
Pinar Ilkkaraçan

Formed in 1993, Women for Women's Human Rights (WWHR) – New Ways is a leader in championing women’s human rights in Turkey. It “aims to promote women’s human rights and to support the active and broad participation of women as free individuals and equal citizens in the establishment and maintenance of a democratic and peaceful order at national, regional and international levels.” To achieve these aims, WWHR developed multilayered approaches in its programming. It integrates grassroots and legislative based activism, seeking social change for women through multiple avenues of action. It works on women’s sexual and bodily rights through the creation of publications as advocacy tools, international trainings, symposiums, workshops, and lobbying for Turkish penal code reform. WWHR created an extensive human rights program that provides extensive training for women and girls that includes a series of extensive workshops on legal rights, democracy, violence, economic rights, gender-sensitive parenting, reproductive rights, and sexuality. It has produced several books and illustrative pamphlets on reproductive rights and sexuality in Muslim societies that is widely used by other human rights educators.

femLINKPACIFIC: Media Initiatives for Women (Fiji)
Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls

femLINKPACIFIC (femLINK) was founded in September 2000 in response to the civil coup in May of that year. The group was born out of the peace vigil convened by the National Council of Women, following the overthrow of the people's coalition government. Its mission is to empower women and communities by giving them a voice to fully participate in decision-making on policies that impact themes such as equality, development, and peace. The group uses myriad forms of media to promote education on women’s roles in civic and political participation by developing, producing, and distributing appropriate communication materials. It also works in collaboration with civil society organizations, the mainstream media, and relevant government agencies to influence gender policies.

Icon Partners and Associates (Uganda)
Deborah Kaddu-Serwadda

Icon was founded in Kampala, Uganda in 2005 in the spirit of revitalizing the women’s movement by unleashing women and young people’s leadership potential and capacities to build and sustain credible institutions that can promote human rights, ensure gender equality and address the sustainable development priorities of women. Its programs include: 1) Women and Young Leaders Network; 2) Self-Help Group Program to enable communities to effectively tackle gender inequality, violence and poverty; and 3) a School Program to provide career guidance, internships and leadership opportunities.