Buenos Aires, October 30, 2008 - More than 200 hundred women including former U.S. First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, President of The Republic of Chile, Michelle Bachelet and President of Argentina, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, gathered recently to develop strategies to move women in Latin America and the Caribbean forward.
“There has been a huge change in the cultural role of women in the region and in my country,” said Bachelet, one of very few women in political leadership in Latin America and the Caribbean. “I am a doctor, a pediatrician and now I am president of my country. When I was growing up, the idea that a woman could be president was very remote. When I was growing up, women in Chile wanted to be a doctor like me, now they want to be president.”
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Andrea Downer on October 30th 2008 in General, Latin America & the Caribbean
This morning participants traveled to the Malba, Buenos Aires’ modern museum of art where we enjoyed a tour and admired works from some of the region’s most innovative 20th century artists—including those of Frida Kahlo, a trailblazer for women in her own time.
After a brief tour, participants sat down to listen to the speeches of International Development Bank President, Luis Alberto Moreno and Dina Powell, Managing Director, Global Head of Corporate Engagement for Goldman Sachs & Co., who announced their partnership to commission a new study that will make the case for investing in women entrepreneurs throughout the Americas. Continue Reading »
The Summit kicked off with a bang this morning. About 200 leaders from Latin America and the Caribbean poured into our opening plenary session, where they were greeted by Summit Moderator and Former CNN International Anchor, Sonia Ruseler.
Throughout the course of the morning we heard from women leaders, including President Michelle Bachelet of Chile and Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton (pre-recorded), who reinforced the same message: empowering women will uplift nations and change the course of history.
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After my experience in Guatemala I began working in HSBC with my mentor, María Eugenia de Avila, who is currently Group Corporate Sustainability Head for Latin America. Learning about the bank’s brand of being the “world’s local bank” I have discovered the ample possibilities that a highly recognized bank has in a developing country like El Salvador. I have been working closely with the Corporate Sustainability head for El Salvador, Valeria Rosales, who has taught me about HSBC’s global policies concerning the advancement of educational opportunities and the preservation of the environment, two vital pillars for the sustainable development of any region. HSBC’s education program, Future First’s main goal is to financially support destitute children who are often orphaned or live on the streets and who never have a chance to obtain an education. HSBC’s Climate Partnership’s main goal is to raise awareness and concern about the detrimental effects of global warming in order to motivate the bank’s employees and clients to make an effort to reduce their negative environmental impacts.
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When I got the phone call, I had no idea what Vital Voices was. All I knew was that I was offered to be the mentee of one of the most talented women in El Salvador, María Eugenia Brizuela de Avila. I was aware of her career and her eclectic contributions to my society—her fame is more than well deserved. She was valedictorian of her high-school class, the first female chancellor of El Salvador, the first female CEO of a private bank in El Salvador with worldwide recognition, HSBC, a caring mother, and truly an asset to my society. It would be an honour and a privilege to work with her as part of the Vital Voices mentorship program.
In our first meeting, she introduced me to Vital Voices and explained that this American NGO believed in investing in emerging women leaders around the world through networking, leadership opportunities and camaraderie. Being now the Head of the Corporate Sustainability Department of HSBC for Latin America, she also explained the financial opportunities available for women through micro-credits. “80% of the micro-credits given in HSBC El Salvador go to women”, she said. “I believe in our women, in their possibilities and capacity to succeed. Would you accept the challenge of finding a way to help them?,” she asked. I am so glad I did.
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Tonight Vital Voices honors women of stature, women of consequence, women of conviction, women of courage, and women of compassion. From different regions, sectors, and generations, the leaders chosen to accept Vital Voices’ prestigious Global Leadership Award are, in the deepest meaning of Maya Angelou’s timeless prose, phenomenal women.
Over delicious dinners, high-profile events, and informal roundtables, the honorees spoke articulately with Vital Voices staff, members of the international community, and the media, sharing their invaluable advice and insights on the impact of women around the world. Continue Reading »
The alliance between Vital Voices and Diane von Fustenberg, had me flying across the world this time . . . and it was an amazing experience!!!
More and more, as women, the awareness of who we are, our possibilities, our role in creating a beautiful world, become evident and fascinating!!! This week was a peek into it!!
Before the trip, I was somehow nervous . . . the journey from working with women in rural Guatemalan communities to Washington, through Vital Voices, seemed far enough!! But to be able to go into a totally new world, the Fashion World is something I never imagined . . . but was possible because of Diane working together with Vital Voices.
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Yesterday I had the opportunity to join an informal discussion with Guatemalan Congresswoman Anabella de León. Anabella is a strong and articulate woman that has dedicated herself to transforming Guatemalan society and has become a voice for the poor and marginalized in her country. Through determination and education she broke away from the poverty of her childhood and became an attorney. She has been a member of the Congress of the Republic since 1995 and is an outspoken critic of corruption which she asserts, “…is present on every level of Guatemalan society.” Despite threats to her life and the alienation that accompanies her activism, Anabella continues her efforts to make a reality, the Guatemala she has always envisioned.
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