In November of 2024, I had the privilege of attending a FAWCO regional meeting hosted by AWC Berlin. There I asked a fellow member about her experience attending past CSW sessions. She used adjectives such as “amazing, inspiring, overwhelming” and enthusiastically encouraged me to go. After considering logistics for about five minutes, I was convinced. Four short months later, after...
Commission on the Status of Women
The UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), part of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), promotes gender equality and the advancement of women. Its charge is to measure progress towards equality and highlight challenges, set standards and formulate concrete policies to promote equality and women’s empowerment, and encourage mainstreaming of the gender perspective in all UN activities worldwide.
FAWCO is a member of the NGO Committees on the Status of Women (NGO CSWs) in NY, Geneva and Vienna. FAWCO members and UN Representatives regularly attend the annual CSW in New York. You can read blogs by members of FAWCO's delegations to CSW.
FAWCO signs on to Written and Oral Statements submitted to UN Women for consideration by CSW, joining our partner women's NGOs with consultative status to ECOSOC. You can read these statements on the Advocacy page.
| Key Links | |
| UN CSW | http://www.unwomen.org/en/csw |
| NGO CSW New York | www.ngocsw.org |
| NGO CSW Geneva | www.ngocsw-geneva.ch/ |
| NGO CSW Vienna | https://ngocswvienna.org/ |
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by Meg Termote-Brew, AWC Amsterdam
This year, for the first time, I joined the United Nations Commission of the Status of Women (UN CSW69) for its second week. I was looking forward to exploring all avenues, attending a variety of sessions and venues offered, so in February when I received an email request for CSW Forum volunteers from NGO...
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by Tricia R Saur, AIWC Cologne
This was my first time attending CSW in person – it was, as I was warned, overwhelming – in a very good way! As a newbie, being surrounded by FAWCO sisters throughout the three days I attended was wonderful. Alex and Karen gave helpful guidance in the weeks leading up to CSW69 and...
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by Kirsten McKeon (guest)
My first impression was that I’ve never been in a room with so many women! I attended a predominately male technical college, then worked in the investment banking field, including training. While I’ve attended plenty of large conferences and have been fortunate enough to work with a number of internationally diverse groups, I have never...
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by Patricia A. DuCharme, DNP, RN, ANP-BC (guest)
Attending the 69th Commission on the Status of Women was a profoundly moving and urgent reminder of the unfinished business of gender equity. Over five packed days, I joined global changemakers to discuss what it takes to make structural progress for women and girls.
One standout session, hosted by the Nordic Council of...
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by Anna Roberts (daughter of Michelle Gates Roberts, FAUSA)
CSW pulls you in, and doesn’t let you go.
As a first-time attendee, I was struck by the synergistic nature of the programming. Though session titles ranged far and wide, from “Financing Facism and Fundamentalism” to “Putting the She in STI” to “Increasing Youth Political Participation with Global Scouting”– each...
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by Michelle Gates Roberts, FAUSA, AWC Korea
The United Nations CSW69 was just as intense as CSW68, but the stakes were and are so much higher. It didn’t have to be said, IT COULD BE FELT.
While some governments are leaning towards isolationism, it’s clear – the world is small. We truly are all in this together – whether that’s...
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by Michelle Gates Roberts, FAUSA, AWC Korea
I learned so much in the >25% of my life spent studying, living and working in multiple countries. One of the largest lessons? The world is small. And we are all connected.
My time at the United Nations is one of my favorite times of the year. Yes, it’s tough hearing about how...
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by Michelle Gates Roberts, AWC Korea, FAUSA
I have over 10 million reasons to feel hopeful about our future.
Walking into the room I could feel the familiar buzz of Girl Scout energy. Youthful, curious, vibrant, get-stuff-done.
I felt right at home in the “Empowering Women through Non-Formal Education: Developing Leadership and Decision-Making Skills” session at CSW69 facilitated by Girl Scouts of...
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by Michelle Gates Roberts, FAUSA, AWC Korea
Financing Fascism and Fundamentalism – Sounds like fun conversation, right??
Extremism has been rearing its ugly head for quite some time now. It seems like it’s everywhere, all the time. That’s because it is. It’s threatening a wide range of rights and
It’s. Not. Slowing. Down.
The panelists of this CSW69 session...