User login
 
United States

Colombia: women zoom ahead in politics

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Mon, 2012-01-23 13:28

Summary: 

When I arrived in Colombia in July of 1994, I was surprised to see women in jobs usually held by men in almost every labor field, and especially amazed to see so many women in important leadership positions in finance and economics.

In Latin America, conservative Colombia was next to last-place Paraguay in granting voting rights to women. But Colombian women made up for their late start by taking only 41 years of peaceful power sharing to field two highly qualified female candidates in their 1998 presidential election.

Colombian women's remarkable achievement in such a short time led me to question why women in the United States took more time, encountered more bumps, attained a more contentious male-female power relationship and launched only one candidate in our 2008 presidential primaries.

Body: 

Read more at UPI, published 23 Jan


A Practical Guide to Constitution Building

A Practical Guide to Constitution Building provides an essential foundation for understanding constitutions and constitution building. Full of world examples of ground-breaking agreements and innovative provisions adopted during processes of constitutional change, the Guide offers a wide range of examples of how constitutions develop and how their development can establish and entrench democratic values. Beyond comparative examples, the Guide contains in-depth analysis of key components of constitutions and the forces of change that shape them.

Chapter 2 includes a section on "Principles related to gender" and Chapter 3 includes a section on "The rights of women".

Women in Public Service Project's Summer Institute 2012 at Wellesley College

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Wed, 2012-01-04 08:23
2012-06-11
2012-06-22
US/Eastern
Click here
City & Province/State: 
Massachusetts
Country: 
USA
Venue: 

Wellesley College

Description: 

The Women in Public Service Project

Mission

The Women in Public Service Project is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the Seven Sisters women’s colleges – Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Wellesley – to advance women to positions of influence in governments and civic organizations worldwide. The initiative is distinguished by the partners’ demonstrated legacy of educating women leaders across the globe and linking them to each other through powerful intergenerational networks.

Vision

The initiative will provide vital momentum to the next generation of women leaders who will invest in their countries and communities, provide leadership for their governments and societies, and help change the way global solutions are developed.

Working in alignment with other leading organizations and institutions in the U.S. and around the world, The Women in Public Service Project will create intensive training and mentoring opportunities for emerging and aspiring women leaders; establish and sustain a vibrant international network of such leaders; generate new, cross-culturally valid insights on women's political leadership; and gain momentum over time.

The Women in Public Service Project envisions a world in which political and civic leadership is at least 50 percent female by 2050. The Department of State and the Sister colleges are committed to building the infrastructure and convening the conversations necessary to achieve this vision.

The Women in Public Service Institute

Wellesley College in Massachusetts will host the first Women in Public Service Project Institute in June 2012 for a period of two weeks from June 11-22.  The pilot institute will bring together 50 emerging women leaders from across the globe between the ages of 25-45 who are already serving in different fields of public service and/or political or elected office.  The institute hopes to provide a forum for shared learning and dialogue; exchange of experiences and expertise; peer-to-peer mentoring and networking; and build an important platform for cross-fertilization of knowledge and innovative leadership skills.

Since the institute will be launched a year from the defining events of the Arab Spring it will acknowledge the uniqueness of this historical moment by including a particularly strong cohort from the Middle East and North Africa regions (MENA) as well as from other countries undergoing political and social transformations.   

The Project will cover the travel and accommodation costs of all selected participants.  English will be the medium of instruction and English proficiency is required of all applicants.

Ongoing and future initiatives will take place at institutes at Seven Sister campuses and abroad with technology-supported networking and mentorship; conferences, studies and other public initiatives; evolving toward the development of a uniquely powerful and visible women’s public service institute that attracts talented women from all countries and walks of life.

For more information, see The Women in Public Service Project


USA: Hillary Clinton says Egypt is failing its women

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Tue, 2011-12-20 02:56

Summary: 

In unusually strong language, the US secretary of state accused Egypt's new leaders of mistreatment of women both on the street and in politics since the street revolt nearly a year ago that overthrew leader Hosni Mubarak.

"This systematic degradation of Egyptian women dishonours the revolution, disgraces the state and its uniform and is not worthy of a great people," Mrs Clinton said in a speech at Georgetown University.

In images widely seen over YouTube, helmeted troops were shown beating a veiled woman after having ripped her clothes off to reveal her bra and stomach.

Body: 

Read more on the Telegraph, published 20. Dec


Empowering Women for Stronger Political Parties

How women participate in political parties – and how those parties encourage and nurture women’s involvement and incorporate gender-equality issues – are key determinants of women’s political empowerment. They are also key to ensuring gender-equality issues are addressed in the wider society. If strategies to promote women’s involvement in the political process are to be effective, they should be linked to steps parties can take across the specific phases of the electoral cycle – the preelectoral, electoral and post-electoral phases – and to the organization and financing of the parties themselves. 
 
The most effective strategies to increase women’s participation in political parties combine reforms to political institutions with targeted support to women party activists within and outside party structures, women candidates and elected officials. These strategies require the cooperation of a variety of actors and political parties from across the political spectrum.
 
The Guide identifies targeted interventions that political parties can take to empower women. It is structured according to four phases, following an electoral cycle approach.

USA: Women in Politics - Balancing Family, Work and Campaigning

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Wed, 2011-11-02 04:53

Summary: 

For three Glen Cove women, being in the political arena is not only a passion, but also a balancing act.

“I already juggle work and family, so I do what needs to be done,” said Kristina Heuser, one of three women running for City Council on the Republican ticket.

Heuser, a lawyer with a local practice and resident since 2008, has two daughters, both under 8 years old.

“My children are my priority,” she said. “I try to be a good role model. I bring them to fundraisers, and they campaign with me.”

Filomena “Mena” Ricciardi, candidate and resident for over 25 years, works full time for a non-profit organization, and part time as a consultant for a company in the defense industry.

Ricciardi was actively involved in the four-year mayoral term referendum, saying she was “passionate” about the issue.

Body: 

To read the complete story please visit GlenCove.

Published on 1 November 2011.


Uganda, USA: Combating Violence Against Women

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Tue, 2011-10-18 08:41

Summary: 

Only a few days after the New York Times ran Nicholas Kristof’s piece on the courage of one young woman in Sierra Leone who refused to suffer in silence after being raped, President Obama authorized 100 U.S. troops to go into Uganda as advisors in the fight against the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a terrorist group that has been on a path of death and destruction in Central Africa for two decades. To many, these two news items might only confirm the all-too-common perception that violence and lawlessness seems to be the intractable way of life in Africa.

However, the latter story has more to do with gender than one might glean from a casual following of the latest news coverage. Due to the mass occurrences of rape that accompany the LRA’s attacks, Kristof’s presentation of one young woman’s story in order to rally support for the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA) is all the more timely. The LRA is notorious for its use of rape as a weapon of war – David Axe of Wired recently wrote a story with the headline, “Obama Sends U.S. Troops to Battle African Rape Cult” – and would be one such international perpetrator of violence against women that the legislation was written to combat. Last year, the U.S. Congress came close making IVAWA law (both the Senate and the House discussed versions of the bill, which has been lauded by women’s rights NGOs), but fell short.

Body: 

Read the whole article on Forbes, published 16 oct


World Leaders Draw Attention to Central Role of Women’s Political Participation in Democracy

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Mon, 2011-09-19 13:49

Summary: 

United Nations, New York — Women make up less than 10 percent of world leaders. Globally less than one in five members of parliament is a woman. The 30 percent critical mass mark for women’s representation in parliament has been reached or exceeded in only 28 countries. At a high-level event today, during the 66th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, women political leaders made a strong call for increasing women’s political participation and decision-making across the world. Stressing that women’s participation is fundamental to democracy and essential to the achievement of sustainable development and peace in all contexts — during peace, through conflict and post-conflict, and during political transitions — the leaders signed on to a joint statement with concrete recommendations on ways to advance women’s political participation.

“It is a solidarity that we see represented here today among this important group of women around me,” said Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, at the event. “We are bound by a common goal — to open the way for women to participate in all decisions affecting not only their own lives, but the development of our world, at the global, regional, national and local levels. By making full use of half the world’s intelligence — the intelligence of women — we improve our chances of finding real and lasting solutions to the challenges that confront us.”

Body: 

Read more on UN Women


Women's Political Participation – Making Gender Equality in Politics a Reality

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Mon, 2011-09-19 10:03
2011-09-19 20:00
2011-09-19 22:00
US/Eastern
Click here
City & Province/State: 
New York
Country: 
USA
Venue: 


Conference Room 3, North Lawn Building, UN Headquarters, New York

Also, web-broadcast from the UN Women website

Description: 

About the event :

At the 66th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, women political leaders will strongly call for increasing women’s political participation and decision-making across the world. Stressing that women’s participation is essential in all contexts — during peace, through conflict and post-conflict, and during political transitions — the leaders will sign on to a joint statement, as a call to action, with concrete recommendations on ways to advance women’s political participation. The event will be webcast live.

PARTICIPANTS

  • H.E. Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil
  • The Honourable Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
  • H.E. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State of the United States of America
  • Rt. Hon. Baroness Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission
  • H.E. Roza Otunbayeva, President of the Kyrgyz Republic
  • Lilia Labidi, Minister of Women’s Affairs, Republic of Tunisia
  • Helen Clark, Under-Secretary-General and Administrator, UN Development Programme
  • Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director, UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Women in Politics & Public Policy Program

Submitted by iKNOW Politics on Tue, 2011-07-05 11:17
2011-07-15
US/Eastern
Click here
City & Province/State: 
Massachusetts, Boston
Country: 
USA
Venue: 

University of Massachusetts, Boston

Description: 

Features and Benefits

- Six courses in policy studies, analytical and research skills, and internship which span two semesters. In addition to the 200-hour, supervised internship, students meet twice a week in evening classes (Tuesdays and Thursdays 6-8:30 PM) which start in September and finish the following May.

- Applied policy internship gain professional work experience in state or local government, public agencies, non-profit or advocacy organizations, or at prestigious research institutes.

-  Seminars taught by nationally recognized scholars and researchers in the fields of gender, politics, and public policy.

- Career development opportunities: graduates will be prepared to serve at all levels of government, take on leadership roles in non-profit organizations, hold elected office, and pursue advanced degrees, most frequently in law and public policy.

- One-on-one advising about internship placements, research interests, and professional goals.

-  Networking with McCormack Graduate School faculty and researchers at Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy Financial assistance through the Betty Taymor Scholarship fund. 

- Department facilities including classroom and meeting space as well as a small, private computer lab Guest lectures and special events on various topics on the role of gender in politics and policy-making.

For more information about this program, visit Mc Cormack online, or call our Program Coordinator at (617) 287-6785 or email pwppp@umb.edu