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Before we continue our Women Sexual Health series
(which will be back next issue), this month we are
recognizing women's leadership. One way YWTF
supports future leaders is The Knox Fellowship.
The fellowship was named in honor of Alexis Knox, a
seasoned women's activist and the first to register for
YWTF's founding meet-up. Alexis passed away in
2006. She is greatly missed, yet her committment to
women's leadership lives on. The Knox Fellowship
celebrates leadership, scholarship, and advocacy.
All applicants who are active YWTF members must
receive a recommendation from their Chapter Director
to apply. Applicants who are not active members must
attend a chapter meeting, interview with the local
chapter director, and submit a letter of
recommendation. Please contact
shannonl@ncwo-online.org, or visit www.ywtf.org if
you have any
questions.
This month we have featured an interview with a
unique woman leader. Nora Linville was recently
appointed the Director of Women's Sales and
Marketing at American Airlines. Nora is the first in
our "Women In Business" interview series!
We hope you find this newsletter informative.
If you
would like to write for the Younger Women's
Movement, please email alyssa.frances@gmail.com.
Sincerely,
Alison, Shannon, Sheerine,
Alyssa
and, as always, the entire Coordinating Board
| A Contest To Support Women To Make A Million in Business |
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From
Reuters
Women own nearly half of the businesses in the U.S.
but 97 percent of them report less than $1 million in
revenue.
They're being held back by factors ranging from
culture to childcare and a lack of confidence, says
Count Me In for Women's Economic Independence.
"There's this group called the missing middle," says
entrepreneur and women's advocate Nell Merlino,
citing U.S. Census data. "There are a lot of women
who would like to grow their business; we found they
weren't sure how to do it."
The need for financing and a support network of like-
minded women business owners were the catalysts
for Count Me In's Make Mine a Million $ Business
initiative, a nationwide contest begun in 2005 by
Merlino, who is known for creating Take Our
Daughters to Work Day.
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| In Europe, Women Finding More Seats at the Table |
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From
New York Times
As the homeland of strong female figures, from former
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland to the character
Nora in "A Doll's House," Norway seemed the natural
place for a law requiring companies to fill 40 percent
of corporate board seats with women by 2008.
The country has met the goal since the law's passage
in 2003, in part through the efforts of people like Elin
Hurvenes, the founder of the Professional Board
Forum, which helps women meet the institutional and
wealthy investors who have a say when it comes to
picking Norway's boards.
Some companies have embraced the change.
Domstein, a seafood company that never had a
woman on its board, named Hanne Refsholt, the chief
executive of Norway's largest cooperative dairy, as its
chairman.
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| Nooyi Honoured With Business Leadership Award |
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From Hindustan
Times
PepsiCo chief Indra Nooyi has become the first
woman to receive the prestigious Peterson Business
Award, given biennially for outstanding business
leadership.
Chennai-born Nooyi was given the award at an event
on Thursday in Greenwich, her hometown in
Connecticut, in the presence of hundreds of business
and community leaders.
Yale University president Richard Levin presented the
award to Nooyi, a graduate of the Yale School of
Management who now serves on the university's
governing board.
Nooyi is the sixth recipient of the award named by the
Greenwich Library after Clementine Lockwood
Peterson, who in 1992 gave a $25 million (Rs.1
billion) bequest to the library.
"Lots of people have lessons to teach you," Nooyi said
at the event, as reported by The Advocate, a
Connecticut paper.
She particularly mentioned her family and upbringing
with helping to prepare for the business world.
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| Want to End War? Give Women Leaders a Chance |
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From Alternet
In "Lysistrata," the ancient Greek comedy by
Aristophanes, women demand peace by withholding
sex until their husbands agree to stop the
Peloponnesian war. In the modern era, many of us --
women and men alike -- demand that women have an
equal place in decisions to wage war or peace,
historically moving from bedroom "girlcott" to calling
the shots, literally. Alas, we are far away from
achieving control over matters of war or peace in the
halls of power.
One of the yearnings of my heart as a women's rights
activist has been to get a critical mass of women in
positions where we can demand the "boys" put down
their bombs and guns. Enough bang, boom, bang,
boys! Move over, you've screwed up the world and now
it's our turn to see if we can not only do better but
clean up your mess. But how do we get a "tipping
point" -- enough women into power in a culture that
deeply mistrusts, and often despises, peaceful
people? It's one of those Catch 22s. (A "Catch 22" as
defined by Merriam-Webster, is "a problematic
situation for which the only solution is denied by a
circumstance inherent in the problem or by a rule.") In
this case, more women leaders are our hope for
peace -- but in order to trust them they need to be
warriors, not pacifists. Get out of THAT little catch.
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| Women Face Bias Worldwide |
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From BBC News
Women are discriminated against in almost every
country around the world, a UN-commissioned report
says.
It says that this is despite the fact that 185 UN
member states pledged to outlaw laws favouring men
by 2005.
It adds that 70% of the world's poor are women and
they own just 1% of the world's titled land.
The report, which was prepared for UN Human Right
Commissioner Louise Arbour, says rape within
marriage has still not been made a crime in 53
nations.
The report was compiled by Fareda Banda, a law
professor at London's School of Oriental and African
Studies (SOAS).
At a news conference in Geneva, Prof Banda said that
other laws discriminating women included statutes on
divorce, maternity benefits and pensions.
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| Event: Leadership for Today and Tomorrow |
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The American Association of University Women
(AAUW) Leadership and Training Institute and
NASPA's Center for Scholarship, Research, and
Professional Development for Women are excited to
present Leadership for Today and Tomorrow, a two-
and-a-half day conference focused on important and
contemporary leadership issues. NCCWSL is a
perfect conference to help you hone your leadership
skills for your work on campus and in your community.
Click here to learn more!
4/18 - Early-
bird registration 4/18 - Scholarship application
5/28 - Regular registration
Click on any of these dates to register today!
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Interview with Nora Linville, Director of Women's Sales and Marketing, American Airlines |
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Can you describe your job for us?
My role of Director of Women's Sales and
Marketing was created in March 2006. One of my
colleagues in corporate communications who had a
passion for women's causes was keeping up on
trends in the women's market and began paying
attention to what other companies were doing in this
arena. She started asking questions internally. How
many of our passengers are women? How many are
frequent fliers? Subsequently, one of our VP of Sales,
another women's advocate, began doing research
into the marketplace, talked to several marketing
gurus and basically determined we were missing out
on a real opportunity. She found that no airline had
specifically claimed the space of women travelers.
Soon after, my position was created and that same
year we also launched a diverse segment marketing
team to bring the focus of diversity to the business unit
with the goal of integrating segment marketing. My
role is to facilitate and focus the company's efforts
towards women travelers.
What do you like best about this?
I get to facilitate the connections of
incredible women doing incredible things. I work a lot
with women's business organizations and the spirit of
comaraderie among these women is amazing. To
work with a group that asks "How can I help?"
knowing that business will grow from that connection
is really empowering and rewarding. Empowering
women as they travel is wonderful.
What women inspire you?
My mother, number one, who struggled
with health issues all her life, but had such a love for
life and a natural curiosity. All you had to say to her
was "would you like to?" and she would say yes! I
also had a high school Spanish teacher who taught
the joys of learning and living more than simply the
language and focused on different cultures. She
introduced to me to a whole world out there waiting to
be explored.
You must travel a lot! Where are your favorite
destinations?
Sydney is incredible. I love Europe, Italy
especially. China was fascinating. A highlight was
trudging up the Great Wall of China and imagining the
number of people and work it took to build this
amazing structure. An inspiring trip I took recently was
to Dubai and Oman where I was evaluating a
women's travel club - an organization that puts
together trips just for women. There were 18 women
of all ages and it was founded by a woman who was
tired of her husband not wanting to go where she
wanted to go on vacation. So she decided to start a
company that catered to women with the same
interest that needed other people to travel with.
What advice do you have for women in business?
Learn as much as you can about the
company you work for, the industry you're in, and your
competitors. The power of relationships is so
important. Your network can provide access to
endless opportunities and information and it makes
your work experience fullfilling, especially when you
share a history. Seek out people you admire and ask
them to mentor you, it's invaluable.
How did you get started doing this?
My background all relates to travel. In my
20's, I had broken my ankle skiing and had time to
think about what I wanted to do with my career. I was
reading the Sunday paper and saw an ad for a travel
agent school and I knew that's what I wanted to do. I
completed the travel agent program and never looked
back. I started off as a travel counselor and then
worked for a hotel chain and car rental agency and
eventually ended up working for AirCal which was
purchased by American Airlines in 1987. I moved to
the Dallas Ft. Worth area and started in reservations.
Since then, I've held numerous positions of
increasing responsibility in several departments
including reservations, human resources and
passenger sales. When the women's position
became available, I jumped at the opportunity to lead
this initiative.
What is your favorite movie?
Some Like It Hot
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Brought to you by the Younger Women at YWTF
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