wfn.org | [ENS] Listening: Anglican women prepare for U.N. gathering

["Matthew Davies" <mdavies@episcopalchurch.org>]

Episcopal News Service Listening, Learning & Epiphany

Monday, January 9, 2006

Listening: Anglican women prepare for U.N. gathering

This article is one in the ongoing ENS series "Listening, Learning &
Epiphany" continuing through February 28.

[ENS] The largest-ever gathering of women from around the Anglican
Communion -- 96 women representing 37 provinces -- will mark the 50th
Anniversary of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
(UNCSW), to be held in New York City from February 24 through March 8.

Gender equality, the advancement of women in the fields of education,
health, and employment, as well as increased participation of women and
men in decision-making processes at all levels, will be the focus of
the 2006 UNCSW meeting.

"Working together, Anglican women delegates to the UNCSW are raising their
voices in support of women's education and development, to combat hunger,
poverty, and the spread of HIV/AIDS, and to work for equal opportunity,"
said Margaret Rose, director of the Episcopal Church's Office of Women's
Ministries. "This event provides an opportunity for Episcopal women
and men to listen to and learn from the experiences of our Anglican
sisters and to strategize together for women's empowerment throughout
the Communion."

UNCSW was established in 1946 to promote women's rights in political,
economic, civil, social and educational fields. Since 1995, a priority
has been to assess the progress of the Beijing Platform for Action,
a declaration to advance the goals of equality, development and peace
for all women.

Sponsored by Anglican Women's Empowerment (AWE), a celebration of the
50th Anniversary of the founding of UNCSW will be held from 3 to 5
p.m. on Saturday, March 4, at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in
New York City.  The program and panel discussion will feature women from
across the Anglican Communion sharing hopes and concerns for a world in
which Christian faith calls them to action.

Panel moderator Abagail Nelson, vice president of Episcopal Relief and
Development, will lead panelists in a discussion of what is happening in
their countries, what they feel is important, what actions are making
a difference, and what still needs to be done. Following the panel
discussion, the audience will be asked to consider how people of faith
can help to transform vision into action.

Featured guests will include Angela King, former U.N. assistant secretary
general and special advisor on gender issues; Jenny Te Paa, UNCSW delegate
from the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and Polynesia; and
musician Ana Hernandez. The event is free and open to the public.

Under the auspices of the Office of Women's Ministries and the Anglican
Observer to the U.N., Anglican and Episcopal delegates have attended
the annual UNCSW event for the past three years.

For additional information contact Kim Robey at
krobey@episcopalchurch.org.

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