(San Francisco, USA) by Hannah M. Hutton
On May 17, 2017 IANGEL and the Women’s Intercultural Network (WIN) jointly presented Bring the Global Local, a lively panel discussion surrounding the 61st Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. The event was aimed at sharing experiences from the CSW as a point of departure towards local activism for a global issue: inclusion, equity, and equality for women and girls. The 61st Session’s primary theme was Women’s Economic Empowerment in the Changing World of Work, and we were reminded that livelihood can mean many things in many places, yet we are united in striving for the resources necessary to provide for ourselves and our loved ones.
IANGEL Founder and President Nancy J. Newman gave opening remarks, emphasizing the United Nations’ importance in building connections and fostering conversation that reaches across boarders. Nancy discussed IANGEL’s panel, titled Pro Bono Power, which took place in the Church Center for the United Nations on March 22, 2017. The panel emphasized the wealth of resources attorneys have, and how those resources are invaluable in global efforts towards gender equality. Nancy aptly noted, “I do not have to be certified to practice law in Bangladesh to know that laws that prohibit Hindu women from owning or inheriting property are unjust.” She spoke to the importance of standing in solidarity with one another, noting several recent IANGEL efforts to mobilize international support towards women’s issues around the world.
Nancy was joined by Carletta Jackson-Lane, the Executive Director of Sojourner Truth Foster Family Service Agency and Lenka Belkova, WIN Associate Director. Both Carletta and Lenka were on WIN’s panel on March 17, 2017 titled The Changing World of Work: Women’s Economic Empowerment with CEDAW. WIN’s panel discussed several perspectives surrounding women’s economic empowerment, including policies and practices inhibiting full inclusion in the workforce.
The panel was moderated by Robin Endres, the Executive Director of the On Your Feet Foundation. The discussion acknowledged the highlights of the CSW, including a meeting between UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and NGO’s from across the world, which came as a result of a letter circulated in early March on which IANGEL was signatory. The audience was lively and engaged, bringin
g their own experiences from CSWs past and proposing plans for improvement in the future, both in terms of administrative processes at the CSW as well as practices that would better facilitate connections between NGOs and participants. The panel was followed by a reception with food, wine and discussion as to how we could better support one another in our equally important missions. The issues of infrastructural barriers to full equality and the importance of intersectional mobilization brought with them conversations about how we can organize together on the local level, and stand side by side with one another towards global empowerment.