Events
Mahnaz Afkhami is frequently engaged as a speaker on a range of topics, including human rights, participatory leadership, women and peace, women’s political participation, the global women’s movements, and the fight for women’s rights in Iran.
Digital Film Launch: It’s Up to Us
Date: Friday, June 12, 2020 Time: 11:00 am-12:30 pm Description: Around the world people are facing unprecedented challenges to their health, security, and human rights. The recent coronavirus pandemic has revealed that the current structures of power are unable to respond to current and new crises, and in fact often exacerbate these crises. WLP’s newest documentary, It’s Up to Us, explores the interconnected threats to human security, including conflict, climate change, economic inequality, discriminatory family laws, and gender inequality, and offers solutions based on human rights and equitable decision-making. The film screening is followed by a panel with women leaders who discuss the ways in which women are impacted and how women’s leadership can help solve the world’s most pressing issues. Panel of distinguished speakers moderated by Pat Mitchell, Editorial Director for TEDWomen The launch will be livestreamed and later archived for future viewing
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Gender, Families, and Climate Justice Panel and Discussion at SAIS
Date: November 5th, 2019 Time: 4:00- 6:00pm Location: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Kenney-Herter Auditorium, 1740 Massachusetts Ave, NW Washington D.C, 20036 Description: Climate justice needs women’s voices, experience, and leadership. Women’s Learning Partnership is bringing together thought-leaders on climate justice and women’s rights to discuss the role of women and youth in confronting the climate crisis. Women have suffered the greatest from natural disasters, loss of arable land, and forced migration, and have been on the forefront of working towards sustainable solutions. Join us for a lively and thought-provoking discussion and poetry reading about the nexus between the fight for climate justice and addressing political, social, and economic inequalities. Keynote Speaker: Mary Robinson, Former President of Ireland and Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Panel of distinguished speakers moderated by Musimbi Kanyoro, WLP Board Chair and Former President of Global Fund for Women “Lifelines: The Poetry …
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2019 International Trailblazer Award, Celebrating Iranian Women’s Leadership
Time: 6:00 PM Location: Royal United Service Institute, London, UK Description: “As Iran’s regime continues to provoke international debate, the country is going through one of the darkest moments in history with respect to human rights and, in particular, women’s rights. This event showcased the long tradition of Iranian women’s leadership and the diversity of ways women inside Iran and in the diaspora have been committed to women’s rights.” The 2019 Honorees are Mahnaz Afkhami, First Iranian Minister for Women’s Affairs (1975 – 1978) and Dr. Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Laureate and Human Rights Champion. Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director of the Georgetown Institute for Women Peace and Security, Nazenin Ansari, Managing Editor of Kayhan London, and Shéhérazade Semsar de Boisséson, CEO of POLITICO Europe, cordially invite you to a celebration of Iranian Women’s Leadership. Additional speakers include Executive Director of Justice for Iran, Shadi Sadr, BBC representative, Pooneh Ghoddosi and Lawyer …
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Feminist Climate Forum
Time: 1:15 PM Location: Livestream, New York City Description: The existential urgency of climate change and its impact on human survival requires mutual learning and global action. Women are most affected by environmental destruction and are best situated to provide solutions, yet least involved in decision-making. At this convening, Women’s Learning Partnership and the American University of Beirut, will bring together high-level thought leaders from women’s rights and youth organizations with academia, policymakers, interfaith communities, media, and the arts to initiate a much-needed intersectional conversation on the connections between climate justice, gender equality, sustainable development, and peace. The Forum is expected to result in individual and organizational initiatives to mobilize people – especially women and youth at the grassroots – to address the effect of climate change on the future of humanity. The dialogue will begin with opening remarks by Mahnaz Afkhami, President and CEO of WLP, followed by a keynote …
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Women Deliver 2019 Conference
Location: Vancouver Convention Centre East, 999 Canada Pl, Vancouver, BC V6C 3C1, Canada Room 110 Description: Women Deliver is the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and wellbeing of girls and women. The conference incorporates keynote speeches, social enterprise pitches, workshops and fill festivals, among other interactive events. Notable speakers for the 2019 Conference will be Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde, Former Executive Director of the While House Council on Women and Girls, Tina Tchen, Co-Founder of the Malala Fund, Ziauddin Yousafzai. Mahnaz Afkhami will join a group of panelists from Women’s Learning Partnership (WLP), Solidarity is Global Institute/Jordan (SIGI/J), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and Cepia Cidadania, to discuss how research-based advocacy can support the reform of laws and practices that perpetuate inequality. The “Virtual Conference” is available here and the event will …
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Family Advocacy, Family Law and Violence Against Women
Time: 5:00 pm Location: Bioethics Library at Georgetown University, Washington D.C. Description: Mahnaz Afhkami will present introductory remarks at the launch of WLP’s newest publication, Feminist Advocacy, Family Law and Violence against Women: International Perspectives. On November 1, 2018, in conjunction with the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace, and Security (GIWPS), leading women’s rights advocates from around the globe will provide remarks on the status of discriminatory family laws and structures that perpetuate inequality and violence both in the home and in communities. This event is part of WLP’s global advocacy effort, the Equality Starts in the Family campaign, carried out in close partnership with GIWPS, UN Women Global Fund for Women, and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada. For more information, visit the Women’s Learning Partnership Events calendar.
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16th Annual Iranian American Women Foundation (IAWF) Conference 2018
Time: 8:30-5:30pm Location: Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites, Los Angeles, CA 90071 Description: Mahnaz Afkahmi will be honored with the Shirzan Award for life-long leadership and community involvement at this year’s Iranian American Women Foundation (IAWF) Conference. The IAWF is a non-profit organization providing networking, leadership, and mentorship services to women of Iranian descent across all professional industries in the United States and internationally. The conference will bring together accomplished representatives of academia, business, entertainment, and politics who advocate for women’s leadership. Azita Raji, the first female U.S. ambassador to Sweden, and the first Iranian-born American to serve as a U.S. ambassador, will serve as the keynote speaker for the event. Link to the Women’s Learning Partnership Blog about this Award.
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The Commission on the Status of Women 62 (CSW62)
Location: United Nations, 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017 Description: Every year, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women meets at the UN Headquarters in New York, joined by government and civil society representatives from around the world. The priority theme of CSW62 is the challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls. The conference spans a host of discussion topics, such as, but not limited to, Human Security Training, Family Law, Meeting with Rural Speakers, and Data approaches for measuring progress on gender equality and women’s empowerment. Mahnaz Afkhami will speak on a panel titled, Human Rights Defenders: A Panel Discussion with Leading Female Activists. She will first address the Women’s Rights climate in Iran and then later discuss her work with 20 grassroots organizations for the past 25 years and the importance of a global women’s movement. …
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Rutgers Global Feminist Journeys Conference
Location: Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ Description: The Rutgers Global Feminist Journeys Conference is a small international strategic consultation that will take place at the Center for Women’s Global Leadership (CWGL) at Rutgers University. CWGL is holding this conversation as part of a project tentatively titled Global Feminist Journeys: Stories of a Generation of Women’s Human Rights Activists (1985-2005). This project will contribute to the vast richness of the past 30-40 years of global feminism, especially in relation to human rights, and to draw lessons from it for the future. These discussions will include thinking about what forms of documenting we each are doing or want to do, and what would be most useful at this time, such as: Written essays/stories/books that record the history of this period and analyze lessons learned; Video or tape recorded reflections that can be short, provocative & aimed at particular audiences; Longer oral history …
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Election 2016 and the Global Women’s Movement
Location: Chicago Council on Global Affairs Conference Center, 130 East Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601 Description: In recent years the US government has incorporated gender equality as a metric of policy development and program investment of its domestic and foreign policies. Yet despite many indicators of progress for women and girls everywhere more work remains, and strong collaborations are still needed in areas regarding women’s economic and political leadership, eliminating violence against women and girls, and supporting women-owned businesses and entrepreneurs. As the US prepares for new governance what would a change in leadership mean for women’s rights, domestically and internationally? And how can we best continue to provide US leadership to women’s issues in the next twenty years? Panelists will include: Mahnaz Afkhami, Founder and President, Women’s Learning Partnership Catherine Bertini, Distinguished Fellow, Global Food and Agriculture, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Ellen Chesler, Senior Fellow, Roosevelt Institute …
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