International Federation of University Women

International Federation of University Women (IFUW) is an international organization for female university graduates. It was founded in the wake of the First World War by both British and North American college and university workers who were hoping to contribute to congenial relations between women of different nationalities and to improve general education for women.[1] The organization describes its mission as one of promoting "lifelong education for women and girls" along with "international cooperation, friendship, peace and respect for human rights for all, irrespective of their gender, age, race, nationality, religion, political opinion, gender and sexual orientation or other status" and "advocating for the advancement of the status of women and girls".[2]

History

In the aftermath of World War I, Dean Virginia Gildersleeve of Barnard College, Professor Caroline Spurgeon of the University of London and Rose Sidgwick of the University of Birmingham created the federation to help prevent another catastrophe such as the recent war in Europe. In 1919, the IFUW was founded in London. Besides promoting peace, the advancement of careers for women in university formed a major objective for the organization and it created fellowships and promoted the founding of women's clubhouses where women could stay during research visits overseas.[1]

IFUW today

IFUW is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and advocates for women’s rights, equality and empowerment through access to quality secondary and tertiary education, and training up to the highest levels. The organization's work is centred on Secondary Education, Tertiary Education, Continuing Education and Non-conventional Education to empower women for .

The IFUW has 61 national affiliates. The organization has special consultative status with the United Nations and with ECOSOC and is an NGO maintaining official relations with UNESCO. It advocates actively within the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), and is also a founding member of the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). CEDAW is the most comprehensive international agreement on the human rights of women. It calls for states to eliminate all forms of discrimination on the basis of gender and sets an agenda for achieving full equality between women and men.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Goodman, Joyce (November 2011). "International citizenship and the International Federation of University Women before 1939". History of Education 40 (6): 701–721. doi:10.1080/0046760x.2011.598469.
  2. ↑ "IFUW homepage". Retrieved 6 February 2013.

External links