31 | Thursday, February 23, 2017 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Three local women leading delegation to UN in New York C heryl Hayles, a member of the Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) Oakville and CFUW VP International Relations, will lead a 20-person delegation of the CFUW to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in N ew York City taking place March 13-24. The CSW is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. Attending also from Oakville are Sandy Thompson, vice president of CFUW Ontario and Teri Shaw, Advocacy Chair, CFUW Ontario Council. CFUW is a non-partisan, voluntary, self funded organization with more than 100 CFUW Clubs, located in every province across Canada. Since it was founded in 1919, CFUW has been working to improve the status of wom en, and to promote human rights, public education, social justice, and peace. The discussion at this year' s session will primarily focus on: · w om en' s econom ic empowerment in the changing world of work; · challenges and achievements in the implementation of the millennium develop ment goals for w om en and girls, agreed conclusions of the 58th session; and, · The empowerment of indigenous in I IN D U S T R Y ,H I M ? R E S P O N S IB LE & 8 P E A C EA N DJU S T IC E S T R O H G IN S T IT U T E O N S CO £ women. Active participation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) is a critical element in the work of the CSW NGOs have been influential in shaping the current global policy framework on w om en' s empowerment and gender equality: the Beijing Declaration and D IE G L O B A L G O A L S F orS ustainableDevelopedt | submitted graphic Platform for Action. They continue to play an important role in holding international and national leaders accountable for the commitments they made in the Platform for Action. Even in wealthy countries like Canada, w om en' s econom ic empowerment, equal pay, affordable child care and access to retraining can be elusive, and w om en are under-represented in positions of decision making and leadership in the changing world of work. Looking closer at the progress of aboriginal wom en, w om en with disabilities and racialized wom en, the picture becomes even more dismal. In preparation for this session, UN member states were asked to undertake internal assessments of progress in the 17 sustainable development goals identified to reach gender equity by 2030. Across the board, progress has been slow and uneven. Some countries are further behind than others. With support of NGO' s such as the Canadian Federation of University Women the urgency of meeting these goals motivates delegates to advocate for countries like Canada to take the lead in committing to accelerat-ing progress for w om en and girls in all 17 goals. "Attendance at UNCSW61 is a wonderful opportunity to meet w om en from around the world, discuss matters of common concern, and bring back information and new per spectives on issues that affect w om en and girls to our local community," said Hayles. -- submitted by CFUS-Oakville Sunday, April 9,2017 L U T C tlt r C | C D D A ^ E O tyPabevti-Cow* from 10a m to 3 pm C D D I M / ! I CELEBRATE SPRING! J o in C a n a d a 's first su b sc rip tio n based in v e stin g se rv ice Traditional and hard to un derstand investm ent fees could b e costing you up to 30% of your p o ten tia l w ealth.* Le a rn w h y C a n a d ia n are c h a n g in g th e; w a y th e y in v e s t th eir m o n e y. In Partnership with MILTON SPORTS CENTRE 605 Santa Maria Blvd., Milton A FUN FILLED DAY with everything for families Education · Attractions · Camps · Family Planning FR E Adm ission courtesy of S p rin g rid g e Stage Sponsor: LIVE ENTERTAINMENT Entertainer Scott Dietrich SNOWQUEEN & SN WPRINCESS AWESOME CAMPS FOR AWESOME KIDS! Ki sT ow Visit nestw ealth.com 0 To booka booth call: 905-842-6591 ext 740708 orToll Free: 1-800-693-7986 G Nest Wealth FREE LOOT BAGS EV* j P j P ia l m m e t ro la n d > A D IV IS IO NO F a n d sa n dre g u la tio n s .T h is;