Young BPW Summary ReportLeadership Summit 2015

By Ketlin Tackman - Young BPW International Representative 2014-2017

Background/Current situation

• BPW International´s as every other women´s organizations best times were during 1960´s to 1970´s when women´s movement was strongest. Now, out of about 30 000 members only a very small fraction of members are Young women under 36 years old. Our organisation will die out if not being innovative enough without new active Young BPW members in the organisation. The importance of Young BPW´s on BPW boards all over the world sharing their visions and views of how we should continue our work is absolute to have. World is changing, people change, we need to change.

• Young members are in their busiest time in their lives: career, studies, children, other daily hobbies as sport etc. BPW should offer us Young members an extra spice to grab from. For internationa events: travelling, hotels, registration fees are too expencive for most Young members.

• Nowdays everyones first question is: “What is in it for me?” We have to have an answer to this question in order to gain new young members.

GOALS

• To have a clear vision and action plan for Young BPW International future projects and purpose.

• To inspire Young BPW´s getting more active and offering the feeling of empowerment, success and having the chance actually to make a difference in helping other women in the world.

• Visibility. To be seen and interesting for non-active Young members and to find new members through action.

• To feel united with other Young BPW members around the world and find the way of networking by working together.

Recommendation

• Questionnaire – what members expect from BPW? - Summary ready for presentation• Engage Young BPW members and their friends to projects• Engage companies and press to Young BPW projects• Engage schools/universities to projects as CEO project / Solar Power Poroject etc.

• Regions to work together in order to feel more united and international, for creating the intl. relationships for sharing the ideas and finding future opportunities in life

• Use Social media and press to be seen. To be seen, active and interactive social media behaviour is the key word in order Young BPW members to be informed, the name BPW to be in members mind and having a chance to keep in touch. Young BPW Internationa Facebook site has already 1000 followers!!! This page has been updated daily with interesting Womens Empowerment/UN/BPW - related updates.

• To support Young BPW members financially to participate in such big events as Leadership Summit and CSW. Trip to New York is Very expencive, especially if there is already own family included in life.

Key points, achievements to date and issues to be addressed:

Young BPW Representatives: • Europe: Maria Socratous - Cyprus• Latin America: Mónica Rodríguez Corona, Mexico• Africa: Christelle Wouendji - Cameroon• Asia-Pacific: Otoha Hayashi - Japan• Caribbean Region: Ana Yzzel - BPW Grand Cayman• North-America: yet to be elected

• Young BPW Regional representatives to work closely ogether with Young BPW Intl. Rep and Regional coordinators

• To expand the network usin social media: Facebook: Young BPW International - Group, Young BPW International Facebook - page, Twitter account: YBPWI

• To point out and show in practice that we can make a difference and BPW has to offer activities that interest our Young members, issues that are currently important for Young BPW´s depending on the region.

• The issue of respect of Young members• Offering Young BPW Members mentoring and support also in their careers• To bring BPW and UN work closer for Young BPW members

• To combine our strength with other organisations to work together on the projects we have and expand our organizational network through this

Projects

• Young BPW International questionnaire with questions was designed to Young members in order to find out what do our members expect from us and what their needs are. Questionnaire was launched in September for Sept-November and resoults are ready and uploaded to Young BPW Internationa website: www.youngbpw-internatonal.org

• "CEO Day” - is to offer our Young BPW members to have a chance to spend the day with and to learn from someone they admire professionally. BPW should to make it possible using our BPW connections. Each region can adopt the idea and make it suit for their needs. Help and advice is much appreciated to organize this. At the e

• Solar power Project in Sudan, Africa. To be adopted also in other regions. Latin-America, Caribbean and Nepal - have showed the interest in the project. Idea from Young BPW Intl. Rep. Ketlin Tackman, co-operationg with Letitia Wouendji, BPW Cameroon. Target country: Sudan: Local Bahry Club and it´s president Khadiga Eltazi responsible of local lead and working together with local CBO Organization, at the level of the targeted area. project for helping children, women and local communities in process of studying ad raising economical power and empowerment for women. BPW Wouendji, Cameroon has also asked to be included to the project and they have been accepted. Will be working closely together with Laetitia Wouendji, Cameroon.

• CSW60 Side Event in NYC in 2016

• Continue Young Women on BPW Boards - initiative. Pease, each one of You: do push Your Young BPW members to the positions they can take more responsibility.

Young BPW International - Solar Power Project

• LOCATION: Western Sudan, North Kordofan State, Shiekan Locality, 6 villages in Abuharaz Admin Unit (Om Darbain, Arrifa, Balait, Mejega, Algabsha & Abu Haraz) located 30 Km West of Elobeid city the capital of the state and 700 Km South West Khartoum.

• The selected villages are located in a remote area with no conventional source of electricity. The national grid is way far from the area with no recent future plans from the local authorities to connect the area to the national grid.

• The situation of women in the targeted area is considered to be inferior in terms of income and decision making. The main sort of livelihood in the targeted area is agriculture and pastoralism. Women participate intensively in the agricultural activities within the family unit without any individual access to land or income where those areas are dominant by males.

• The project is designed to break the poverty circle around the women, to provide them with their own means of income, skills and opportunities to do business in their community to help themselves and their families. To teach very basics of solar power also to children.

• Solar energy solutions are routed in Sudan there are many private companies working in this field, beside the Sudan University for Science and Technology were technical experts are available

CEO - DAY

• To bring Young BPW´s around the world together with high level leaders in their region.

• A chance to meet high level leaders and receive inspiration and empowerment in companies they are interested in

• Learn, see their work, daily actions - to have an overview what their work is about and what does one need to get there.

• What to learn? How do leaders on that level speak and act with in a group of leaders on the same level / how do they correspond to people who are working for them: to get an insight to these small facts no one maybe even thinks about.

• To offer the contacts to work with and find the ways to use those contacts in the future - recommendation to CV etc? a job?

• To find out with whom to work with: Catalyst? Employers organizations?

FOLLOW US!!FACEBOOK:• Young BPW International - page

998 followers

• Facebook Group for Young BPW membersYoung BPW INternational - group

• Young BPW Regiona Representatives - Group

YOUNG BPW INTERNATIONAL WEB PAGE: www.youngbpw-international.com

TWITTER: YBPWI LINKEDIN: Young BPW International

Summary

• Solar power Project in Sudan and Cameroon, Africa - educational purposes

• Project "CEO - Day" for bringing together Young BPW`s and leaders to learn from them

• CSW60 side event - Communication communication communication across continets