Teen Sexual Assault Education Summit Moves Online

In Honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, SafeBAE (and partners*) Moves Annual Teen Summit on Sexual Assault and Consent Education Online from April 28-May 2nd

April 21, 2020 – SafeBAE, a survivor-founded, student-led national organization whose mission is to end sexual violence and teach healthy relationships among middle and high school students, is taking their originally scheduled school-based Virginia and Maine Summits online from April 28 through May 2nd, due to COVID-19 school closures. Every session is free and will be hosted over a secure Telehealth Zoom platform, with moderators and counselors overseeing all of the attendees. The Summit is being made possible by the commitment of our youth planning committees (comprised of 14-18 year olds) and partners from both of our original locations in Arlington, VA and Portland, ME, but is open to all. 

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Radha Ruparell: What No One Tells You About Having COVID

I am a 39 year old woman living in New York and I have been battling COVID-19. Today is Day 16. This disease is like nothing I have ever experienced in my life. What no one tells you about having the Coronavirus is that it is a rollercoaster ride, not just physically but also emotionally.

having covid
Radha Ruparell discussed the difficulties of having COVID and strategies for self-care. (Image credit: Radha Ruparell)

Over the past few days, I have felt haunted, scared for my life, in pain, confused, anxious, angry, alone, worried that I am losing my mind, and terrified of others getting this. I have also had: the most profoundly moving experiences of connection with loved ones and strangers; gratitude for the life I have lived; presence in moments I had once taken for granted; awe for those on the front lines; and an experience of slowing down and letting go.

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Liveblogging WPI Plugged In: Women, Giving, and Tech

This year’s signature series from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) focuses on a vast area of study — gender and technology. This subject is just beginning to get explored, and for good reason — it turns out there are significant differences in how women use technology to conduct their philanthropy. There are also key spaces online where women network and build on their work in philanthropy, and those spaces are influencing the direction of philanthropy writ large.

Today, WPI is launching its Plugged In Podcast series, which will explore different aspects of how gender and technology influence philanthropy. Speakers today include:

-Asha Curran, CEO, #GivingTuesday
-Elizabeth Gore, President, Alice
-Beth Kanter, Author and nonprofit innovator
-Walle Mafolasire, Founder, Givelify
-Teresa Younger, CEO and President, Ms. Foundation for Women

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WPI Plugged In: Podcast Series on Gender, Giving and Tech

Philanthropy Plugged In: Exploring new research on gender, technology and giving through WPI podcast series

On April 21, the Women’s Philanthropy Institute will launch our Women Give 2020 report along with the Philanthropy Plugged In podcast series dedicated to exploring technology, gender and giving. Also included in the release is a new video and other resources.

gender technology and giving
The Women’s Philanthropy Institute will be launching a Podcast series featuring leaders and research on women and philanthropy. (Image Credit: WPI)

These themes are all the more relevant as people around the world are leveraging technology in new ways to reimagine community and stay connected.

Join WPI on Zoom for a one-hour launch event, where you’ll hear “hot takes” from leaders including:

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Ms. Foundation Announces Four New Board Members

Angela Glover Blackwell, Danielle Moodie-Mills, Lauren Embrey, and Wade Davis to Bring Expertise in Racial Equity, Public Policy, and Diversity and Inclusion to Distinguished Board

NEW YORK (March 26, 2020) – Today, the Ms. Foundation for Women announced Angela Glover Blackwell, Danielle Moodie-Mills, and Wade Davis as new members of its distinguished Board of Directors, and Lauren Embrey as a returning member of the Board. The four Board Members bring expertise in racial equity, public policy, diversity and inclusion, and more to the board of the nation’s oldest women’s foundation. 

new board members

“I am thrilled to welcome Angela, Danielle, Lauren, and Wade to the Ms. Foundation board,” said Teresa C. Younger, President and CEO of the Ms. Foundation for Women. “We are incredibly lucky to have the experience and expertise of these four individuals – from working to further LGBTQ inclusion and investing in communities of color, to advancing racial and economic equity as heads of organizations or as journalists. Their input will be crucial as we continue to center our work on  women and girls of color in order to establish full social, political, and economic equality for all women. We could not be more grateful to have them as partners in the fight for gender equality.” 

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In a Pandemic, Gender Equality More Important Than Ever

Announced in June 2019 with a historic contribution of $300 million CAD from Global Affairs Canada, the Equality Fund is an innovative model delivering unprecedented resources to feminist movements. Our goal is ambitious: Mobilize $1 billion for gender equality in philanthropic and investment capital in Canada and around the world.

equality fund
Canada’s Minister for International Development and Minister of Women and Gender Equality announced Canada’s $300 million contribution to the Equality Fund on June 2, 2019. Members of the Equality Fund Collective from left to right:  Sharon Avery (Toronto Foundation), Keely Tongate (PAWHR), Lindsay Patrick (RBC Capital Markets), Theo Sowa (African Women’s Development Fund), Jess Tomlin (Equality Fund), Jessica Houssian (Equality Fund), Paulette Senior (Canadian Women’s Foundation), Andrea Dicks (Community Foundations of Canada), Nadine St. Louis and The Honourable Maryam Monsef.

We are shifting power and resources to organizations and leaders on the frontlines. Why? Because this is the most effective way to fight inequality. 

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Riki Wilchins: Gender Norms and Intersectionality

Editor’s Note: This interview in our Feminist Giving IRL series features Riki Wilchins, executive director of the nonprofit TrueChild and author of, “Gender Norms & Intersectionality: Connecting Race, Class and Gender.”

Riki Wilchins, courtesy: Riki Wilchins

What do you wish you had known when you started out in your profession?

I wish I’d realized how difficult and slow social change is. I think when you’re younger, you’re a bit more optimistic. But, any kind of real change takes years, maybe decades, of constant effort and attention. 

What is your current greatest professional challenge?

Our goal is getting people to think intersectionally, so they connect race, class and gender norms. The challenge is two-fold: most organizations don’t know how to talk about gender norms, or if they do, they disconnect it from factors like race and class.

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April 2: GFW Hosting Webinar on Feminist Funding for COVID

As we head into the deepening crisis of COVID-19, now is the time for women funders and their allies to gather and strategize. This Thursday, April 2nd at 8amPT/11am ET. Please RSVP here and they will send you a link to join the webinar. Below is the invitation in full from Ammarah Maqsood, Development Officer for Global Fund for Women:

global fund for women

As most of us are watching the news and learning about the impact of COVID-19 here in the states, at Global Fund for Women, we are hearing from the women around the world about their creative solutions and pressing needs caused by the pandemic crisis. 

Where water isn’t readily available in homes, women have created inventive hand washing stations. In refugee camps in the Middle East, women are finding inventive ways to use WhatsApp and keep young kids learning.  

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How Canada is Pushing for Better Mental Health Care for Women

Editor’s Note: This edition of our Feminist Giving IRL (in real life) series features Dr. Vicky Stergiopoulos, Clinician Scientist and Physician-in-Chief at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Canada’s largest mental health hospital and a global research leader. She is the clinical lead of CAMH womenmind, a new effort from CAMH to close the gender gap in mental health.  She is also a Professor and Vice Chair Clinical and Innovation in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. 

mental health
Dr. Vicky Stergiopoulos, Clinician Scientist and Physician-in-Chief at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) (Photo credit: CAMH)

1.       What do you wish you had known when you started out in your profession?

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$6.5 Million to Study and Treat Women’s Mental Health in Canada

One of the benefits of my ongoing work as a mental health practitioner is that I never lose sight of the problems caused by the ongoing oppression of women. For this reason, I was particularly excited to learn about a new initiative coming out of Canada called womenmind. Launched by The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, Canada, womenmind is being supported by two gifts totaling $6.5 million, and aims to “put a defined focus on closing the gender gap in mental health.”

 (Pictured above, left to right) Sandi Treliving, Philanthropist & Member, CAMH Foundation Board of Directors, Deborah Gillis, President and CEO, CAMH Foundation and Dr. Catherine Zahn, President and CEO, CAMH. (photo credit: CAMH)

With $5-million in funding from Sandi and Jim Treliving and family and another $1.5-million donation from Hudson’s Bay Foundation, CAMH is creating womenmind for the purpose of “fuel[ing] philanthropy focused on accelerating discovery related to improving the mental health of girls and women and supporting female-identifying researchers to become leaders in the sciences.”

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