International Women's Day and Women's Books

Tomorrow is International Women’s Day, a day that started nationally in the United States, but would gain enough clout and momentum to spread worldwide. One could argue that after the stressful presidential election, the peaceful protests all around the US, groups raising money for women's charitable organizations, and the Women's Marches that happened in major cities all around the world, make this day more even more powerful and will hopefully embolden women everywhere in 2017.

In 1910, an International Women’s conference was held and they reached the agreement that International Women’s Day should be observed annually. March 18, 1911 was the first International Women’s day. Observed by over 1 million people in several different countries, the day marked many demonstrations for the support and empowerment of women who have long contributed to the history and success of many nations without recognition. The demonstrations also demanded the right to vote and hold office. The day spread over the next fifty years and in 1977 when the United Nations General Assembly invited member states to proclaim March 8 as the UN Day for Women's Rights and International Peace, the day became official with a widespread observance. 

International Women’s Day is a recognizable and significant moment in the Women’s rights movement. Striving for equality in regards to voting was discussed and hotly debated in the early 1900s, a great survey of which is described in Eugene A. Hecker's 1914 title, "A Short History of Women's Rights" or, for those who may want to travel back in time a bit, Mary Wollstonecraft's book, "A Vindication of the Rights of Women" will give readers a fantastic historical background from the 1700s.

It is because of these women of the past who fought (and those women who still fight today) for equality and civil rights, that we can have such amazing authors as we do today. For example, Phebe A. Hanaford, who wrote about female poets, scientist, preachers, and educators in her book, "Daughters of America or Women of the Century", or Margaret E. Burton', who defied longstanding cultural traditions and stereotypes and wrote about her struggles in "Notable Women of Modern China", and more recently, Michaela Walsh, who wrote "Founding a Movement: Womens World Banking, 1975-1990" and was the president of Women's World Banking.



The 2017 theme of International Women's Day is #BeBoldForChange, asking everyone to fight for and speak up about about equal rights and inclusivity for all.

Thousands of events occur to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women. Organizations, governments, charities, educational institutions, women's groups, corporations and the media celebrate this day world wide. For more information about International Women's Day and events near you, see their website.

United Nations Event Honors Founders of the First Women’s Global Financial Network

Women and men who met in Mexico City in 1975 at the first UN Conference for Women, and resolved to work together to bring women everywhere into the formal financial markets, will be honored at the United Nations on Wednesday, December 5. The event formally launches Founding a Movement: Women’s World Banking, 1975-1990, by Michaela Walsh, one of the founders and the first President of Women’s World Banking (WWB).

Walsh’s book, in her words, “shines a light on the value that women contribute through work, and when they support one another, to become full participants in the economy.” Founding a Movement illuminates the birth of a culture of trust—from Kenya to Colombia, from Brazil to the Philippines—where women entrepreneurs could learn from and teach each other to gain control over their economic destinies. Currently, WWB serves as an umbrella organization to a network of 39 financial organizations from 27 countries that provide small loans, from $100 and up, to borrowers to start their businesses: with a portfolio of $7 billion and $3.5 billion in savings, 26 million clients are served by the WWB network, 80% of whom are women.

The UN event will feature a discussion, moderated by Zohreh Tabatabai, former Director of Communications at the United Nations, recalling the ideas and conditions of 1975—very little knowledge by women across cultures, difficult communications, legal barriers to women regarding credit and bank loans—and reflect on change.  Elements of the process that remain important today include being open to knowledge from all sources, crafting solutions based on grass-roots needs, and providing training as needed rather than by formula.  Of particular importance, according to the book and the founders, is creating a culture of personal trust based on working together.

The event sponsor is the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of The Netherlands to the United Nations.  Institutions and citizens of The Netherlands played an important role in the history of WWB, which was incorporated there in 1980. According to Walsh, “The trading tradition of the Dutch, and their concern for the interests of women and developing economies, meant that WWB found natural allies in Holland.” The Dutch appreciation for WWB is also evident from the comments by former Minister for International Development Cooperation of the Netherlands, Jan Pronk, who said:

“Women’s access to finance, including microcredit is crucial. Michaela Walsh and Women's World Banking have broken new ground. Those who wish to follow in their footsteps should read this story!"

Among the participants at the UN discussion will be other WWB founders, book contributors, and leading figures in  finance and international development, including Mary Okelo, first African manager of Barclay’s Bank in Kenya and founder of the Makini School; Barbro Dahlbom-Hall, Sweden, management consultant and author; Hon. Dag Nissen, former Norwegian Ambassador; Ron Leger, former Director of the Canadian International Development Agency; Deanna Rosenswig, former Executive Vice- President, Bank of Montreal; Geertje Lycklama, formerly with the Dutch Ministry of Development Cooperation; Klaas Molenaar, formerly with Triodos Bank; and others.  

For more information about the event, please contact Graciela Hall at 516-458-4310.

Amid Rio+20 UN Conference and Impending Climate Crisis, The Tierra Solution Delivers Answers

With the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development happening this week in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the upcoming presidential election--where there is sure to be at least some focus on climate issues and a lot of focus on financial issues--this month's Book of the Month is both timely and relevant. The Tierra Solution, by sustainability sociologist Dr. Frans Verhagen, offers a solution to climate change through monetary transformation, essentially killing two birds with one stone.

Dr. Verhagen proposes to resolve to the current financial, economic, and monetary problems around the world with a credit-based financial system, governed by a Global Central Bank, that uses a carbon standard for a newly developed international monetary system with the Tierra as the unit of account--hence, the Tierra Solution.

Basically, Verhagen suggests that by simply holding businesses and governments accountable for the carbon-based energy they use, and basing money exchange on that energy, we can create a cleaner environment and solve the global financial crisis. Separated into two distinct parts, The Tierra Solution first describes the current climate crisis and methods of carbon reduction that already exist (and why they are not ideal). He also lays out the history and present structure of the international monetary system. Then, Verhagen describes the Tierra Fee & Dividend System, why it is the best solution for our ravaged economies, how it will improve the climate and monetary systems, and how it should be implemented.

Hazel Henderson, evolutionary economist and president of Ethical Markets Media, commented that The Tierra Solution is, "a visionary and immensely practical approach to reforming today's bubble finance and taming its global casino. Verhagen... illuminates the win-win solutions possible when we combine monetary transformation with low-carbon, renewable resource strategies and equitable approaches to sustainable development."

In his Foreword, Felix Dodds, executive director of the Stakeholder Forum, said, "This book is an important contribution because it provides some serious ideas for how we can ensure that there is international monetary justice that takes account of social, environmental, and procedural justice and intergenerational principles in the international monetary system."

This is not a light-hearted read.

But it is essential for those in finance and governements (or who want to influence those areas) to understand how our current systems are failing and why we need something new. Verhagen describes it as needing to "repair the present global monetary, financial, and economic systems that enrich the few, impoverish the many, and imperil the planet."

If you're interested in the official press release, you can read it here. Dr. Frans Verhagen is a sustainability sociologist with a Ph.D. in the sociology of international development from Columbia University. he founded the Queens Green party, the Riverside Church Ecology Task Force, and the Ecolinguistics Commission. He has worked around the world and online teaching environmental policies and sustainability.He is online at www.timun.net.

International Women’s Day, an observation of how far women have come and how far women still have to go.

Today is International Women’s Day, a day that started nationally in United States, but would gain enough clout and momentum to spread worldwide.

On February 28, 1909 the Socialist Party of America declared that the USA should observe Women’s Day. In 1910, an International Women’s conference was held and they reached the agreement that International Women’s Day should be observed annually. March 18, 1911 was the first International Women’s day. Observed by over 1 million people in several different countries, the day marked many demonstrations for the support and empowerment of women who have long contributed to the history and success of many nations without recognition. The demonstrations also demanded the right to vote and hold office. The day spread over the next fifty years and in 1977 when the United Nations General Assembly invited member states to proclaim March 8 as the UN Day for Women's Rights and International Peace, the day became official with a widespread observance. 

Cosimo’s book of the month The Power of Yin, Celebrating Female Consciousness is exactly in line with today. The initial conversation for this book even began in the same year that the UN officially recognized this day. Cosimo’s Classics of the month, The Enchanted April, while not exactly about Female Empowerment has tones of female friendship and the importance of strong, happy women.   

While Cosimo may have several titles that would contribute to this day's significance, it's more important to recognize this day for what it is. International Women’s Day is a recognizable and significant moment in the Women’s rights movement. At the moment, there is some political turbulence involving women's health in the US. This controversial article highlights some of the current issues surrounding women and while this day is significant proof the rights women have gained, this article and the current political atmosphere are proof that women are not done yet.