Europe

On April 24 every year, women and girls around the world come together to celebrate the World YWCA day. The celebration this year focused on the theme ‘Listen to she who speaks: Women Leading Change’. Member associations held events such as the Round- the -World Breakfast, at which they shared stories and honoured women who have inspired them in their communities.

‘LISTEN to she who speaks: women leading change’ is the theme of World YWCA Day 2008 and the YWCA of Belarus took the opportunity to listen to a leading woman politician. During their Executive Committee Meeting, Lumilda Petina, Co-Chairperson of the Independent Women’s Democratic Movement in Belarus addressed participants on issues of women’s development in the country.

Athena Tsourderos Athanasiou, former World YWCA President (1967-1975) and President of the National Board of the YWCA of Greece has died. Born in 1920, Ms Athanasiou passed away on January 2, 2008.

In June 2007 YWCA/La Strada Belarus was informed to be awarded with UNIFEM (German Committee) price for best anti-trafficking project in Eastern Europe. The award is 10,000 Euro that has been shared with another price-winner – project “Maiti” from Nepal. La Strada Belarus was supported and recommended for price by German NGO “Ban Ying”. Two projects were selected among 100 submitted applications.

On 1st December, World AIDS Day YWCA Scotland Board of Directors signed the Nairobi 2007 Pledge of Action on HIV and AIDS .

Buried away amongst some of the more eye-catching elements of Alistair Darling's pre-budget report of 9 October 2007, is a hugely surprising move that YWCA of England and Wales believes is a major step in addressing the current injustice for young women in the benefits system.

Following the release of a report that highlights the problems of gender segregation and low pay that still exist in the UK labor market, the YWCA of England and Wales has begun a campaign to help disadvantaged young women work their way off the bottom rung of the career ladder by increasing their employment opportunities.

MARIE-LOUISE ANDERSSON, was elected president to the European YWCA Committee during The European Representatives Meeting (ERM) held from 3-8 October, 2006 in Helsinki, Finland. Andersson is from Sweden and a former director for leisure for local government. A School Director for 14 years, she has gained vast experience through many years of leadership both within the YWCA movement and with the YWCA in Sweden.

Young women in the UK don't get involved with politics because they feel they have no voice and no status, 21-year-old Naomi Ladd told a fringe meeting on Sunday evening, at which Minister for Women Ruth Kelly was also a speaker.

"Most young women I have spoken to have never voted and are almost unaware of what women went through to achieve the right to vote. This is being squandered due to disinterest and mistrust among young women who think that politics revolves around the war, ASBOs and which bikini Cherie Blair wears on her holidays!" said Naomi, adding that she felt the Government could do more to reach out to young people to build their trust in the system; "Because it feels as if we're shouting in the wind."