Category Archives: Beijing+15

Beijing What?

Beijing+20: WHAT?  An interactive dialogue with young people about gender equality and women’s empowerment in the post-2015 context.  Four Girl advocates of the Working Group on Girls were among the panelists – Julia, Christina, Lizze, and Lizzie.  This dialogue took place within the 2 day ECOSOC Youth Forum of June 2 and 3. Girls from YWCA, Girl Scouts USA and a girl representative from Austrian youth were also panelists. Their linking with the issues of Beijing and bring them into the post 2015 Development Agenda debate was excellent.  The event was webcast  Link to webcast

Executive Director of UN Women, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka invited the girls to share with her on the various themes.  You can read her address Here

Questions posed to the girls included: Julia:  Why is it important for women and girls to be part of the conversation on climate change and entrepreneurship?  How will this contribute to a different future?  Christina: Why is it important for women and girls to partner in leadership and decision making as outline in the Beijing platform.  How is this important to you and your future?  Lizzie:  Why does gender equality matter to you and your future?  What about your peers?  Anita: Why is the Beijing platform so relevant for some of the areas we need to focus on and for change for a sustainable future?

The following question were posed to he Austrian Youth delegate Johanna: What is your vision for education and how does it contributes to gender equality?   Tiffany is from the YWCA: What can we do to put an end to women’s lack of safety and violence against women?  Emily from the Girl Scouts: Why is environmental policies so important to girls and women world wide.  Is this something we need to include when looking at in the post 20 agenda?   Ameesha Girl Scouts USA: You have witnessed the discrimination of women and girls in families and you have identified it as a challenge in India.  You are a strong gender equality advocate.  What would you like us to change?  What actions can we take to make sure this happens?

WGGatYouthForum (1)

Can you use this presentation to talk about Beijing? I think it is a useful tool. How would your women and girl groups answer these questions?

There is a very interesting sharing by an 18 year old man Joe Davis talking about women’s rights from a young man’s perspective.  See move marker to 43:30

The Good Shepherd International Foundation on their Facebook page have a posting on the UN ECOSOC Youth Forum.  See

Mr Ban Ki-moon’s address for International Women’s Day

Go to this link and you will find the address in the 6 languages of the United Nations.  http://www.un.org/womenwatch/feature/iwd/2010/index.html#video    Here is a quotation from the address:   ” The Beijing Declaration remains as relevant today as when it was adopted. The third Millennium Development Goal – to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment – is central to all the rest. When women are denied the opportunity to better themselves and their societies, we all lose. On this International Women’s Day, let us look critically at the achievements of the past 15 years so we can build on what has worked, and correct what has not. Let us work with renewed determination for a future of equal rights, equal opportunities and progress for all.”  Read the whole text here http://www.un.org/en/events/women/iwd/2010/sg_message.shtml

E-Discussion on Women and Poverty

29th Congregational Chapter Direction Statement   ‘We work zealously with women and children, especially those who are ….oppressed by abject poverty.  We support projects for economic justice, confront unjust systems…”

Here is an opportunity for you to express your views based on your vast experience of working with women living in abject poverty.  In doing so you are influencing policy and confronting unjust structures. 

From 11 January to 12 February 2010 the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UN/DESA) will jointly organize an e-discussion on Women and Poverty. The e-discussion aims to provide critical policy messages and an action agenda to the Commission on the Status of Women’s 15 year review of the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (1 to 12 March 2010); ECOSOC Annual Ministerial Review (28 June – 3 July 2010); and the High-level Plenary Meeting of the sixty-fifth session of the UN General Assembly, focused on the Millennium Development Goals (September 2010).  Go to this website, scroll to the bottom of the page and sign up for the discussion.  In replying in the box Organization please enter Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd.   This is our organizational name at the United Nations.   http://www.un.org/ecosoc/newfunct/amredis2010.shtml   

Here is a quote from the facilitators note:  “Please help us bring new thinking and new ideas to the policy debate about poverty reduction, gender equality and women’s empowerment, drawing on experience with implementing the Bejing Platform for Action and the Millennium Development Goals. Share your innovative ideas, research and good practice examples with policy-makers, researchers, and practitioners around the world, and help make a difference in the fight for gender equality and eradication of poverty.”

Dates for the UN Regional Conferences – Beijing+15

If you click on the link below you will find the dates for the UN Regional Conferences for  Africa,  16 – 20 November in the Gambia;  Europe, 2-3 November in Geneva; Latin America and the Carribbean,  3 – 6 July,  2010;  Asia and the Pacific November 16 – 18 in Bangkok and Western Asia, October 21-23 in Beirut.   Are Good Shepherd NGO Regional Designates  attending these conferences?  Have you invited other to attend? 

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing15/regional_review.html#met

Global Women’s Forum 2010 – Grassroots Paricipation at Beijing +15

The Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd is a member of the NGO Committee of the Commission on the Status of    Women (NGOCSW).  I attend the monthly meeting and collaborate in working groups.  A subcommittee on outreach to grassroots participation for Beijing +15 is seeking help and collaboration.  If you in your ministry are able to create awareness of Beijing +15 and contribute to the Forum (a two day event in New York, February 27 and 28, 2010 immediately proceeding the 54th Session of the    Commission on the Status of Women March 1-12, 2010) some sugestions and guidelines are provided below.

Grassroots Participation at Beijing +15

A sub-Committee on Outreach to Grassroots Participation for Beijing + 15 has been established to ensure that grassroots women- women who are living and working  in their own communities on issues directly affecting their lives – are meaningfully involved in the 2010 NGO Global forum for Women and the 54th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.  In order to ensure participation of grassroots women – who are so often marginalized from global dialogues, we ask you to consider doing the following:  In preparation for the Global Forum and for CSW 54:   a)organize a  consultation process with grassroots women on the Beijing Platform for Action, and record their experiences, challenges, disappointments, and their best practices in achieving gender equality.  We will attempt to make tools and formats to guide your consultations available on the NGOCSW.org    b) Send information and reports on your consultations to: grassrootsparticipation@ngocsw.org   We will post information about and from local, national and regional consultations processes on NGOCSW.org    c) Share the contents of the Beijing Platform for Action where women have not heard of it.  Copies can be found at  http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/platform/  d)Include a grassroots women in your delegation to CSW 54, so that as many grassroots women as possible can take part in these important governmental proceedings. 

During CSW 54:  In order to ensure effective participation of grassroots women (many of whom may have never attended a global meeting before), members of NGOCSW are organizing the following events:  a) An orientation session specifically for grassroots women  b) A grassroots caucus for sharing experiences,  strategizing and networking   c)  A number of side events that will showcse grassroots women’s perspective on the Beijing Platform for Action and what they have achieved since the 4th World Conference on Women.  I f you would like to be involved in these efforts, please contact us!   Grassrootsparticipation@ngocsw.org                                           

                                                 

  

 

Beijing +15

2010 celebrates the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in September 1995, the 50th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. There the government’s committed to implementation of the Platform for Action. The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 54) will review its implementation in March 2010.

Where you present at Beijing?  If so, why not share your  experience with me.