New York, July 15, 2009 – In 1995, over 30,000 women from around the world gathered in Beijing China around the Fourth World Conference on Women.  While relatively few attended the more “official” UN proceedings, all were able to participate in the NGO Forum in nearby Huairou.  There had never been a gathering like this before.  Women from different corners of the globe shared their stories and found they might be more connected than they had previously thought.   

Out of the Beijing Conference came the officially sanctioned “Beijing Platform for Action.”  This Platform (BPFA) contained twelve focus-areas dealing with different aspects of women’s lives.  These focus areas—women and poverty, education and training of women, women and health, violence against women, women and armed conflict, women and the economy, women in power and decision-making, institutional mechanisms for the advancement of women, human rights of women, women and the media, women and the environment, the girl-child—have been the focus of the United Nations annual Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) since 1995 as governments and NGO’s continue to explore and challenge the ways in which women are systematically oppressed in our world.   

The next UNCSW, in 2010, will mark 15 years since this historic meeting.  This is the time to reflect on Beijing, to tell stories to those who were not involved in the global movement 15 years ago, to push our governments and organizations to continue to work for the full equality of women.  One way we plan to do this is through a series of Beijing Interviews.  If you are someone who attended the Beijing conference, we would love to hear from you! 

Download the information sheet here for more instructions. 

For more information on the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, see: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/