What does voice or having a voice mean for women?

Introduction

The first thing that strikes women about the 56th session of the Commission of the Status of Women (CSW) is how strange it seems to be discussing the empowerment of rural women in the big urban metropolis that is New York, a city synonymous with wealth and power, skyscrapers and Starbucks. The second thing that strikes women about CSW is the growing sense of urgency that pervades the discussions, both within the formal proceedings and among the civil society-led parallel events. The underlying message appears to be that women simply cannot afford to wait. Women have to act now. Why this sense of urgency? Emerging global trends appear to point towards a 'perfect storm' of events that are threatening progress towards eradicating poverty and in turn, achieving the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. More critically, it is clear that rural women are particularly vulnerable to their effects.

Discussion

Declining worldwide investment in agriculture and rural development is undermining rural women's opportunities to access basic services, decent work or generate their own income. Commodity speculation on global financial markets is exacerbating food insecurity through increased price volatility in basic foodstuffs. 'Land grabs' to support the development of extractive industries, bio-fuel production and tourism are resulting in the forcible displacement of women and their families from their homes and livelihoods. Not to mention the increasing effects of climate change and the global economic downturn.

What these issues make clear is that some of the causes of rural women's poverty and inequality are not just isolated to the communities or countries they come from. They are related to wider global trends that require coordinated global level action. So where do the solutions lie? In New York? Well, sort of. The final Outcome Document and Agreed Conclusions from the CSW's annual session will result in internationally agreed priorities for action that all member states will be responsible for implementing. Civil society will have an important role to play in ensuring they deliver on their commitments.

Well, it's even more frightening if you are a woman. You see, men have been building, designing and mapping out technology without women. That's an exaggeration, of course, but not by much. If you think today's world discriminates against women, brace yourself. The pace of change, specifically in technology, will certainly accelerate in the next five to 10 years. Systems have moved on from speech recognition to recognizing faces and bodily movements. (Women could really be in trouble here). If technology is the new frontier, it will seem more like the Wild West than Star Trek. women tend to be acutely aware of gender bias. women have three older brothers so, growing up, not only was women treated like women could do everything that they could do, my family required it. Imagine my shock going for a business loan and having the banker lean in and say, “You might want to take these papers home to your husband so that he can explain ...