Lab 5 – Women building peace: are peace negotiations open to all the stakeholders?

7 November 2023 - 9.00-11.00 / Room 9 Palais de l'Europe

Interpretation FR/EN

Without Us, There Is No Democracy: Strengthening Female Leadership in Latin America - Nosotras Women Connecting

COSTA RICA

The organization works with teenagers and women throughout Central America, key countries in South America and the Caribbean, and in Kenya, Africa. They inspire adolescents and women to change the world through their leadership, entrepreneurship and political participation. It works to ensure that women can have accessible, safe, and community-based economic, personal, and political development. Through their program "Soy Valentía," they ensure that adolescents and young women can develop their civic participation safely and inform. Through the "Nosotras Lideresas" LAB, they have accompanied the development of women in various social, political, and economic areas.

Presenter(s)

Amanda ARROYO CABEZAS

Director of Programs, Nosotras Women Connecting

Costa Rica

Amanda Arroyo Cabezas is the Director of Programs at Nosotras Women Connecting, a Costa Rican organization empowering female leadership in Latin America and Kenya. She actively participates in the Global Coalition of Every Woman Treaty as part of the Emerging Leaders Group and is also involved in the Youth Climate Conclave in Costa Rica, advocating gender-inclusive climate policies. Amanda is an alumni of Vital Voices Global Partnership and the U.S. Department of State.

initiative 2

Inter-Religious Nexus for Women as Peace Builders and Politicians - Equity and Empowerment

SYRIA

Equity and Empowerment (EE) is a feminist, civil society organization which works on the thematic civic empowerment of Sunni and Durzi women in Northwest Syria in the areas of democracy, citizenship, civil laws, elections, political participation and representation, women rights/gender equality/ digital knowledge and peace building. In the project, EE worked with 40 women by integrating and empowering them through dialogues about democracy, political transition, civil laws, gender-based violence and peacebuilding, and by connecting them to political decision makers. The 40 women initiated the “Shan feminist network for peace building”, which is considered the only network in northwest Syria that works on peace building.

Presenter(s)

Heba EZZIDEEN SAMOGLU

CEO, Inter-Religious Nexus for Women as Peace Builders and Politicians

Syria

Heba Samoglu, also known as Hiba Ezzideen, is a Syrian human rights defender and a researcher. Heba is a PHD candidate in Business Administration at Karabuk university in Turkey. She is the Chief Executive Officer of Equity and Empowerment organization, one of the ten faces of democracy by EED in 2023 and the chairperson of Shan network for feminist research and peace building.

initiative 3

South Sudanese Women Leveraging the use of Social Media and Media to foster Sustainable Peace and Development - South Sudan Women Intellectuals Forum

SOUTH SUDAN

The South Sudanese Women Intellectuals Forum (SSWI) is network of South Sudanese women drawn from all ages, public life and sectors including health, education, politics, legal, justice, agriculture, security, business, governance, civil society, Non-Governmental Organizations, UN, faith-based groups amongst others. The Forum was initiated to provide a platform for South Sudanese women to gain/share knowledge, provide mentorship and have access to information and connections that will enable them to participate in the post-conflict reconstruction of South Sudan. It provides opportunities for women to connect with and support each other by facilitating meaningful approaches to networking; embrace new ways of enriching connections and raising awareness of the members.

Presenter(s)

Anne PITA LOMOLE

Member of the South Sudan Women Intellectuals Forum

South Sudan

Dr. Anne Pita Lomole is a Pediatrician and Infectious Disease Consultant. She is currently based in Nairobi, Kenya. She is a South Sudanese woman who is passionate about her country and in making a difference in the lives of the vulnerable people, especially women and children. She is one of the founders and an active member of The South Sudanese Women Intellectuals Forum (SSWI) where she is a Senior Director and Health Moderator. Dr. Anne volunteers for the South Sudanese Women Intellectuals forum in promoting health education, peace, gender equality, civic education on the rights of women and the South Sudanese people and in advocating against gender-based-violence. Dr. Anne’s dream is to see a peaceful South Sudan free from discrimination, GBV and poverty.

initiative 4

Women Talking Peace: Leadership Programme - elbarlament e.V.

IRAQ/GERMANY

Elbarlament is a peacebuilding and democracy support organisation, with a special focus on empowering women and youth. The elbarlament leadership programme in Iraq consisted of a modular workshop programme that aimed at equipping a group of Iraqi women with relevant knowledge and skills to take on leadership tasks at all state and social levels as well as in organisations and promote women’s participation in the peace and rehabilitation process. The leadership programme was followed by a regional networking event and a “Building Peace Initiatives ToT Programme”, aimed at equipping the leadership women with basic knowledge and skills to become trainers and multiply knowledge on how to build and run local peace initiatives in Iraq.

Presenter(s)

Michaela ECKART

Programme Director, Women Talking Peace - Leadership Programme

Ms Eckart has been working with the German NGO elbarlament since 2020 and is currently Programme Director performing as strategic lead for democracy and peacebuilding projects world wide. Before joining elbarlament, she worked as a researcher with the Wissenschaftskolleg Berlin on constitutional change in MENA. Prior to that, she was the Coordinator for all gender projects at Goethe-Institut Cairo. Since 2015 she has been employed with the Danish Institute for Human Rights assisting in the overall management of the MENA activities. Michaela Eckart holds a Master degree in International Law and a BA in Islamic Studies from FU Berlin and AUB Lebanon and speaks German, English, French and Arabic.

Discussants

Discussants are invited to take part in the Labs in order to share their experience with the presented democratic initiatives and try to bring broader perspectives to the following discussions.

Sylvie D’ALGUERRE

Elected member of the Grand Est Region and delegate for gender equality

France

Sylvie d'Alguerre is 55, married and has 2 children. For 30 years, she has managed a craft business with her husband. She has been 1st deputy mayor of Chaumousey (population 900 inhabitants) since 2008. She is Vice-President of the Parc Régional des Ballons des Vosges and of the Pôle Equilibre Territorial (PETR) Pays Epinal Cœurs des Vosges. She is Regional Councilor in charge of gender equality and Vice-Chair of the Finance Committee of the Grand Est Region.

Lala TOURAY

Youth delegate

Gambia

Lala Touray is an award-winning poet and women’s right activist whose work focuses on promoting the representation of Gambian women in political leadership. She is the Senior Program Officer on Gender, Elections and Governance at the National Democratic Institute. She serves as an appointed adviser to the Gambian Government on youth issues at the National Youth Council of The Gambia. She is a Mandela Washington Alumni who worked as Country Coordinator of the Gender Center for Empowering Development, where she implemented programs geared towards promoting women’s rights and leadership in politics. She previously worked with the International Republican Institute and the Truth Reconciliation and Reparations Commission.

moderator