Category: News

A new body is to coordinate programme activity across the four Soroptimist International Federations to help plan SI’s worldwide approach to improving the lives of women and girls.  It will take account of our increased recognition of ECOSOC status and the decentralisation of the United Nations to more regional centres. The group, with a working…

Soroptimist International UN Representative Bette Levy attended a meeting on Women, Peace and Security, as a critical component of the post-2015 development agenda.  Meetings like this one provide a valuable opportunity to Soroptimist International to provide information on best practice to help better the lives of women and girls. At this event, countries like Chile…

Soroptimist International Advocacy Focus Sexual Violence in Conflict has been a major topic of discussion across the world recently. The Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, held in London in June, triggered much of this discussion. The Summit is to date the largest gathering on this subject. 1,700 delegates and 129 country delegations,…

Image: USA, SI Anti-Trafficking march in Camino Real, SI Conejo (PFR: 34025). 30 July 2014 is  the UN’s first World Day against Trafficking in Persons. Soroptimist International supports the call for greater global awareness and reports on some of the many effective Soroptimist actions across the world to end this despicable crime against humanity. "I…

July is a month of major gatherings for two of the four Soroptimist International Federations; Soroptimists from  the SI of the Americas Federation are arriving in Vancouver, Canada, this week for their Biennial Convention, while SI of Europe held their Governors’ meeting from 10-12 July. The Power of Girls – SI of the Americas Convention…

  “We are stronger than the enemies of education. We are stronger than fear, hatred, violence and poverty.  They thought that bullets would silence us, but they failed. Instead, out of that silence came thousands of voices. My birthday wish this year is that we all raise our voices for those under oppression, to show…

  Betty Loughhead Turland, who served as Soroptimist International President from 1983 to 1985, died peacefully last week in Christchurch, New Zealand. In a message of sympathy to the Soroptimist International South West Pacific Federation, President Ann Garvie described her as "a most delightful lady who served our organisation with dignity and pride". Betty Loughhead…

Photo: Opening of the High-level Segment of ECOSOC (UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras) Soroptimist International is setting out its vision for the Post-2015 development agenda at the key annual meeting of the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), taking place in New York this week. In official written and oral interventions to ECOSOC’s High Level Segment, SI…

  The first United Nations Environment Assembly met in Nairobi, Kenya, from 23-27 June and Soroptimist International UN Representative Dr Alice Odingo was there to ensure that the voices of women were heard. The UNEA is the highest-level UN body ever convened on the environment, bringing together over 1200 participants including high-level delegations from 160…