Over two and a half days this past September, the Women’s Funding Network (WFN) embodied its tagline of “A Powerful Network, A Movement for Change” with its biennial conference Women Funded 2019: Leadership for a Changing World.
As the largest global philanthropic network of funders and funds supporting women and girls, WFN was proud to bring over 400 of its members, partners and allies together in support of gender equity. In addition, the conference boasted over 100 speakers from around the world, 22 workshops, and 22 plenary sessions, with topics ranging from the intersection of gender, racial and climate justice, changing the narrative around violence against women and girls, and women in politics, to name a few. View the full conference program here.
WFN was especially proud to feature keynote speakers Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland, and Kevin Powell, author, writer, and advocate. Other notable speakers included Melanie Brown of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Aimee Allison of She the People, and Ada Williams Prince of Pivotal Ventures.
We were also thrilled to hear from attendees that the conference not only provided an important place for networking and potential collaborations, but also inspired them to continue their efforts to support gender equity and racial equity. As one participant noted, “Thank you . . . for consistently creating spaces where the women’s funding movement can feel its collective power.” Another wrote, “This was the most thoughtful, powerful and urgent conference I have ever attended.”
To see more images from the conference, visit the FB Album.
To read more about what conference attendee Anne Wadsworth, executive director at Girls Education Collaborative, calls “fierce, feminist fighters,” visit: https://medium.com/@girlsedcollabsocial/these-funders-are-fierce-feminist-fighters-4ec94f1656b5
We are excited to share some key metrics and social media reach at Women Funded 2019:
Watch Women Investing in Women Panel
Watch Mary Robinson’s Keynote “The Climate Crisis – A Message of Urgency and Hope”
What was your experience or “ah-ha moment” at the conference? Write us at info@womensfundingnetwork.org and we’ll share your comments in our upcoming conference recaps. Stay tuned for more on Women Funded 2019 in the coming months and thank you for helping make San Francisco the epicenter of the Women’s Movement in September!