girls

Generation Equality: Lifting Up Young Women’s Voices in the Church

Dear UN partners in gender justice and women’s and girls’ empowerment,

You are cordially invited to “Lifting Up Young Women’s Voices in the Church.”

Join Episcopal United Nations and the Presiding Bishop’s UNCSW65 delegates at the Generation Equality Forum as they discuss how Generation Equality fits into Church life, women who have guided them along the way, and advice for young women who are also looking to use their voice to effect change.

RSVP at EpiscopalUN@episcopalchurch.org

Spanish interpretation will be available during this webinar.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch.

NGO Committee on Status of Women-NY [monthly meeting]

Join NGO CSW-NY for our May Monthly Meeting about racial justice and gender. More information coming soon. At the beginning of the meeting, we will discuss the NGO CSW/NY Executive Committee elections taking place in June.

Register here!

If you missed April’s monthly meeting on the intersection of climate change, gender, and migration, you can watch the recording on Youtube here.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org.

Not Religion, Not the State – Women and Girls Must Decide their Fate 

You are warmly invited to a Side Event at the UN Commission on Population and Development 54:

Not Religion, Not the State – Women and Girls Must Decide their Fate 

Co-Organized by: ACT Alliance, The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET), Faith to Action Network and IPPFWHR

Virtual Event:Register via Eventbrite

A dialogue between faith and secular actors tackling taboos and promoting Comprehensive Sexuality Education to meet zero maternal deaths, zero unmet need for family planning and zero gender-based violence.

Faith-based actors, as trusted voices within communities, have a responsibility to promote each person’s inherent dignity and right, while also promoting rigorous analysis of the impact of religious and customary systems on issues, including population, food security, nutrition, and sustainable development.

In this Side Event, expert speakers will share strategies for overcoming existing taboos and resistance in addressing comprehensive sexuality education. Bringing together gender advocates from Africa and Latin America, who are striving to change social norms, tackle intersecting inequalities, and promote Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights.

Each speaker will focus on how the Commission can contribute to achieving zero maternal deaths, zero unmet need for family planning and zero gender-based violence by 2030.

Speakers:

  • Maria del Pilar Cancelo, Executive Director, SEDI Asociacion Civil
  • Dr. Paul Z. Mmbando, Medical Doctor, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania
  • Jill Anami, SRHR Program Officer, The African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET)
  • Jantiku Ijasini Jamare, Pastor and Co-Chair Youth Community of Practice, ACT Alliance
  • Susana Medina Salas, Senior Research and Evaluation Officer, IPPFWHR
  • Maria Tororey, SRHR Lead, Faith to Action Network

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org. For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com

Girls and Women: Leading the Charge to Ensure #LearningNeverStops

This virtual event will offer an intergenerational space for dialogue and profile the extraordinary steps taken by extraordinary girls and women of all ages and in all contexts to support girls’ continuity in learning and their safe return to school.

This event will take place on Zoom, with simultaneous interpretation in English, French and Spanish. Register here to participate. The event will be livestreamed on the UNWebTV.

Background:

In April 2020, schooling was disrupted for over 1.5 billion learners in more than 190 countries following nationwide closures to contain the spread of COVID-19. Today, a year into the crisis, over 800 million students are still out of school, students are on average losing two-thirds of an academic year and more than 20 million girls are projected to be at risk of dropping out.

This unprecedented disruption to education has the potential to roll back substantial gains made on girls’ education in recent decades, with broader immediate and longer-term effects on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, including those related to poverty reduction, health and well-being, inclusive quality education and gender equality.

The priority theme of the 65th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) recognises the critical role girls and women play as leaders and decision-makers in all aspects of public life to achieve gender equality, eliminate gender-based violence, and empower women and girls. This virtual event, held on the sidelines of CSW, will offer an intergenerational space for dialogue, and profile the extraordinary steps taken by extraordinary girls and women of all ages and in all contexts to support girls’ continuity of learning during school closures and return to school.

On March 24, leaders will aim to speak on behalf of the millions of at-risk girls whose voices are going unheard. They will highlight the essential need to build back equal through gender-transformative education systems that end harmful gender norms, free girls and boys from narrow aspirations and enable them to work together in the classroom today for a more equal world tomorrow.

This CSW65 event is hosted by UNESCO, PLAN International, the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative, the Permanent Mission of Kenya to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of the Argentine Republic to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations, and the Permanent Mission of Norway to the United Nations.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org

[High-Level Panel Discussion] The suffering, hardships and increase in domestic violence that women faced due to Covid-19 pandemic

IFPSD President Mrs. Sally Kader is honored to invite you to a CSW65 side event:

High-level panel discussion on the unprecedented suffering, hardships and the increase in domestic violence that women faced globally due to Covid-19 pandemic

Register here!

This high-level meeting panel discussion composed of experts to bring awareness of the pandemic’s effect on women and girls and address the role of relevant stakeholders in implementing solutions to this global crisis. The fight for gender equality is no exception, from surging reports of domestic violence to disproportionate economic losses, gender disparity, and decreasing number of women who maintain full participation and decision-making at all levels. Women and girls around the world faced unprecedented suffering and hardships due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This humanitarian crisis is not only limited to women in urban settings living in developed and underdeveloped nations.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org.

[NGO CSW-NY] Climate Crisis and Climate Action by and for Women

Climate change presents an unprecedented threat to economies and societies around the world.

The climate crisis burdens all of humanity, but not equally. The world’s poor, the majority of whom are women, are disproportionately affected. To advance workable and equitable solutions on the local, national, and global level, women must continue to serve as change agents – agents of mitigation, adaptation, and prevention of the most serious consequences of climate change.

NGO CSW/NY’s monthly meeting will examine the international situation and map a few examples of solutions that have proven to be successful.

Agenda:

1 – 1:30PM: NGO CSW65 Virtual Forum Updates
Updates from Houry Geudelekian, NGO CSW/NY Chair

1:30 – 3PM: Program
Panel: Moderated by Azadeh Khalili, NGO CSW/NY Communications Secretary

  • Osprey Orielle LakeExecutive Director of WECAN International
  • Mara Dolan, Women’s Environment and Development Organization
  • Divya Mathew, Women Deliver

Small Group Discussions

Closing

Register here!

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org.

International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women, who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities.

The world has made unprecedented advances, but no country has achieved gender equality.

Fifty years ago, we landed on the moon; in the last decade, we discovered new human ancestors and photographed a black hole for the first time.

In the meantime, legal restrictions have kept 2.7 billion women from accessing the same choice of jobs as men. Less than 25 per cent of parliamentarians were women, as of 2019. One in three women experience gender-based violence, still.

Let’s make 2021 count for women and girls everywhere.

The sixty-fifth session of the Commission on the Status of Women will take place from 15 to 26 March 2021. In light of the evolving COVID-19 situation, and taking into account the latest guidance from the United Nations Secretary-General and the World Health Organization (WHO), CSW65 will take place in a hybrid format with mostly virtual meetings.

Representatives of Member States, UN entities, and ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from all regions of the world are invited to attend the session.

Themes:

  • Priority theme: Women’s full and effective participation and decision-making in public life, as well as the elimination of violence, for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls;
  • Review theme: Women’s empowerment and the link to sustainable development (agreed conclusions of the sixtieth session)

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-New York, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org.

2021 Shine the Light Human Trafficking Conference: Root Causes & Intersections on Human Trafficking

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to our VIRTUAL 2021 Shine the Light Human Trafficking Conference: Root Causes and Intersections on Human Trafficking.  The conference, which is free of charge, will be held over two afternoons, March 8 (12noon to 3:00 pm EST), and March 9 (12noon to 1:30 pm EST).  We also are organizing a Call to Action Day on Trafficking for March 9.

Register at http://bit.ly/2021traffickingconference

Building on the success of our previous in-person Human Trafficking Conferences in 2018 and 2019, this year’s participants will hear from survivors, service providers and other experts.  An additional advocacy panel will share easy and ongoing actions that can be taken to combat trafficking.

Our co-sponsors this year are the Columbian Center for Advocacy and Outreach, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas – Justice Team, the U.S. Coalition of Sisters Against Human Trafficking, and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Office of Migration and Refugee Services.

Monday, March 8, 12:00 – 3:00 pm EST & Tuesday, March 9, 12:00 – 1:30 pm EST

Advance registration required. Register online here or call 301-622-6838

On Day 1, we will begin with an overview of human trafficking that speaks to the various root causes. Panel presentations on both sex and labor trafficking with domestic and international components will follow.  On Day 2, we will focus on advocacy campaigns and how all of us can make a difference.  Additional details are available on our Conference webpage.

Conference attendees will have the opportunity to engage in Q&A with panelists both days.

Speakers confirmed to date include:

Sr. Norma Pimentel, MJ, Executive Director, Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley; Sr. Winifred Doherty, RGS, United Nations Representative for the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd; Diana Fimbres, Program Manager for Strategic Initiatives on Labor Trafficking, Polaris; Hilary Chester, PhD, Associate Director, Anti-Trafficking Program, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops; Lawrence Couch, Director, National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd; Sr. Ann Scholz, SSND, PhD, Associate Director for Social Mission Leadership Conference of Women Religious; Scott Wright, Director, Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach; and current Members of Congress. As in previous conferences, trafficking survivors with their powerful stories will be pivotal contributors to the day.

We also encourage you to spread the word – share this invitation with your colleagues and networks and share this postcard on social media. If you would like further information, please reach out to Fran Eskin-Royer (associatedirector@gsadvocacy.org) or me (nacdirector@gsadvocacy.org).  Thank you.

Sincerely,

Lawrence E. Couch, Director

National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd

301-622-6838 (o) | 240-463-0660 (c) | www.gsadvocacy.org

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights, please visit childrightsny.org. For more information on the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, please visit crimealliance.org.

[UN Observance] International Day of Women and Girls in Science

Annually on February 11, the United Nations commemorates the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. To learn more about why inclusion and gender equity are important in STEM, and to stay apprised of this year’s events, visit un.org/en/observances/women-and-girls-in-science-day.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-NY, please visit ngocsw.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Geneva, please visit ngocsw-geneva.ch. For more information on the NGO Committee on the Status of Women-Vienna, please visit ngocswvienna.org.

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