It was exhilarating to join old and new friends at our annual meeting in July. Many conversations that day emphasized the need to uplift women and be a force for positive actions.

“I tell women not to be a strong woman but to be a woman of strength.” Dr. Eve Ensler, Holocaust survivor and clinical psychologist. During the meeting, we observed a moment of silence in remembrance of USNC’s own force for positive actions and woman of strength – Carol Poteat Buchanan, past president of USNC and the Gulf Coast Chapter. Her contributions to the organization are immeasurable. 

We also welcomed two strong and accomplished women to the national board, Chris Serio Martin and Scott Osborne. And, we said good-bye to another one – Mary Dailey, retiring board member. Her many years of generous service and leadership are appreciated. 

It is through the unselfish work of these strong woman and so many others that make our support of UN Women’s mission possible and our relationship with them closer every year. Thanks to the fundraising efforts of the USNC chapters, we were thrilled to make a fiscal year donation to UN Women that was more than double the previous year’s donation. USNC was the largest giver of any national committee to UN Women.

We are also working with the private sector to address the issues of gender equality. We work for safe cities around the world. UN Women has introduced legislation in 24 countries to address violence against women. The national committees are now working more closely together. USNC is working to increase support in the US for the HeforShe program. Over 100,000 people in the US have made the HeforShe commitment. Over a million worldwide have made the commitment. 

But, our work isn’t done. Let’s double our efforts this year to make gender equality a reality.

Best,

Lalita Janke

Date: Saturday, September 15, 2018

Time: 2:00pm – 4:00pm     

Place: Hyatt Regency, 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota, FL

Carol Poteat Buchanan, former president of the U.S. National Committee for UN Women and the Gulf Coast Chapter of the U.S. National Committee for UN Women, died on June 16, 2018 at the age of 89.

Carol was a beloved community member, warm and generous mentor, inspiring leader, and caring person. Her many friends at the U.S. National Committee will long remember Carol with gratitude, respect, and a bit of awe. We send our sincere condolences to her loving family.

USNC-UN Women warmly welcomes former Chilean President and first leader of UN Women, Michelle Bachelet, as the new Human Rights Chief at the UN.

“Michelle Bachelet brings unique experience to the United Nations and to all of us, and is strongly committed to keeping human rights at the forefront of the work of the United Nations.”  UN Secretary-General Guterres

In 2015, Rawaa Kasedah, Mohammed Aref Rawas and their 4 children, including daughter Batool Rawoas, were among the first refugee families from Syria to settle in Oakland, CA.

They described their journey from Syria to Jordan to Northern California and how they started a family catering business, Old Damascus Fare, to rebuild their lives and support the refugee community in the U.S. We thank the family for sharing their traditional food and their story and wish them continued success!

On August 2, the USNC-UN Women Greater LA Chapter hosted HeForShe. Professionals in Conversation. Gender Appropriate Interactions in the Workplace at the Viceroy Santa Monica. Their “He” and “She” facilitators, Bill Palmer and Lisa Stewart, engaged attendees in group dialogues surrounding power and the definition of what it means to be an ally to individuals across the gender spectrum. In the midst of #MeToo and #TimesUp, this #HeForSheLA conversation could not have been more relevant and necessary.

Say NO UNiTE Street Action

LA chapter interns took to the streets to rally support behind #OrangeDay on the Santa Monica Pier. They raised their voices and awareness about gender based violence and impactful statistics that shed light on a very real concern. #SayNOUNiTE

This year, the USNC-UN Women San Francisco chapter is celebrating 20 years since San Francisco, birthplace of the UN, became the first city in the world to pass the UN Convention to End All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as a city ordinance.

On June 18, the chapter co-hosted “Power & Parity: Women’s Political Leadership” with the Wilson Center, a foremost policy think tank, who launched their ground-breaking study, Roadmap to 50×50: Power and Parity in Women’s Leadership.

On July 26, the SF chapter held their Annual Community Meeting & Celebration where they honored TIME Magazine Person-of-the-Year “Silence Breaker” Adama Iwu with their first Activist Award, and gave their first #ShesGotHerBack Award to their Strategic Advisor Kathryn Johnson, Co-founder of Collective Impact Partners. 

To learn more about upcoming events, visit the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter page on the website by clicking the link below.

On Monday, August 27, our Silicon Valley chapter hosted a fruitful discussion and interactive workshop on entrepreneurial education and renewable energy at LinkedIn’s Mountain View campus.

Attendees were presented case studies of initiatives in digital literacy and renewable energy both locally and abroad, then challenged in their discussion groups to brainstorm how the technology and solutions in these case studies could be extrapolated to support local refugees.

The event was catered by Old Damascus Fare, a small family business started by Mohammed Aref Rawas and Rawaa Kasedah one of the first refugee families to resettle in Oakland from the conflict in Syria. Their daughter, Batool Rawoas, shared the family’s story to kick-off the event.

This was the first in a series of Deep Dive sessions, structured around the Silicon Valley chapter’s key projects including blockchain, renewable energy, technology, entrepreneurial education, and digital literacy. 

Reach out to Caren Stacy to learn more.