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 session could compliment my understanding of another in some way.
I was able to attend the first week of CSW, and focused my learning on local representation and improving education systems. Within my city and state, these are salient issues with heavy implications.
These issues, though each expansive in their own right, held several key points in common:
Collaboration & Community: Individualism will not solve our problems, we can’t make change alone. Strategic partnerships are key to improving systems of program administration across the board in every field.
Accessibility: In more ways than one, accessibility is what keeps many young voices out of the houses of power. Knowing who to talk to, avenues to them, and being able to open the door for others is key for change.
Knowing When to Rest: Burnout is prevalent in every professional field, and women and girls are now at higher risk for falling victim to it (Gallup 2024). We need to combat fatigue in all of its forms, which can be mitigated with self care.
Ultimately, in attending CSW, I hoped to bring solutions home on how we can best serve students with the tools they need to make change in our ever-changing world. In doing so, I was afforded the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream. American expat children have no real political representation. As a child I seemed to be the only one concerned about this, which was concerning to me in its own right. But in 2025, at the United Nations 69th Commission on the Status of Women, I represented girls just like me.