bbbwew: July 2010

Friday, July 23, 2010

50 African women entrepreneurs lead by Margaret Galabe, Executive Director of the World Women Trade Fair are travelling the world to exhibit and sell their creations. Those courageous women are contributing in their counties to provide new homes, education, and health care for their families and their communities. Coming from the Indian Ocean-EFOIS, Victory Women –Namibia, Namayiana Maasai Women Group Kenya, Gabon Arts, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Namibia, Gabon, Ghana, Niger, Burkina Faso, Seychelles, Cameroon, Gabon, and Congo Republic. They will jointly participate to the 1st Women of Africa Marketplace celebrating women entrepreneurs of Africa. This Marketplace will be held on July 30th through August 15th 2010 in Vienna, Austria alongside the famous event the Afrika-Tage-Wein

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Warsaw June 18-19: “Women for Poland, Poland for Women” - was the main motto of 2nd Congress of Polish Women (II Kongres Polskich Kobiet) that took place in Warsaw. The event gathered over 3000 of professional polish women.
Joanna Bouissou representing EVE-olution Foundation Inc. at the Congress met with Mrs Henryka BOCHNIARZ, President, Boeing Central & Eastern Europe, co-founder of this initiative, Mrs Lidia ADAMSKA, Member of Management Board, Warsaw Stock Exchange, and Mrs Dorota WARAKOMSKA, Journalist and co-founder of Polish Professional Women Network (PWNet). Many topics were discussed during the panel sessions: combining professional carrier with motherhood; women in business: equality, diversity and efficiency; emancipation of women and evolution of men; Poland and Union after the crisis; health care system, etc. The important place in the debates took the issue of introducing gender parities on voting lists what shows the strong will of Polish women to take an active role in political life regardless of their political views.
The congress finished just the day before the first round of presidential elections and its closing manifesto was “time for elections, time for women, time for solidarity”.

Monday, July 12, 2010

The largest network of women entrepreneurs, in the Indian Ocean (EFOI Network) involving women entrepreneurs mainly from Madagascar, Seychelles, Comoros, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Reunion; met from 6 to 8 July 2010 for the 5th annual meeting under the banner of sustainable development and exportation. Qualified by Susan M 'Panda, Representative of the African Development Bank as a “success for the Region”.Several organizations agreed to support women entrepreneurs from the Indian Ocean among them the Association of Women Entrepreneurs Worldwide (FCEM), African Centre for Women Entrepreneurs (CAEF), the Indian Ocean Commission (COI) and the EVE –olution Foundation. As Ms. Fatoumia Ali Bazi, representative of the COI said “now nothing about us, without us”

Website: EFOI Network

Thursday, July 01, 2010

United Nations Global Compact and Accenture conducted the largest survey of 766 CEOs around the globe on the topic of sustainability presented during the Leaders Summit in NYC, 24-25 June, 2010.

93% of CEOs believe that sustainability issues will be critical to the future success of their business.

More about the 4 women CEO in this survey:
Martha Tilaar, Chairwoman & Founder, Martha, Tilaar Group
Mavi S. Isibor, CEO, Poise Nigeria Limited
Sung-joo Kim, Chairperson and CEO, Sungjoo
Barbara Krumsiek, President and CEO, Calvert Group Ltd.

More about the survey: A New Era of Sustainability

Meet with first winner- Greater IBM awards

submitted by Larry H Phipps

Gerard Stein was among those recognized in the first Greater IBM awards.

Gerard Stein lives by a simple credo: “Women are the global power of change.”

He’s devoted his after-IBM life to turning that belief into actions that promote the abilities of women to achieve leadership positions. After 31 years with IBM in France, Africa and Saudi Arabia, he launched EVE-olution.org, a not-for-profit organization and travels widely as a business coach for women senior executives and business owners. He also works with leading think-tanks dealing with global trade.

Officially registered as EVE-olution Foundation Inc., his organization focuses on helping female entrepreneurs in emerging and developing countries run businesses better.

Gerard’s work and encouragement for other Greater IBMers earned him one of our first annual awards as a “Greater Evangelist”.

The organization’s motto is “the global power of change,” and he believes that women, especially those with businesses, will drive that change.

“We rely on women to give our kids better chances to live in a safer and healthier planet than predicted by world experts, because they are the powerful influencers of their own region,” he said. “As mothers, all of them are acting toward the same objective. This is a multiple ‘butterfly effect,’" he added, referring to the theory that the beating of a butterfly’s wings in one part of the world can lead to a hurricane elsewhere.

Stein is also fond of a quote from Oprah Winfrey: “When you empower women you can change the world.”

“I’m the father of four daughters and already four grandchildren, and I care about their future. That’s why I co-created this project.”

Pollution, terrorist organizations and the current financial situation don’t respect frontiers, said Stein. And a huge portion of the world’s population not only lives in developing countries, but seems destined to live “in alarming conditions” in and around cities. Reinforcing women entrepreneurs helps buffer some of those threats. EVE-olution’s help to those women comes by opening doors for their business, finding new export markets, rather than lending or giving them money.

With a thriving business, a woman can create new jobs in her village, stemming the rural-to-urban exodus. “They’re also role models for youth, inspiring their communities,” said Stein. “And in their regions they’re powerful influencers of sustainable development and security.”

EVE-olution.org, said Stein, runs “without the expensive logistics of members, employees or permanent offices,” although it covers the expenses of volunteers. The foundation calls on private companies to support them but will not accept money from governments or public institutions.

He’s hoping the Greater IBM community will provide him with more manpower. You don’t have to travel to Africa to help. Stein is looking for retired executives and corporate volunteers as well as business administration students willing to work on the project. He also needs development volunteers to approach companies to become supporters, Web specialists and designers to expand EVE-olution’s site, and communicators to help raise the organization’s visibility.

"What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal,” said Stein, quoting 19th Century American author Albert Pine.