by Meg Brew, American Women’s Club of Amsterdam
The schedule at CSW is overwhelming (as Karen and Alex have told us all!). As recommended, I focused my attendance on sessions related to youth engagement, peace relations and child marriage. Two very different sessions that really impressed me were Child Marriages (UNICEF & UNFPA) and Youth in STEM (GIRLS SCOUTS).
From Protection to Power: Advancing Justice for Adolescent Girls to End Child Marriage
This CSW70 Formal Side event was organized by UNFPA and UNICEF and co-hosted by Canada, UK, Zambia and Malawi. The event aimed to address the challenges faced by adolescent girls in accessing justice and advocating for their rights. It also focused on the justice gap for women and girls, particularly for adolescent girls and young women, who face limited legal literacy, parental restrictions, and stigma around sexual and reproductive health rights. 640 million girls and women alive today were married as children. The session called for intergenerational approaches to advance access to justice for all women and girls across the life course.
The caliber of all the presenters really stressed the importance of this topic! They included:
- Ambassador Petra Bayr, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
- Ambassador Michael Gort, Canadian Ambassador & Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, NYC
- Ambassador Peter Derek Hoff, Ambassador for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality and Director of Social Development of the Netherlands
- The Dutch CSW70 Youth Representative, Sarah Meijer from CHOICE for Youth and Sexuality, was one of the speakers in the first part of this session
- Sirira Jones, Representative, The Grail – Working Group on Girls
There were several panels to address policy and implementation strategies. Panel members cane from the UK, Dominican Republic, Nepal, Colombia, Mexico, Malawi and Zambia. These efforts reflect a global commitment to ensure that no child is left behind and to advance the leadership and well-being of adolescent girls. For example:
- Panel: Justice in Action, Evidence and Practice
- Panel: Strengthening justice systems to prevent and respond to child marriages
- Panel: Voices of Courage – Four young girls spoke on their personal experiences
Separate from this session, FAWCO submitted and circulated a Child Marriage statement to the UN Secretary-General. You can read the statement on the FAWCO website. Here is an excerpt:
“Eliminating child marriage is vital to protect girls’ rights and unlock their potential. It requires strong laws, effective enforcement, cultural engagement, and comprehensive support systems. Governments, international partners, and civil society must work together to accelerate progress and achieve the 2030 target. When girls are free to choose their futures, societies benefit through stronger economies, healthier populations, and greater gender equality. Ending child marriage is not just a legal imperative – it is a moral and social necessity…”
STEM and YOUTH PARTICIPATION: Pathways to Gender Justice “Youth Voice & Global Impact”
This CSW70 Forum event was presented by high school Girl Scout troop members from Chiayi, Taiwan and Syracuse, New York (sister cities). Both Mayor Ming-Hui Huang of Chiayi and Mayor Sharon Owens of Syracuse spoke to introduce the established collaboration between the cities. Led by scout Stella Lu, an International Committee member of Girl Scouts of Taiwan, several of the scout troop members then very successfully facilitated the session focusing on youth engagement in STEM with explanations of their programs and outcomes. The session involved interactive activity with attendees. The room was packed full of young people!
This was one of the sessions that I was overseeing on an afternoon that I was volunteering for NGO CSW/NY. This year, I volunteered for two days to support the NGO CSW FORUM Sessions. I was so busy managing this session, I did not have time to take notes. I just remembered how impressed I was with all these young women—a well-designed presentation, comprehensive explanations of the program goals and results, good reading of the audience for the group activity, and two scouts from Syracuse completed the session with impactful personal experiences; then time for Q&A that they handled perfectly. A great session!!