Women Enabled International Work

Our Work: Commission on the Status of Women

CSW58, March 2014

Side Event:
Promoting Empowerment through Journalism WOMEN’S VOICE in the Public Sphere

Held on March 12, 2014

The role of news reporting has been recognized as an essential element in women’s social advancement for more than two centuries. Reporting holds the potential to make women’s conditions known and their voices heard, to make women’s contributions to their communities visible and to articulate their views on urgent issues of the day. The U.N. Millennium Development Goals focus on women’s disproportional suffering from hunger and poverty, lower educational levels than men, and lower standing in nearly every social indicator the world over. To what extent are women’s lived daily experiences related to these problems covered in the media? Do news stories use knowledgeable women as sources on social issues? Are women able to gain employment and advance into decision making levels within news companies? Where are women’s voices? Do new technologies, including social media, better enable women to find their public voice?

Panelists:
- Carolyn M. Byerly, Professor of Communications, Howard University
- Elisa Lees Muñoz, Director, International Women’s Media Foundation
- Martha Leslie Allen, Director, Women’s Institute for Freedom of the Press
- Stephanie Ortoleva, Founder and President, Women Enabled
- Karen Toulon, New York Bureau Chief, Bloomberg News

Event Documents:
Questions Discussed at the Event PDF | Questions Discussed at the Event Word document
Panelist Bios PDF | Panelist Bios Word document
Event Flyer PDF | Event Flyer Word document

Event Photos

Media Panel

Karen Toulon and Elisa Munoz

Carolyn Byerly

Martha Allen

Stephanie Ortoleva

Audience Questions

Side event:
New Approaches to Poverty Eradication Among Women with Disabilities - Full Access to Financial Services and Products.

Held on March 19, 2014

The 58th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women provides a key opportunity to promote the financial inclusion of women and girls with disabilities. Financial inclusion is an important tool for poverty reduction and development, especially for marginalized social groups. For women with disabilities, access to financial services and products contributes to empowerment and to the unlocking of their productivity, bringing benefits to individuals and their families and communities, as well as to the private sector itself. This side event will enable organizations of women and girls with disabilities to unite their voices in the disability as well as gender dialogues. Furthermore, this side event is seen as a starting point for events to follow during the Beijing +20 Review and Appraisal Process which will take place in 2014-2015. Co-Organized by: Permanent Mission of Germany, Division for Social Policy and Development/UN DESA, UN Women

Panelists:

- Prof. Theresia Degener, CRPD-Expert and Vice-Chair of the Committee
- Ms. Lakshmi Puri, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women
- Ms. Daniela Bas, Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development/UN DESA
- Ms. Asha Hans, Representative of the International Network of Women with Disabilities and Chair of the Women with Disabilities India Network

Moderator: Ms. Stephanie Ortoleva, President of Women Enabled

Event Documents:

UN Women UN DESA Mission of Germany CSW 58 Side Event Concept note PDF
UN Women UN DESA Mission of Germany CSW 58 Side Event Concept note Word document

Event flyer PDF

Panelist Bios PDF | Panelist Bios Word document

Statement from Lakshmi Puri PDF | Statement from Lakshmi Puri Word document
Statement from Asha Hans PDF | Statement from Asha Hans Word document
Statement from Daniela Bas PDF | Statement from Daniela Bas Word document

Event Audio:

Poverty Eradication, CSW58 Side Event, Part One

Accessible controls:

Poverty Eradication, CSW58 Side Event, Part Two

Accessible controls:

Parallel Event:
Progress? Participation of Women and Girls with Disabilities in Education and Employment in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Fields

Held on March 14, 2014

This dynamic panel of experts and practitioners assessed progress in the inclusion of women and girls with disabilities in education and employment in the science, technology, engineering & math fields, as part of the CSW 58’s Review Theme. The Final Conclusions from CSW 55 made specific reference to the urgent need to include women and girls with disabilities in these critical fields. Women with disabilities continue to have the lowest education and employment rates among all women & this panel explores the current situation and successful strategies for progress.

Panelists:

- Stephanie Ortoleva, President, Women Enabled
- Donna M. Mertens, PhD, Professor in the Department of Education at Gallaudet University
- Professor Asha Hans, Co-Founder, Women with Disabilities India Network, Founder Shanta Memorial Rehabilitation Centre
- Lois Herman, Coordinator Women's UN Report Network

Event Documents:

Press release PDF file | Press release Word document

Panelist Bios PDF | Panelist Bios Word document

Statement from Donna Mertens PDF | Statement from Donna Mertens Word document
Statement from Asha Hans PDF | Statement from Asha Hans Word document
Statement from Lois Herman PDF | Statement from Lois Herman Word document

Event Photos