Dear Bpw, dear readers,
Summer is in full swing and we are looking back on an intense first half of 2023.
Here is a brief overview of what awaits you in this newsletter:
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Review of the 2023 Assembly of Delegates
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Politics: 2023 elections – Call for all candidates from the ranks of BPW
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BPW Europe: review of the Presidents' Meeting, the Young BPW Symposium, and the General Assembly in Brussels, 28/29 April, 2023
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Young BPW
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LENA Scholarship Fund: update and a great raffle
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Campaign Women into the Executive Levels
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Events in late summer 2023
Review of the 2023 Assembly of Delegates
On 2 and 3 June, 2023, around 200 BPWs, prospective members, and guests gathered in Langenthal for the 76th BPW Switzerland Assembly of Delegates!
The first participants arrived on Friday evening at the traditional Alumnae Meeting for current and former club presidents, past presidents of BPW Switzerland, and Central Executive Committee members. The theme of the evening was “Who are we and where do we want to go?”, as an association, as clubs, and as committed BPWs. Brigitte Ramseier presented the results of the member survey, which she collected as part of her CAS thesis. It quickly became clear that the topic was of interest and challenges for BPW had been identified.
On Saturday morning, we continued with four workshops, conducted by members of the Central Executive Committee and an external speaker. In addition to the recurring annual business, Claudine Esseiva was confirmed as co-president for one year and Andrea Bläsi and Myriam Heidelberger Kaufmann were confirmed as members of the BPW Switzerland Central Executive Committee for another two years at the Delegates' Meeting.
In addition, revised regulations such as the collective member, corporate member, and business regulations were adopted and the course set for the delegation at the BPW International 2024 congress.
The weekend was rounded off with a fabulous gala dinner with musical accompaniment and speeches in honor of the 25th anniversary of BPW Club Oberaargau.
Politics
2023 national elections
The year 2023 is all about the national elections and the “Helvetia ruft” campaign. BPW will again feature “its” candidates in the Courrier, on its website, and on social media, regardless of which party they are running for. If you are running as a candidate, please provide your name and contact details to the Central Office until July 12 2023.
Current gender equality issues
But there's also a lot of other things going on in the world of politics. We took part in the consultations on individual taxation, played an active role in the revision of the second pillar, campaigned for parliamentary approval of the bill for increased federal funding for childcare costs, and equal pay remains an evergreen issue. In this regard, we are eager to see how the Council of States reacts to the National Council's approval of National Councilor Lorenz Hess's motion calling for sanctions for companies that do not comply with equal pay.
Text: Claudine Esseiva and Brigitte Ramseier
BPW Europe
Presidents' Meeting, the Young BPW Symposium, and the General Assembly in Brussels
On 28 and 29 April 2023, BPWs from all over Europe gathered in Brussels for the annual Presidents' Meeting and the Young BPW Symposium. All reports on the event can be found here in the BPW Europe newsletter.
Kauanne Wisard from the Zurich BPW Club, who was awarded the sponsorship for the BPW Europe Day and the 10th Young BPW Symposium by BPW Switzerland, was also present. The report demonstrates how BPWs can benefit from international experience. Click here to read the full report in English.
2024 BPW International Congress in Mar del Plata, Argentina, November 17-21, 2024
Mar del Plata, BPW Argentina, and BPW International cordially invite you to the 31st BPW International Congress. Would you like to be part of the official Swiss delegation? Write up your cover letter (in English) and CV and have your president send it to myriam.heidelberger@bpw.ch by 31 July, 2023.
Duties of an official delegate:
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Understanding and speaking English.
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Taking part in preparatory meetings in Switzerland (video conference)
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Attending the official meetings and workshops during the BPW International Congress ,17 – 21 November, 2024, as well as daily delegation meetings.
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Attending the entire duration of the General Assembly of BPW International.
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Playing an active role in the Swiss delegation by familiarizing herself with the content, taking part in discussions and decision-making, and supporting the president of BPW Switzerland in networking.
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Active involvement in the documentation of the conference, during and after the conference.
Official delegates will receive travel expenses of up to CHF 2,000 / person.
Due to the decision of the General Assembly of BPW Switzerland, the delegation will be constituted as follows (apart from the president, Co-Director, and an international board member of BPW Switzerland):
I am looking forward to receiving many applications and having a fantastic time together in Mar del Plata!
Text: Myriam Heidelberger-Kaufmann
Young BPW
From Canva trainings, to the 10th Young BPW Symposium in Brussels (click here for the Young BPW reports), to the ‘Pimp Your LinkedIn’ workshop at the Delegates' Meeting, the first half of 2023 was very eventful for the Youngs! And the excitement is not over yet - the next Young BPW Workshop - “What you can do when things get dicey” - will be all about the topic of violence prevention and self-defense with Top Linkedin Voices 2022 and martial artist Tanja Mäder and is part of the Thun BPW Club's supporting program. The event is open to all BPW members and external guests and is supported by the Lab Hotel.
Program:
Friday, 18/08/2023 from 18:00: summer evening with dinner in the middle of the Stockhorn Arena Thun, overnight stay at the Lab Hotel,
Saturday, 19/0908/2023 from 10:00: workshop in the Lab Hotel and then lunch at the beach by Lake Thun and lounge boat trip.
Click here to register for the dinner on 18/08/2023 and here to register for the Young BPW Workshop on 19/08/2023.
Text: Sheerah Kim
The LENA Scholarship Fund: strategic thinking and a great raffle!
In mid-May, the LENA Committee got together for a strategy meeting at the Central Office in Bern. The main topic was the future fundraising strategy and how it could be implemented. The level of awareness of the project is increasing and we are receiving numerous applications that deserve to be considered. On the other hand, however, the future is financially uncertain: in order to get the project off the ground again and keep it going, funding urgently needs to be secured. We would therefore like to thank all BPWs and BPW clubs and all donors who are supporting the project again this year! If you would like to find out more about the project and how to support it, you can find all the information here.
In addition, we are delighted to be holding a great raffle to raise funds for the LENA Scholarship Fund once again at this year's autumn conference! Tickets are now available to purchase. You can find all the information about the prizes and the conditions of participation here. We would like to thank everyone who donated prizes for their generous support!
And this year, we were able to support another scholarship holder in successfully completing her education. Ms. P. submitted her master's thesis in Development Studies at IHEID in Geneva at the end of the summer semester. Huge congratulations to her!
Text: Sandra Fröhlich and Linda Herzog-Mayer
Campaign Women into the Executive Levels
Rochester-Bern Executive Programs - Leadership & Inclusion training
In June, our partner organization Rochester-Bern launched a training course focusing on improving communication, strengthening leadership, and promoting diversity. The 12-day course includes a leadership simulation, as well as coaching and mentoring activities. Our esteemed Co-President Sandra Jauslin will be designing a session for the latter, focusing on challenges and opportunities in the mentoring process. Want to find out more? Further information on the program with a CAS certificate from the University of Bern and the application formalities can be found here: CAS Leadership & Inclusion
In an interview with Rochester Bern, Sandra Jauslin explains why mentoring is an underestimated management tool and why reverse mentoring is a win-win situation for everyone. You can read the article here.
Text: Nadine Heuberger and Linda Herzog-Mayer
Upcoming events
9 August, 2023, Bern BPW Club, panel discussion with candidates for the National Council and the Council of States
A panel discussion with candidates for the National Council and the Council of States, moderated by Ladina Spiess. The event is open to the public and will be taking place in the Kursaal Bern. Find all the information here.
18 August 2023: BPW Club Thun invites you to the Stockhorn Arena
A joint dinner in the Stockhorn Arena Thun in a special atmosphere with music by Fabienne Hostettler and band. You can find all the information and how to register here.
19 August 2023: Young BPW workshop with Tanja Mäder
The event in the Stockhorn Arena will be rounded off with a Young BPW supporting program the next day. The event is open to all BPW members and external guests and is supported by the Lab Hotel.
TOPIC: IT'S UP TO YOU - DISCOVER YOUR POWER! MENTAL RESILIENCE AND WHAT YOU CAN DO WHEN THINGS GET DICEY
24 August, 2023, Online Empowerment Talk as part of the campaign Women into the Executive levels
Pensions are also a women's issue. When is the right time to think about your personal pension plan? The earlier the better. In principle, pensions are an issue that affects everyone, because there are various circumstances that can jeopardize your financial freedom in old age. We cordially invite you to another Empowerment Talk as part of our campaign “Women into the Executive levels” on 24 August, 2023. The event will be conducted online in German and is free to attend. Click here to register.
29 August 2023, Gender Pension Gap 2.0 - A panel discussion by BPW Club Luzern
BPW Club Luzern is running a panel discussion on the Gender Pension Gap on 29/08/2023. Women have significantly fewer pension assets in old age. The event offers fascinating current insights on occupational pension plans from the world of both economics and politics and shows participants the prospects for their own pensions. The event will take place in the Verkehrshaus Luzern. You can find all the information here.
14 October 2023, Save the Date for the 2023 Annual Conference of the NGO Koordination post Beijing Schweiz
This year's conference will be dedicated to the theme of “Digitalization and Equality”.
21 October, 2023, Save the Date for this year's autumn conference in Lenzburg
All information, as well as the official invitation, will follow soon.
Internal news
The Central Office of BPW Switzerland will be taking a summer break from 12 July, 2023, until 1 August, 2023. We will be available again by phone and on site from 2 August, 2023.
We wish you all lovely summer days and cozy summer evenings and look forward to meeting lots of you at one of our events.
Kind regards,
The Central Executive Committee and the Central Office of BPW Switzerland
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