Lighting the Flame: Norfolk Women Reaching Women International Women's Day (IWD)

Guest blog written by Mary Dorrell, Chairman of Norfolk Federation PR Sub Committee, Digital Team Leader & Web Editor 

How often do we say "my back is killing me?" I thought about this recently, in Tanzania, when I witnessed so many back breaking jobs as women went about their daily tasks.

Back home and hoping for signs of spring, it is time to think about planting out my cabbages. Maybe not yet, but on the shores of Lake Victoria vegetables are planted on a two-month rotation, so there is always a crop to harvest as well as one to plant. The soil is rich, but water is difficult to bring to the fields. As a man moved the hose-pipe from plot to plot, the women carrying buckets on their heads, wanted to stop and chat, "You are welcome in our village". Women at work, building a sense of community. The cabbages being planted, I noticed, look much like ours; but the hazards are different. We were warned to expect a noisy night if elephants from the nearby Serengeti had to be chased off and I saw footprints across the fields from Africa's deadliest animal, the hippopotamus. But none of the locals expected the 15 foot python we chanced upon whilst walking through the reed beds and which horrified them; as well as providing an obvious explanation of the goat that had gone missing.

The welcome had been the same when we stood in line to join the Maasai women singing, days earlier. They taught me how to flip or toss the traditional women's Maasai collar (the action, it turns out, is in the shoulders, not the bosom). A useful skill now I am back in Norfolk? The Norfolk Women Reaching Women community has been preparing for Norfolk's 2018 International Woman's Day. In many countries IWD, March 8th, is the day when mothers are given flowers and in some countries it is a public holiday.  This year, thanks to Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse, we are combined the event with our traditional flower-giving day: Mothering Sunday, March 11th.

Consisting of over a dozen organisations; NWRW is convened by Norfolk Federation WIs and we have celebrated International Women's Day and Norfolk's equality and diversity together for some years. Amongst over twenty organisations, we include: the WI, Mother's Union, Soroptimists, Norwich Dedza Partnership and the Daisy Project. This year's event was called "Lighting the Flame" with an educational theme that is both a UN sustainable development goal and part of the WI aim to offer a wide range of learning opportunities. “Girls who see the flame lit by their mothers will one day light the fire for their own children.” said Patience Unazi of Diversity Plus, who had hand crafted items on sale as well as entertaining us with African story telling.

Our Keynote Speaker was Janet Clark of Gambian Aid Through Education, another local charity, that helps some of the poorest people in Africa by selling their handicrafts. "By helping the women in The Gambia we can get more children into education which is the path from poverty." Other locally based charities included The Freedom Charity working to prevent FGM in UK and organisations working with Norfolk women who have low self esteem: “This is a fantastic opportunity to network with other women’s organisations.” Mandy Proctor CEO, Leeway.

Part of the annual Mothering Sunday event,  Miriam Burroughs, of Gressenhall, told us: "The spring flowers are coming into bloom so spend some precious time together exploring our 50 acre site. There were activities for the whole family including stalls, crafts, talks, singing and story-telling. There was also be a chance to look behind the scenes at the Norfolk Collections Centre. And in the Mardlers’ Rest Café, a treat awaied with a free cream tea for all mothers!"

Much of what mothers and women do, around the world is back-breaking, but on this day over 20 organisations met together today, in friendship and sisterhood.

·      It was good to meet old friends and new.

·      It was good to hear familiar tales and new.

·      It was good to see connections being made and remade.

Let us continue to support each other in future endeavours!

Many thanks Gressenhall for their generosity of time and effort.

Thank-you, so much, everyone.

Participants in Norfolk IWD 2018

NORFOLK WOMEN REACHING WOMEN (NWRW)

Norfolk Federation of Women's Institutes (Conveners)

Associated Country Women of the World

Daisy Programme

Diversity Plus

Equal Lives

Freedom Charity

Gambian Aid Through Education

Girlguiding Norfolk

Leeway

Mothers' Union

NCC Domestic Abuse Co-ordinator

Norwich Dedza

Nurtured Naturally

Samia Malik

School Readers

Soroptimists

Women Against State Pension Inequality

Women's Equality Party

Women's International League of Peace and Freedom

Woodcraft Folk

Launching the Great Food Debates II: Food Poverty

The NFWI ‘s public affairs team write about the launch of the Great Food Debates II, which focuses on food poverty, and the new toolkit to help members organise food poverty debates.

Last week we launched the Great Food Debates II with an event in Parliament. The audience, who came from across the UK, bravely battled their way through the snow to attend a fascinating discussion on how we can work to stop food poverty in the United Kingdom.

The Great Food Debates II form the second phase of the Food Matters campaign, and follow on from the first Great Food Debate, which saw WIs and county federations organise over a hundred food discussion events to consider the issue of the country’s food security.

Lynne Stubbings with panellists Denise Bentley, Prof. Liz Dowler,
Carmel McConnell MBE, and Ann Jones

At the launch event Lynne Stubbings, NFWI Chair, chaired a panel of inspiring speakers, including Frank Field MP DL, Chair of the House of Commons’ Work and Pensions Select Committee.

The other members of the panel were: Ann Jones, Public Affairs Chair of the NFWI; Denise Bentley, founder of the First Love Foundation, which runs the Tower Hamlets food bank; Prof Liz Dowler, a highly respected academic on the issue of food poverty; and Carmel McConnell MBE, founder and CEO of Magic Breakfast.

We were also happy to welcome a number of parliamentarians to the event, including Emma Lewell-Buck MP who told us about her bill currently going through Parliament, which would require the Government to measure household food insecurity. Our thanks also go to Ruth George MP, Sandy Martin MP, and Baroness Lister for joining us and contributing to the discussion.

Ann Jones, Public Affairs Chair of the NFWI, responded on behalf of the WI and outlined the plan of action.

A quote from Ann Jones at the launch in Parliament 

As Ann Jones outlined at the launch, for the Great Food Debates II the NFWI is encouraging WIs and federations to organise debates on the topic of food poverty so that we can consider what steps need to be taken to ensure everyone has access to affordable, healthy food.  Holding a debate will allow you to learn about the issue of food poverty; particularly how it affects your local community, and to discuss the solutions to this problem.

The toolkit we are launching today will act as an aid to organising your debate, and it includes background information, discussion points, and actions your WI or federation can take to help tackle the issue in your local area.

This toolkit is part of the Food Matters campaign which was launched in 2016 in response to that year’s successful resolution which called on the NFWI to work to address the issues of both food waste and food poverty. The campaign has had a first phase focussing on food waste and a second on food poverty. We are close to completing work on the food waste phase, and have secured some very positive changes to policy and practice from supermarkets in order to reduce food waste.

Once you have learnt more about the issues of food poverty by hosting a WI Food Poverty Debate, we hope that you will be inspired to take action in your community. There are a number of things you could do, and these are outlined in the toolkit.

Download the toolkit now.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email the team on pa@nfwi.org.uk

International Women’s Day 2018 and the ‘Deeds not Words’ 100 Banners project

Every year International Women’s Day is observed on the 8 March and celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievement of women.

International Women’s Day this year is arguably more significant than ever as 2018 marks 100 years since some women in the UK were given the right to vote through the Representation of the People Act 1918. However, despite this important milestone for women’s progress, there is still an urgent need for more women at all levels of public life.

The campaign theme for International Women’s Day 2018 is #PressforProgress and calls for positive gains in gender parity. During the first few months of this year, WI members have already been playing an active part in pressing for progress and celebrating women’s rights.

Representatives from WIs involved in the 'Deeds not Words' project display their banners outside the Royal Albert Hall on International Women's Day

26 WIs in and around London were involved with Digital Drama’s ‘Deeds not Words’ project which aimed to make 100 banners to commemorate the centenary of women’s suffrage. These banners were then displayed at #March4Women in London on Sunday 4 March, a celebratory women’s march organised by Care International UK.

Each WI involved had a unique story behind what inspired their banner and using their expert WI crafting skills, members created some inspiring banners to hang high at the march.

Chelsfield Evening WI

Two members of Chelsfield Evening WI hold their banner outside Downing Street

Members of Chelsfield Evening WI, based in the London borough of Bromley, researched original suffragette banners to find inspiration for their own. Building upon some of the themes of hope, change and equality within the historical suffragette banners, Chelsfield Evening WI wanted to create a banner that encompassed what epitomises women today and a representation of its members including words that symbolise the women within its WI. 

Using hand and machine embroidery, they embroidered items which represent the interests of members such as cake, tea and craft surrounded by bunting made from the traditional suffragette colours of green and purple.

Forest Hill WI Craft Group

Forest Hill WI Craft Group took part in ‘Deeds not Words’ to commemorate those strong women who fought for the vote and to remind women in 2018 to speak up and make their voice heard in society.

The group made two banners for the project. The ‘Women Use Your Vote’ banner is a reminder that for varying reasons, many women today do not used their hard won vote. The aim of the banner is to encourage women to realise their vote does count, and that they should have pride in using it as it was achieved at a great cost.

The ‘Rosa May Billinghurst’ banner was inspired by local suffragette Rosa May Billinghurst and her focused and proactive leadership under difficult personal circumstances.

Rosa May was born near Forest Hill in Lewisham, South East London (1875-1953). She had polio as a child and needed to wear leg irons, using crutches or a modified tricycle to travel around. Rosa May played a very active role in the fight for suffrage. She was imprisoned for damaging post boxes and was force fed after going on hunger strike in Holloway. After chaining herself to Buckingham Palace gates, she attended Emily Wilding Davison’s funeral procession, dressed in white. Once the Representation of the People Act 1918 was passed, she stopped her activity.

Field Dames WI

Two members of Field Dames WI with their banner at #March4Women. Photo Credit: Tonya Robinson

Field Dames WI represented three women from the past 100 years on its banner, a suffragette, a young woman and a factory worker to represent the many women that worked in manufacturing and industry in Enfield during the 1950s and 1960s.

The ‘Women Unite!’ slogan was inspired by historical protest banners as members wanted to show a bold, clear message on their banner.

Stroud Green WI

Stroud Green WI’s banner was inspired by Edith Garrud, a suffragette and ju-jitsu instructor. Stroud Green WI enjoyed being part of the ‘Deeds not Words’ project as it gave them the opportunity to do something together and learn more about the history of a key figure in the suffrage movement.  

Woolwich & Plumstead Roses WI

Woolwich & Plumstead Roses WI wanted to incorporate its logo into the banner design, but also create a design with visual impact and a more powerful message. So they tweaked their rose logo to include a fist, representing the power and influence that women have when they club together to do something good.

Members donated small scraps of fabric that had meaning to them, so even if they weren’t involved in making the banner, they still felt like they were part of the project.

Lou Thompson, Vice President of Woolwich & Plumstead Roses WI said: “we were even more proud to be marching with our banner alongside all the other ladies who took part in the 100 Banners project - and thousands of others - at the #March4Women from Parliament Square on Sunday. The atmosphere was fantastic and proof that when we women get together we can make great things happen.”

Streatham WI

Members of Streatham WI used fabric and the logo they had used for their own banner. Streatham WI’s chosen colours incidentally are purple, green and white which fitted in nicely with the suffragette colours. Streatham WI thought carefully to ensure the message on the banner reflected the different life experiences of all the members. They wanted to recognise all that has changed while voicing their frustration over the worldwide progress yet to come. 

If your WI is holding an event to celebrate International Women’s Day 2018, get in touch at pr@nfwi.org.uk or share your celebrations on social media using hashtags #InternationalWomensDay and #PressforProgress. 

Resolution selection results announcement

Between November and February, every WI member had the chance to have their say about the resolution they wished to go forward to the Annual Meeting in Cardiff on 6^th June.

The results of the 2018 resolution shortlist selection process are:

2018 resolutions		Selections
1	Positive body image in a digital age	5215
2	Stop FGM	27,640
3	Raising awareness of modern slavery in the UK	20,299
4	Mental health matters	42,327
5	Healthier Mouth, Healthier Body	5560
	Total selections received	101,041

As mental health matters is ahead of the second placed resolution by over 14,000 selections, the NFWI Board of Trustees has agreed that this resolution will go forward to the Annual Meeitng.

This year’s total is the most selections cast since the individual selection process was introduced, and the first time over 100,000 selections have been cast by members.

The wording of the resolution is as follows:

Mental health matters

Mental health matters as much as physical health. The NFWI urges all WI members to recognise the importance of parity between mental health and physical health, and take action to make it as acceptable to talk about mental health issues as much as physical health issues, and to lobby government for better support for mental illness.

What happens next?

Members now have the opportunity to learn more about the issues, and to discuss the resolution in their WIs before deciding how they wish their delegate to vote at the Annual Meeting.

WIs and federations are also encouraged to hold discussion events in to allow members to consider how they wish their delegate to vote.

How does my WI cast our vote?

All WIs get one vote for the resolution – for or against.

Your WI can also choose to give discretion to your delegate to decide how to vote after hearing the presentations and debate at the annual meeting.

Only votes cast for and against the resolutions will be counted, in accordance with the voting procedure set out in the NFWI Memorandum and Articles of Association. Abstaining means that a delegate would not cast a vote, and therefore this abstention would not be counted.

What resources are available to support WI discussions?

To support members to get involved the Public Affairs team has produced a range of resources:

·         Detailed briefing notes about the resolution.

·         A PowerPoint presentation on the topic.

·         A quiz to test your knowledge.

·         A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) document about the resolutions process.

·         A discussion guide with ideas about how to discuss the resolution in your WI.

·         Video - This film from charity Mind features young people talking about their experiences with mental illness

If you have any questions about instructing your delegate please contact your federation.

If you have any questions about the Annual Meeting resolution or the resolutions process please contact the NFWI Public Affairs Department.