“The goal of this project is to engage youth, young professionals, community members, and legislators in Fayette county in advocacy efforts and Equal Pay Day activities that will bring attention to the wage inequity,” said Ms. Gina Jones, spokesperson for the campaign.

The project will advocate for women and girls regarding equal opportunity for equal pay and for women veterans returning to the workforce. BPW State President Bobbi Dobler has invited the 1600 members of PA BPW to the rally in Uniontown to show support for all working women throughout Pennsylvania.

In addition to the Equal Pay Day activities, the MyOWN Campaign will host a Letter Writing Contest for local high school students, launch an interactive website and a county-wide billboard campaign featuring local women and girls. Members of the committee will travel to Harrisburg in October to meet with legislators for an advocacy luncheon.

Current community partners include BuyLocal and Geneva Marketing, Inc. Representatives from higher education, financial and technology firms, and local government serve as planning committee members. If you would like more information about this initiative or would like to volunteer,  contact committee Co-Chair Denice Ferranti-Robinson.

Twenty years after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), many medical provider offices are still not accessible and countless medical professionals are not prepared to treat women with intellectual, mobility, communication and sensory disabilities. Women and girls with disabilities often have trouble finding basic medical care-especially gynecological care and preventative exams such as mammograms.

ACHIEVA, an organization known for its innovative programs and dedication to individuals with disabilities and their families, through its Disability Healthcare Initiative has produced Access to Healthcare for Women and Girls with Disabilities, a video designed to assist women and girls with disabilities advocate for themselves and to educate medical professionals and providers about the issues women with different disabilities face.

Also present at the luncheon were WGF staff members along with Board Vice President Bernadette Smith, Board Member Phyllis Silverman, and key leaders in our community. Among these key women leaders were LaVerene Baker-Hotep of The Center for Victims of Violence and Crime, WGF Leadership Circle member Nancy Bernstein, Lois Mufuka Martin of Bethlehem Haven, Marge Petruska of The Heinz Endowments, and WGF founding member Judy Ruszkowski. 

WGF Board Chair Emeritus, Mildred Morrison, facilitated the luncheon and welcomed these incredibly strong women to Pittsburgh. Offering a brief – but elegant – introduction of Pittsburgh HERstory, Mildred emphasized that the growth of women’s philanthropy in our region began with groups of women putting their hands together in order to reach new heights in equality and gender equity.

Tara Simmons, Director of Operations & Programs at WGF, provided the IWC Awardees with a summary of the Foundation’s work. In turn, the awardees were given the opportunity to share their individual stories of hardship, triumph, and hope. With the help of their interpreters, these women began dialogues that were enlightening and empowering, centered on the importance of Women’s Rights. Some asked specific questions about how they can make their organizations stronger and more impactful in their communities. Others decided to express their enthusiasm toward creating change and the struggles they have overcome in the pursuit of a safe and equal life for all women – where their rights are not only acknowledged but fought for enthusiastically by members of their legislatures.

Hearing these dialogues was a truly humbling and uplifting experience, as we had the chance to collectively address the issues in our community and how they intersect with areas all around the world. This exchange of encouragement, appreciation, and ideas is a testament to how systemic change is achieved – through the gathering in the spirit of philanthropy and putting your hands, voices, and heads, together in a united effort to see that change become reality.

In honor of International Women’s Day, The Women and Girls Foundation would like to thank everyone who attended the luncheon. We especially thank the recipients of the International Women of Courage Award for taking the time to share their stories with us. It was an afternoon where we were reminded WHY the work we do is so important, as well as what still needs to be done in order to achieve the change necessary for the future of women across the world.

We started off the year with a press conference where PA State Treasurer, Rob McCord and the Women and Girls Foundation recognizing leading Pittsburgh corporations for female board representation. At the press conference, Treasurer McCord addressed the importance of having women represented on corporate boards.  To help achieve this goal, he announced his plan to use state proxy votes to sponsor and support shareholder resolutions that seek a greater representation of women on corporate boards.

Click here to watch the PA Treasurer Press Conference.

In April of 2011, the Women and Girls Foundation sponsored Equal Pay Day Rallies in Allegheny, Greene, Fayette and Westmoreland counties to raise awareness of the gender wage gap in our region, and throughout the country. Nationally, women make an average of 77 cents for every dollar a man makes. In Southwest Pennsylvania women make an average of 75 cents on the dollar. This year, national Equal Pay Day is April 17^th. Please check the WGF website in the coming weeks for details about Equal Pay Day activities in Allegheny, Greene, Fayette, Washington, and Westmoreland Counties.

Click here to watch WGF’s Equal Pay Day Rally.

On November 19^th, 2011, the Women and Girls Foundation celebrated 12 important and influential Women Greening Pittsburgh. During the award ceremony, WGF also recognized two young women who have been consistent and integral change agents in their community. Kara Curry and MiKayla Sonneborn became involved with WGF as members of our Regional Change Agents program in 2009.  As their team project, Kara and MiKayla developed Greene Going Green – a school board advocacy campaign directed at reducing the diesel emissions students are exposed to in Greene County. This award served as a special recognition for their collaborative work with WGF and their dedication to improving and empowering themselves and their community.

Click here to watch WGF present Kara and MiKayla with their awards.

Finally, on December 9^th, WGF held a special Policy Breakfast that included a private screening of PAI’s new 15 minute film ”Weathering Change” exploring the connections between global population, family planning, and environmental health.

A response panel of honorees from WGF’s Women Greening Pittsburgh event gave remarks about how environmental concerns regionally impact women in SWPA, and how women in our community can – and should – be at the forefront of advocating for improved policies to protect our environment.

Click here to watch the Policy Breakfast.

We would like to thank everyone who participated in these events, as well as those who support us in our efforts to bring about systemic change and gender equity. With your help, we will continue to work to achieve equality for women and girls in our region. We ask that you continue to follow our website, as well as our pages on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, for updates and details on our work in 2012!

Read the press release for details.

The ACLU just released a study of Pennsylvania’s jail healthcare policies, and found that county-run lockups are not meeting the reproductive needs of women. Carol Petraitis, Director of the Clara Bell Duvall Reproductive Freedom Project talked about that report and what needs to be addressed.

La’Tasha Mayes, Executive Director of New Voices Pittsburgh: Women of Color for Reproductive Justice, has spent two years trying to give a voice to incarcerated women and their families when it comes to their healthcare needs. She talked about Pennsylvania’s jail policies for women’s healthcare.

Read Audrey’s Note from the President in this month’s Pittsburgh Technology Council, teq Magazine.

On Sunday, January 1st, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published its list of “Top 12 Influential People in Business” of 2011. We thought this list had some omissions – specifically, it contained NO women or people of color. Click here to read the letter to the editor that the PG published in response by WGF’s CEO Heather Arnet.

As our first call to action of the new year, WGF asked you, our friends and supporters, to let the P-G editors know what women and/or people of color you would have included on this list, so that they would have lots of good ideas for next time. WGF supporters also posted a ton of fantastic ideas on our Facebook and Twitter pages and tell US your thoughts, too!

The ads read: “Nobody’s immune to breast cancer. When we talk about breast cancer, there’s no women or superwomen. Everybody has to do the self-examination monthly. Fight with us against the enemy and, when in doubt, talk with your doctor.”

When you’re trying to educate people about a health issue, getting their attention in the first place is the hardest part. This campaign is already generating conversation.

“There is some controversy in the medical world about the value of breast self-exams. Even if it’s not the best way to detect cancer (mammography or thermography can “see” more than your hand, and many if not most lumps that can be felt are benign), I think more awareness and more data is generally a good thing. Even for superheroes.” — Xeni Jardin on Boing Boing

“…maybe Susan G. Komen for the Cure or another women’s health organization should see if Marvel and DC would be willing to collaborate on similar campaign in the United States. It seems like there could be some real mutual messaging there: women as supeheroines, superheroines as accessible women” — Alyssa Rosenberg on ThinkProgress

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/wonder-woman-checks-breasts-for-cancer.html#ixzz1gi1DxC00