Our gift to you – ICRW’s top 10 moments of 2014!

Article Date

31 December 2014

Article Author

Robin Gardner

Media Contact

Anne McPherson

Vice President, Global Communications email [email protected]

It’s been another incredible year for ICRW’s research and advocacy, as we continued our mission to raise the profile and wellbeing of women and girls around the globe. Our successes and accomplishments are thanks to the many generous supporters who make our work possible. Today, this final day of 2014, we’d like to share just a sample of those special moments with you, as our way of saying thank you for helping us create a brighter future for women and girls!

1. Our brand new blog – Gender Lens: the people, places and perspectives is now live! It has a clean, modern look and feel, is easy to navigate, and allows us to feature our content in a dynamic way as well as better share our multimedia sources.

A big year for adolescent girls – ICRW was at the forefront of global conversations, raising awareness about the need to invest in adolescent girls and end child marriage.

2.  ICRW was featured in TIME Magazine for a special event we co-hosted alongside the US Africa Summit, focused on ending child marriage

3. Ms. Magazine Blog featured an eye-opening article from ICRW on the fact that suicide is now the leading cause of death among adolescent girls aged 15-19.

4. One of the first institutes to call attention to the stigma and discrimination that HIV-positive women and men experience, ICRW led a global working group that was successful in advocating for the inclusion of three new indicators for measuring HIV-related stigma in global HIV surveillance and reporting systems. The inclusion of these indicators will considerably raise the profile of stigma and discrimination as a critical issue for battling HIV globally.

In 2014, ICRW continued to play an integral role in engaging men and boys in ending sexual violence against women. ICRW’s research made waves across the developing world as issues around gender-based violence were featured in the media more than ever before.

5. ICRW and UNFPA’s groundbreaking findings, released at the MenEngage Global Symposium, helped change the conversation around the way women experience violence in their homes and at the hands of partners and spouses. The findings were reported by media around the world, including the Times of India, The Wall Street Journal, the Guardian, the BBC, and dozens of small newspapers from Saudi Arabia to Pakistan .

6. On the last day of the 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence, the Guardian covered the continued prevalence of violence against women in India, highlighting the recently launched ICRW/UNFA report, and ARO’s Ravi Verma wrote an OpEd for the brand-new Huffington Post India.

ICRW continued to increase our presence and influence in the UK and European development sphere, by participating in and holding events throughout the year in London.

7. In March, ICRW co-hosted a briefing to discuss the epidemic of violence against women and girls, as well as solutions to this global problem, with the United Nations Women All Party Parliamentary Group in the House of Lords, with members of Parliament, their staff, and members of civil society in attendance.

8. In June, ICRW hosted a discussion and workshop that showcased efforts aiming to shift gender norms and attitudes that underlie sexual violence in conflict and post-conflict areas. The event was part of the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict.

ICRW contributed greatly to strengthening the evidence base and case for women’s economic empowerment. Through the release of several reports, ICRW brought attention to the importance of investing in women and girls.

9. ICRW hosted it’s 9th International Women’s Day celebration with a Passports to Progress panel, focused on How Investing in Adolescent Girls Today Will Pay Off Tomorrow, and released initial findings from our evaluation of a conditional cash transfer program in India created to prevent child marriage and increase girls’ value in society.

10. ICRW continued to expand our research efforts in new countries across the developing world, kicking off projects in Myanmar, Lebanon, Jordan, Afghanistan and Timor Leste.

Be part of finding solutions to end child marriage, or developing strategies to engage men in ending violence against women, or end stigma against HIV-positive women; make a gift TODAY in support of ICRW’s research and advocacy and be our partner in creating a brighter, more equitable world for women and girls.

Until midnight TONIGHT, all gifts will be matched 2:1 by our generous Board of Directors!