Keynote Discussion:
 Cross Sector Partnerships to Empower Women Globally
Jane Nelson,
Director of Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School
Chelsea Clinton,
Vice Chair, Clinton Foundation
Ambassador Melanne Verveer,
Executive Director, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University

Working Page, Please forward details to gerard@blacktiemagazine.com
 

International Women’s Day Forum:

A Call to Private Sector to Empower Women Globally

On March 4th, 2014, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the United Nations Office of Partnerships co-hosted their annual International Women’s Day Forum.  The event was held at the UN headquarters and drew in hundreds of participants from all over the world.  In addition to celebrating International Women’s Day, the event brings together practitioners in the private, public and non-profit sectors to discuss initiatives aimed at advancing women’s economic agenda.  This year’s featured speakers included Chelsea Clinton, Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Soledad O’Brien, and Shiza Shahid, Co-Founder
 and CEO of the Malala Fund. 

When women succeed, everyone succeeds.  This was the event’s core takeaway.  Women have the potential to be engines of transformation, as long as the private sector makes the investments required to close the gender gap.  Otherwise, $9 billion in global GDP will continue to be lost every year.  Additionally, there is a multiplier effect when women attain access to income-generating activities because they are more likely to invest in their communities.  Economic participation also renders women less likely to be victimized. 

Special consideration was given to the Beijing Platform for Action throughout the day’s activities.  This platform outlines steps to address twelve critical areas of concern identified during the World Conference on Women held in Beijing, in 1995.  The platform’s 20-year review will take place next year, during the Commission on the Status of Women’s annual session.  Rather than focus on gaps, speakers suggested shifting the focus onto lessons and successes in order to turn inspiration into action. Measuring these successes requires data, an area that remains to be developed.

In-depth discussion of specific themes, such as health and technology, were held during the afternoon’s breakout sessions.  These sessions were led by representatives from various entities, including Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Tupperware Brands, General Mills Foundation, UBS, Intel, IBM, Merck, and Johnson & Johnson.  Thesessions’ unifying tenet was access, with speakers sharing related lessons and best practices.   

 Everything considered, the main obstacle impeding progress on the gender equality front is not an absence of policies. It is long-standing attitudes. As Ambassador Verveer explained, many decision-makers have the habit of perceiving women as victims. She exhorts them to "Stop looking at us as victims. Look at us as the leaders that we are." If it is not victimization, it is a "woman problem." Yet, as noted throughout the forum, the social and economic costs of such perceptions is too high. Something's gotta give.

 Phumzille Miambo-Ngcuka,PH.D., Under-Secretary-General and Director, UN Women

Soledad O'Brien Moderator Award Winning Journalist, Documentarian, News Anchor,
and Producer and Hope M. Field, Director of Public - Private Partnership,
 South-South News

Shiza Shahid,Co-Founder and CEO,The Mala Fund and Amir Tehrani

Alejandra Ruiz-Dana, Philanthropy Correspondent, Black Tie International Magazine

Gerard Mc Keon, Publisher, Black Tie International Magazine,
Ms. Annette Richardson, Partnership Advisor, UN Office of Partnerships

Ambassador Melanne Verveer,
Executive Director, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University

 Moderator Jane Nelson on right,
Director Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School

2014 International Women's Day Forum Agenda

Framework for the Day - Discovering and Winning in
 the Next Emerging Market: Women

• Carolyn Buck Luce, Managing Partner, Imaginal Labs & Former Global Life Sciences Sector Leader,

Opening Remarks from the United Nations Office for Partnerships

• Robert Orr, Assistant Secretary General for Policy Coordination and Strategic Planning, Executive Office of Secretary General

Opening Remarks and Introduction to Speakers

• The Honorable John McKernan, President, U.S. Chamber
   of Commerce Foundation

Special Remarks

• Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University

• Special Remarks

  • Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair, Clinton Foundation

Keynote Discussion:
 Cross Sector Partnerships to Empower Women Globally

• Jane Nelson, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School
• Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair, Clinton Foundation
• Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director, Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Georgetown University

Plenary Panel:
 Training as a Catalyst for Empowerment: Private sector initiatives
that bridge the gap for women to succeed

Studies have shown that when women have access to job skills and business training, they experience significant increases in income. This panel will discuss private sector initiatives that give women the skills to excel in employment or as an entrepreneur.

• Pierre Börjesson, Senior Sustainability Specialist, H&M
• Dotti Hatcher, Executive Director, P.A.C.E Global Initiatives, Gap Inc.
• Diane Melley, Vice President, Global Citizenship Initiatives, IBM
• Charlotte Oades, Global Director, Women's Economic Empowerment, The Coca-Cola Company
• Moderator: Aman Singh, Editorial Director, CSRwire.com

Lunch & Keynote

Introduction & Reflections from Master of Ceremonies

• Carolyn Buck Luce, Managing Partner, Imaginal Labs & Former Global Life Sciences Sector Leader, EY

Dialogue and Interview

• Soledad O’Brien, Award Winning Journalist, Documentarian, News Anchor, and Producer
• Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka Ph.D., Executive Director, UN Women
• Shiza Shahid, Co-founder and CEO, The Malala Fund

Breakout Sessions

Greater Inclusion of Women in Agriculture

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN estimates that if women farmers had the same access to inputs and credits as men, there would be up to 150 million fewer hungry people in the world. Yet there are persistent cultural and regulatory barriers for women in agricultural production. This breakout will explore ways to advance women’s role in the business of farming, and how targeted agri-investments focused on women can broaden opportunity and development for the entire community.

• Ashley Arbuckle, Marketing Director & Foundation Correspondent, L’Occitane USA
• Willy Foote, Founder and CEO, Root Capital
• Simon Winter, Senior Vice President of Development, TechnoServe
• Moderator: T.J. Whalen, Chief Strategy and Sustainability Officer, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters

Consumer in a Growing Middle Class

At a time when the majority of college graduates globally are women and women control more than $20 trillion of annual spending, the opportunities for nimble, customer-focused companies are exponential. This breakout session will discuss how companies are adapting services, products, and marketing for a changing consumer base.

• Yolanda Londono, Vice President Global Social Responsibility, Tupperware Brands
• Judy Spalthoff, Executive Director, Head of Business Development - Private Wealth Management, UBS Financial Services Inc.
• Eden Sulzer, Director, Women in Pharmacy, Cardinal Health
• Lynn O'Connor Vos, Chief Executive Officer, Grey Healthcare Group
• Moderator: Carolyn Buck Luce, Managing Partner, Imaginal Labs & Former Global Life Sciences Sector Leader, EY

Overcoming Challenges in Insecure Markets

When externalities such as government instability, physical insecurity, social distrust, and volatile markets are impacting your social initiatives, how do you navigate? Learn about best practices for implementing gender-focused initiatives from companies and organizations working in the most challenging developing markets. Speakers will discuss resources to overcome the barriers and the partnerships to make progress through these complex environments.

• Afshan Khan, President and CEO, Women for Women International
• Eniola Mafe, Program Manager, The Niger Delta Partnership Initiative Foundation (NDPI)
• Kristi Ragan, DAI Strategic Advisor, USAID Grand Challenges for Development
• Moderator: Kara Valikai, Director, Issue Networks, Corporate Citizenship Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation

Supplier Diversity Workshop

Many private sector companies have embraced the economic power of their supply chains and are leveraging them to procure from women-owned businesses. This workshop-style breakout will delve into challenges and provide specific mechanisms to help women-owned businesses meet the needs of the global business community. The target attendee for this workshop is a practitioner who is designing or implementing a supplier diversity program in his/her company. All interested participants are welcome.

• Michael Robinson, Program Director, Global Supplier Diversity, IBM
• MiKaela Lemmon, Senior Director, Women's Economic Empowerment, Corporate Affairs, Walmart
• Elizabeth Vazquez, President and CEO, WEConnect International

Private Sector Approaches to Support Women’s Health

Access to health care and proper nutrition is critical for women and her families. This panel will explore private sector approaches to health education, access to health care, and nutrition, which will improve women’s economic empowerment in the long term.

• Priya Agrawal, Executive Director, Merck for Mothers, Merck & Co., Inc.
• Sharon D’Agostino, Vice President, Corporate Citizenship, Johnson & Johnson
• Moderator: Leith Greenslade, Vice-Chair, Office of UN Special Envoy for Financing the Health Millennium Development Goals

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Research Release

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs are partnering to study Mexican businesses lead by women. Hear what they’ve discovered about empowering women entrepreneurs in emerging economies, and what they will be doing in the future to learn more.

• Rebecca Fries, Director, Value for Women
• Jeff Lundy, Ph.D., Manager, Research, Corporate Citizenship Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation

Plenary Panel: Improving Financial Literacy and Inclusion

The 2.5 billion adults, majority being women, who lack access to formal financial services, conduct their daily financial lives in an insecure, inconvenient, and expensive way. Join our panel to discuss the essential changes that are being made for those that are still needed to further financial services and literacy for women.

• Jeannette Ferran Astorga, Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility, ANN Inc.
• Michelle Greene, Head of Corporate Responsibility, NYSE EuroNext
• Mary Ellen Iskenderian, President and CEO, Women’s World Banking
• Erika Karp, CEO, Cornerstone Capital Group

Keynote: Calling to Action Beyond Beijing '95:
Women Leaders of the New Global Powers

• Vishakha Desai, Ph.D., President Emerita, Asia Society and Special Advisor for Global Affairs, Professor of Professional Practice in the Faculty of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University

Closing Comments

• Sahba Sobhani, Acting Programme Manager, Business Call to Action, and Programme Manager Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative,
  United Nations Development Programme
• Marc DeCourcey, Executive Director, Corporate Citizenship Center,
   U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation

The United Nations Office for Partnerships (UNOP), serves as a gateway for
 public-private partnerships with the UN system, in furtherance of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other key UN objectives. UNOP provides Partnership Advisory Services and Outreach to a variety of entities, including companies, foundations, government agencies, and NGOs. UNOP also manages the UN Fund for International Partnerships, established by the Secretary-General to serve as the interface for the partnership between the UN system and the UN Foundation, and the UN Democracy Fund, established by the Secretary-General to support democratization throughout the world.
 Visit http://www.un.org/partnerships/

BCLC is a top resource and voice for good business. Its network represents 125 companies committed to positively impacting society. The organization’s research, ideas, and programming embody business’ unique ability to achieve positive outcomes for societal challenges. BCLC is a program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. http://bclc.uschamber.com

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.