Arab Spring Opportunities for Women

Written by Isabel Whisson

There is no doubt about the pivotal role played by women in the uprisings in the Arab world in early 2011. However as political transition got underway the message being felt by women has increasingly been to “go home”.

Asserting the fact that opportunities that arise from the Arab Spring should benefit the whole of society, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Women for Women International came together on 20th June to host a conference exploring the creation of economic opportunities for women since the Arab Spring.

Attended by over 150 people, the conference provided a comprehensive overview of the role of women and the many different ways they can both contribute to and benefit from the economy and wider society.

The notable line-up of panellists debated institutional and cultural barriers to female employment; discussed the success rate of micro-finance schemes; testified to the entrepreneurial appetite of women from the Arab world; and explored the key societal factors for gender equality.

Panellists also showcased practical successes including the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women’s mentoring programme; Womanity Foundation’s Nisaa 96 FM radio station for women in Palestine; and breakthroughs made by Women in Informal Employment: Globalising & Organising (WIEGO), a network of activists, researchers and policy-makers raising the profile of women in informal employment.

The event evoked a great deal of optimism evincing that with sustained momentum, the opportunities for women could significantly progress. During her keynote speech Zainab Salbi, the Founding Director of Women for Women International, emphasised that the ‘magnificent event’ that was the Arab uprising represented a crucial opportunity to champion the cause of women.

 “We are in that pivotal moment – do we capture it and move forward? Or do we regress?”

http://www.ebrd.com/pages/news/press/2012/120620b.shtml

Parliamentarians and Citizens Unite for Rio+20 Debate

Written by Isabel Whisson

On 21st May 2012 in the magnificent St Martin-in-the-Fields Church, over 500 people from all sectors of society joined the Environmental Audit Committee in a public debate on how to work towards a sustainable, green economy.

The event, which also launched photographer Mark Edwards’s latest project Whole Earth? was led and expertly chaired by Member of Parliament for Stoke on Trent North and Chair of the Commons Environmental Audit Select Committee, Joan Walley.

Kick-started with the presentation of Mark Edwards’s first photographic campaign ‘Hard Rain Project’ the audience were moved by powerful and emotive images illustrating the truly devastating effects of climate change set to the lyrics of Bob Dylan’s prophetic song ‘A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’.

Members from a select panel of experts addressed the audience and committee on the tough questions urgently needing to be faced.

‘Does democracy help or hinder the green economy?’
‘Is Capitalism the cause and can it be the solution to climate change?’
‘How do we bring the vested interests of powerful groups under control?’

The debate drew several conclusions – amongst them that successive Governments in all countries need to make a sustained effort to prioritise environmental policy; and that there ought to be economic value in protecting our natural resources, not just using them for consumption. Caroline Lucas MP, the first and only Green Member of Parliament underlined the importance of framing the Green Economy as a positive change.

It was made clear that human beings have to change the way we live in order to avoid the existential threat of climate change.  Given the severity of this fact however, members of the audience did not leave dreading the inevitability of a destroyed planet. Instead the event brought hope.

It showed us that all people, from different backgrounds and professions, and in different ways could make a difference. In the words of soon-to-be Deputy Secretary-General to the UN Jan Eliasson, who joined the debate via video, “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.”

The Rio+20 debate was a beautiful example of the value and constructiveness of political leaders joining forces with members of civil society and ordinary citizens. It also made one thing in particularly very clear – that grassroot diplomacy is at the centre of meeting the challenges of climate change.

For more information about the event please visit:
http://www.hardrainproject.com/public_debate_st_martins