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December 26, 2022

2022 Convening

MENA Women: Addressing Violence and Post-COVID Challenges
&
Differing Narratives, a Shared Future

Athens, Greece ~ September 2022

After not being able to meet for two years, FGW brought together more than 42 women leaders for an in-person convening in Athens, Greece, in September. Like many organizations around the world, we were unable to travel in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID pandemic. Elected leaders, activists, and academicians from Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, and the US took part, and for the first time, we also had a participant from Libya. For five days, we heard from keynote speakers and panelists on two primary topics: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the rise of gender-based violence in the MENA region as a result of the pandemic.

Photos

Keynote Speakers

Cheryl Thomas

Global Rights for Women

United States

Nouzha Skalli

Former Minister of Social Development, Family, and Solidarity

Morocco

Angela Panayiotou

Feminist Entrepreneur

Greece

Topics

During Forward Global Women’s ninth annual convening consisted of keynote speakers, roundtable discussions, and panels about the two topics of the convening, as well as focused on work done for the Rula Quawas Scholarship, may she rest in peace.

MENA Women: Addressing Violence and Post-COVID Challenges

MENA Women: Addressing Violence and Post-COVID Challenges

The primary topic of the 2022 convening was the growing incidence and response to violence against women in the MENA region. Statistics reveal that the pandemic exacerbated the problem as families were forced into isolation and all social activities put on hold. The evolving movement to end violence against women was also discussed with nuances of differing perspectives and work being done from the MENA region and beyond.

Differing Narratives, a Shared Future

The secondary topic of the 5-day convening was about, Differing Narratives, a Shared Future.

A significant portion of this year’s convening was devoted to a frank and open discussion about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Participants from both Israel and Palestine presented their narratives, while also hearing from other participants from around the world about the impact the conflict has on the region.

Rula Quawas Scholarship

FGW also once again awarded the Rula Quawas Scholarship in honor of one of our founders who passed away in 2018. Recipients for 2022 were Liat Daudi from Israel and Zineb Rabouj from Morocco who did a joint paper entitled Cultures Beyond Nations: Visualizing Trans-Culturalism, Female Agency and Peacemaking in the Movie Orange People.

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Climate Action Plan

August 19, 2019

Q&A with Tunisian Women’s Rights Activist Ikram Ben Said

April 17, 2016

Ikram Ben Said is joining the Forward Global Women team from Tunisia. Learn more about her in this Q&A session with TIME Magazine.

Thousands of Women are Saying “Enough,” Demanding a Peaceful Resolution to the Conflict

April 4, 2016

Summer 2014. Fifty days of war with near-constant rocket fire between Israel and Gaza. Chilling fear seeps into our bones. Adults are consumed with worry about sons, daughters, neighbors and friends at the front lines, frail parents, and young children: not everyone succeeds in running for cover at a moment’s notice. Afterwards, we recalibrate our new reality, with its dead, its survivors, its heroes, its injured, and its bombed places. All over again.

Summer 2015. Fear lingers: when will the next violent round erupt? Despair follows: the constant message that there’s no partner on the other side with whom to negotiate dashes hopes for a lasting agreement and the beginning of normality. And yet. Thousands of Israeli women face their fear and despair by joining a movement, Women Wage Peace, formed just as the last missile fell in August 2014. Our political beliefs vary, but we all believe in re-awakening demand for a non-violent, honorable and bilaterally or regionally acceptable political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. READ MORE.

Women Wage Peace (WWP) is a NGO of Israeli women working for a viable peace agreement. WWP is a screening partner for the Women, War & Peace series and has coordinated screenings of Hebrew and Arab subtitled versions of Pray the Devil Back to Hell for thousands of viewers.

2015 Kick-Off Meeting

March 17, 2015

Forward Global Women

Fourth Convening Kick-Off

The Board of Directors of Forward Global Women

Mary Jo McGuire, Board Chair

Rina Bar Tal, Board Co-President

Rula Quawas, Board Co-President

Christie Nicoson, Board Secretary and Treasurer,

Sherry Munyon, Board Member

Judy Cook, Board Member

The Forward Global Women Board of Directors cordially invite you to a kick-off event for our fourth annual global women’s convening to be held August 2-7, 2015 at the Minneapolis Woman’s Club near Loring Park, Minnesota, USA.

Forward Global Women Kick-Off MeetingTuesday, April 7

At the home of Sandy Neren, 1779 Summit Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55105

4:30-6:00 pm – Organizing meeting

volunteer information for August 2015

6:00-8:00 pm – Fundraiser

Stories from the 2014 Berlin Convening, refreshments

Global boutique gift-bags for contributions of $25 or more

Please RSVP by Wednesday, April 1 to admin@forwardglobalwomen.org.