Staying Strong – Coleen Clare

Dear Friends and Supporters,

It has been a troubled time for the natural world and again we have been saddened by events such as the floods in Pakistan and earthquakes in China.  It is hard to think of all that suffering but if each of us continues to give and work as we are able we know that in our work in the Asia-Pacific will help build stronger communities and better lives for the women we support.   IWDA remains a committed member of ACFID (Australian Council for International Development) and recently has been delighted to contribute to their strategic planning and support the work of the national peak body and our colleagues – many of whom are working in afflicted regions.

It  has been delightful to be able to contribute to the work of IWDA at the momentous time of turning 25 and to accept the formal patronage of Her Excellency the Governor General Quentin Bryce who hosted an event at Admiralty House and to participate in our more informal 25th Birthday Party here in Melbourne.  We have all read with interest the wonderful “Her story Panels” showcasing the work of IWDA over 25 years and revelled in the beautiful craft exhibition that our supporters have donated.  The pieces demonstrate some of the “heart” of our work as individuals and groups, new and old, have taken out their craft boxes and worked together with fabulous creativity.  It is hard to single out individuals to thank as there are too many – but nothing would have happened without the volunteers, interns, workers, staff and donors.  I have been humbled in the last month by witnessing first-hand the amount of love, support and true and honest feedback that comes to IWDA.

This week we participated in the UN DPI NGO Conference and debated with thousands of other advocates and workers how we can advance work towards the achievement of the millennium goals.  We are also pleased to have welcomed Dame Carol Kidu to bring her deep wisdom to discussions with supporters and staff at IWDA.

You will be interested to know that there has been a keen interest in the Executive Director position at IWDA and I am confident that the right person will be found to take IWDA forward into the next few years.

My sincere best wishes to you all and I look forward to hearing from you at any  time.

Coleen Clare

Acting Executive Director

International Women’s Development Agency

Tags: "ed message", iwda, News, Newsletter

This entry was posted on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 under Recent.