BKMC Holds the Reception marking the Launch #OrangeTheWorld Campaign in Austria

November 26, 2019

November 25 marks the International Day for the Eliminating of Violence against Women and the start of 16 Days of Activism to put an end to violence against women.

Every year, the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens cooperates with UN Women Austria, Soroptimist International Austria and HeForShe Graz to implement the global #OrangeTheWorld Campaign in Austria to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence.

On November 25, BKMC successfully launched the campaign of 2019 in the Centre. Co-chair Heinz Fischer and CEO Monika Froehler delivered welcome remarks, while Co-chair Ban Ki-moon sent words of appreciation with a video message.

Representatives of the co-organizers Eliette Thurn from Soroptimist International Austria and Marcela Muniz Pivaral from UN Women Austria stressed the urgency of raising awareness for this topic.

Head of HeForShe Graz, Bernhard Gollob, moderated a panel discussion with representatives from Austrian Victim Support Groups, entities that are based in Austrian hospitals and that are essential for detecting and preventing violence against women.

We were grateful to our partners without whom it would not be possible to achieve such a large-scale contribution on behalf of Austria to this global campaign.

© BKMC / Eugenie Berger

WEP GCC Certificate Ceremony Held in Diplomatic Academy of Vienna

November 24, 2019

On November 22, WEP GCC fellows were awarded with certificates for the completion of Women’s Empowerment Program – GCC that kicked off on November 11 and lasted for two weeks.

Co-chair Heinz Fischer opened the ceremony with congratulatory remarks and said that the fellows should construct stronger network to support and stay in touch with each other.


Deputy Director of Diplomatic Academy of Vienna Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger also congratulated the fellows for their hard work and thanked their commitments to advance the Sustainable Development Goals.


Director General Adnan Shihab-Eldin of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences also delivered a congratulatory remark to the ladies. He said,

“Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences will remain as a partner for the SDGs.”


Lastly, the Ban Ki-moon Centre CEO Monika Froehler said,

“Never say what you cannot do, say what you can do and will do.”

She also thanked BKMC Program Officer Viola Christian for her endeavors and efforts to put together this amazing program.


On behalf of all the WEP GCC fellows, Nourah Aloseimi from Kuwait delivered remarks and expressed gratitude for such inspiring and meaningful opportunities the Ban Ki-moon Centre has provided together with Diplomatic Academy of Vienna.

Before the graduation, the WEP GCC fellows presented about their My SDG Micro-Project proposals, which they will implement in their own communities after the completion of their trainings.

Visit BKMC gallery for more photos.
© BKMC / Eugenie Berger

WEP GCC Fellows Participate in a Round Table: Effective Women Leaders

November 20, 2019

“I don’t want you to lower your expectation, but I want you to lower your self-criticism.”  – Helena Zimmerdahl from the Embassy of Sweden

Women’s Empowerment Program (WEP) is in its full swing! As a part of BKMC’s Women’s Empowerment Program, WEP GCC fellows participated in a Round Table hosted in Diplomatic Academy of Vienna on November 19.

At this Round Table, Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger, Deputy Director of the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, featured as a moderator at the Round Table.

Speakers were:

Lulua Asaad from UNODC,

Maggie Childs from Metropole and Austrian Startups,

Mona Ali Khalil from MAK Law International, and

Helena Zimmerdahl from the Embassy of Sweden to Austria.

Lulua Asaad asked the fellows a critical question: “What does leadership mean to you?”

“It is important to have support from women within your network, while not neglecting the role of men.”

She also added that leadership is not about a position one is in, but responsibility leaders are capable of taking in their world.

Regarding women’s empowerment, Mona Ali Khalil said,

“Empowerment of women requires men who are enlightened and women who are willing empower each other.”

As an international lawyer, she stressed that gender parity policies should be actual actions rather than lip service and should effectively address sexual harassment/sexual discrimination issues that still exist everywhere across the sectors.

Minister-Counselor Helena Zimmerdahl pinpointed ‘transparency’ as an important trait of a good leader and said we must “speak up” for ourselves to make our voices heard.

Zimmerdahl also advised the fellows to

“look at yourself and your accomplishments from the outside” in order to empower themselves.

Maggie Childs emphasized the need for getting help from mentors, friends and other experts when necessary and said,

“You don’t have to know everything before you do it… It is lonely at the top. You need to have your private space and friends who just listen to you. Having those friends would make you feel less lonely.”

A follow-up workshop was facilitated by WEP Project Coordinator Viola Christian from the Ban Ki-moon Centre. The fellows were grouped into 5 and discussed advice and points made from the Round Table, which they created their own manifesto with.

© BKMC / Eugenie Berger

For more photos of the event, visit BKMC album.

BKMC Welcomes the Women’s Empowerment Program GCC Fellows!

November 12, 2019

“More than ever does the world need young female leaders like yourself to advocate for a sustainable future with a fresh and innovative mind,” said Co-chair Ban Ki-moon in his video message.

Together with the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens hosted a welcome reception for the fellows of the Women’s Empowerment Program GCC on November 11th, 2019.

“You will shine, and you will empower others to shine with you!” – CEO Monika Froehler

Co-chair Heinz Fischer warmly welcomed the crowd and briefly introduced the history of Austria as a former President of Austria, and BKMC CEO Monika Froehler and Deputy Director Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger of the Diplomatic Academy also delivered remarks on the first day of the program. 

“In these two weeks, you will further develop your skill-set to make sustainable development happen and to empower women globally,” said Monika Froehler during her welcome remarks.

H.E. Ambassador Marafi from the Embassy of Kuwait participated in the welcome reception to welcome and congratulate all the selected fellows from GCC regions.

20 aspiring fellows of WEP GCC gathered from Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. They will be participating in a 2-week tailor-made program to advance their global potential to promote the Sustainable Development Goals and foster women’s empowerment.

 

Watch a video diary of WEP GCC’s first day!

 

WEP Asia fellows participates in the first workshop hosted at the Ban Ki-moon Centre

October 1, 2019

“Change-makers, motivation, and peace. Everything you just said are the definitions of global citizens,” said BKMC CEO Monika Froehler.

The Women’s Empowerment Program fellows participated in an active workshop moderated by CEO Froehler at the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens office on October 1st, 2019. The group actively discussed the meaning of global citizenship, what are their favorite SDGs, and what they could do to achieve the Goals.

Co-chair Heinz Fischer also shared the history of women’s empowerment and what was the role of women in the development of the Austrian and European society.

“Today’s program was so useful for us because we found the SDGs and the connections between these Goals, and we could feel empowered to develop these Goals.” – Sohaila Rezaee from Afghanistan 🇦🇫

“The workshop today was very practical. It taught me skills in how to give my ideas in a structured and organized manner.” – Soo Min Jun from South Korea 🇰🇷

“I learned a lot about global citizenship, what it is to be a global citizen, and we had a lot of fun activities related to the SDGs. It is a very good opportunity to take time to talk about each one of them.” – Catherine Harry from Cambodia 🇰🇭

“I was worried that I felt far from the terms such as SDGs, Global Citizenship, and female leaders, but after this session, I found these terms to be fairly relatable to each one of us, to our countries and to our communities.” – Delgermaa Antangerel from Mongolia 🇲🇳

© BKMC / Eugenie Berger

Watch the video on #WEPAsia Day 2:

© BKMC / Angelika Lauber

BKMC welcomes the Women’s Empowerment Program Asia fellows!

September 30, 2019

In cooperation with the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens hosted a welcome reception for the fellows of the Women’s Empowerment Program Asia on September 30th, 2019.

Co-chair Heinz Fischer welcomed the crowd and introduced the history of Austria as a former President of Austria, and BKMC CEO Monika Froehler and Deputy Director Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger of the Diplomatic Academy also delivered remarks on the first day of the program.

“More than ever does the world need young female leaders like yourself to advocate for a sustainable future with a fresh and innovative mind,” said Co-chair Ban Ki-moon in his video message.

Among the participants were BKMC Board member Ambassador Shin Chae-hyun of the Embassy of South Korea in Vienna, Ambassador Khojesta Fana Ebrahimkhel of the Embassy of Afghanistan in Vienna, and Director Martin Nesirky of the United Nations Information Service.

Watch Ban Ki-moon’s message:

© BKMC / Eugenie Berger

The Ban Ki-moon Centre Hosts Second Mentoring Workshop for Austrian Muslim Women

June 11, 2019

This week, the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens hosted the second workshop for its mentoring project for Muslim women in Austria in partnership with the Muslim Youth Austria. The workshop focused on building confidence in the workplace and was conducted by a coach Layla Abu Zahra.

The young mentees participated in exercises examining their strengths and expressing their successes. Coach Abu Zahra shared her 10 steps for confidence and success:

  1. Get things done
  2. Monitor your progress, write things down
  3. Do the right thing
  4. Exercise (your body)
  5. Be fearless
  6. Stand up for yourself
  7. Choose your surroundings wisely
  8. Think long-term
  9. Don’t care what other people think
  10. Do what makes you happy

In September, the final workshop will take place. In the meantime, the mentees are meeting regularly with their mentors and preparing their “Global Citizen Projects” for the final closing event.

We look forward to watching these wonderful young ladies continue to grow through the mentorship process!

“You cannot be what you cannot see,” says BKMC CEO Monika Froehler at her mentoring session for Muslim youth

May 8, 2019
“You cannot be what you cannot see!”
said CEO Monika Froehler of the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens at the mentoring session taken place at the Centre on May 8th, 2019. As part of the Centre’s project  “Mentoring for Austrian Muslim Women – Global Citizens at Work,” Froehler met with her mentee from the Muslim Youth Austria (Muslimische Jugend Österreich) and discussed about the importance of having inspirations around for one to be empowered. 

As girls often do not see enough women leaders around them to have them as their role models, Froehler said that it is challenging for them to take further steps to reach their goals. Aspiring leaders need leaders that reflect themselves and that they can look up to.The two also talked about the crucial role of social entrepreneurship in advancing the SDGs.

Afghan Ambassador Khojesta Fana Ebrahimkhel supports BKMC fellowship project

March 6, 2019

On March 5th, Afghanistan’s Ambassador to Austria H.E. Khojesta Fana Ebrahimkhel and Political Specialist of the Embassy Isabella Neri visited the Centre to have a meeting with BKMC Co-chair Heinz Fischer.

BKMC Associate Viola Christian briefed the visitors on the Centre’s upcoming fellowship program for women’s empowerment that will be launched in September 2019. The Centre will cooperate with the Diplomatische Akademie Wien – Vienna School of International Studies to coordinate and implement a tailor-made fellowship training funded by Korea Foundation involving training on the Sustainable Development Goals, gender and empowerment issues, communication, crisis management, mediation, leadership development and global citizenship.

The first edition of the Program will sponsor 20 young women from Afghanistan, Cambodia, Korea and Mongolia to take part in the tailor-made training, held in Vienna. The women will be selected based on their previous comitment to topics related to women’s empowerment and the Sustainable Development Goals. The goal is to prepare the fellows to increasingly become involved in the decision-making processes that impact the world sustainably. The program is aligned with the leadership and education pillar of the centre.

Ambassador Ebrahimkhel, who continues to dedicate a large part of her diplomatic career to the advancement of women’s rights, announced her support for the Centre’s program.