Ambassador Melanne Verveer and Kim Azzarelli on Why 2020 Matters

so many women around the world. Land was the first ever appointed Ambassador at Large for global women's issues, and we are just so delighted to have you here today. Milan, I'm looking forward to our conversation. So at Seneca Women, we wish everyone of your phillibic power, purpose and connection, particularly in is such a big year for women and we have a lot of high hopes for what this

commune for women's advancement. Milan, why is such an important year? Well, I think, besides being a new year, obviously, is a special year in terms of women's progress, something you and I care very deeply about. This year marks the hundredth anniversary of women's suffrage in the United States, an extraordinary pioneering moment for women's progress, from which so much has emanated. It really laid the groundwork for much of what we experience today UH and continue to have to work on.

And it's also the anniversary of the Beijing Women's Conference that took place in UH and that was a u n convening of thousands of women from all over the world that laid out a platform for action, a blueprint against which in many ways we still measure our progress today. So let's talk a little bit more about women's suffrage.

Can you tell us a little bit about Seneca Falls and that journey to achieving suffrage in ninety Well, suffrage obviously is about the right to vote, and when women came together for the Equal Rights Convention in the United States that took place in Seneca Falls, hence our name Seneca Women all of those years ago, in eighty eight,

well over a hundred and fifty years ago. They came together because there were so many egregious ways in which women were not treated with any modicum of equality, and they wanted to rectify that. You know, I remember reading the diary of a woman called Charlotte Woodarde was very young and her life was quite miserable, as it was for many women in those times, the meager wages that she earned as a glovemaker. There was no right to vote for women. Education was hit and miss in terms

of opportunity. If one found herself in a miserable marriage, there was no right to divorce. It was just a different time when inequality loomed large. And this young woman decided she would make the trip to Seneca Falls. And she writes about this great fear and yet the need to muster her courage to go, and she said that when the sun finally came up, she would see this procession of stage coaches and people walking, a procession of men and women, a procession on the road to equality.

And when you think back at the Declaration of Sentiments that those brave women and men adopted, one of the key grievances they named was not having the right to vote, which for many was seen as an absolutely fundamental right that would enable so much more to happen in terms

of women's progress. And there was a big debate about it, both in Seneca Falls and later because many questioned the right for women to engage in public affairs, and they thought that if they got the right to vote, it would lead to other kinds of activities that might necessarily not be viewed as appropriate for women of the times. So it was a moment of stunning historical import and I think that speaks to us today, because while the world in many ways is very different, we're all still

on that road to equality. Some of us have made greater progress than others, but we're still there. And I think we should take that event, both in terms of what happened at Seneca Falls, but even more importantly in some ways the fact that a hundred years ago women in the United States finally got the right to vote, and I think it took them seventy years to achieve that goal. We always talk about that they didn't travel

by uber or left. They were traveling by horse and buggy trying to really advocate for this, and there were severe consequences in that struggle, and so it's so important to recognize what it took. They think you made a really important point about the courage it took, because I think in that itself there are lessons for us. You know, the women engaged in all kinds of activities. They had petition drives, and I think at times they exceeded a

two hundred thousand plus. They were engaged in parades, they were on soap boxes, they were accused of not being ladylike. They went in every kind of public venue they could muster to make their case. Susan B. Anthony in fact, voted in one of the presidential elections and was fined for activity because she was told she didn't have the right to vote and so uh. In other instances, women were imprisoned for short periods of time. This was something that we need to understand that we stand on the

shoulders of women struggling for this right. And I think beyond that, they employed all kinds of tactics. They went

before the Congress, they used lawsuits. So both in terms of their struggle, in terms of the networking that they engaged in, the partnerships that they employed, the alliances with other organizations, we have a lot to learn also from both their courage and all of their visionary and creative ways that they went about trying to achieve something that matters for each and the one of us to this day, thinking about how they how they went to such lengths

to shift the perspectives of a whole culture, because as you said, it was advocating in the legal system, and part of that though, was changing mindsets, which we know is not easy. And as you said, they had so many tactics that they tried to employ through through those networks,

through those alliances. I was reading. In fact, at one point I remember that they used bicycles and they said, you know, they were going to gain suffrage on their bicycles, because that became a new mode of transportation that these

women employed. But I think fundamentally, and why you and I are so passionate about what they were able to do is for what it says to us today and how we can uh ensure that we do understand that we stand on their shoulders, but that we also have to chart greater progress to build on that in this

twenty one century. We'll be back after this break. Another momentous h anniversary this year, as you mentioned, is the anniversary of the u N World Conference on Women in Beijing, a hundred years ago since women achieved suffrage UH seventy five years later, women met from around the world in

Beijing to talk about women's rights. Can you tell us a little bit about that, well, it wasn't conveying that had built on three earlier convenings that the United Nations had in different parts of the world, and this one, I think resonated so significantly because women's rights still were

not chiseled in international human rights law. And when you think about it, one of the pivotal moments in that coming together, that gathering of tens of thousands of delegates and activists was the speech that the then First Lady of the United States made, Hillary Clinton. If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights, and women's rights

are human rights, once and for all. In many ways sparked the movement to continue this progress, because when she got up and said human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights, it really said it. All women are human and women's rights are human rights. And yet it took all of that time to begin to

make uh this progress in terms of recognizing that. For example, in an earlier convening, one that took place in Nairobi, it was African women who put the issue of violence against women, which we know today continues to be a global scourge manifested in so many ways. They put that issue on the agenda in the previous conference, and it was finally recognized in Beijing that the issue of violence

against women was indeed a violation of human rights. And among the things that Hillary Clinton said in that speech that historic moment was that all of these things that were happening to women and continue to be happening, whether it's dowry burnings or honor killings or the trafficking of women, that these were violations of human rights. And that meeting in Beijing twenty five years ago, you know, it wasn't that long ago, and so many younger women say to

me today, you know what was the big deal. Well, it was a big deal because we were moving to ensure that under the international laws that this would finally have its place and be recognized as such. And out of it came a lot of progressive changes, including the passage of laws around the world in country after country.

They're not always fully implemented, but laws against violence against women that the States had a responsibility to protect their citizens women from these terrible violations of their human rights. So tell us a little bit about what it was like to be there, in Beijing. I mean, those of us who remember the moment from Afar and those of us who understand the incredible impact that's had would love to hear what it was like to be in that

room that day. Well, it was quite incredible for me in a very personal way, because I had been involved over many, many months in the planning of the US participation in Beijing, and particularly the role of the First Lady. You know, I thought back to the women in Seneca fall Is because in many ways, Uh, the opposition was saying, she shouldn't go to Beijing. It's a conference that's going

to destroy the family. Others who were very mindful of the human rights violations of China, we're saying, well, no, she shouldn't go, and she shouldn't reward the Chinese. Well, it wasn't a reward for the Chinese. It was really all about women's rights at an international conference that happened

to be located there. And then when she got into this litany of the human rights you could just feel in the room so many of those delegates, hundreds and hundreds, realizing that this woman from the most powerful country in the world would take on these causes and that at that moment, there was this realization that yes, she is right, these were violations of human rights, and there was this tremendous crescendo, just this tremendous reaction of people in the

room of sustained applause. And I remember when we were leaving this cavernous conference room, people on all sides were applauding and and thanking her. It was one of those moments where I personally felt this is history in the making. Fast forward to two thousand and nine and your time in the State Department, when your position was really created. Hillary Clinton becomes Secretary of State and under President Obama and Secretary Clinton, they create the first ever position of

US Ambassador at Large for global women's issues. And I think many people would say there would be no better candidate and nobody could have done the job better than you did do in those four years. So can you talk to us a little bit about what it was like to represent the United States on behalf of women um and what it was like to advocate for women in these public sector settings in countries that maybe really were a little bit further behind in terms of fundamental

rights for women. Well, I felt it was an awesome responsibility, obviously, and it was fundamentally about our own national security, and that's what we had to recognize. Yes, it was about doing good. Yes it was about making a difference for women, but it was also recognizing that in places where women's rights are denied and women are oppressed, those places resort to instability, to conflict, to the kinds of problems that fester, grow bigger and cause huge issues for the United States.

It also represented our standing up for our values, and that frankly made me so proud that I could represent our great country on these issues where we could stand tall and say that we understood why these issues of women's economic rights, human rights issues having to deal with peace and security, we're so fundamental to our own concerns and represented so snificantly our own values. So it was

a It was an awesome responsibility. I felt keenly. Working with my colleagues in government especially provided another great sense of we're all in this together, and this wasn't to

be just one office that focused on nice initiatives. That was a good thing, but what I was told was you are to be about integrating these issues, mainstreaming these issues across the work of our State Department, and then to work around the world meeting with women, uh and realizing there is far more that we have in common. Despite our cultural differences, potential religious differences, ethnic differences, we

have far more in common. And the woman in the village understands that she should not be violated, she should be able to participate in her society. Well, that really reminds me of a story that Justice Sandra Day O'Connor told me another first, the first woman on the U. S. Supreme Court. You know, she had talked about the fact that during the Arab Spring that women were really fully participating into here square and we're really part of that

whole conversation. But what she had said, which I thought was extremely interesting, was that if women were not part of designing the constitution, that would be another hundred years lost. And so this idea of women's participation in government, in leadership incorporations is really essential. We'll be back after this break. Can you talk to us a little bit about the private sector and the role that the private sector plays

in all this. Well, I think the private sector has an extremely important role to play, and it's a major principle of our effort in writing fast Forward, which is clearly that one of the ways we can accelerate progress for women and girls at home and around the world is to come together and in large measure focus on women and men in businesses and the roles that they

can play, no matter at what level they are. But when you think about what we know today, which is we can't grow economies without the full participation of women in the economies of their countries, and yet in many places that's still very problematic. We know, for example, that women entrepreneurs are a vital force in growing economies, and

yet women entrepreneurs face so many constraints. And one of the things I worked on in government was how do we address those hurdles, those obstacles to their training, to access to capital, which is a huge shortfall today around the world, and in our own country getting the credit that they need, access to markets. Uh. So much that can make a difference is how business is source from women business owners, and we see that in our own

country and globally. So we talk about and fast forward, how we're at this moment where we have women in positions of power like never before in history. We have the evidence base case which you've talked about, and we now have technology and that combination could be the great accelerator that we're all waiting for. Recently, the Web came out with its most recent report and said it would

take another two years was it to reach equality. So in this moment, what can we do to leverage technology to accelerate Well, we know, for example, that technology is an important tool for women if development agencies focus a lot today on the role that technology can play and educating on health, in providing fundamental principles of education, in helping women know where their markets are in the developing world on a given day instead of walking to know

and in a very significant way, banking for the first time ever, having access to financial resources in terms of being able to make transactions or being able to save

your money safely through a simple mobile device. These are transformative issues of significance and at Seneca Women, you and I have talked about this many times that we adapt taking the principles of fast forward, putting them into a daily app where anyone can access that app any place and get the kind of tools they need for their own personal betterment, but also in ways to connect on the important issues of our times. For us at Seneca.

We are so excited that we've been able to over the last few years develop the Seneca Women app and now launch the Seneca Women Podcast network because we're at this unique moment where technology could help us accelerate. We don't want to have to wait another hundred years to make progress, and it shouldn't take us as long as it has taken us to date. So, Milan, we've had many firsts. You are one of the firsts, and you've worked with really many of the first women leaders of

different countries, different industries. Obviously you've worked very closely with Hillary Clinton. But why haven't we cracked that final glass ceiling. Well, there's just tremendous opposition that continues resistance, and a lot of it is based on these norms. It's based on mindsets, it's based on bias, whether it's conscious bias or unconscious bias.

It's very much a reality and we have to keep chipping away, educating, working to demonstrate, and coming up with ways to really show why this change needs to come. Men are a very big part of the solution we need. As the women who journey to Seneca Falls had the good men at their side, we need to continue to

have men help us lead the way. And in Fast Forward we talk about men in different ways who have used their leadership and their power to recognize the importance of these issues and most importantly, to do something about it, to play a leadership role. Can you tell us a little bit more about what you've seen in terms of

the power women's networks. Back when the women were struggling over that hundred years effort um but struggling for women's rights and then especially in the effort to gain the right to vote for women, one of the things that is very striking was how those pioneering women began to forge networks with other women. You know, I think in so many places in the world there are women's organizations, self help group which is the only way women can get ahead because they've got so many uh efforts that

constrain them uh and work against them. But it's been that consolidation of or convergence of coming together and really

working in a way that can bring about results. And I think that lesson is as strong for today as it was for the suffragettes, as it continues to be in so many places that when we come together networks of women need to be supported, They need to be enhanced, They need to be able to grow, They need to be validated, whether it's through enhancing their voices through technology, or whether it's constantly saying these women are making a difference.

This work is important. This matters for all of us, though. Those voices need to be enhanced, you know. And and it's in that context that we're launching the Seneca Women Podcast Network, because it's not just about our voices or the voices of women who are household names, but it can be a tool for those, um we often don't hear about who are actually doing the heavy lifting, and so we hope that the podcast network will be that

kind of tool to women who are the real change makers. Well. Look, and we're both so excited to be partnering with PENG on this effort because we know that it requires both the public sector and the private sector to make progress. And frankly, an organization like PING who has the reach and the ability to understand that they have the obligation to be both a force for good and a force for growth is really important. So in this moment, what

can we each do? In writing Fast Forward, we really wanted to issue a clarion call to women everywhere and to men who who care deeply about these issues and understand why they're critical. Uh, that we each can be a partner in accelerating progress for women and girls. And our thesis is as true today as it was a few years ago when we sat down to write the book, which is to aknowledge and understand each of us has power. It doesn't have to be the power of a world leader,

the power of a CEO. Uh. It is the power of a student on a campus. It is the power of an entry level person in a company. It is the power of a government worker even at a mid career level. We each have power no matter where we find ourselves. So when we acknowledge and know our power and we find our purpose whatever it is, but hopefully it's to accelerate progress for women and girls and connect with others, we can indeed make a difference. UH. So

it is about power, purpose and connection. It is about each of us, and it is about the fact that it doesn't matter who you are or what your job is, you can indeed fast forward progress for women and girls everywhere. Well, and thank you so much. It has been incredible to hear your experience about what's happening for women around the world and what we can do to accelerate in well. It's always delightful and particularly to be here with you,

Kim and engage in this conversation. You're listening to Seneca Women Conversations on Power and Purpose, brought to you by the Seneca Women Podcast Network and I Heart Radio with support from founding partner PNG. Listen to Seneca Women Conversations on Power and Purpose on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts, and please support this podcast by telling your friends, subscribing, and rating us.

For more information on Seneca Women, follow us on social media, visit our website Seneca Women dot com, and check out the Seneca Women app free in the app store. Have a great day, m