Dear Friends,
Ways Women Lead is pleased to share the latest developments about our unique leadership program for women and girls that models and evokes conscious leadership. Our program will launch in Bulgaria in late May 2010 with a training of trainers and planning meeting, and continue through local gatherings and an international event in late October. It is bringing together women and their organizations from within and outside of Bulgaria to collaborate and exchange their wisdom and expertise in conscious leadership.
From our perspective, conscious leadership that is awake to its own value and needs, and to that of its community of partners, is essential as we step forward to meet the challenges we face today. This is leadership that has the capacity to create rapid change because it springs from the heart of every person, grows and connects with authentic communication practices, and catalyzes others to bring the fullness of their unique potentials into the service of the whole.
Below you will find our news in more detail…
· About Bulgaria
· Developing partnerships
· Upcoming UN Commission on the Status of Women
· Beijing Platform for Action
Please note that our initial CSW event needs to have your name ahead of time, so please let us know if you’re planning to attend.
You are warmly invited to co-create with WWL’s exciting new program in whatever way you are called, as sponsor, contributor or participant, in-person or online. For more information see www.wayswomenlead.net, participate at www.lightpages.net/wayswomenlead.cfm , or contact Ann@wayswomenlead.net, Jeanie@wayswomenlead.net, or Penny@wayswomenlead.net . Like never before, now is certainly the time to step forward, each of us, to do what we can to make a difference.
Blessings on all your endeavors,
Jeanie DeRousseau, for Ways Women Lead
NEWS
About Bulgaria
By Catlyn Fendler
The country of Bulgaria lies at the crossroads of East and West. It is a modern nation that, by the very nature of its location, has a long and tumultuous history. It is also a region whose culture and traditions reach deeply into the earliest ages of human history, traditions that reflect the deeply rooted wisdoms of honoring the earth, the seasons, and the feminine as an expression of the sacred consciousness of the interconnection of all life. This ancient story is preserved and richly told in the arts and artifacts of the stunning Archaeology Museum in Varna, whose exhibits range from the Paleolithic to later medieval eras.
Throughout its turbulent history, Bulgarian culture has evolved and endured. Modern-day Bulgarians are described as a people of warmth and welcome, whose ancient folk traditions remain a vibrant part of their daily lives, whether in the rural areas where agriculture continues as a primary way of life, or in the bustling sophistication of cosmopolitan cities like the nation's capital, Sofia.
These folk traditions include the art of colorful weaving and embroidery of clothing and rugs, the crafting of distinctive pottery and ceramics, and fine woodcarving. Festivals are an on-going and integral part of the Bulgarian year. With roots in the ancient world, they honor the seasons, agriculture, spirit and story in a wide variety of music, song, ritual and dance. The baking of bread, one of the oldest, most important and satisfying of human activities, continues to be a central part of many of these celebrations.
Ways Women Lead team member, Nadezhda Savova, Founder and Director of Community Cultural Centers and PhD student in Cultural Anthropology at Princeton University, USA, is continuing this tradition. The art of baking bread for spiritual and social revival, community-making and environmental sustainability is at the heart of this work. Recently she has been organizing community projects with the Bread House Cultural Center she created in Gabrovo, Bulgaria. For more about Nadezhda and the BREAD Movement (Bridging Resources for Ecological and Art-based Development), please visit the web site: www.bread-art-house.org .
Developing Partnerships
The WWL team is looking forward to working with Nadezhda and the BREAD Movement in Bulgaria and
excited to be developing new partnerships with several other Bulgarian organizations as well, including the Women’s Alliance for Development, whose mission has included over 200 trainings in Bulgaria, and is “directed to changing attitudes, improving gender sensibility of society and overcoming gender differences”, and Human Rights – Step by Step Association, a nonprofit organization that works primarily on the problems of vulnerable groups-women, youth, ethnic minorities and the cultural sector, and reforms in the administration and enforcement.
We are deeply grateful to Linda Stillman and Rozalina Nikolova for anchoring our project within Bulgaria, and would also like to express our gratitude to other organizations that continue to support and co-create with WWL’s emerging program in Conscious Leadership. These include the Red Tent, International Public Policy Institute, Anglican Women’s Empowerment, Soroptimist International, Circle Connections, Women’s Learning Exchange, Imagine the Good, Gather the Women Global Matrix, and Evolutionary Women.
We are delighted to be welcoming Caroline Usikpedo Omoniye and her colleagues from Nigeria and the Niger Delta Women Peace's Movement for Development to the UN CSW meetings in New York. Caroline is serving as African Coordinator for Ways Women Lead.
The 54th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UN CSW)
(See http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw for more information)
During the first two weeks of March 2010, thousands of women will converge from all over the world to attend the UN CSW meetings in New York City. WWL and/or our partner organizations will be offering the following events:
· Women’s Circle, Friday, February 26th, Episcopal Church Center, 815 2nd Avenue, 2:00-4:00 pm: A time to get to know one another, the women’s organizations and CSW activities. Sponsored by Ways Women Lead, Anglican Women’s Empowerment, and Millionth Circle. All who want to attend must send their name to Ann Smith, ann@circleconnections.com. Only those whose names are on the list will be given entrance to the building.
· Interactive Workshop on Conscious Leadership, Wednesday, March 3rd, International Catholic Organization, 323 E. 47th Street, 1:00-3:00 pm, to be confirmed. Sponsored by the International Public Policy Institute, Ways Women Lead and Anglican Women’s Empowerment. Featuring the premier showing of the trailer to the movie “The Heart to Lead. Women as Allies for the Greater Good”. No reservation is needed. (Supporting organizations include: Millionth Circle, Gather the Women Global Matrix, Women Waking the World, Women’s Learning Exchange, and Imagine the Good.)
· International Panel on Sex Trafficking, Wednesday, March 3rd, UN Church Center, 11th floor, 777 United Nations Plaza, corner of 44th and 1st Avenue, 4:00-5:30 pm. Sponsored by Soroptimist International, Ways Women Lead, and Anglican Women’s Empowerment. No reservation is needed.
· Reception and information discussion on Beijing, UN Fourth World Conference on Women, Friday, March 5th, Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest, Fifth Avenue and 90th Street, 6:30 pm reception, 7:30-9:00 pm, panel and informal discussion. Invitation from Anglican Women’s Empowerment. No cost.
· Millionth Circle Workshop, Monday, March 8, UN Church Center, 10th floor, 777 United Nations Plaza, corner of 44th and 1st Avenue, 6:00-7:30 pm. Sponsored by Millionth Circle and Pathways to Peace. No reservation is needed.
Beijing Platform for Action
This year the UN CSW meetings will be a “15-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly (2000)”.
“Emphasis will be placed on the sharing of experiences and good practices, with a view to overcoming remaining obstacles and new challenges, including those related to the Millennium Development Goals. Member States, representatives of non-governmental organizations and of UN entities will participate in the session. A series of parallel events will provide additional opportunities for information exchange and networking. Ongoing national and regional review processes are feeding into the global review process.” From: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing15/index.html.
Prior to the CSW meetings, on Saturday and Sunday, February 27-28, “the NGO Committee on the Status of Women, NY, is also organizing an NGO Global Women’s Forum to consider implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The Forum program will include two full conference days commencing with an opening ceremony, and continuing with plenary sessions, panel discussions, and workshops.” For more information see http://www.ngocsw.org/en/events/2010-forum.
During the entire month of February, the United Nations Department of Public Information would like to invite you to an online discussion on “Women and the Media”, one of the 12 critical areas of concern identified in the Beijing Platform for Action in 1995. See http://www.un.org/womenwatch/beijing15 .
This is part of a series of United Nations online discussions dedicated to the fifteen-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly (2000); and is hosted by WomenWatch (http://www.un.org/womenwatch) , an inter-agency project of the United Nations Inter-agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE).
Other issues also being discussed throughout February, include:.
10 Jan - 7 Feb 2010
Education and training
11 Jan - 12 Feb 2010
Women and Poverty
20 Jan - 19 Feb 2010
Women in Power and Decision-Making
1 - 27 February 2010
Women and the Environment
1 - 28 February 2010
Women and Human Rights
The 4th World Conference on Women in 1995 that resulted in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action was an important watershed for many women. Watch for WWL’s questionnaire about your experience there and what has happened in your world since 1995.
