Collaborative Women: Inspiring Innovation & Driving the New Economy

collaborative women: INSPIRING INNOVATION & Driving the New Economy

Cookies, Combat & commerce Stories of women breaking barriers

The Smart cookies

Temple Grandin

An Interview WITH

Kathleen Kennedy Townsend

AL

Insights From Innovator, Author and Autistic ADULT

S o esson mal in Co y Maurage a nd m Leade p g rsh . 5 ip: 8

went from financial farce to freedom through support, collaboration, and smart money management

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a r z u s t u d i o h o p e

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table of contents

April - June 2010

In this Issue 4 Letter From The Editor

8 Inspiration

16 Opinion

124 Thank You

6 Letter From The Publisher

10-14 Meet The Board

122 Collaboration Close-Up

» "Investing in the

education and economic empowerment of women in developing countries not only improves the lives of those women, but also enriches the entire community." « - Ángel Cabrera

Quote worthy pg.50

Crusader for Clean Food Robyn O’Brien’s Mission to Change the way People are Fed "The public will always believe a simple lie rather than a complex truth."

I

– Alexis de Tocqueville

t was a day like any other. Robyn O’Brien awoke and prepared breakfast for her four children. The three oldest got a tube of bright blue yogurt, some frozen waffles and scrambled eggs.

The baby, Tory, got a banana and some

eggs too. After breakfast, she put Tory down for her mid-morning nap while the other kids played. When she went to check on the baby, she noticed that Tory’s little face was bloated and red, and her eyes were swollen shut. She rushed Tory to the hospital. The doctor said it was an allergic reaction – most likely to eggs. O’Brien’s first thought, “Since when did an egg become so dangerous?” Continued on pg.102

Determination Leads to Success

N ancy Stevens Blind World Champ Motivates through Sports pg.88

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"I am proud

to have represented

my country on

two

different levels."

- K atrina Hodge pg.22

COLLABORATOR PROFILES

18 Lisza Gulyas: International Dance Foundation A Movement Transforming Social Grace, Alternative Therapy, and Physical Activity

22 Katrina Hodge

Beauty Queen in Combat Boots

24 An Interview with The Honorable Susmita Gongulee Thomas IFS Consul General of India in San Francisco

30 Kari Anderson Real Colorado

32 Colorado’s Heroines Enrich Lives Women of Consequence Inspire Others

34 Margaret Reich

COO of Republic Financial Corporation

BUILDING BRIDGES page 38

A Cultural Bridge Through America’s Heartland - Zakery’s Bridge JEWEL OF COLLABORATION

42 Smart Cookies

A Sweet Way to Manage Your Dough

46 Women of the Biennial

Collaborating for a Better Hemisphere

62 Authentic Leadership is Gender Neutral

66 Opening New Markets Abroad

Supporting High-Paying Export-Related Jobs at Home

68 Shock and AWE

A C ampaign of Peace Through Commerce

96 Not An Affliction But A Gift

Insights from Innovator, Author and Adult with Autism, Temple Grandin

98 Marcia McGilley

Building New Businesses in a Down Economy

102 Crusader for Clean Food

72 Empowering Women in The Americas

Robyn O’Brien’s Mission to Change the way People are Fed

74 Lawyer, Author,

Chief Executive Officer - RE/MAX International, Inc.

A Critical Necessity

Lieutenant Governor

106 Margaret Kelly

An Interview with Kathleen Kennedy Townsend

78 Not Your Average Joe

Women Changing the Face of War

50 Power to Dream

Thunderbird’s Project Artemis Supports Women Entrepreneurs in Afghanistan

54 Money, Management,

Marketing, & Me

Women’s Perspectives on Success

56 Marie C. Wilson

Add Women, Change Everything

58 A Lesson in Courage and Leadership Somaly Mam

80 Educate Girls Globally Successful Reform Model Scales Up

84 The U.S. Commercial Service Partnering to Advance E xports

88 Determination Leads to Success

110 The Teflon Duck

C athy Leslie: E xecutive Director of Engineers Without Borders USA

Blind World Champ Motivates through Sports

114 My Meeting with

92 Women with a Cause

Dafna Michaelson

Women Helping Women to Help Themselves Through Sustainable Goodness

the Journey Woman

118 Trading for Treasure

Helping the Person in Front of You

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LETTER FROM THE editor

CELEBRATING

COLLABORATIVE WOMEN

W

ships instead of just doing the work.

Really now, who has the time?

hen we initially went out to our network for story ideas there was a resounding response—some positive, some cautionary. We heard everything from, “That sounds like a really great topic—I love it!” to, “I don’t think barriers exist anymore.”

The theme of this issue is not to debate whether barriers still exist or whether women are better collaborators, but rather to celebrate the collaborations and successes of the women in this issue. Inside these pages are stories of so many talented, smart and innovative women who serve in many diverse roles and leadership positions. They are women who are recognized for their intelligence, contributions, capabilities, and performance.

» I think that if we collectively and collaboratively drive for change we can make it. «

As we prepared for this issue, Jeff Klein - author, entrepreneur, and ICOSA contributor and Rebecca Saltman, entrepreneur and regular ICOSA contributor, really wanted to write a piece on me and the ways in which I engage in my work and in the community. I begrudgingly consented, but then ran out of space in this issue. So, this letter highlights part of that conversation and gives you some insight on me...

I was asked whether I thought women should be recognized for their efforts and why I resisted recognition. My answer was because it’s not about me – it’s about the collective effort. I am a cog in a much larger wheel trying to support and spread change. None of it gets done in a vacuum. I absolutely think that women should be recognized for their amazing work, but, I think women often resist recognition because of guilt – especially to the rest of their team. We tend to be relationship oriented and when one gets recognition and another doesn’t, it tends to strain relationships. Then you are stuck managing the strained relation-

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We also talked about the wage gap. While in my opinion, women are absolutely making strides, it is important to recognize that the wage gap continues. In fact, women, on average, still earn only 77% of what men earn for the same work—even 40 years after the Fair Pay and Equal Pay Acts were passed.

Unfortunately the wage gap widens throughout women's lives: women between 45 and 64 working full time only earn 70% of what men earn, and the disparities only worsen for minority women. In fact, in 2007 the earnings for African-American women were 68.7% of men's earnings, and Latina earnings were 59% of their male counterparts.

Studies indicate that at the rate we’re going, the wage gap won’t be equalized until 2057 which means I’ll be dead and my daughter will be close to retirement!

They asked me about my role models and motivators. Of course, my mom is one of my role models. She raised my two sisters and me as a single mom and struggled to make sure that we had what we needed and that we had the best education. She has been one of the guiding forces in my life; she has helped me think through some absolutely stupid choices I was planning to make and has kicked me in the backside when I was scared and tried to back away from what I didn’t want to face. I am what I am because of my mom. Another inf luencer for me was Dr. Mustafah Dhada, who was one of my political science professors. He taught me so many lessons, but the most important was that “being there” was more important than “watching and learning.” He also taught me that one of the most important things you have to do in life is to “work hard and play hard.” I try to do that every day.

As we talked about collaborative efforts our conversation went to a different level. Collaboration is huge in my life and I think it plays a role in most women’s lives. In my opinion, women could not accomplish all the things they do without it. As someone said to me about this issue’s theme, “I like the 'collaborative women' idea very much...that's like writing about 'women women.'”

» As an employee, volunteer, and advocate I try and give 110% when I am there.

If I commit to doing something I try to make sure that it gets done as best as I can. «

Jeff and Rebecca wanted to know more about who I was and what I stood for. That was tough for me to answer succinctly but we got it down to this... I am a mother, wife, daughter, aunt, sister, employee, teacher, community advocate, volunteer, friend, and neighbor. As a mom I try to lead by example for my daughter. I try to let her know that doing things half-way is no way to do something. I also try and reinforce with her that even if you are scared or think you’re not good at something – you just have to do your best – that’s all that you can do. In my mommy role I have learned that I can’t make her be what I want her to be, but that I have to support who she is. If I do that, she will be successful in her own way – not in mine. Furthermore, we are in the process of adopting a little sister/daughter. We are looking forward to having her come to our family. But I will say that being a foster mother in waiting is frustrating for me, as I’m not the most patient person in the world— but I’m learning. I have to continuously remind myself that things happen for a reason and that when “it is supposed to happen – it will.”

As a wife, I try to be supportive of my husband because he is absolutely supportive of me, my work, and my volunteerism. He is a great guy.

As an employee, volunteer, and advocate I try and give 110% when I am there. If I commit to doing something I try to make sure that it gets done as best as I can. I am not one of those people who likes

monotony, I like that every day is different. I like a challenge – especially when the consensus is that something can’t be done.

Even though I am not sure how I will directly effect change, I try and show up every day and do the work. I think that if we collectively and collaboratively drive for change we can make it.

And, I hope that in some small way my efforts will “move the needle” for my daughter and her daughters in the workforce and beyond.

At the end of the day, it is not about credit or ego, but it is about knowing that you are making a difference in the way that makes sense for you—that you are influencing your community in a positive way. While I’m not rich, famous, or otherwise recognized, I am one of the most blessed people on the planet. I have unique rights that allow me to speak freely, have an opinion, vote, and make a living. Overall, I think we lose sight of the freedoms and blessings we have. Besides these freedoms – most of us have the basic necessities we need: running water, access to healthcare, electricity, education, a roof over our heads, food, relatively clean air, and general safety (and bras to burn).

I believe...you can’t take for granted the things that make us uniquely American women.

- Jan Mazotti

ART DIRECTOR Nick Heckman – EKMN, LLC

FOUNDER AND PUBLISHER Gayle Dendinger

EDITOR Jan Mazotti

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Rachel Chaparro Sharon Clinebell Michael Connors Kim DeCoste Shawna Ervin Donna Evans Barbara Fuller Jorge Gonzalez-Mayagoitia Triche Guenin

Daryl James Tiffany A. Kampsnider Nicholas Lumpp Charlotte Mills Seligman Beth Parish Rebecca Saltman Judith B. Taylor Sandy Williams Luke Wyckoff Leocadia I. Zak

STAFF WRITERS Emily Haggstrom Jan Mazotti

ADVERTISING Jan Mazotti Kevin Medina

PHOTOGRAPHY & design Andrew Thompson

Social Media Annette Perez

BUSINESS ADVISOR John Brackney

ICOSA welcomes editorial submissions from its readers. Whenever possible, submissions should be sent in electronic format. All unsolicited materials should be submitted to the publisher at the address below. Items not sent electronically will not be returned. The publisher reserves the right to decline use of materials at their

To view an electronic copy of ICOSA (ISSN1938-209X) or to get your free subscription, go to www.icosamag.com.

discretion and assumes no liability for unsolicited materials.

ICOSA (ISSN1938-2081) is published four times a year. No part of ICOSA may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. ©2010

ICOSA CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS 4100 Jackson Street Denver, CO 80216 Office: 303.333.3688 Fax: 303.333.4832 Email: janm@icosamag.com Website: www.icosamag.com

All third-class postage paid at Denver, Colorado.

The title ICOSA is an analogy for great connections and collaboration.

An icosahedron, the strongest of the polygons, combines 20 equilateral triangular faces together. We use this analogy because we believe that if we all work together and collaborate, we too can become stronger – just like the triangles.

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LETTER FROM THE publisher

Vision…

Ttakeholders S he Big Picture A Lesson in Cooperative Resources

A

s the year continues to take shape, I am reminded of the new and wonderful opportunities that have been presented to ICOSA. These opportunities would not have come about without the coordinated collaboration of several entities across multiple capacities. ICOSA, as an entity, would not have benefited without the connections it has forged or the stories it has shared. We are graciously indebted to our stakeholders.

» ICOSA is an example of how unification through teamwork, cooperation and communication can strengthen ties to a community. «

It is for this reason I like to think of the stakeholder theory as it applies to business; everyone working together to collaborate and build a sustainable entity that continues to prosper while simultaneously giving back.

Business is combined of a series of simple and complex competitions that keep managers and business executives constantly at the helm, deriving new ways to form the proverbial wheel. At the end of the day, the month or the quarter, each determines how it all fits together to deliver financial profits. There is after all, a responsibility of a company to perform in favor of the people who will directly benefit from its well-being.

The tangible element to measure business success is in fact profit.

But how does a company measure its intangible success as it pertains to relationships and its broader responsibility as a public organization which benefits from the interest of people and entities? How does a company give back and create value for its stakeholders?

ICOSA is an example of how unification through teamwork, cooperation and communication can strengthen ties to a community. Each person networks collaboratively with others to keep gathering and utilizing resources, without reinventing the wheel. By coming together, these people have the ability to access many disparate networks, distribute key resources to benefit others, and create value. The stakeholders then have the ability to use these resources based

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on their own sphere of influence, and the positive or negative affects it may have on their own network.

Now more than ever, businesses have an obligation to recognize stakeholders and the value they bring to a company’s existence. Currently, organizations are judged not just on the profits they turn but how their sustainability in the marketplace coincides with their sustainability as it impacts social and environmental corporate responsibility.

Organizations find that profits are maximized for their shareholders only once their stakeholders commit to the affects or create positive value judgments in regards to their product or service. By taking stakeholder interests into account, organizations can continue to exist. But, stakeholders must remember that without the organization, the ability to transform social enterprises will be eliminated. One cannot exist in harmony without the other.

In business we understand that the stakeholders are critical to continued success. We debate about the long-term prosperity of the company without the support of the stakeholders. Stakeholders and businesses alike can learn from each other how to gather and connect the right people to get things done, while creating sustainability through hard work and results-driven activities.

Here at ICOSA we know we wouldn’t be successful without the help of our collaborative partners and the resources which they have provided us.

Together we can construct ideas and capitalize on them to create a mutually beneficial resource for everyone to use.

I would like to thank and acknowledge each and every one of our stakeholders for their continued support and desire to change the way people look at business.

- Gayle Dendinger

THE WOMEN’S COLLEGE of the University of Denver

Advancing our world. One woman at a time.

A collaborative and vibrant

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inspirations

by Gayle Dendinge r

s a businessman I have the opportunity to meet successful and spirited women regularly. So, it is without a doubt that I am humbled by the stories and the ingenuity of the women within the pages of this issue. It is my hope that by telling the stories of their achievements and accomplishments we can inspire others and show how will and determination plays a big role in business and social endeavors.

When I envisioned what this issue would look like I thought immediately of my granddaughter Nikka. Unlike the women chronicled within, Nikka has been unexposed to the world. Her face and smile are representative of a child who is still a pure and unblemished soul—that has not experienced sadness or tribulation. She will one day have the power to create change and see it through. Already, at the age of two, she is the world’s best sales person.

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Like most parents and grandparents, I can’t help but be amazed at how she used sign language as a baby to communicate with her parents, can now recite all of her A, B, C’s and can accurately point out and describe a vast amount of products. I am even more amazed at her uncanny ability to assert herself in situations where she likes and dislikes the outcome.

Recently, Nikka has become fascinated with anything that sticks; stickers, tape, post-its, produce stickers, labels. She takes whatever it may be and sticks it right on her mouth. She searches for anything and everything sticky and she is relentless in her quest. One evening Nikka was requesting tape from her mom. Because it was getting late, she told Nikka they were out of tape. Defeated but still hopeful, Nikka responded, “Get some from store?” More than a day later on their way to Montessori school, my daughter told Nikka that she was headed to the store and asked if she would like anything. Nikka sat quietly, thought to herself, turned to her mother and with clear recollection and a matter of fact tone she said, “Umm, tape.”

I am already astounded at her memory and her determination.

Both of her parents are extremely articulate, smart, driven and encourage her to think and respond to clearly illustrate her position in a situation. During my last visit with Nikka she was adamant she was not going to go down her slide because what she thought was lying there on it was a “bum bum bee”. “No slide, no bum bum bee.” And although she communicates with minimum words it is clear what she is trying to say.

She will one day have the power to create change and see it th rough.

Already, a a ge o f t t t h e wo is the w , she o rl best sal d’s es person.

She is constantly surrounded by family who support, instruct, and enjoy her. She is not only part of our future she will become part of yours. She is the next generation of children that we can inspire through our ICOSA topics and the connections and collaborations we’ve forged. The path we start for children like her can help to make their futures bigger, better and brighter.

We connect and collaborate because we can, to set a precedent and leave a legacy for the generations of the future. We want our neighbors of today and our neighbors of tomorrow to acquire a mentality that desires to create good and be responsible while sharing the stories of those who came before them—which will ensure these children’s eventual success.

So, while Nikka is only two years old she epitomizes the up and coming generation of children who will take the stage and build on the work that we’ve already established for them. ICOSA, along with all of our contributors, believe that if we all work together collaboratively and share key connections, we can make the world a better place for ourselves and our children.

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advisory board

Kim DeCoste

Meet Kim DeCoste President & CEO, DeCoste & Associates, LLC

K

im DeCoste is the President and CEO of DeCoste & Associates, LLC - an executive & career coaching firm and professional development consultancy. Her focus is supporting individuals and organizations dealing with career transition and strategic career management. Kim’s career has spanned nearly 20 years in employment services, e-learning, sales and marketing. Kim is passionate about education, diversity, sustainability, politics and women in leadership.

Kim DeCoste : Stanford Place One 8055 E. Tufts Avenue Suite 1290 Denver, CO 80237 p:303.470.9898 E:info@decosteassociates.com W:www.decosteassociates.com

Recently Kim has begun public speaking and training workshop engagements on topics related to the changing world of work and managing career transitions.

Beyond her professional focus, Kim is an active participant in the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce and recently received a 2009 “Leadership in Motion” award for her service to the community and has been nominated for the Brian Vogt Community Leader of the Year Award in 2010. Kim is a leader in the Renewable Energy Task Force, the Chair of Sponsor Expansion for the Clean Tech Open – Rocky Mountain, as well as a member of the Steering Committee for the STEM-EC group and a member of the Women in Leadership Legislative Action Committee.

Beyond those roles, Kim participates actively in the Business Leaders for Responsible Government and the Cellar Masters.

Kim’s outside activities and volunteer efforts are centered on the Douglas County School District as a member of the Long-Range Planning Committee as well as serving on the Board of her son’s P.T.O. Kim and her family are also active in their church community.

Recreationally, Kim enjoys local and international travel, food, wine, and is an avid reader. Kim is an active supporter of several museums and a fine & performing arts enthusiast as well.

Kim earned a B.A. in Language Studies and Linguistics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and an M.B.A. in e-Commerce from Jones International University. Kim speaks German and Spanish and continues to be a student of world languages.

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THESE

are the bright young minds of Tanzania’s future.

95% of girls in Tanzania don’t complete a high school education At AfricAid, we believe the young women of Tanzania have the strength, drive and spirit needed to change the future of this East African nation.

AfricAid is a nonprofit organization that supports girls’ education in Africa in order to provide young women with the opportunity to transform their own lives and the futures of their communities.

Visit africaid.com to learn more.

advisory board

Heidi A. Heltzel

Meet Heidi A. Heltzel Executive Director, American Transplant Foundation

A

s Co-Founder and Executive Director of the American Transplant Foundation, Heidi A. Heltzel is a visionary who leads the organization by launching educational and outreach programs, directing fund raising efforts, and coordinating collaborative efforts with organizations throughout the community to ensure that the Foundation fulfills its mission to reduce the growing list of men, women and children who are waiting for lifesaving transplants.

Ms. Heltzel was previously the Vice President of Governmental Affairs at the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry (CACI), the State Chamber of Commerce. CACI advocates free enterprise through a public policy agenda that works towards a prosperous business climate in Colorado. Her lobby experience touched on a broad range of legislative and regulatory aspects of business operations, including tax, technology, environment and education.

Ms. Heltzel gained visibility in the policy arena as CACI's spokesperson for the Colorado business community at the State legislature. In addition to her policy work, she also directed CACI's political action committee, the Colorado Public Affairs Council.

Prior to her policy leadership at CACI, Ms. Heltzel was well regarded as a policy analyst at the Office of the Legislative Council, which is the nonpartisan research arm of the Colorado General Assembly.

Ms. Heltzel’s community involvement has included serving on a number of Board committees including Parent Pathways, the Curious Theatre Company, and the University Club.

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Heidi A. Heltzel: American Transplant Foundation 410 Seventeenth Street, Suite 2200 Denver, CO 80202 P:303.757.0959 E:hh@americantransplantfoundation.org w:www.AmericanTransplantFoundation.org

International Business Partnership Program Opening Export Markets Around the World

T

o achieve the President’s goal of doubling U.S. exports over the next five years, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) launched the International Business Partnership

Program (IBPP). Under the IBPP, USTDA will increase its support for programs that bring procurement officials to the United States to witness U.S. technology and ingenuity firsthand. Ultimately, these reverse trade missions will develop the relationships with U.S. companies necessary to spur increased exports to emerging economies, helping U.S. industry create high-paying export-related jobs.

To learn more, visit www.ustda.gov.

Bringing Foreign Buyers Together with U.S. Manufacturers and Service Providers

u.s. trade and development agency 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1600 • Arlington, Virginia 22209-3901

Phone: (703)�875-4357 • Fax: (703)�875-4009 • www.ustda.gov • E-mail: info@ustda.gov The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) is an independent U.S. Government foreign assistance agency that is funded by the U.S. Congress. The mission of the Agency is to promote economic growth in the developing and middle income countries, while simultaneously helping American businesses export their products and services, thereby creating U.S. jobs.

advisory board

Gretchen Peters

Meet Gretchen Peters Author

G

retchen Peters is the author of Seeds of Terror, an international bestseller that traces the role that the opium trade has played in three decades of conflict in Afghanistan. With the help of local reporters, she spent five years researching Seeds of Terror, surveying and interviewing hundreds of Taliban fighters, extremists, smugglers, law enforcement officials and intelligence agents. Peters seeks to reshape how people define the Taliban and al Qaeda, and to track how they are morphing into a powerful narco-mafia that earn hundreds of millions of dollars annually from organized crime, and particularly drug smuggling.

Peters also authored a policy report on the Taliban and the opium trade for the U.S. Institute of Peace, a forthcoming report on crime and insurgency with West Point’s Combating Terrorism center and a chapter in Decoding the New Taliban. She has briefed the Pentagon, the State Department, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, Special Operations Command and other departments of the government and intelligence community on the growing nexus between extremist groups and organized crime in South Asia and the Gulf. Although convincing the government is an uphill battle, she plans to continue doing so until they all believe her.

Peters covered Pakistan and Afghanistan for more than a decade, first for The Associated Press and later as an award-winning reporter for ABC News. A Harvard graduate, she has worked with other leading media outlets including The National Geographic Society, The Christian Science Monitor and The New Republic, and is a regular commentator on NPR, CNN, BBC and countless other radio and television programs.

She now lives in Denver with her husband, Pulitzer prize-winning photographer, John Moore and their two children. She has been accepted into the doctoral program at the University of Denver’s Korbel School of International Studies where she plans to study the intersection between international organized crime and national security threats.

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Gretchen Peters: E:gretchen@gretchenpeters.org w:www.gretchenpeters.org

“When I was two months old, I was only heartbeats away from the end of my life.

After my heart transplant, I was at the beginning.”

Brittney, 21, heart recipient and U.S./World Transplant Games

Photo: Steve Nowland/Rich Clarkson and Associates

champion in track and field

More than 107,000 people in the United States are on the waiting list for a lifesaving organ transplant. You have the power to save their lives. Register today as an organ and tissue donor.

Learn more about organ and tissue donation and living donation, read Brittney’s story, and register to become a donor at www.AmericanTransplantFoundation.org.

™

Connecting People to Life

®

opinion

Donna Evans

Collaboration is the Key to a

Healthy Business and Social Environment

D

By Donna Evans

During hard times, creativity, innovation and collaboration flourish.

When traditional business strategies are no longer effective, business leaders are forced to deviate from the tried and true to think more broadly about creative and innovative solutions. The organizations that I’ve seen sustain and even flourish during this economic downturn are those that redesigned their marketing and customer service plans to be more relationship driven, those that evaluated and refocused their organizations on the relevant needs of customers and those that sought out partners with complementary niches and worked collaboratively together.

So, what is collaboration? Collaboration is exchanging information, altering activities, sharing resources, and enhancing the capacity of another individual or organization, for mutual benefit, and to achieve a common purpose.

Many women understood the value of collaboration long before it became a business necessity. Women tend to be relationship driven and it has served them well, especially in the last year. It is harder for a customer to stop doing business with someone with whom she/he has a positive relationship and women are more likely to do business with someone they, their friends or colleagues recommend. Given the fact that women make 80% of all buying decisions, these relationships are critical.

Examples of successful collaborations include non-profit organizations that partner with business leaders and the community to build houses, send medical supplies to third world countries or employ hard-to-place workers; foundations that see the benefit for two organizations to work together and award a collaborative grant; businesses with similar customers joining together for shared programs and events and higher education working with the business community to develop curriculum and place interns. Each of these collaborations provides a larger benefit to all the participating entities.

A creative way that organizations can develop beneficial collaborations is to have community advisory boards. These boards act as the eyes and ears in the community bringing back valuable information to assist the organization in meeting its goals. One of the advisory boards on which I serve is the President’s Advisory Board for the Denver Museum of Nature and Science (DMNS). One of their key goals is to become the community’s museum, accessible and inviting to all. Our task on the advisory board is to bring our experiences to the table to help guide the organization toward reaching this goal. It is rewarding to the DMNS, they gain valuable information, and to the

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Donna Evans

board members who have the opportunity to make a difference in their community.

Another fulfilling opportunity to collaborate is to serve on the board of a non-profit. I served as a board member for many communitybased organizations before becoming the president of the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce. I saw first-hand the difference individuals can make when they share their knowledge and expertise for the betterment of a worthy cause. The board provides expertise in areas such as finance, law, marketing and human resources, all necessary functions for a non-profit to thrive.

Additional opportunities for collaboration have arisen as companies have reduced their workforces. There have been many occasions for women to serve as mentors and job coaches for those who have been laid-off. I and many of my colleagues have done numerous informational interviews, connected job seekers to individuals in our networks and invited them to programs and events. Not only does it feel good to give, we understand that there is no such thing as true job security and if the tables were turned, we would need and appreciate the same support being given.

» Businesses, communities and individuals all benefit when people innovate and work together. «

Technology has made collaboration easier. Social media sites provide easy access to a broad base of people and fan pages create an opportunity for a company to both market itself and to gain critical customer feedback. These businesses are using social media with customers in order to build better products, create improved customer service and determine market trends. Skype also provides an inexpensive way for entities to connect “face to face” around the world.

Women are making a significant difference in the U.S. and third world countries by collaboratively funding programs supporting women. Women are half the population of the world but are disproportionately affected by many of the world’s most serious problems. According to the Women’s Funding Network, investments in women ultimately re-shape the prospects of whole communities and nations. Their research shows that the empowerment of women

» Investments in women ultimately re-shape the prospects of whole communities and nations. «

is smart economics. In fact studies show that investments in women yield large social and economic returns. Economically empowered women create healthier and more productive societies. The history of women’s philanthropy clearly demonstrates that these investments produce dramatic improvements in the lives of women and girls as well as significant change in broader social, political, and institutional landscapes.

As the economy improves, my hope is that valuing and seeking out innovation and collaboration will be lessons we have learned for the long-term. Businesses, communities and individuals all benefit when people innovate and work together.

Donna Evans has a broad range of experience in higher education, private and non-profit sectors. She is the President of the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce. To learn more about the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce, visit www.cwcc.org.

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collaborator profile

International Dance Foundation

Lisza Gulyas:

International Dance Foundation A Movement Transforming Social Grace, Alternative Therapy, and Physical Activity By Emily Haggstrom

S

ince the time Lisza Gulyas first waltzed into a ballroom, she has been forever captivated by the emotions, sensations and happiness she experienced as her feet twirled across the dance floor. She has been dancing and teaching ballroom ever since. And although her life at the time was enveloped in heartache, solitude and struggles; Gulyas emerged not only stronger but completely transformed. Now she is looking to transform the lives of others.

With her son by her side for inspiration and support, Gulyas chiseled out a life for herself, succeeding in school and climbing the corporate ladder not only as a woman, but ( 18 )

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» "I knew what ballroom

dance could do. It’s got a common factor that’s used to communicate with the opposite sex.

You learn a respect factor and etiquette that’s not taught in schools." « - Lisza Gulyas

as a single mom. She proved her value in a cutthroat world known to men, while facing pressures most of them would never know.

Unlike most people who work to subsist despite their passion, Gulyas always kept dancing in the forefront of her mind. In 2008, Gulyas decided that she had suppressed her passion long enough and decided to make it a reality. What spawned from her dancing career was a program that would engage groups of people to feel the same emotions within them that Gulyas had experienced the first time she stepped out on the dance floor.

International Dance Foundation, the program that evolved from her vision,

took shape to specifically target groups of people that Gulyas felt could really benefit from the movement of dance. She created an organizational model that would bring dance classes to, “communities that would not typically have the opportunity to learn how to dance due to their financial situation, location, physical or mental challenges.”

Whereas there are organizations that touch specific individuals within certain communities, Gulyas’ aim is to provide a model that will be replicable once the organization egresses from infancy. She is currently focused on instituting the Dancing Students and Move After School programs in Title I public schools. Gulyas’ challenge is working to access budgetary funding in a federal program that is geared towards school-wide reform and rigorous curriculum hours. These are schools that have previously cut physical education, arts and music from their set of courses and are skeptical to add them back in.

What Gulyas and others know is that music and dance set off a myriad of senses and cognitive thought that is not only helpful with development but also spurs creativity. The movement of dance combined with the innate sense of pleasure that accompanies a person while dancing, increases happiness and brain function. For children who spend most of their early years in school it simply can help to break up the monotony of their daily class regimen and encourage healthy social interaction with physical activity.

» The movement of dance

combined with the innate sense of pleasure that accompanies a person while dancing, increases happiness and brain function. «

And it’s not about the ballroom part of dancing; it’s about what it has to offer. “About 10 years ago, when my son was in middle school, I saw how boys couldn’t talk to girls and girls couldn’t talk to boys. Their hormones were going crazy and they don’t know how to be themselves and also how to be respectful to the opposite sex. I knew what ballroom dance could do. It’s got a common factor that’s used to communicate with the opposite sex. You learn a respect factor and etiquette that’s not taught in schools,” said Gulyas.

It has also become inherent that without physical education and basic arts, students are losing a fundamental part of their day where they can experience activities that keep them physically active and engaged socially with others. By instituting dance back into the curriculum Gulyas believes it can help children on various levels by promoting physical well-being and social grace while adding a sense of competitiveness where girls and boys can compete together maturely. It also helps them gain respect for themselves and others. “I’ve seen these kids completely transform in 45 minutes,” said Gulyas. “They don’t even realize it is happening and eventually they’re hand-in-hand, full of confidence and ready to ask someone else to dance.”

And while Dancing Students and Move After School are key to a successful future for the International Dance Foundation, one of Gulyas’ original programs, Dancing Seniors; is near and

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collaborator profile

International Dance Foundation

dear to her heart after enduring the affects that Alzheimer’s had on both of her parents. In research studies, Alzheimer’s patients who dance are more likely to recall memories due to physical activities increasing brain chemicals and encouraging nerve growth. She has introduced ballroom dance into Alzheimer’s centers but is also focused on implementing the program into any interested senior residence. “This program is targeted for seniors like Phyllis Minton, who at 94 years old, with all of her faculties, looked at me and said, ‘this has been the best day of my life’. That alone is the reason why I do this,” Gulyas said. She is confident that of all the programs and their eventual success, the Dancing Seniors program will be the one that will ultimately take off on its own. “The older generation used to go to the dance clubs all the time. It’s all about feeling good,” she said.

Ballroom dancing’s easy and fluid movements also provide physical and mental benefits for children with Down Syndrome and Autism. Children with Down’s and Autism, who participate in physical activity, have been shown to increase balance and experience stimulating effects, which in turn increase temperament. Ultimately Gulyas sees the main benefit for these kids being pure and utter happiness. New alternative forms of therapy such as dance for special needs kids are starting in cities across the country. Gulyas is confident her program can provide benefits and relief for these children while they are having fun.

» Aside from the

therapeutic and educational values International Dance Foundation can bring to cities across the globe, it is also a conduit through which communities with lower income families can participate in dance classes they normally could not afford or wouldn’t have joined because of competing family priorities. « ( 20 )

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Aside from the therapeutic and educational values International Dance Foundation can bring to cities across the globe, it is also a conduit through which communities with lower income families can participate in dance classes they normally could not afford or wouldn’t have joined because of competing family priorities. It also, brings citizens into their local theaters, art complexes and halls where people can congregate and bring dance back into their communities; similar to times in the 40’s and 50’s. “It can unify people culturally and bring them together at all ages. It can change how people view dance and it can become socially accepted,” Gulyas said.

And although Gulyas’ Foundation is still in its infancy, she is working tirelessly, at her own expense to see her passion get off the ground and into schools, community centers and seniors groups across the world.

States such as Hawaii, California, Florida and Colorado along with individuals in Brazil and Argentina see the benefits and are working with Gulyas to tailor a program to be specific for their schools. “Right now I am still working on funding,” she said. “I’m proud just to be doing it, getting it done instead of talking about it. I hope one day people will see that it makes you feel better, that it’s fun and enjoyable.”

“Starting a non-profit organization has been the most rewarding thing I have ever done and the most time consuming thing I’ve ever done, but when it’s a passion it doesn’t seem like there’s a barrier.” So for Gulyas, with new motivation and people to reach, the pressure of heading to work each day seems just a bit more tolerable.

To find out how you can bring International Dance Foundation into your school, local community center or charity function; please contact Lisza Gulyas at lisza@idancefoundation.org.

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees. In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

BUILDING SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE BUSINESSES

ONE LEADER AT A TIME

Business Service Corps, LLC (BSC) assists high performing forprofit companies to develop, organize implement and measure community outreach programs.

Connect~Serve~Inspire~Measure www.BusinessServiceCorps.com

Women owned and operated business supporting sustainable business practices

collaborator profile

KATRINA HODGE

T

K atrina

Hodge

Beauty Queen in Combat Boots By Jan Mazotti

hrough the course of liberating Iraq, female soldiers have conducted air missions, kicked down doors, disarmed mines and shed their own blood. This is a story of a Lance Corporal in the British military who doesn’t consider herself a female soldier, but a soldier who just happens to be female.

This is the story of Katrina Hodge; one of only ten women in the Royal Anglians, an infantry regiment of the British Army, who have been posted in Iraq.

She is also Miss England.

On a dare from her older brother, Hodge joined the military at 17. Arriving at boot camp in Winchester, Hampshire, with a pink suitcase and kitten heels, Hodge was immediately deemed “Combat Barbie.”

Although chided and jeered, she successfully maneuvered training and was deployed to Basrah in 2005. While in Iraq, she served with distinction and won a commendation for disarming and detaining a suspected rebel fighter with her bare hands. She was given the commendation after members of her regiment were threatened at gunpoint by an Iraqi insurgent after the vehicle they were travelling in overturned and rolled three times. She said, “As I came round, the Iraqi suspect was standing over us with the rifles. I knew if I didn’t act fast then our lives would be in danger. I punched him and was able to retrieve the rifles from him.”

» "If you set your mind to

something nothing is impossible!" « - KATRINA HODGE

Also on a dare while on leave from Iraq, Hodge signed up for the Miss England pageant and was named the first runner up. So she headed back to the army to do her job. Sitting in the barracks in Surrey, wearing her greens and without makeup, she received the call that the previous winner had been asked to step down and that she was named Miss England.

It’s All About Perceptions & Stereotypes Hodge said that perceptions of women in the military and women on the pageant circuit are often misconstrued.

She said, “When I first joined the army I imagined that everyone would judge me and see me as inferior.”

However, she soon discovered that much of her worry was based on her own insecurities. Once she proved herself physically she says, “No one judged me at all.

To be honest, in the military we are all equal - we all pass the same fitness and medical tests.”

When Hodge first entered the pageant, she says, “I was keen to break the stereotype.” But what she Photo by Adrian Harlen @ www.missengland.info ( 22 )

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as I was happy. She made me believe the sky was the limit.

learned was that the “stereotype” she wanted to break was based on her own outsider views. “People automatically judge women who are in pageants and think that they are self-centered.” What she learned was that women in pageants were not only beautiful but extremely intelligent—they came from all walks of life—from military, to lawyers, to doctors!

Innovation, Motivation, and Inspiration

Photo by www.paulfisherphotography.com

Because beauty pageants are sometimes perceived negatively, especially the swimsuit round, Hodge decided to do something about it. She managed to have the swimsuit round of the Miss World pageant removed this year and replaced with a sporting competition.

She said, “This will hopefully help with confidence. I mean it’s hard enough to get on stage, let alone in a bikini!” Replacing the swimsuit competition will hopefully also highlight other parts of the pageant like philanthropy.

» It is much

more than looks that got her to where she is and she hopes to share that with girls. «

» "I am

Hodge is absolutely determined to succeed in life. She was laughed at when she joined the army and again when she entered the pageant circuit, but she continued to prove everyone wrong. She says, “I believe that if you set your mind to something nothing is impossible!” Regardless of gender or naysayers, Hodge says, “it is important for girls to realize if you want something in life you can do it. Just go for it!” I am determined to do well in life and make my family and friends proud.

Her inspiration is her Nan, a head strong woman with great passion and influence. Hodge recalls that at age 5 she was obsessed with Peter Pan. When she told people she could fly like Peter they laughed at her.

But not her Nan. Nan would say, “Okay dear, you go show them not to laugh at you. You go fly!" She believed in everything I did and as long

proud to have represented my country on two different levels." « - KATRINA HODGE

When recalling combat in Iraq, Hodge says she had little fear. “I could walk out tomorrow and get hit by a bus,” she said.

“I just live each day, try to enjoy life, and make my life worthwhile.”

At only 22, Hodge looks back on a couple of life-changing events with pride. “I am proud to have represented my country on two different levels. Walking on stage at Miss World was most definitely an amazing and very proud moment.”

She would argue that lots of young girls dream of being a beauty queen, including her, but she never imagined that dream coming true. “To know I was the only girl from my country on the stage was amazing and I am so thankful for the amazing experience I had at Miss World.”

Being a self proclaimed “girly girl”, she is also very proud of the first time she completed an assault course—it just seemed impossible. Now, looking back with a laugh she says, “I thought the fitness was going to kill me!”

In the end, Hodge knows it is much more than looks that got her to where she is and she hopes to share that with girls.

“I know I am not the best looking girl in England—but being Miss England is so much more than just looks. I want to show girls how to be happy with and proud of who they are.” Furthermore, she hopes that she has had a positive influence on the recruitment of women in the military. Hodges says, “I think women are going into what used to be male jobs... Why not? If a woman can do a job to the standard required—of course she should do it!”

Even though she didn’t win Miss World, Hodge plans to continue her service in the Army and continue modeling for lingerie maker, La Senza in the UK. She is also the new face for England’s premier dating site – Uniform Dating. "I like coming to work with no makeup on and rolling around in mud," Hodge said. "But I like being glamorous and girlie as well."

She goes on, “I was very proud to win a commendation for my work, but I think it’s time to salute other heroes out there and the fantastic jobs they have done!”

By the way, don’t dare her to do anything!

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collaborator profile

Susmita Gongulee Thomas

An Interview with The Honorable

S usmita Gongulee Thomas IFS Consul General of India in San Francisco By Luke Wyckoff

Q: What is the earliest business transaction that you can remember conducting?

A: I used to trade my younger sister stamps

for chocolates. It was a kind of a barter deal, but business none the less. She wasn’t keen to hand over her chocolates and I had to keep increasing the number of stamps I would give her because I wanted the chocolates.

Q: When you look back, what were some of the big decisions that helped you get where you are today?

A: The biggest decision I made was to change my profession. I was studying medicine and decided to move into diplomacy. My father pointed out that there were a huge number of doctors in India and that I had a better chance of succeeding at something else. That really put things into perspective for me. Even though there have been hard times, I have enjoyed every second of my profession. I have learned a tremendous amount and have really enjoyed it.

Q: What are some of the major curves that have been thrown at you? What did you learn from them?

A: Well I used to be a very shy person. » In India, women were not granted the same

liberties as men. My parents always taught me to be who I was regardless of gender. «

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I was an only child so essentially, I had grown up alone so I didn’t really enjoy going out and meeting people. When I joined the Foreign Service (the Service) I realized that sitting there quietly and being a wall-flower just wasn’t going to cut it. I learned that you have to work the

room. So it took me all of six months to force myself to learn the techniques of how to work a room, make contacts, and converse with different types of people.

In college I was a science major. But when I entered the Service I realized that they needed me to focus on politics and economics. So since science really had nothing to do with my job I had to teach myself about politics and economics. I had to teach myself new languages because I worked in places like Japan and Spain and I needed to know the languages in order to be able to communicate with people. The government then decided to post me in a country that spoke French and I didn’t know a word of French. Right before I got to Côte d’Ivoire’s in 2002, the country became engaged in a coup. In a French speaking country, with no radio or television, I had to force myself to pick up bits of French very quickly so that I could know what was going on by listening to passers-by or from those that worked in my house.

Another curve was learning how to handle myself and help people when I was living in an economy and place that was undergoing a coup and had a curfew for eleven months. There were huge evacuations of the Indian population either to the neighboring country or back to India due to the war conditions.

So these were all part of the learning curve in the past 20 years, but as I look back I can say that I enjoyed them and wouldn’t change them for anything.

Q: Where have you been placed throughout your career? How long did you stay in these places?

A: My first assignment was in Madrid, then Tokyo, then

Washington DC. I then took a study leave and went to Chicago to pursue my research in the U.S. foreign policy process. After that, I went to my first ambassadorial assignment in the Ivory Coast. After that I served in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea. I then moved to Chile to serve as an ambassador and now I am in San Francisco. I have been at these posts for a minimum of three years except in war stations – which are two year assignments.

Q: Who were some of the major influences in your life that helped you get where you are today?

A: Definitely my parents. I grew up in a family where I got a lot

of support in doing whatever it was that I wanted to do. In India, women were not granted the same liberties as men. My parents always taught me to be who I was regardless of gender. A number of my teachers were also great influences. They taught me that I could not be held back by the ideas and stereotypes of women in India. They taught me that I had to start breaking the mold. We also had a few senior officers in the Service who helped in invisible ways that I didn’t realize at the time. I had many significant influences and I am grateful for all of them.

» I realized that

if I wanted to get married, I would need permission from the government to do so. If they denied my request to get married, I would have the option of losing my job or remaining single. «

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collaborator profile

Susmita Gongulee Thomas

Q: Which of those senior officers really stand out?

A: The most influential was the first Joint-Secretary that I was

attached to in the Service as a probationer. He was the one that taught me that being a wall-flower wasn’t going to get me anywhere. He told me to use the “tongue that God had given me.” In the Service, you cannot go into a room quietly, sit there quietly, and come out quietly. By the time you leave an event you need to know at least 50% of the people who were in that room. If you haven’t connected with that many people, then you haven’t done your job.

He was definitely the biggest influence outside of my family.

Q: What motivates you?

A: To see how much I can bring for India and how much I can bring people together. I love connecting with people and giving them counsel in terms of economics and politics.

» In the Service, you cannot go into

a room quietly, sit there quietly, and come out quietly. «

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Q: What deal that you have put together between the United States and India are you the most proud of today?

A: I cannot really talk about it specifically because we have confidentiality agreements. I moved one of the biggest U.S. companies to consider India and got it to start to manufacture and supply the H1N1 vaccine in India. It was extremely satisfying because not only did I help this company, but I also did something that would help India. It was great to help my own people get the timely medication that they deserved.

Q: What are some of the major challenges that you have had to overcome in your lifetime?

A: A lot of the challenges come from the fact that I am a

woman. When I first joined the Service in India there were very few women in that sector. It was unusual for women to join the Foreign Service at the time. I realized that if I wanted to get married, I would need permission from the government to do so. If they denied my request to get married, I would have the option of losing my job or remaining single. So, one of the first challenges was getting the Service to acknowledge that men and women should have the same rules. We also had issues with

disparity of pay within the Service. Fortunately our constitution guarantees equal pay so we were able to successfully fight it. I also joined the Service very young. I was hit on very often. I had to deal with that and learned how to carry myself and deflect such advances.

Q: How would you define your leadership style?

A: I don’t really have a style. I enjoy connecting with

Q: What advice would you give to young women in India and in the United States?

A: For women in India, things have changed a lot – we have

Q: How do you balance your work and personal life?

A: It has been easy for me because I married a man who has

it easier now. We now have a tribunal where women can go and complain about sexual harassment. Nevertheless, I would advise women to think about how difficult it would be to have a career in the Service and coordinate it with their husband’s career. I have been lucky enough to have a husband who has given me full support, even to the detriment of his own career at times. He has taken time off and even quit jobs in order to be with me. But this doesn’t happen for everybody. Men in India are more inclined to put their career first. Women in India need to consider that it is difficult to join the Service, support their husband’s career, and be a mother. For women abroad, I would say that diplomacy is one of the most challenging fields of work.

Being a female diplomat is not easy.

people. I like to reach out to people, listen to them, and see how I can help them. I have always been myself.

given me outstanding support all along. We have been married 23 years and have a son and a daughter. We do fight and have disagreements. We either agree to disagree or agree to agree and then move on.

Q: Where do you see yourself ten years from now?

A: I see myself as a Senior Ambassador somewhere. I want a challenging position where I can contribute to facilitating a relationship between India and the country I’m in. I can also see myself in some sort of challenging position in India itself; maybe working with the Election Commission or the Union Public Service Commission that recruits people into the services. I want to be somewhere I can make a meaningful contribution and change the way things are getting done in India.

Q: Why should American female entrepreneurs do business in India?

A: Two reasons. One... India has always looked up to America

as a country that greatly supports women’s rights. I would urge women to move to India and show women there that it is possible to own a business and be successful. It would also be good for American women to show Indian women that they do not have to play second fiddle to their husband and his career.

Two... American women would bring in a lot of equalization to the attitude of men toward women. Men need to realize that they have to speak to women as equals. I think that American women in Indian business culture would help to level the playing field.

Ambassador Thomas holds a Masters Degree in Organic Chemistry. She has also successfully completed a Ford Foundation Scholarship program on US Foreign Policy Process from University of Maryland, USA. She is an ardent supporter of utilizing the best practices of new management fields like Project Management and is today recognized by the Project Management Institute USA as an influential diplomat who has contributed substantially to spreading the message about the importance of Project Management especially for developing countries. She has helped to create the discipline of Project Management in the University of Santo Tomas and in the University of Desarollo, Santiago. To learn more about the Consulate General of India in San Francisco visit www.cgisf.org.

Purnima Voria of NUICC with Consul General Thomas

Luke Wyckoff is the Chief Visionary Officer for Social Media Energy. He can be reached at Luke@SocialMediaEnergy.com.

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{CHANGE YOUR CITY} DenverChangeMakers.Ashoka.org

ASHARA EKUNDAYO + KENDRA SANDOVAL, blue and yellow logic mobilizing the green economy

collaborator profile

Kari Anderson

K ari Anderson Real Colorado By Sandy Williams

is held to high standards of performance. The Real Colorado Foxes is open to players ages 18 to 23, who are often alumni of other Real programs. These teams are part of the United Soccer League’s Premier Development League (PDL), a training ground for nurturing many of the nation’s future stars. The PDL operates as a feeder system to Major League Soccer and professional leagues around the world.

All players who participate, regardless of league, grow not only in their soccer ability, but as student-athletes who continue to make their mark in their classrooms and communities long after leaving Real Colorado.

According to Kristen Kemp, a Real Colorado alumnus, who is currently pursuing a Doctor of Physical Therapy at Regis University said, “I learned the value of commitment, selflessness, work ethic, time management, confidence and leadership. While these skills developed on the soccer

» "The attributes of dedication, discipline

and leadership that I learned through soccer are skills that I carry with me every day. In life, you will always be on a team, whether it is sports related, in your career or in your family." « - Sean Flanagan

M

eet Kari Anderson…Business Development Leader for Real Colorado, a community-based organization committed to helping players learn, grow and celebrate their love of the game of soccer. The goals for the players are simple: develop character, integrity and personal growth while creating future leaders.

Real Colorado has experienced unprecedented growth and expanding membership that includes more than 3,700 families in and around the Denver metro area. The soccer program has three types of programs including Recreational, Competitive and Real Colorado Foxes. The recreational league is open to players 3 to 18 years of age at varying levels of competition. This league places an emphasis on learning the basics of the game and provides an enjoyable environment in which players can practice and develop their skills. The competitive league is open to players 10 to 19 years old. This league offers several playing and competition levels within each age group, and each team ( 30 )

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field, they are the skills that I have carried with me after leaving Real Colorado. Real encouraged me to set an example for my teammates and community, both on and off the field, and to this day I consider myself a reflection of the goals and values of Real Colorado soccer”.

Anderson uses her passion, leadership skills and experience in multiple non-profit organizations including The Logan School for Creative Learning and The American Heart Association. Kari is working to create Real Colorado’s business development department which includes an $11.5 million capital campaign for a new soccer field complex. The recent acquisition of twenty plus acres of land in Douglas County, positions Real Colorado to build a "Real Home"…a dedicated soccer field complex that will expand the recreational opportunities available to area youth, while enhancing the vibrancy and vitality of the community and surrounding areas. This new field complex will give Real Colorado ownership of the fields and games.

It will also allow the coaches and staff to better support their players and the organization can continue to provide quality programs that facilitate leadership and personal growth.

Keeping Philanthropy at the Heart of the Matter Anderson learned her own values of leadership, teamwork and an overall appreciation for the great life lessons participating in sports provides, when she started ski racing at a young age and competed nationally through college. She also coached for fourteen years, leaving coaching with a Level II United States Ski & Snowboard Association (USSA) coaching license.

She has had the opportunity to be mentored by women leaders and to have served as a leader to women in some of the organizations she has worked. These experiences have provided valuable lessons which she applies every day. One such lesson is, to challenge the process by looking for new ways of doing things. While building the business development department, she has had to find new and innovative ways to communicate, build relationships and promote Real Colorado. As she pursues efforts to promote and gain financial support for Real Colorado’s new soccer field complex, she has learned the value of inspiring a shared vision by looking into the future and communicating the organization’s goals to the rest of the group.

» "I want to create something bigger than

Anderson has also served as an advocate and referral source for senior citizens at the Lutheran Social Services. Furthermore, she has worked with teams to advance advocacy and legislation efforts for health initiatives strategies and communications platforms in the Denver and Tacoma markets for the American Heart Association.

Anderson has also assisted clients who had been diagnosed with neuromuscular disorders in obtaining the resources best suited to their needs for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Working in these organizations has taught her additional lessons to include enabling others to act by listening and encouraging others to participate.

me and make a legacy that I am proud of and that will be carried on to make great things happen for others." « - Kari Anderson

Making an Impact for our Youth at Real Colorado

Anderson took the job at Real Colorado for numerous reasons – most of all for the life skills and values they teach youth. There was a desire to be a part of keeping growth opportunities alive so each player could continue to build self-esteem and enhance life values, and to eventually become instrumental leaders and contributors to the community.

Another lesson she has learned is to encourage others to grow by acknowledging and rewarding their accomplishments. Anderson has enjoyed seeing the accomplishments made by Real Colorado to the community, as is testimony from Sean Flanagan, now a land technician for the Forest Oil Corporation. He said, “Real has been an integral part of my life. The attributes of dedication, discipline and

leadership that I learned through soccer are skills that I carry with me every day. In life, you will always be on a team, whether it is sports related, in your career or in your family. It is important to recognize that life is not always about you but about the way the team works together to succeed.”

These testimonies, the voices of Real Colorado, drive Anderson to relentlessly pursue business development efforts to raise capital for the new soccer complex through special events, sponsorships, grant writing, donor cultivation and stewardship while executing all development, communication, branding and marketing plans for Real Colorado. Through it all she says, “I want to create something bigger than me and make a legacy that I am proud of and that will be carried on to make great things happen for others.”

Women in Leadership and Legacy

Anderson says, “Sometimes it's tough to lead, and to be that woman responsible for leading, but what I have come to appreciate is that what sustains a leader and what gives her courage is love. Leaders are in love - in love with the people who do the work, with what their organizations produce and with their customers."

Sandy Williams is President and Founder of Strategic Marketing Innovators LLC. a marketing firm that helps businesses create a marketing impact that makes customers react. Sandy has a BA in English Literature from the University of Texas at Austin and an Executive MBA from the University of Denver. To contact Kari Anderson call 303.694.6882 Ext. 404, email at KariA@realcolorado.net or visit www.realcolorado.net.

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collaborator profile

Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame

Colorado’s Heroines

Enrich Lives

Women of Consequence Inspire Others By Triche Guenin

CWHF 2010 Inductee Group

F

or those who saw the recently released movie “Alice in Wonderland”, you’ll not be swayed by all the odd characters, but you’ll recognize the plot to be one of a curious little girl who grows up to be a strong-willed and powerful woman.

She was not intentionally rebellious, but rather followed her passions, even though they weren’t popular or aligned with present day social norms. This was my takeaway as I left the theater.

And then it hit me. I’d recently had this same feeling walking away from the 25th anniversary induction ceremony of the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame (CWHF). This was a celebration of women who had followed their hearts in an area they had an interest in. They weren’t trying to be recognized as heroes or pioneers in their field, ( 32 )

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but they took the risks and made the associated sacrifices to follow their personal passion. These are the women of consequence who have helped shape Colorado’s heritage.

In order to share the vision, foresight, and power of accomplishment of Colorado’s women, CWHF inducts ten women into its organization every other year. Those who are chosen are a mix of contemporary and historical (deceased) ladies that comprise a multitude of backgrounds, accomplishments, and represent all geographical areas of the state.

These women have made significant and enduring contributions to their fields of endeavor, elevated the status of women, helped open new frontiers for women and society, and inspired others by their example. There are now 122 such recognized women.

When speaking with current and past inductees it is obvious that many of these women have the adjective “FIRST” (or a variation thereof) describing their achievements. For those inducted this year, a minor snapshot of their accomplishments includes the following:

Historical: • Hattie McDaniel (Actress, 1895-1952) First African American to win an Oscar (supporting role as Mammy in ’39 film Gone with the Wind); however segregation laws prevented her from attending the film’s premier in Atlanta.

•S usan Jean O’Brien (Journalist, 1939-2003) Denver’s first female television news director and first woman editor of The Denver Post’s editorial page.

• Bartly Marie Scott (Rancher/Conservationist, 1896-1979) One of the Western slope’s first ranchers to diversify into grazing cattle with sheep, to plant native grasses for erosion prevention, and to lease pasture/cropland.

• Alice Bemis Taylor (Philanthropist, 1877-1942) First woman trustee of Colorado College and lead female founder/benefactor of cultural and social institutions in Colorado Springs’ early days.

Contemporary: • Madeline K. Albright (Diplomat) First woman Secretary of State of the United States and founder/chair/leader of numerous educational, political, and foundation organizations.

• Elinor Greenberg (Education Innovator) One of the first to create learner-centered educational programs, heading University Without Walls, creating the first BSN weekend college for rural nurses, developing degree programs for Native American mental health workers, to name a few.

• M aria Guajardo (Clinical Psychologist, Early Childhood Development) An international advocate for children, as Executive Director of LARASA established a public policy center which publishes national research concerning Latino issues related to education, health, and labor force.

• Philippa Marrack (Medical Researcher) Groundbreaking work on T-cells which has shaped medicine’s current understanding of the human immune system, vaccines, HIV, and other immune disorders.

•R amona Martinez (Politician) First Latina elected to Denver City Council and ongoing activist for women/minorities at all levels.

• Jill Tietjen (Engineer) Advocate for women in technology, author of technical papers, expert witness, and top historian on scientific/ technical women.

The CWHF was founded in 1985 in response to a realization that there was no recognition of the lofty contributions that Colorado women have made to enrich the local community. ML Hanson, founder, reflected that “by acknowledging the lives of these women, we’ve provided both girls and boys the inspiration to achieve their own goals, regardless of the era or the tough times they’ll go through to do it. We’ve opened the door….”

Their talents, skills, struggles, and contributions form a legacy that the CWHF is dedicated to protecting. For today’s youth, Jill Tietjen, a new inductee, advises, “Follow

your dream. It will take passion, determination, and persistence.

There will be obstacles along the way, but keep your eyes open for opportunities. Your life’s path will not be as you imagine it will be.”

Marilyn Van Derbur Atler, Emcee for the ceremony and prior CWHF inductee herself, introduced each recipient and shared their stories and accomplishments. She stressed their courage, leadership, intelligence, expertise, and creativity. Kristy Schloss, President of Schloss Engineered Equipment and an induction attendee, commented “Each of the recipients is renowned in their field. They serve as role models to all exemplifying that you can pursue your passion and impact the world.”

Several other positive comments were heard during the 25th anniversary CWHF Induction Ceremony, such as: “All are quintessential women. Some are well known and some aren’t, but all of their accomplishments are worthy,” Sandra Shreve, past BOD Chair 2004.

“I was a pilot (actually a “secret” astronaut program – Mercury 13, the men’s program was the Mercury 7) when women were supposed to be nurses and teachers, so quite an exciting time,” Dr Rhea Woltman, 2008 CWHF inductee (Astronaut, Parliamentarian).

“It’s great to see so many people that helped me along the way (e.g. raising kids) – it’s a communal effort,” Dr Pippa Marrack, 2010 CWHF inductee “It feels like a family gathering, but also a humbling experience,” Stephie Allen, 2006 CWHF inductee (Business/Civic Leader), who accepted Madeline Albright’s award in her absence, since they were childhood friends.

“The work (first woman and American to serve as Secretary General of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics) has been incredibly rewarding and I enjoyed it so much,” Dr. Jo Ann Cram Joselyn 2002 CWHF inductee (space scientist) “It’s an elating experience, but it’s unfortunate more women can’t be recognized that are so deserving,” Evie Dennis, 2008 CWHF inductee (School Superintendent, U.S. Olympic Committee Member)

“We extend our congratulations to these women, who exemplify the best qualities of the people who have built and sustained Colorado.

These are women who are making a contribution, who are inspiring, who didn’t take the easy way out, and who gave in extraordinary ways” said Dr. Christine Johnson, current Chair of the CWHF’s Board of Directors.

» These women have

made significant and enduring contributions to their fields of endeavor, elevated the status of women, helped open new frontiers for women and society, and inspired others by their example. «

So, like Alice in her Wonderland experiences, these Colorado women drew from their strengths, overcame odds, denied societal norms, and focused on what was important to them, ultimately becoming the fabric and part of the foundation of Colorado’s rich heritage.

For more information on the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame and/or the biographies of the past/current recipients please visit www.cogreatwomen.org.

Triche Guenin is President of Denver-based Partners Through Change, Inc., a process improvement firm that facilitates organizations in becoming more efficient/effective in everyday operations. www.partnersthroughchange.com.

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collaborator profile

Margaret Reich

We run a shared services model here, so all the resources that we have whether it be legal, risk-management, IT, or HR, operate not only for Republic, but for all the other operating companies that we own. Today, we own eleven operating companies. My role is to make it all happen.

Q: What is the first business transaction that you can remember conducting?

A: My first entry into business was figuring out how I could spend

less time babysitting while making more money. I was in junior high, and I ran a computer babysitting business. I realized that it was the verge of the personal computer and my father was a computer nut, so we probably had about ten computers lying around the house. I didn’t want to just babysit kids; I wanted them to have a structured work environment. I knew it was a way to charge twice the going rate.

Q: Looking back, what were some of the big decisions you made that helped you get where you are today?

A: My mother went to school her entire life. When she passed

Margaret

Reich

COO of Republic Financial Corporation

By Luke Wyckoff

Q: What is your role at Republic Financial?

A: I am the Chief Operating Officer for Republic Financial,

an international private investment company, who over the last five years, has used its expertise in commercial aviation leasing, distressed commercial debt, and asset management to navigate the most difficult business and complex financing situations and amass multinational investment interests exceeding $1 billion. In nearly every case we own a majority or controlling position, or they are owned through a private equity fund that we have where we act as the general partner.

It is really a role that is very multi-faceted.

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away when I was young, she had her undergraduate and Master’s Degrees and she was working on completing her PhD. Throughout my childhood, I remember her going from college to college to college so she could finish her degree. I made a decision early on to get all my schooling out of the way and that it was going to be a very broad base of education. My undergraduate degree is in marketing, I have an MBA in finance and IT, and I have a law degree. All of it was completed in a short period of time.

I also decided not to take traditional routes. I had the opportunity to work for Anderson Consulting after graduation, but instead I decided to work for a smaller boutique consulting firm. While in law school, I transferred from the consulting division into the law firm and ran their IT department because I wanted to get a feel for what it would be like to work in a law firm - but I also didn’t want to take a pay cut. When I passed the bar, I had two job offers - one at the firm and another from MediaOne. I took the job at MediaOne. Looking back, it was a stupid thing to do because everyone graduating law school at the time wanted a law firm job. Even though I took that path, it ended up being a great decision.

Q: Who were some of the major influences in your life? Who helped you get where you are today?

A: When I interviewed at MediaOne, I met this woman who I thought would be good for personal development and my career. She

» You’ve got to get your ego out of the way

and figure out how to communicate in environments where your voice is heard. I think that you just adapt to where you are. «

» You have to have the ability to separate the facts of what’s going on and your emotions.

Emotional intelligence is crucial for women. Really understanding how to listen, pulling logic together, knowing the basis of the argument, and understanding who you’re dealing with are all such critical pieces. « oversaw the law department at US West and then, when they spun off, she went with MediaOne. She didn’t have a college degree, which is pretty interesting, because she ran a department of professionals who were very proud of their degrees and their pedigrees. From the beginning, she patiently taught me how to run a business and how business really works. She taught me how to negotiate the politics of a big company, how to get work done through other people, and how to project confidence when you don’t have very much of it. She taught me the importance of business relationships and remains a fantastic friend who has had a huge influence on me.

My father was also a big influence on me. He was the corporate vice president of Honeywell. On the long 45 minute commutes from town to home, he would lecture me about how I could do anything. He would tell me that women were so much smarter than men in business, and that they have all of these special skill sets that men are missing. So it wasn’t a question of “if”, it was a question of “when” I was going to go into business. Looking back, I think he is a little mad that I didn’t get into politics.

My step-mother is another great influence. She is a high school principal.

I can’t believe the decisions she is faced with on a daily basis - situations that you don’t have to deal with in business.

She has to deal with all different types of families and reconcile complex problems while advocating for people’s kids and other educators.

There are also four or five women, throughout my career, who are my sisters - who have really been a positive influence on me.

Q: Is there anyone in business today that you really look up to?

A: Well, there are certain types of people whom I look up to. I look

up to people who can sell anything. Also, you get to a point where you really admire those who take a step sideways and do more than make money; they start foundations that support others. I think once

you get to a certain age, you realize that you have spent your career making money for a company or for yourself. I admire people who have made a significant amount of wealth and then realize that they want to do more; that they want to give back.

Q: What motivates you?

A: I have been told that I am a professional problem solver. The

nastier the problem and the more pieces to the puzzle - the better.

That is fascinating to me. I love to approach complex problems and work through them. I love the result at the end where you can look back and say “Wow, we really did do something pretty fantastic here.” I think one of the better experiences I have had is taking the support staff that I was given when I came into this job and completely changing their vision of how they operate and what they do on a daily basis. I feel like I taught them that they aren’t here to simply support; they are here to design and figure out how to move companies forward.

Seeing that change - that shift in mentality - takes a lot of tenacity, personality, and relationships.

Motivating people to do something completely outside of the box is fun for me. I like facilitating that change.

Q: What was one of the biggest problems that you have faced in the past five years and how did you handle it?

A: We bought a company that had 27 different operating units -

basically 27 separate companies. Ultimately, it was too big to get our arms around. So, long story short, we had to sell the company. I had to come in and coordinate things so that we could proceed with the sale of the company. When I really started to look at it, I realized that the company had never been fully integrated and that there were various platforms and contracts all over the place; we didn’t know where they all were. We didn’t even know where the equipment was. This whole mess needed to be cleaned up within 60 days. I worked with a team of

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collaborator profile

Margaret Reich

people to get everything in order and figure out what assets we had, as well as those that we were selling. It was an extremely work intensive 60 days - I was working around the clock. I love those circumstances!

Q: What is the most challenging part of your job?

A: I think that the most challenging

part of my job is managing the expectations of what can be done.

We have very short timeframes here.

When we have a deal we need to get it done. You run into things that are totally crazy so the biggest issue is getting the resources and getting people moving as quickly as possible.

Q: What is the most rewarding part of being the COO? A: After solving a problem, being

able to look back and say “Wow, I can’t believe that we actually got that done.” It’s a great feeling to get all the pieces in place in a certain time frame and ultimately accomplish something that seemed impossible at the time. Realistically just taking a look at the people and being proud of the work they’ve done is great. We do impossible things routinely around here!

» My number one goal, at some point in my life, is to figure out what I know at 40 and train women who are in their 20’s. « So for me, this makes my position, in what is a male-dominated industry, a lot easier.

Q: Were there any hurdles that you had to overcome?

Q: Do you see any advantages or disadvantages to being A: Yes, of course. I think that women often tend to advance things a senior-level woman of power in a major company? through cooperation or collaboration. I think that subtlety is something that you cannot use, especially in the environment that I am in – it just A: Advantages. I grew up with six brothers so the concept of having doesn’t work particularly well. You can set the agenda, but you need male verses female roles is pretty blended for me. Because I grew up with so many male influences, working almost exclusively with men comes fairly easily - I can usually anticipate their behavior.

to be in front of the team. You must collaborate at a different level. As much as I hate to say it, and I’m not one of those people who get real worked up about the whole “glass ceiling thing,” there is a different reaction when women bring forward propositions than there is men. It happens a lot. You’ve got to get your ego out of the way and figure out how to communicate in environments where your voice is heard. I think that you just adapt to where you are.

Q: What is your advice to younger women who are coming into the business world today?

A: My number one goal, at some

point in my life, is to figure out what I know at 40 and train women who are in their 20’s. I have two daughters

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and I try to teach them the art of negotiation and how to think through problems objectively. The one thing that I have learned in a really tough business environment is that you have to have the ability to separate the facts of what’s going on and your emotions. Emotional intelligence is crucial for women. Really understanding how to listen, pulling logic together, knowing the basis of the argument, and understanding who you’re dealing with are all such critical pieces. You can’t expect people to change, because I know from experience that they’re not going to.

You need to know who you’re talking to, know the likelihood of their reaction, and know how to manage those reactions to get to the goal that you want -- know people’s patterns of behavior.

» I think that anyone in an executive

position struggles with work-life balance; I don’t care if you’re a man or a woman. « than me. I like to make the crazy parts of the job fun. I think I have a good sense of humor.

Q: How do you do you balance work and your Q: How would you define your leadership style?

A: It’s changed a lot in the past five years. I think it has to do with personal life? adapting to the environment. While I used to take a more collaborative A: Women executives get asked this question all the time and many approach, I am much more decisive today than I have ever been. I think it comes from working for a company like this where one day you are trying to understand potential pension liability to the next day when you are trying to figure out how to do business in Ireland.

You are rarely dealing with the same thing twice. I have learned to create a set of counselors - people who have very specific specialties and experience - and get their advice and then make the decision. I think that in the past, in a different environment, my leadership style would have been more collaborative. I would have allowed more decision making at a lower level. Here, it’s just too complex. You need to know all the factors inside and out.

My leadership style today is very direct but I have also developed very strong relationships with people who work with me. I’m a people oriented person. I love meeting people who are smarter

of them will tell you that they have outsourced parts of their life, that they have it together. We don’t have it all together. While women may try to paint that illusion - they don’t have it all together. There were so many times that I came to work with a big yogurt handprint on the back of my silk jacket. There is that messy closet in your house where you throw everything before guests arrive. You can’t possibly do all of it. It’s a series of measures. I think that anyone in an executive position struggles with work-life balance; I don’t care if you’re a man or a woman. Are the expectations different for women? Sure. You’re still going to be a wife and a mom and you’ll feel societal pressure. It’s a series of trade-offs.

Luke Wyckoff is the Chief Visionary Officer for Social Media Energy. He can be reached at Luke@SocialMediaEnergy.com.

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building bridges

Zakery’s Bridge

A Cultural Bridge Through

America’s Heartland Zakery’s Bridge

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By Beth Parish

I

Imagine it is midnight, you are eight years old, and your mother wakes you. She tells you that you can pack three things and then you will leave everything else behind: your toys, your books, your clothes, your friends and some of your family. What if you had 24 hours to move across the world, to a foreign land, where no one spoke your language, no one knew your customs and no one looked like you.

Could you do it? Don’t feel bad if you answered no, I could not do that, you are not alone. These are the types of questions Kay Smith and Carole Spaulding-Kruse ask schoolchildren and business people in their World of Difference Workshops. These questions are challenging for the U.S. schoolchildren to answer and probably even harder for the businessperson.

These questions do not come from thin air, rather these questions help workshop participants put themselves into a real world situation faced by families that are forced by political, economic, environmental, and cultural situations to leave their home and re-locate to a foreign land. Kruse and Smith developed these real world situations as a result of their work profiling ten families, through the eyes of the children who have had to move across the world, leaving everything they know to settle in Iowa. The women put these stories into a book that profiles families who left their native land to find a better life; the families might have left for political, cultural, or economic reasons.

While some of these children were woken and rushed out under the cover of night, others came on a gentler route to Iowa.

The authors hope that the stories of these young people will help the children and families that read the book, better understand the great cultural diversity within their own communities in Iowa.

» Because interesting immigration patterns have helped Iowa become what it is today, Smith and Kruse wanted to help raise a generation of children who could work and live in a very diverse environment. « The Bridge to Iowa: When I heard that two moms had written a book about families that had moved to Iowa from different parts of the world, my first thought was, "Iowa, why Iowa," and really, "How many people from remote parts of the world would be moving to Iowa?" As Smith and Kruse found out, Iowa has long been an open and welcoming state for those going through tough political and environmental situations. At the end of the Vietnam War, the governor of Iowa was the only U.S. governor to raise his hand and say yes, Iowans would welcome, with open arms, displaced Vietnamese families. While we might think of Iowa in terms of America’s Heartland, the open door policy has brought great diversity to The Hawkeye State. Governor Robert D. Ray, the governor who raised his hand at the end of the

» The future of Iowa’s economy depended on helping people immigrate to Iowa. Now the families who came to Iowa are giving back to the community and have become an integral part of the Iowan culture and economy. « 04.10 - 6.10

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building bridges

Zakery’s Bridge

war, is writing the forward for the book Zakery’s Bridge. Much beloved in the state, the Governor felt that the future of Iowa’s economy depended on helping people immigrate to Iowa. Now the families who came to Iowa are giving back to the community and have become an integral part of the Iowan culture and economy.

Zakery's Bridge: The title of Kruse and Smith’s book is Zakery’s Bridge: Children’s Journeys From Around the World to the Heartland. In addition to the title story about a family’s flee from Bosnia, the book presents the journeys of families from the Sudan, The Netherlands, Vietnam, Laos, Palestine, Israel, India, Mexico and Taiwan. With the children guiding the accounts, Zakery’s Bridge tells more than stories of immigration; the young people recount, in detail, why they had to leave their homes, and what political, cultural, economic, or environmental situation made the move necessary. Most of the families did not have Iowa in mind when they fled, and they certainly had not seen tourist brochures and pamphlets from America’s Heartland.

The title character, Zakery, and his family crossed both physical and cultural bridges as they fled from Bosnia-Herzegovina. When his family left their home in the war-torn country, they did not know where they were going to live. But because it was a state with a wellfunded refugee re-settlement program, an aid group re-located the family to Iowa. The physical bridge in the title of the story is located in Mostar, Bosnia - the original home of Zakery’s family. The city was named after those that minded the old bridge; the residents of Mostar were proud of the ancient bridge at the center of the cultural heart of the town. Even though the bridge had no strategic military

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value, because it was a symbol of peace to the residents, it was destroyed during the war. For all of his life, Zakery had heard about this wonderful, symbolic, peaceful bridge. At the conclusion of the war, the residents of Mostar used international aid monies to re-build the bridge. After hearing so much about the bridge, Zakery and his family were able to travel from Iowa to walk across the re-constructed bridge; during the same trip Zakery had a chance to meet family members from Bosnia that he had only heard stories about.

» Bridges need to be built between a myriad of ethnic groups. « Or, in the 1970’s, at the age of eight, Kong was snuck out of her Laos village in the back of a flat bed truck; the book recounts her family’s story of flight to Iowa through her eight-year-old eyes. Before the Zakery’s Bridge book project, Kong’s children knew very little of her story; when asked if they would be able to flee in the middle of the night, Kong’s children were not sure they could leave everything as their mother had done decades ago.

Not every family in the book left their home country as a refugee.

Because the farmland in The Netherlands is shrinking, Iowa has been working to relocate Dutch dairy farmers. One story in Zakery’s Bridge recounts a family’s move to America’s Heartland for economic opportunity.

Arriving with few possessions, not knowing the language, having to start over, the children and families that Kay and Carol met were positive and inspiring. Kay recounted that the families did not use the sadness of their stories to keep them from going on and succeeding in life. After losing his father to an ambush, one young man fled from the Sudan, leaving everything behind. Today, this Iowa high school student has started a young diplomat program to help his classmates learn about other cultures.

The Bridge to Understanding: Kruse and Smith hope that their book and their World of Difference classroom programs will help citizens, young and old, appreciate our culturally diverse world. This book can help young people understand the point of view of the new kid coming to school, families learn about the history and culture of another family, encourage readers to see the rich diversity that makes up our neighborhood, and the stories can help all of us view our world through the lens of a displaced family. The stories in Zakery’s Bridge are conversation starters, not the end of one child’s journey.

Not known for its cultural diversity, Kruse and Smith have found that Iowa is a great melting pot with families from different backgrounds and cultures. The authors want young people to think about their own stories and journeys.

Smith noted, as Americans, our story began over 200 years ago.

While this book honors family histories, Carol pointed out that bridges need to be built between a myriad of ethnic groups. While Iowa has a large Caucasian population, there are Iowa residents who have immigrated from all over the world including Asia, Africa, and Europe. Iowans have cultural backgrounds that embrace religious and ethnic traditions. Carol said that Zakery’s Bridge is not just about the U.S.born Caucasian population understanding people of color.

The stories also encourage those from the Native American tribes to learn about the residents from Asian countries, encouraging those with roots in Africa to learn about the Hindi cultural traditions and hoping that those from The Netherlands will embrace African traditions. Kruse highlighted the success of the Des Moines Asian festival; every year Des Moines hosts an Asian cultural festival that is now seen as a celebration for the entire community event, not just a celebration for the local residents with ties to Asian countries.

from a Korean family. This family spoke Korean, had artifacts from home, and made her feel part of something special when she visited their house. Kruse, who teaches English literature and writing at Drake University in Des Moines, admits that after growing up in California and spending a year in Paris she felt culturally unprepared moving to Iowa; twenty years later she also considers herself a native Iowan.

Kruse and Smith met through activities with their children. Over coffee one day, Smith proposed the idea that became Zakery's Bridge. Kruse, who had done a lot of research into American ethnic literature and had been teaching multi-cultural literature classes, was drawn to the idea of telling the story of Iowa’s unique diversity through the eyes of children.

Because interesting immigration patterns have helped Iowa become what it is today, Smith and Kruse wanted to help raise a generation of children who could work and live in a very diverse environment.

The Bridge Beyond the Book: The road to publishing Zakery’s Bridge was long and strewn with roadblocks. Smith and Kruse approached traditional publishers with the book idea. While there were encouraging words, no one was willing to take on the project.

Discouraged, the authors returned to their writing and their work looking for other avenues.

Inspiration came from one of Kruse’s students who had a friend that used a community press to publish a book on Iowa’s homeless youth. While the author wanted the voices of these young people to be heard, he also wanted to help raise monies for the local shelter.

With the community-publishing model, the book’s proceeds go directly to the youth shelter.

Because Kruse and Smith wanted the message of Zakery’s Bridge to go beyond the book, they adapted the community-publishing model to allow the book’s proceeds to support their World of Difference Foundation. Committed to giving school children and business people hands-on experience related to global equality, cultural diversity, and world issues, this multi-cultural non-profit allows the message of Zakery’s Bridge to go beyond the book.

» Not known for its cultural diversity, Carol and Kay have found that Iowa is a great melting pot with families from different backgrounds and cultures. «

The Bridge for Smith and Kruse: Smith recognizes, we all

have a story, a journey. While neither Smith nor Kruse are native Iowans, both feel at home in the state that is most famous for holding the caucus that kicks off the presidential primary season. Smith freely admits that she is drawn to cultures different from her own. She fondly recounts middle school days with her best friend who was

Zakery’s Bridge is due out in November of this year; community publisher Shrieking Tree Press will print the book. To learn more about World of Difference please go to www.worldofdifference.us. To learn more about Zakery’s Bridge visit www.zakerysbridge.com. If you are interested in purchasing the book please visit www.shriekingtree.com.

Beth Parish is an affiliate faculty member at Regis University teaching graduate and undergraduate marketing, advertising and consumer behavior classes. Beth is currently pursuing her doctorate in organizational leadership focusing her research on understanding how consumer purchase behavior is influenced by the social mission of the company.

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jewel of collaboration

Smart Cookies

Smart Cookies A Sweet Way to Manage Your Dough By Tiffany A. Kampsnider ( 42 )

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A

s women, there are few topics we deem “off limits” while conversing with our girlfriends.

We gab endlessly about the trivial stuff; the guy we met for drinks last week, the way in which we were “bad” for ordering the side of fries instead of the salad, or the wonders that our new Pilates class is doing for our abs. We share our thoughts on religion, the strength it took for our mom to beat breast cancer, our views about politics and how we got ourselves into $50,000 of credit card debt….

Er, hold that last thought.

When is the last time you discussed the details of your personal finances with your closest girlfriends, let alone anyone else?

Have you shared the nitty gritty about your mortgage, your stocks and your savings, or like many of us, your lack there of?

Although money management and personal finances affect all of us in one way or another, the topic continues to be taboo among women of all ages.

Wouldn’t it be nice to receive honest feedback, accountability and encouragement in regards to our finances, similar to the ways in which we are counseled on the former topics? A forum to share the truth about our money management strengths and weaknesses that gives both emotional and educational support?

Meet the Smart Cookies. Not your average chocolate chip and sugar variety mind you, but rather a group of five young women who haven’t had a chance to cool since starting their own money management group over five years ago.

Inspired by an Oprah Winfrey show on personal finance, friends Andrea, Angela, Katie, Robyn and Sandra decided that it was time to tackle their own financial demons.

Wanting to take an honest look at their personal finances in a way that they had not done before, they decided to challenge their financial management skills in order to make the most of their money.

Furthermore, they wanted to do it in an environment that they were both comfortable and familiar with. Together. The ladies were eager and determined to get the conversation that always seemed to slide under the radar

to the forefront. While agreeing to weekly meetings, the group quickly turned money into a hot topic and they were well on their way to helping one another reach financial freedom.

Wanting to be held accountable, each came with different agendas that were important and pertinent to their lives such as wanting to pay off $18,000 in consumer debt, becoming savvy in stocks and investments, to simply wanting to learn the “sweet” ways to live on less.

What’s more? They wanted to do it all without sacrificing their fabulous style or social lives.

Just one glance at this striking and dynamic five-some and you quickly realize that this ain’t your mama’s cookie jar.

A typical meeting for the group follows a similar agenda to the one that they put forth in

personal financial successes. Sandra Hanna of Smart Cookies insists that this positive attitude has been a key ingredient to their success.

“We are very proud of ourselves as a group and of each other. We are also very connected.

But most of all we are positive. We always have and continue to focus on being positive,” Hanna maintains. “We feel that being positive sets us apart from other money groups in that it’s not about deprivation or being frugal. It’s about wealth management and adding things to your lives by making smarter decisions about money.”

Hanna further describes the group as a type of ‘Weight Watchers’ for managing wealth. Similar to the Weight Watchers model, the importance of the group lies in the emotional, supportive and positive reinforcement they continuously get in reaching their goals. And, as any Weight Watchers success story can tell you, the group meetings are crucial to their achievements. For example, Sandra described how they were able to look at the amount of money another one of the Cookies could potentially make in her current career by going back and getting her masters degree. The women were then able to root her on, providing the encouragement and accountability she needed while she went after her diploma.

“By working as a group, we are able to really push each other,” Hanna adds. “We arm each other with information and act as a cheerleading squad for other members of the group.” Managing their goals and expectations alone simply would not produce the same results as collaborating together does. “We know this, because we all tried on our own.

Collectively, we had purchased every financial book on the market,” explains Hanna, “and we all had continuously gotten off track.” She confirms that being part of a team pushes you beyond your limits of what you can accomplish by yourself. Ultimately, you can achieve more.

While the “Rah, Rah’s!” of the sideline cheer squad and the weekly meetings are nice, one must ask, how, specifically they got from financial farce to freedom - and everywhere in between. Hanna recognizes that by allowing

» They wanted to do it all without sacrificing their fabulous style or social lives. « the beginning consisting of: a general check-in with one another, spending updates, reviewing goals and setting new goals, an education component in which each person is responsible for coming up with bits of factual information for that weeks financial topic and perhaps most importantly, sharing good news or one smart money move that each had recently made.

They found that by sharing these successes, no matter how small, was motivational and inspiring to the entire group and a key to their

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Smart Cookies

themselves permission to indulge, in a structured manner, the ladies have seen their social lives, relationships, and even their shopping and personal “maintenance” habits flourish, all while saving a bit of money along the way. Instead of giving up the luxuries that make them who they are, they simply perfect the ways in which they go about doing them, providing ways that they can still achieve their ultimate financial goals.

For example, “…we have found that women love to share everything,” gushes Hanna. “If you can tap into that, you can save yourself A LOT of money.” Things like borrowing clothes, swapping magazines and trading babysitting services are all ways that can make a big impact on financial success.

“Simple things like always asking for the special,” she adds, “can help you make smart decisions.” Whether they are inquiring about the happy hour specials on Friday afternoon or finding a local beauty school in their town to color their tresses, the Smart Cookies have taken their favorite routines and have turned them into money saving opportunities. Coming out on top and staying ahead of their goals is worth it - even if it means ordering a Coors rather than a Cocktail on occasion.

Beyond trading their Vogue for Glamour or babysitting skills for a hand in the yard, the ladies also acknowledge the importance of larger money management skills such as “Knowing Your Numbers.” To become truly financially savvy, Hanna insists that this is a crucial component for setting and achieving both short and long-term goals when it comes to finances. She also encourages you get organized, map out where you want your money to go and constantly ask, “Is this bringing me closer to my financial goals?”

These are vital components to success.

Their website, www.smartcookies.com, offers many other valuable “tips and tricks” for making the most out of your money, packaged as daily doses of “Bite Sized Cookies” and educational articles from the “Cookie Jar”.

Resources also include on-line planning tools, expert advice and ways in which you can experience financial success by forming your own money group.

Collectively, the Smart Cookies have created a money management powerhouse. Their tools for success, innovative resources and continuous support for one another have led them to very aspiring achievements. They have paid off an impressive amount of over $50,000 in combined ( 44 )

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debt and, like Andrea, known as the debt buster of the group, are making large strides in building their savings accounts. Angela was able to go into business for herself and is full of creative ideas for making money in an unconventional way. Katie continues to build her savings and investment portfolio while Robyn inspires others by showing ways in which to make the most out of the job you have. Sandra has perfected the ways to be a savvy shopper and how to live on less while planning for an upcoming wedding.

Today, the ladies strive to inspire others who have been in their shoes by: ‘Helping women take control of their finances, attract more money into their lives and turn their dreams into reality.’ Their motto shines atop their website and attracts women who may otherwise be afraid, confused or lack the know how to get started in such an endeavor. Thanks to Smart Cookies for being pioneers for groups of their kind, women everywhere have been finding ways to work jointly while achieving common goals such as wealth management and financial success.

Their positive and unconventional attitudes regarding wealth management have landed the group segments on The Oprah Winfrey Show, MSNBC, the New York Times, New York Daily News, and Money Magazine to name a few.

Today, the ladies currently enjoy life as full-time Smart Cookies and, by looking at their accomplishments, they have given even the best soft and chewy cookie assortments a run for their money. Perhaps their most rewarding accomplishment to date, however, has been the feedback they have received from other women.

Hanna says, "To hear others’ success stories, to see other women’s money groups popping up left and right and to see women making career changes to benefit their lives has been amazing. Even the simple act of getting women to discuss their finances has been very gratifying."

“My hope is that if we’ve done anything, it’s that we’ve gotten women talking about money. And not just by referring to the great deal they got at Target, but rather in a more intelligent fashion. Such as how they are saving for retirement or updates on their financial portfolio,” clarifies Hanna.

“Hearing those types of conversations is so inspiring and I hope that we were cause for some of that.”

The women of Smart Cookies have become trailblazers for groups of its kind. Not only have they broken down barriers in their own financial lives, they have shown how by taking the cookie jar off the shelf and onto the table, the topic of personal finances can now be embraced rather than embarrassing.

Most importantly, they have gotten women using joint efforts to collaborate about the subject of money in ways that are both intelligent and inspiring; together these five cookies have influenced thousands of women, both domestically and globally. By combining forces, the ladies have shown how approaching money management in a trendy, fresh and smart manner while maintaining the lives that they are accustomed to living can lead them to wealth management and overall financial success. Suddenly having your cake, or rather, cookie, and eating it too is an attainable feat!

Tiffany Kampsnider graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a degree in Communications. She is a program manager for Polk Majestic Meetings & Incentives where she plans and executes corporate meetings and incentive travel. Tiffany has a passion for writing, and while most of her writing is for leisure, she greets the opportunities to write professionally. She and her husband live in Denver, enjoy the outdoors and are expecting their first baby in August! Email her at tiffany@polkmajestic.com or visit her blog at www. tiffandchris-blog.blogspot.com to learn more.

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Women of the Biennial

Women of

the Biennial Collaborating for a Better Hemisphere By Rachel Chaparro

T

he Biennial of the Americas, taking place in Denver, is more than a month-long celebration of the culture, ideas and people of the Western Hemisphere. It’s also an unprecedented opportunity for connection and collaboration among the 35 countries participating.

Building on the Biennial’s themes innovation, the arts, sustainability and community – the event will work to nurture the global community by bringing together some of the Americas’ emerging and leading thinkers in politics, science, the arts and other fields.

The themes and the people invited to create this extraordinary collaborative event make up the Biennial’s three programs: McNichols at Civic Center Park, citywide exhibitions, ( 46 )

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and the Americas Roundtables. The Biennial’s cultural and arts exhibit in the McNichols building at Civic Center Park, “The Nature of Things” will bring together artists, filmmakers, musicians, scientists and philosophers from throughout the hemisphere. A daily speaker’s series will punctuate live concerts, dance performances and exhibits of contemporary and experimental art across a variety of media.

Through this exhibit and the hundreds of diverse events that make up the citywide exhibitions, the Biennial will deepen our connection and understanding of the people, traditions and rich cultural contributions of our neighbors within the Americas.

In addition, seven Americas Roundtables and one transnational summit aim to promote

a hemispheric call to action on common challenges, joint opportunities and shared issues through North and South America. Some of the Roundtable participants include former Mexican President Vicente Fox, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Rigoberta Menchu Tum and U.S. Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States Ambassador Carmen Lomellin.

Roundtable topics will include education, poverty reduction, energy and climate change, health, trade, philanthropy and women in leadership.

Behind the scenes there is a team of dynamic women who bring unmatched skills and passion to this historic collaboration, which the State Department has declared the largest international event of the year in the United States. Here are their stories...

Global Connections

Dr. Erin Trapp Breaking New Ground Dr. Erin Trapp, Director of Cultural Affairs for the City and County of Denver, is inspired by women who “have broken new ground.”

And she’s breaking new ground herself, taking the Biennial from an idea sitting on a shelf to an event unprecedented in its scope and reach.

“The idea of pulling together a Biennial with a broader appeal that can be threaded into our lives, as it relates to art and culture and the various populations, is what pursued me to move forward with the Biennial,” said Trapp.

Trapp has been a key contributor to helping arts flourish in Colorado and the Western Region for more than a decade. As the Deputy Director of the Western States Arts Federation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the creative advancement and preservation of the arts, she created new programs to engage youth in arts and provide strategic vision for several new technology initiatives that help artists find jobs, sell their art, apply for grants and get their work into prestigious art shows.

Trapp hopes that through the Biennial’s combination of arts, culture and substantive policy discussions, “people will associate us with the kind of city where the cultural energy is unparalleled and puts us on par with other cities around the world known for art and culture; and that Denver is the kind of place where we can have open-minded, forward looking conversations.”

Experience counts, especially if you are charged with leading one of the largest international events in the world. Biennial President Donna Good has overseen seven international events over the years, including two in Denver: Pope John Paul II’s visit for the 1993 World Youth Day and the 1997 Summit of the Eight, which brought the heads of state from the United States, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Canada, Japan, European Union Commission and Russia.

Good’s background in putting on international events, her experience running Denver’s Department of Human Services and her leadership role in an international organization that enhances entrepreneurial opportunities for Donna Good women made her a natural choice when Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper was looking for someone to lead the Biennial. She’s raised nearly $2 million for the event and embraces the opportunity to welcome the world to Denver, and show off her city.

“While the Pope’s visit and the Summit of the Eight were certainly exciting, the Biennial is the most interesting,” said Good. “What drew me to this incredible event is the variety it will offer to the people of Denver and the Western Hemisphere. The Biennial will honor art, world leaders and some of Denver’s finest cultural institutions.”

Good hopes the event will “take people’s focus off the negative that is often highlighted in the media about our neighbors and show the great strength that the Americas have and see it as something we can all draw from.”

Expanding Perceptions Paola Santoscoy leads the effort at the Biennial’s signature artistic exhibit, being held in the newly-renovated McNichols Monument in the heart of Denver at Civic Center Park. The young, emerging Mexican curator is transforming this long dormant, 28,000 square foot former Carnegie library into a place where the America’s spirit of friendship and collaboration can be felt by sharing something beautiful we all have in common - art and culture.

“By bringing different voices from different countries to a single space, I hope to connect the thematic branches to the topic of the Americas, what it means to live in the Americas and how to see the world from different latitudes,” said Paola Santoscoy Santoscoy. “The goal is to have the artists both illustrate and participate in the definition of the Biennial’s four themes and connect themes to the topic of the Americas.”

One example: a neon sign attached to the ouside of McNichols illuminated by solar panels that reads, “Vivo en América (I live in America).”

“It will make a comment on the theme of sustainability, since the brightness of the sign will depend on how much light the solar panels get. The inconsistency of energy will make the sign go on and off, making it seem like it’s always on the verge of extinction, which the artist believes connects to the topic of the Americas,” said Santoscoy. “The works picked for McNichols will open a lot of questions, that’s the hope and aim and is how I am selecting artists.”

This former Fulbright scholar, who has curated exhibitions in some of Mexico's largest cultural institutions and worked on projects around the world - the Art Fair in Madrid, the Goethe Institute in Germany and Americas Society in New York, to name a few – is sure to curate a world-class exhibit that expands perceptions of the Americas.

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Women of the Biennial

New Realities Perception and reality are two concepts Colombian Ambassador Carolina Barco deals with on a daily basis. Often Colombia is perceived, through the help of media, as a county that is overrun by violence, kidnappings and drugs. While there is no denying this country has seen its share of these problems, it couldn’t be further from the reality of the country now.

“Colombia has entered a whole new era within the last decade. Since President Alvaro Uribe took office in 2002, homicide rates have fallen sharply and kidnappings have dropped by 78%. Violence in Colombia has been halved. We had decreased our poverty by more than eight points. Tourism has increased 65% percent since 2002 and this year the New York Times listed Colombia as one of Carolina Barco the 31 places to visit in 2010.”

Colombia is in a new moment and Ambassador Barco sees the Biennial as a unique opportunity to share with the world her country’s success story and how some of this success might be replicated. "This event will give Colombia and other countries in the hemisphere a needed forum to exchange experiences and ideas on policies that are successfully working in our respective countries. Together we'll look at ways to replicate these successes and build more unity on issues we are all facing, like the economic downturn."

Bolsa Família (Family Pouch) is just one example of how ideas can cut across country lines.

Created in Brazil in 2003, Bolsa Família is an innovative social initiative that ties direct monetary transfers to commitments from families to keep their children in school and take them for regular health checks. With its statistical success, over 20 countries have now adopted similar programs including Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and more recently New York City.

» "This event will give Colombia and other countries in the hemisphere a needed forum to exchange experiences and ideas on policies that are successfully working in our respective countries." « - Carolina Barco

A basket seller walking the streets of Cartagena, an old colonial city in Colombia.

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Marsha McLean Gathering Voices The substantive policy discussions and transnational summit is what makes the Biennial of the Americas unique from other Biennials. In charge of the discussions is Marsha McLean, Senior Consultant to the State Department’s Western Hemisphere Affairs Bureau.

To prepare for the Roundtables McLean is traveling throughout the hemisphere gathering opinions, questions and themes on Roundtable topics. “We think it is important to bring the voices of the hemisphere to Denver to contribute to the dialogue, which is why the State Department is sponsoring inquiries throughout the hemisphere before July,” said McLean.

McLean is hosting discussions in Denver, Argentina, El Salvador, Guatemala and New York City to prepare for Roundtables on Women: Drivers of the New Economy, Trade: Leveraging Partnerships for Sustainable Economies, Energy and Climate Change: Designing Answers for Today’s Challenges, and others.

“I will share what came out of each inquiry – the highlights, the connections – and collectively decide with each group what we want to put forth to the Roundtable moderators,” said McLean.

Culture Connector Since 1994, Marcela de la Mar has been a champion for Mexicans who live in Colorado. As the Director of Community and Cultural Affairs and most recently the Executive Director of the Mexican Cultural Center for the Consulate General of Mexico in Denver, Marcela works to engage Mexicans in the arts and connect Coloradans to her country’s rich culture.

“It is my passion to work for Mexico and a privilege to help change the perception of Mexico and Mexicans,” said de la Mar. “Mexico is more than mariachi or the common foods people enjoy.”

Día del Niño (Day of the Child) is one great example of de la Mar’s work to expand understanding of Mexican culture. Under her leadership, she helped create this one-day Marcela de la Mar celebration that honors youth and celebrates world culture. Every year the Denver Art Museum, Denver Public Library and Byers-Evans House Museum offer free general admission and an array of lively performances, interactive programs and hands-on activities for families. Each venue hosts different art-making activities, crafts and story time.

In her daily work at the Consulate, de la Mar strives to find new ways to integrate and reveal the extraordinary depth of Mexico’s ideals, customs and beliefs. It’s also why she is such an enthusiastic supporter of the Biennial. “I think it’s important to acknowledge what the Americas bring to our society. The Biennial is a great platform to recognize Mexico’s positive influence on the Americas and the great array of cultural programs Mexico offers here, and all over the world.”

» "It is my passion to work for Mexico and a privilege to help change the perception of Mexico and Mexicans. Mexico is more than mariachi or the common foods people enjoy." « - Marcela de la Mar

A colorful wall of Mexican ceramic tiles.

Rachel Chaparro is the Communications Director for the Biennial of the Americas. Prior to joining the Biennial, she was the Communications and Development Director for the Latina Initiative, running a successful get out the vote effort targeting 70,000 Colorado Latinas. For three years, she served as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Colorado’s Manager of

Delisa Mayer Setting An Example Biennial Board of Directors member, philanthropist and avid art collector Delisa Mayer envisions that “the Biennial will put Denver on the map and in a league where we won’t feel like the Pony Express is riding through our town. People will see we are not just about sports or skiing, but that we have a lot of cultural experiences to offer,” said Mayer.

Mayer’s own life is an example of the Biennial’s themes. “I live in a house that was built for the Biennial because our home is a marriage of sustainability, art, innovation and community,” said Mayer. The sustainable qualities include a geothermal system that heats and cools the house, a solar power system that provides electricity and spider insulation that improves the home’s energy efficiency. Art hangs on nearly every wall and there is no need for keys, since everything is electronically accessed with fingertips.

The three huge courtyards are often used to entertain the community.

Through the Anthony and Delisa Mayer Foundation and other selected giving, Mayer advances educational opportunities for youth and helps Denver’s art community thrive.

The Anthony and Delisa Mayer Photography Gallery at the Denver Art Museum honors the couple’s dedication to the arts. Mayer’s experience in sustainable practices and the arts will be a driving force in shaping the first Biennial of the Americas.

Education and Outreach. Ms. Chaparro was also the Field Director for the Colorado Women’s Agenda, Campaign Manager for Board of Regents candidate Michal Carrigan, and a political consultant for a ballot initiative. Ms. Chaparro has a Political Science degree and a Master's in Public Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver.

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Project Artemis

H

and-sewn soccer balls surround Aziza Mohmand at her leatherwork shop as a symbol of women’s empowerment in Afghanistan.

Other emblems of peace, hope and prosperity abound in the war-torn country.

Zainularab Miri has more than 100 beehives in Afghanistan’s Ghazni province.

Rangina Hamidi sells embroidered shawls, pillows and wall hangings in Kandahar.

And Kamela Khaliq manufactures rockfilled metal cages used in the construction of dams and foundations.

The entrepreneurs are all graduates of Project Artemis, a women’s empowerment program developed at Thunderbird School of Global Management in 2004.

Through the program, each participant receives two weeks of intensive business education at Thunderbird's campus in Glendale, Arizona, followed by two years of mentoring from Thunderbird alumni and other women professionals.

» For dozens of these women, the work represents their first opportunity to earn a steady income. «

Project Artemis Participants Visit Arizona during the 2005 Program.

Power to

Dream Thunderbird’s Project Artemis Supports Women Entrepreneurs in Afghanistan By Daryl James ( 50 )

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The program’s goal is to educate women entrepreneurs in Afghanistan so they can help rebuild their war-torn nation through small-business enterprises ranging from construction companies to boutiques and crafts shops.

“I learned about leadership, management and marketing at Thunderbird,” Mohmand says. “And I learned how to write a business plan.”

So far, 44 women in three groups have graduated from Project Artemis. The fourth group, which will include as many as 20 women, is scheduled to arrive on campus Oct. 15, 2010.

Despite the poverty and violence that persists in Afghanistan, each participant comes to Thunderbird full of dreams and optimism. For the third group that graduated in 2008, dreams expressed on the first day of the program varied widely.

“My dream is to expand my cosmetics company and then start a television production company in Afghanistan,” Fawzia told the group.

“My dream is that all women will be selfsufficient, self-confident and powerful so they can support themselves,” Halima said.

“My dream is to care for people in Afghanistan with quality medicine from Europe and the United States,” said Nafisa, one of two doctors in the 2008 group.

Mohmand says her optimism remains strong four years after her Project Artemis graduation.

“Our future is in our own hands,” she says.

“If women and men work hard together, then the future is bright.”

Artemis Cookies

The gift of employment

Mohmand launched Muska Ball and Leather Making Company in 2004 as a way to create jobs for widows and other women previously blocked from employment under the Taliban regime. Today her company employs about 200 leatherworkers and seamstresses in Kabul, including more than 150 women who work from the relative safety of home.

Workers trained by Mohmand pick up raw materials from her shop and then return a few days later with finished soccer balls, volleyballs, purses, cell phone covers and other leather products.

For dozens of these women, the work represents their first opportunity to earn a steady income.

“They can improve their families, their communities and their country,” says Mohmand, who was born in Mazar-e Sharif in northern Afghanistan in 1959. “People with jobs will have a better life. They will not be obliged to take up weapons and fight.”

Mohmand had no formal business training before Project Artemis, although her father was a successful Afghan businessman.

After high school, she went to the Ukraine for college and returned to Afghanistan in 1983 with a master’s degree in social sciences.

She worked as a university instructor until 1996, when the Taliban came to power and forced female teachers and other women professionals to stay indoors.

Mohmand responded by opening a tutoring business in her home that eventually catered to girls banned from public schools.

The Taliban shut down the home-school operation in June 1998, and Mohmand fled with her family to a refugee camp in Pakistan.

She returned to Kabul shortly after U.S. troops arrived in 2001 and started Muska as a nonprofit organization with an educational mission. During the next three years, the organization trained more than 2,000 men and women in baking, sewing, leatherwork, ball assembly, carpentry, electrical work, metalwork, plumbing, computer maintenance and English.

When jobs failed to materialize for program graduates, Mohmand hired 200

Working in Class

» “They can improve their families, their communities and their country. People with jobs will have a better life. They will not be obliged to take up weapons and fight.” « - Aziza Mohmand

Production of Custom Soccer Balls

widows and other disadvantaged women as leatherworkers and converted Muska into a commercial enterprise. She started with $5,000 in personal savings and took loans from friends to fund the launch.

Like Mohmand, many of the women she hired had lived as refugees in Pakistan or Iran during the Taliban era. They returned to Afghanistan when the interim government emerged in 2001.

Mohmand says one young woman she hired came from a family of 11. None in the home had a job, and the parents were ready to sell one of their children to provide for the rest.

“She started working here, and now her siblings can attend school,” Mohmand says.

“The family has rented a house. They also have a bank account. That’s something I am proud of.”

Mohmand says her company can now produce any design in leather goods and return the finished product in any volume on the agreedupon deadline. But challenges persist.

Her shop lacks adequate storage and workspace. Raw materials remain difficult to obtain in Afghanistan. And Mohmand has struggled to find the resources to market her company and find new customers.

These are issues Mohmand has addressed with her Project Artemis mentor, Regula Schegg, a 2005 Thunderbird graduate from Switzerland.

Working together, the women devised a plan in 2008 to export custom soccer balls with the Thunderbird logo to the school’s on-campus store. Schegg says having Thunderbird as Mohmand’s first U.S. customer has allowed her to learn and experiment with the export business.

Further down the road, Mohmand plans to export soccer balls to large corporate clients in Europe and the United States who might want soccer balls as promotional items to support social entrepreneurship.

“Mohmand is a very smart and savvy businesswoman and has built an impressive business,” Regula says.

Sharing the knowledge

Khaliday Receives a Facial Treatment

Testing Products at Zethina Cosmetics

Mohmand also has built an impressive network of associates in Afghanistan eager to learn from her Project Artemis experience. So far, she has shared her knowledge at Kabul University and in other academic settings with more than 1,000 people.

“I used to be a teacher,” she says. “Teachers are entrusted to share whatever they know.”

Other Project Artemis graduates have made similar efforts to share their knowledge and extend career opportunities to other Afghan women.

Hamidi, a graduate of the first Project Artemis group, has grown her embroidery business to more than 500 employees.

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Project Artemis

Her company, Kandahar Treasures, allows women to produce embroidered shawls, pillows and wall hangings at home. These products are then exported worldwide.

“We women have taken it upon ourselves to stitch the future of peace for our children,” Hamidi says. “Embroidery is the skill we have, and love and patience is what we can give to our families and our country. We will work to help rebuild this war-torn nation.”

Khaliq also has a passion for sharing knowledge that started with a career as a high school teacher. In addition to her construction company, which has grown to 300 employees, she operates a business planning consultancy that teaches other Afghan entrepreneurs how to put business plans together.

Before Miri started her honey business, she operated a school with about 400 students in her home province of Ghazni. She says she fled to the province for protection when the Taliban came to power and started shutting down schools.

“When I taught the students, I did it secretly,” she says. “The Taliban didn’t want anyone to do these things, and we were very much afraid of them.”

While in Ghazni, she also started her beekeeping company with two hives. She says the Taliban made her feel like she was in a cage, but the regime ignored the isolated province more than other places.

New opportunities to grow the business emerged after the interim government came to power. “As soon as the new government came and the Taliban collapsed, it was a golden chance for the women,” she says.

Miri received her first management lessons from the Women’s Business Federation in 2002 and then joined Project Artemis in 2005.

“We learned lots of things in Project Artemis, like management, like leadership, like marketing,” she says. “We learned from the earth to the sky.”

Since then, Miri has continued in her role as a teacher in Ghazni.

“The women that I train, I usually tell them that I started from two hives and now I have 105,” she says. “If you work hard, then you will also have a good business in the future.”

Thunderbird for Good

Fatima Kazemi sells products in the Afghan Province of Bamyam.

» “As soon as the new government came and the Taliban collapsed, it was a golden chance for the women.” «

Thunderbird Assistant Vice President Kellie Kreiser, a 2004 Thunderbird graduate who volunteered with the first Project Artemis group, says the vision for the program started with former Thunderbird Trustee Barbara Barrett.

Barrett toured Afghanistan in 2004 as a member of the U.S.-Afghan Women’s Council.

During the trip, Barrett saw firsthand the challenges that Afghan women faced.

“She came back to Thunderbird with this idea of creating a program to help Afghan businesswomen get the skills they needed to be successful,” Kreiser says.

Thunderbird Professor Steven Stralser, Ph.D., stepped forward and put a program together with help from Thunderbird Professor Mary Sully de Luque, Ph.D., and others.

“They raised the funds for it, created the curriculum, put it all together, recruited faculty, recruited alumni, recruited students and got people in the community involved,” Kreiser - Ángel Cabrera says. “By January 2005, the first program was put on.”

Kreiser says Thunderbird President Ángel Cabrera, Ph.D., approached her shortly afterward with an idea to keep Project Artemis going and expand the initiative into other areas.

“He came to me and he said, ‘Kellie, would you be willing to be the director of Thunderbird for Good?’

And I thought, ‘Well, that Storay Bakhtar, a bridal shop owner, visits the Azteca Wedding Plaza in AZ. sounds interesting. What’s

» “Investing in the education and economic empowerment of women in developing countries not only improves the lives of those women, but also enriches the entire community.” «

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- Kamela Khaliq

Thunderbird for Good?’ His response was, ‘That’s your first job. Figure it out.’”

What emerged was a philanthropic arm of Thunderbird committed to providing global business education for non-traditional students such as the women of Afghanistan.

The success of Project Artemis led to a new opportunity in 2008 through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women project, a global initiative to educate 10,000 women from developing countries.

The Goldman Sachs Group, which organized the initiative and funded it through a $100 million commitment, included Thunderbird as one of its initial partners after watching the growth of Project Artemis. This new initiative has allowed Thunderbird to extend its reach in Afghanistan by educating more women in their homeland through an alliance with the American University of Afghanistan.

Through the Goldman Sachs Business Women’s Training Program in Afghanistan, Thunderbird will help train about 460 women over five years. Thunderbird alumni also will have opportunities to mentor these women and share their expertise.

More recently, Thunderbird for Good has launched campaigns to educate nontraditional students in Jordan and Peru.

“Investing in the education and economic empowerment of women in developing countries not only improves the lives of those women, but also enriches the entire community,” Cabrera says. “Our goal is to change lives and create lasting benefit.”

To donate to Project Artemis or to volunteer as a mentor, contact program manager Wynona Heim at Wynona.heim@thunderbird.edu or 602-978-7607.

jewel of collaboration

Women in Business Forum

Money, Management,

Marketing, & Me Women’s Perspectives on Success By Sharon Clinebell

R

ecently the Monfort College of Business at the University of Northern Colorado hosted the Women in Business Forum entitled “Money, Management, Marketing & Me.” The forum highlighted accomplished women in the field of business and brought together business professionals and students to learn from each other, as well as from the speakers. As the title implies, the goal was to cover a wide variety of business areas. The speakers for the forum were Rhea Law,

Rhea Law

Ms. Law is the CEO and Chair of the Board of Fowler White Boggs, P.A., one of the largest law firms in Florida. Ms. Law has been recognized as one of the top women business leaders in Florida. She has more than 30 years experience in Government, Environmental, Administration and Land Use representation and has received the highest rating by MartindaleHubbell, Legal Elite and Super Lawyers. She was

Debra Benton

CEO and Chair of the Board, Fowler White Boggs, P.A.; Kate Warne, Ph.D., CFA, Principal/Research, Investment Policy Advisory Committee, Edward Jones; Diane Fannon, Principal, Brand Management, The Richards Group; and Debra Benton, President of Benton Management Resources, Inc., New York Times Best-Selling Author, and Executive Coach. These nationally recognized women shared their insights with businesswomen and students during the forum. Law, Warne, and Fannon are profiled here.

Florida Trend Magazine named her one of the State's most influential people and the Tampa Bay Business Journal tapped her as Businesswoman of the Year. She has been inducted into the Florida Council of Economic Education Hall of Fame, the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce Women's Hall of Fame and the Stetson Hall of Fame in 2008.

Tampa Bay CEO Magazine named her CEO of the Year in 2008 and she was also recently

use focus, determination and implementation skills to succeed in business, we don't seem to apply these same principles to succeed in our personal lives. Ms. Law explained her view of relying on the four F’s: Faith, Focus, Family, and Friends. Faith refers to the belief that we are here for a reason—there is a higher purpose for our lives. Focus means that we need to find what makes us happy and fulfilled. We need to answer the question of

» "While many of us use focus, determination and implementation skills to succeed in business, we don't seem to apply these same principles to succeed in our personal lives." « - Rhea Law

Rhea Law inducted into the inaugural Hall of Fame for Legal Elite in 2009. She was also inducted in the NAIOP Hall of Fame, appointed by Governors Jeb Bush and Charlie Crist to the Florida Council of 100 and was instrumental to bringing the Super Bowl back to Tampa, as the Vice Chair of the Host Committee. ( 54 )

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named 2009 Woman of the Year by Tampa Bay Business and Professional Women. She is a proud military supporter and was selected by the Secretary of Defense as one of 60 people throughout the country to participate in the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference.

Ms. Law has spent her career working— and playing—in what used to be a "man's world." As if that wasn't enough, she's been a race car driver, speed boat racer, has flown in an F-16, parachuted with the Army Golden Knights, and driven a tank.

Ms. Law spoke about “Business Planning for your Life.” She said that while many of us

what is our success? The definition of success changes from individual to individual and we need to find our success and not rely on someone else’s definition. Family is another important aspect and, although they may not always agree with our plans, they do want us to succeed. And finally, friends are much like family in that they are our support system and want to help us succeed. She related that early in her marriage, she and her husband decided to follow her career, even though she was a young associate at that time. Which career was to be followed was an intentional choice, not left to chance.

Ms. Law indicated that work/life balance should be renamed work/life alignment. She and her family use business planning principles for their personal life, creating one-year, threeyear, and over the horizon planning timelines.

The over the horizon timeline refers to very long-term goals including for what they would like to be remembered. Goals in these planning horizons may include household needs, financial goals, family needs, and recreation to name a few. Their goals are reviewed quarterly and corrective action is taken as needed. Using business principles in our personal lives can help us be successful—whatever our definition of success may be.

Kate Warne

Dr. Warne of Edward Jones has been with the Edward Jones Research department since 1997. She was named a principal with the firm in 1999 and became a member of the Investment Policy Advisory Committee in 2003. Warne holds a doctorate in economics, specializing in finance and competitive strategy, from Yale University, a master of science from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree with high honors from Swarthmore College. She earned her Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 1997.

Kate Warne Dr. Warne is the Edward Jones’ market strategist in Canada and the U.K., interpreting market conditions and recommending appropriate long-term investment strategies to aid the firm's more than 7 million clients in reaching their investment goals. Dr. Warne has appeared on CBS, CNBC, CNN and Canada’s CBC and Business News Network. She has been quoted in such major publications as The Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Globe and Mail, the Scotsman, Forbes and Fortune magazines.

Dr. Warne was the energy analyst at Edward Jones prior to assuming her current position as market strategist. She has worked for AT&T and General Motors, and was an assistant professor of finance at the John M. Olin

School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. Warne previously lectured at Yale University and was an economist at the President’s Council of Economic Advisors.

At the Monfort College of Business Women in Business Forum, Dr. Warne’s presentation was “Making Sense of Today’s Economy and Investing.” Dr. Warne addressed the issues of the stock market over the past 10 years, what it means, and what we can expect in the future.

She provided a global perspective, examining where growth potential lies and how to take advantage of it. Dr. Warne noted that women tend to be more conservative investors than men and outlined some important issues such as appropriate asset allocation.

promise and challenged the participants to think about their brand.

There were overarching themes that were recounted throughout the day by the speakers such as the importance of having integrity, developing mentoring relationships, and showing persistence. If you lose your credibility, success is often very difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. Mentors are very important to a successful business career and developing relationships with multiple mentors are

Diane Fannon

Ms. Fannon is a Principal, Brand Management, of The Richards Group in Dallas, Texas. The Richards Group is the largest independent advertising agency in North America. Ms. Fannon has spent most of her career in the creative discipline of the advertising business, beginning in New York at Grey Advertising as a copywriter. She moved to Tracey-Locke in Dallas where she spent eight years developing award-winning creative work for Frito-Lay, Haggar, The Dallas Morning News, Phillips Petroleum, Taco Bell, and Pepsi, becoming senior vice president and senior creative director in 1985. With nine more years of creative responsibility at Bozell and again at Tracy-Locke, as executive creative director, she added Hogan, Tabasco, JC Penney, Adams Golf and Budget Rent A Car to her client list.

She left the advertising business to run The Image Bank, the photography division of a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kodak. With responsibility for marketing, creative content, and operations, Ms. Fannon visited franchise offices in 72 cities in 35 countries, filling two passports, speaking passable French, eating Chinese food you don't get in this country, and learning why you use two hands to pass a business card in Japan.

Five years later, her right brain began to miss advertising. Ms. Fannon joined The Richards Group as brand manager for Fruit of the Loom, The Home Depot, The Salvation Army and new business development. In her appearance at the Women in Business Forum, Ms. Fannon’s presentation was “Branding Yourself in a Tough Economy.” Ms. Fannon explained strong brands survive missteps, challenging economies, leadership changes, and the onslaught of competition. She described what constitutes a strong brand and why some brands thrive while others flounder. She explored how the same principles that guide a brand like Chick-Fil-A or Bridgestone Tires to success can provide guidance for people as they develop their own personal brand. She explained that a brand is a

Diane Fannon important. Also, being persistent and not giving up is a key factor to success. Ms. Law recounted that when she started at a law firm, every day she would ask the senior partner if there was something she could help him with. Every day he told her, “no.” One day, however, he was doing a task that he disliked so he delegated it to her. She completed the task well and from then on, she was given important tasks at the law firm. It would have been easy to have given up after the first few rejections, but she showed persistence and it paid off for her career.

The value of the forum was threefold.

First, the insights these accomplished women gave were very valuable and could be used immediately. Secondly, role modeling is very important, not only for the students in attendance, but also for the business professionals. These speakers took very different paths to reach their success. And finally, the interaction between audience members during the breaks added to the networking contacts for the participants.

The Women in Business Forum provided an excellent opportunity to showcase accomplished women and share their experiences with others.

Sharon Clinebell is the Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs at the Monfort College of Business. More information about the Monfort College of Business, including its Baldrige application summary, is available at its website www.mcb.unco.edu.

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Marie C. Wilson

Marie C. Wilson Add Women, Change Everything By Judith B. Taylor

F

or Marie C. Wilson, founder of the White House Project (a national, organization, which aims to advance women's leadership in all communities and in every sphere—political and social, cultural and economic) risk taking and the connection to collaboration was something she learned at an early age while living in Des Moines, Iowa.

During an Outward Bound trip, Wilson took on the challenge of rock climbing while blindfolded in the rain. Wilson felt the depth of what risk taking was all about and never forgot the experience.

Raised in the 40s and 50s in Georgia, Wilson lived during the period when women were limited in their roles. She was a Homecoming Queen, class officer and cheerleader….she was a CEO of a complicated household, supporting her family. Wilson was involved in church related social issues and lobbied for affordable childcare.

She found her ideas about women’s roles were viewed in some circles as dangerous and revolutionary.

With her tenacity and willingness to take on new challenges, the mother of five was elected to office in 1983. As the first woman to serve on the Des Moines City Council as a member-at-large.

With a spirit for adventure and change, she took a dare from a friend. She applied for the job of executive director of the Ms. Foundation for Women in New York. “It was a glorious interview,” she said. “You belong here,” she was told.

Still, it was a risk to pick up her life as a new politician and move to the east coast.

Nevertheless, Wilson made a defining change in her life and headed to New York City.

Wilson wondered about her decision as she looked at the small room on 42nd street serving as an office and the list of existing funders.

Had she made a mistake in uprooting her life?

“It was a huge risk,” she said. “I had to be a quick learner. Within a year or two, the Foundation came along and we had enough money to survive.”

» As an innovator and change-maker, Wilson works towards the transformation of American culture so that the number of women leaders in all sectors achieve a critical mass. «

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The rest is history, as they say. Marie C. Wilson ran the Ms. Foundation for almost twenty years and co-created the Take Your Daughters to Work program. Truly a leader and legend, Wilson shares the essence of her convictions. Her 2004 and 2007 book, Closing The Leadership Gap…Add Women, Change Everything details her beliefs and convictions about moving women forward. Her previous book as a co-author, Mother Daughter Revolution, was a groundbreaking, critically acclaimed volume.

Much of Wilson’s cutting-edge work included building and managing collaborative partnerships and helping low-income and middle-income women start businesses. Wilson had found her fit and helped build one of the

largest women’s foundations in America.

A theme developed early on for Wilson; advocating for women’s opportunities and advancing women’s leadership roles.

Early in her work at Drake University, where Wilson served as director of women’s programs, she initiated innovate concepts such as flextime and job sharing. Later, her almost twenty years at the Ms. Foundation generated some of the first collaborative partnerships, including partnerships with donors.

“Only a few groups were helping women plan and build businesses,” Wilson said of her early days with the Foundation.

Wilson saw a serious need for women to be in the upper levels of leadership and in 1998, she founded the White House Project

» Real women’s issues are everyone’s issues. «

in order to build a richly diverse, genuinely representative democracy.

As an innovator and changemaker, Wilson works towards the transformation of American culture so that the number of women leaders in all sectors achieve a critical mass.

Leading edge research and program initiatives have been focal points of the White House Project. The most recent groundbreaking research includes The White House Project Report: “Benchmarking Women’s Leadership,” a far-reaching study that documents women’s positions in numerous categories and illustrates the situation today. A few of the findings from the report include: • Women make up only 17 percent of the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

• On a global scale, the U.S. ranks 71st out of 189 countries in terms of the proportion of women in their national legislatures.

During her tenure as president of the Ms. Foundation and the White House Project, Wilson produced numerous achievements. She initiated the Collaborative Fund for Women’s Economic Development, a preeminent model within philanthropy of collaborative grant making. She established the Collaborative Fund for Healthy Girls/Healthy Women, which has committed $4.1 million to girls’ programs. The Fund supports innovative programs that nurture girl's and young women’s leadership and community activism, helping them to stay strong through adolescence.

And, she formulated The White House Project’s Ballot Box Initiative, a national straw poll highlighting top women leaders in which more than 100,000 Americans participated.

It comes as no surprise that Wilson is a highly sought-after speaker on women’s political leadership and the interests of women and girls everywhere. She has appeared on national TV and in national magazines on numerous occasions.

Her awards are many, including the prestigious Robert W. Scrivner Award for Creative Grantmaking in 2002.

She also received the Leadership for Equity and Diversity (LEAD) Award from Women and Philanthropy and an honorary Doctorate of Community Service from Drake University and another honorary Doctorate from Chatham College.

» Her ideas about women’s roles were viewed in some circles as dangerous and revolutionary. «

Faith Winter, who headed up the White House Project in Denver for almost five years, said the tenacity to fight for what you want is something she will never forget from the experience of working with Marie Wilson.

Today, Wilson continues with her passionate message about having women in seats of power. She watches for legislation that might be considered regressive in any way. She emphasizes that real women’s issues are everyone’s issues.

She cites concern over safety and security. “Women instinctively know about security through their family life,” she says. “They (women) don’t take security for granted. They know this raising children.”

According to Wilson, people are beginning to look at issues such as violence against women, trafficking and gender roles as shared concerns.

“The central message of our time is about leadership and how diverse leadership is necessary.”

Her message resonates with people across the age spectrum.

“Every time she speaks to a room full of women, you see her change lives,” says Faith Winter. “This is about the power women deserve and permanent change.”

While putting a woman in the White House is Marie Wilson’s ultimate goal, she is an amazing person who has already changed the lives of so many women and in turn has created what she set out to achieve; increasing the number of female leaders.

One of the White House Project trademarked expressions reflects the stages of training for women aspiring to a political career and it may be a message for all of us in some way… Go Vote, Go Run, Go Lead, Go Girl!

Judith Brissette Taylor is an awardwinning journalist and speaker. She has been a practitioner in the women's market for over twenty-five years as a writer, editor, and publisher and served for two years as president of the Women's Regional Publications of America. She is president of Leading Edge Advisers, a business consulting company specializing in emerging markets. (jtalyor@ leadingedgeadvisers.com).

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Somaly Mam

A Lesson in Courage

and Leadership Somaly Mam By Nicholas Lumpp

I

t all started over a plate of overpriced sushi in Laguna Beach, California.

For over a year, my good friend Jared and I had frequently discussed the horrifying stories we had heard in the news and watched in documentaries about the global sex slave trade. We read about little girls who were trafficked across borders, bought and sold like property, and forced to have sex with multiple clients every night.

We had discovered a $12 billion-per-year criminal industry that is for the most part hidden and ignored. Most Americans don't even know that the United States is the second largest trafficking destination. It was a world that baffled and angered us. How can something so horrifying be happening in the same world we live in? A remarkable thing happened that night at the sushi bar that would forever change our lives; we promised to make a difference.

Peering out the window of the 737, I spotted a small terminal across the runway. I squinted, my eyes struggling to stay open after an exhausting 19hour flight to the other side of the world. I had not even considered that a week later I would be co-founding an organization with one of the greatest leaders of our time or that I would be involved in a presentation to the U.N. Security Council the following month. I nudged Jared, who was sound asleep in the seat next to me. "We're finally here!"

We anxiously located our luggage, moved through customs and hurried outside to find Somaly Mam and two of her staff members waiting for us with a big sign reading, "Greenberg, Lumpp." They greeted us with big smiles and a customary bow of respect. We followed their lead and then jumped into the air-conditioned car, pleased to have escaped the hot sun and humid air.

We hadn't planned on bombarding Mam with questions right away, but we couldn't wait to get the answers we had come so far to find.

She spoke in broken English, having taught herself the language in less than a year with no formal training. Her personality, charisma

Somaly Mam

her experience carrying the Olympic flag in the 2006 Olympic Games in Torino. She seemed like a celebrity to me. Then I read the third article and suddenly the words "Somaly Mam" meant more than I had imagined. That name began to take shape as a representation of remarkable courage and leadership, much as I had envisioned Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr. Mam's past is more horrifying than anyone I've ever known. She was abandoned and raped when she was 12 years old. By the age of 15, she was sold into a brothel where she was forced to have sex with five or six clients every night.

She described a time when two clients came alone, but took her someplace unfamiliar where 20 men gang raped her. Somewhere she found the strength to escape her slavery and start an organization that would rescue and rehabilitate girls with the same circumstances.

Her remarkable courage can best be described by listening to her own words‌ "Our job is dangerous. Once this man who ran a brothel put a gun to my temple; he was angry that I' d talked to his girls.

He told me I was a (expletive), and that he was going to kill me. Last December we rescued 89 women and children in a police raid on a big hotel. But the pimps went to our shelter and grabbed them back. The next day they threatened to come back with grenades. I phoned everyone I could for help, but I was told I' d gone too far - I had bothered powerful people. I make a point of going to see the criminals who threaten me. I have to show them I'm not afraid by talking to them."

We briefly visited Mam's headquarters, where we met her hard-working staff and coordinated our excursion with their AIDS prevention team. The lobby was filled with articles praising Mam's efforts. I spotted a letter from Condoleezza Rice, and another from Colin Powell. A "U.S. State Department Best Practices Award" was displayed between her picture with Pope John Paul II and one of her with Hillary Clinton. One of her staff members could sense our interest. "The Queen of Spain calls

Âť Little girls are trafficked across borders, bought and sold like property, and forced to have sex with multiple clients every night. ÂŤ

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and character were every bit the legend we had envisioned before our trip. Her words, her energy and her passion inspired me in a way I had never before felt. She shared stories more terrifying than you can imagine and then there was complete silence as we contemplated the seriousness of this situation and our role in helping. Dropping us at our hotel, she left us with a warning that we were in for an intense experience in the upcoming week. This was surely an understatement.

The name Somaly Mam meant nothing to us until a week before we had plane tickets to visit her in Cambodia. A short clip on Anderson Cooper 360 on YouTube intrigued us enough to learn more and eventually contact her. The first article I read detailed her achievements that led to her becoming Glamour Magazine's Woman of the Year. The next article was about

Nicholas, Somaly, and Jared.

her often," he said. "That's when I thought why hadn't I heard of Somaly Mam earlier?"

Our first stop was the red light district of Phnom Penh. Images of deteriorating buildings and muddy streets littered with trash still linger in my mind. Two bodyguards accompanied us wherever we went. Most of the brothel owners know Somaly and many would like to kill her. At all times, we had to be ready to leave at a moment's notice. The girls get excited when Somaly comes to visit them. She is a source of strength and hope for them.

She is a symbol of what is possible even if they cannot yet see that possibility in their own lives. A small 12-year-old girl in a pink shirt and flip flops ran to Somaly and hugged her tightly, burying her face in Somaly's waist. She was crying. Her name was Jenny.

Somaly told us that she had been raped the night before and that she would be coming with us for medical treatment. At the end of the week we returned to visit Jenny, but she was nowhere to be found. They say she was kidnapped by a

foreign casino owner. Even more disappointing is the realization that this is not rare. It happens to girls around the world every day.

The following day we traveled to Kampong Cham to visit the children's shelter. I was shocked to learn that there are so many victims under the age of 16 that Somaly had to open a

Âť Most Americans don't even know that the United States is the second largest trafficking destination. ÂŤ shelter specifically for these children. A young girl sat on the front stairs hugging her teddy bear and watching us as we approached the front entrance of the shelter. "Please, God, tell me she is not a victim," I thought to myself.

She is eight years old now. She was sold into a brothel at the age of six. Her virginity was

sold to a foreign man for $500. She has AIDS now and the doctors say she will not live much longer. To her right stood another very young girl. She is seven now and had been rescued from a brothel when she was six. Her pimp kept her in a cage when she wasn't being raped by clients or tortured by the men who ran the brothel. Somaly told us horror stories of how they would cut her arms, put salt in her wounds and how they pulled out her hair; and on several occasions pressed nails into the back of her head. I quietly suppressed my feelings of anger and sadness as we moved on to see the rest of the shelter before departing for Siem Reap.

About an hour outside the city in the beautiful countryside beyond Siem Reap sits an oasis of well-kept buildings, clean yards and beautiful gardens. We had arrived at the Siem Reap shelter just in time for lunch. After lunch, Somaly ordered a bus and we took all 42 girls to a park near the Angkor Temples. Jared and I chose to ride with the girls on the bus, 04.10 - 6.10

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Somaly Mam

Photo by Michael Angelo

jewel of collaboration

which was quite an entertaining experience.

They sang songs and clapped and smiled and I clapped and played along as if I knew what they were saying. They taught me how to play their version of the paper, rock, scissors game.

I taught them some English words while they taught me Khmer. They laughed at my expense as I tried to pronounce the words. When we arrived at the park, the girls took turns singing songs they had written about their past.

Without knowing a word of their language, I was struck by how intimately I could feel their emotion. Later, one of the girls, Sina, took my hand and led me over to a park where several of the girls were gathering in a circle.

Unfortunately, she could not explain in words how to play the game, but I figured it out as we went along. They would laugh hysterically every time I messed up the game!

After a fun day of smiles and laughter, I couldn't help but think about the girls stuck in the brothels we had seen in previous days. Before leaving the park, the girls gave me a necklace and keychain. I will forever treasure these gifts as a reminder of the time I spent with them and as a daily motivator to continue my work on the foundation they have inspired me to start.

As I walked to the car, several of the girls stopped me. One of them held out her pinky finger and gestured for mine. She locked hers around mine and made me swear to return to Cambodia to see them again. We were more to them than just guests; we were friends. For the

» We had the privilege of visiting a girl in a nearby village who had been rescued, rehabilitated in the Siem Reap shelter and reintegrated back into a small village where she now runs her own business. « ( 60 )

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» By the age of 15, she was sold into a brothel where she was forced to have sex with five or six clients every night. She described a time when two clients came alone, but took her someplace unfamiliar where 20 men gang raped her. « first time, I had real names and real personalities to attach to every horror story I had ever heard.

On the ride home, Mam told us stories about what had happened to our new friends before they were rescued. I slept very little that night.

Landmines still cover the fields along the Thai border. It is a problem that Cambodians still deal with daily. We stopped to eat before going to the hotel. Flashbacks of my Air Force Academy survival training ran through my head as the waitress placed the food on our table. A full pigeon, head and all, covered most of my plate. However, there was still plenty of room for turtle and lizard. Later we would be introduced to even finer Khmer cuisine: spiders, crickets and cockroaches.

The following day we had the privilege of visiting a girl in a nearby village who had been rescued, rehabilitated in the Siem Reap shelter and reintegrated back into a small village where she now runs her own business.

At the shelter she learned basic literacy skills as well as sewing and basic accounting.

She was doing so well that it was difficult to believe she had once been a slave in the brothels with no future.

Mam and her staff continue to follow up with reintegrated girls for three years after they leave the shelter. It is important to help them get on their feet again and gain the strength and experience they need to support themselves, and many times their families as well. It was amazing to see the direct results that come from Somaly's work. After the

interview, we bought some items from her shop and continued back to the capitol city.

One can learn a lot about courage and leadership from spending merely one day with Somaly Mam. She is the embodiment of everything I have come to appreciate in life; the will to fight for what is right, the courage to take a stand when no one else will, the strength to take command in the midst of chaos, the integrity to make a difference and the perseverance to find a way. She brings hope to the hopeless and a possibility of life to those who were once bound by the shackles of slavery. This woman needs no army, no personal wealth, and no elite title to be recorded in history as one of the great leaders of our time. She is an inspiration for all of us to take command and make a difference.

I will forever remember my trip to Cambodia. I will never forget the courageous woman whose passion to fight for others will never die. Memories of laughing with the girls at Siem Reap, visiting the helpless victims in the brothels, and watching the little girl with her teddy bear on the front porch as we drove away, are constant reminders of who I am working for now.

For me, it is no longer an option to stand by and watch. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."

Nicholas, Mam, and Jared in Cambodia.

Âť If you would like

to help stop this global atrocity please e-mail: nlumpp@gmail.com.

To make a donation, please send a check payable to: Somaly Mam Foundation, PO Box 1272, Wheat Ridge, CO 80034 or www.somaly.org. ÂŤ 04.10 - 6.10

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Authentic Leadership is Gender Neutral

Authentic Leadership is Gender Neutral

By Kim DeCoste

Q

uite to my surprise as I sit to write about Women and Leadership, I am not inclined to address the point as I would have expected. Nor as I would have 20 years ago.

After discussions, inquiry, email exchanges, Facebook postings and research, I find the issue much less polarizing now than it once was. Of the most recent work I have found about leadership success, whether in the context of business, community, politics, global issues or most other major categories; it seems the discussion about what is different between men and women is less present than I expected.

I believe this is a victory for us all. Before I go farther, please note that I am not suggesting that there are not areas in which women need to still be equally recognized for work or more fairly compensated. Of course I believe that we need more women in leadership roles as they become available. This is already happening, though more slowly than some would like, perhaps.

What I detect in speaking with and reading the works of men and women on the subject of leadership, is that it is rapidly becoming less of an issue. Leadership in general is

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Âť Leadership in general is changing and women - through their effort and examples - are informing the process. ÂŤ

changing and women, through their effort and examples, are informing the process. We do see that they are having a greater impact.

So much so that we do not notice that it is happening but rather take for granted that it is the natural evolution of things.

This is not the case in equal degrees in every segment nor is it the same around the world. The disparity in leadership opportunities in some parts of the world is endemic and deeply culturally-rooted. It would be inappropriate to attempt to address those issues in the context of a broad, fairly high level look at leadership. But even in cultures where women have not had access to opportunities to the same extent their brothers

and fathers have, we see myriad of examples changing that. In many cases these changes are being driven by female leadership. But they are also a function of the increasing transparency of most societies now due to world communications. People are tweeting, posting, sharing, friending and communicating in ways like never before. All people are empowered by the prospects of what they see – near and far. For some it motivates them to step up and affect change around the world and for some, it draws focus to their own back yards, schools and communities. This revival of interest in change for all people is not gender driven, but is empowered by many women guiding and supporting the willingness to change.

I reached out to two people in particular for this article and found each had a unique perspective. Debra Benton is a CEO coach, author and speaker. Debra focuses on CEO traits and business leadership in her work.

Benton sees the trends in leadership that

make good business people into strong leaders and notes that women are collaborative, team-oriented and consensus-driven more than men in many cases.

Many women are also very good at building the kinds of relationships that inspire people who are subordinate to want to work harder for them. She also concedes, however, that there are many women who are successful because they happen to be in industries that are doing well, such as healthcare.

"Their success is a function of where they are, not just who they are." said Benton.

But she does offer several points worth noting: 1) Women tend to be very resilient. Women handle pain and often bounce back more quickly than men. They are also more accustomed to handling rejection. 2) Women tend to try harder, because they have always had to prove themselves. In tough times, women often rise to the occasion better. 3) Women tend to be more intuitive and are excellent collaborators. Most women are organized and are very good multi-taskers because they often have to juggle multiple roles.

Aside from these points which are welldocumented and commonly accepted, there is little else to which she gives credence as far as differences.

The most fascinating point that Benton brought up was in fact not gender related at all. She said that in order for one to become a leader in business, she or he must either be pulled up (from the top) or pushed up (from below). In either case, the individual must have

women will tend to default to leadership styles they have experienced and more often than not, that would be a male approach.

Brown writes, “Leadership is built on a foundation of relationships and that plays to a woman’s inherent strength. By mimicking what she has seen from men, a woman is in danger of sacrificing the core values of relationships. Simply put, women in leadership roles need to embrace their gender and the inherent strengths that accompany them instead of trying to mimic the leadership styles of men.” It is this approach that seemed to resonate with others that I spoke with. Good leadership, most said, was gender neutral.

» "Simply put, women in leadership roles need to embrace their gender and the inherent strengths that accompany them instead of trying to mimic the leadership styles of men." « - Beth Brown

» The best leaders, she said, are those who have the best “stereotypical” traits from both sides. They are collaborative, inspirational and relationship oriented; and they are risk takers who can be decisive. Performance is what matters, not gender. « done good work, be respected and trusted and be well regarded, if not liked. When I asked about the way gender plays into this, Benton said that gender is not a factor. In fact, it is not something she concentrates on at all. The best leaders, she said, are those who have the best “stereotypical” traits from both sides.

They are collaborative, inspirational and relationship oriented; and they are risk takers who can be decisive.

Performance is what matters, not gender.

I also spoke with Beth Brown, CEO of Professional Resource Enhancement. Beth’s company focuses on leadership training and is currently in the process of developing leadership training for women. From Brown’s perspective, the challenge women face is not actually leading, but finding the right leadership style in those first opportunities they are given to lead. As with most people when first asked to assume a lead role, 04.10 - 6.10

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Authentic Leadership is Gender Neutral

A former colleague, Lori Patik, wrote, “I don't think there is anything that distinguishes one [gender] from the other. Rather there are probably some general gender characteristics that would make reaction/productivity/ teamwork outcomes different. The more gender-independent abilities, the better set-up for success.” She and others wrote about the fact women leaders do seem to engage teams differently, building consensus and involving the whole team more than some men, but even this, they concede seems to be changing.

Indeed, I looked at several successful women leaders. One that stands out is Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo. Ms. Nooyi has been successful at Pepsi and stands out in the business community, in my mind, because of her open approach, clear success and willingness to discuss leadership. She feels strongly that it is the obligation of women in leadership roles to pull up others beneath them so that a succession can be created. Leading by example, it seems, is her primary directive and she speaks clearly on the subject of leadership with no indication that a gender difference exists.

In an online article by ASTD (American Society for Training & Development), Ms. Nooyi spoke of the necessary traits for leadership which are universally applicable and pertain equally to different types of leadership – from business to political to community leadership.

She highlights five skills that are hallmarks of effective leadership.

1. Competence. You must be an expert in your function or area of expertise. You will become known for that.

2. Take a Stand. You must be known for your courage and confidence to act and say what you believe is right.

3. Communication Skills.

Communication skills are critical. You can never over-invest in them.

4. Coaching. Surround yourself with good mentors. Listen. Learn. Your mentor is a major force.

5. Your Moral Compass. Have the strength and courage to do what’s morally right, not what’s expedient. Your moral compass must be your true north.

These skills are ones that we can all develop if we want to strengthen our leadership skills regardless of gender.

The research is clear, there are more women in leadership roles but there is still a huge gap on most companies’ organizational charts as the gender of senior leadership is tracked. According to Business Week’s most recent “Best Companies for Leadership”, women head up fewer than 3% of the Fortune 1,000. Moving down the organizational chart a bit, it becomes better for women in the ranks of middle management.

looking back through it recently. The women she focuses on are the wives and mothers of the men who founded the United States. Their stories of leadership are hard to believe as they carried on with their lives through the birth of the country. But Roberts writes something that still applies to so many women. “I come to the conclusion that there’s nothing unique about them. They did – with great hardship, courage, pluck, prayerfulness, sadness, joy, energy and humor – what women do. They put one foot in front of the other in remarkable circumstances. They carried on.”

That is the truth of women in general and women who lead. In the grand scheme of things, we see leaders of both genders learning from one another. Leadership will evolve as people do, and those who rise to the top will be those who find the best in those around them and elicit a passion to improve every day. Lance Secretan said, “Leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. Leadership is about inspiration— of oneself and of others. Great leadership is about human experiences, not processes.

Leadership is not a formula or a program, it is a human activity that comes from the heart and considers the hearts of others. It is an attitude, not a routine.”

» Have the strength and courage to do what’s morally right, not what’s expedient.Your moral compass must be your true north. «

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Further research corroborates what was said earlier about gender neutrality, saying that, “The outstanding women used a better blend of what we think of as traditional masculine styles -- being directive, authoritative, and leading by example and as well as feminine ones. They also knew when to be more nurturing, inclusive, and collaborative.” This blending of skills is changing the way other leaders approach their roles. Men are adopting these approaches more and the way in which we judge leadership is being changed by the women who are leading.

Authentic leadership is driven by successful teams and solid performance.

Finally, we should comment on the countless numbers of unknown women who will never be famous but who lead in their families and communities quietly. Many women who do not covet recognition do work that goes widely unnoticed except by the people in their immediate circles. Their devotion to family and local matters is the engine that drives many communities. Hundreds of volunteer hours, thousands of tiny projects and tasks that are the everyday work of women and for which they will never be recognized. This has been the story of women for generations and we would be doing a disservice if we only focused on women of acclaim and high visibility.

I am reading a book now by Cokie Roberts called Founding Mothers. The closing sentence of her introduction resonated as I was

Kim DeCoste is the President of DeCoste & Associates, a strategic career management and coaching firm specializing in career transition (www.DeCosteAssociates.com). Kim is also actively involved in STEM initiatives, public K-12 education and clean technology expansion through the South Metro Denver Chamber and Cleantech Open (www.CleantechOpen.com).

Change a woman’s Life. Change a country’s future.

Thunderbird School of Global Management is helping businesswomen from war-torn Afghanistan change their lives and their communities through business. The school provides them with entrepreneurial training, coaching, mentoring and access to resources, so they can help rebuild their ravaged nation by starting small businesses in their homeland.

These women continue to courageously put their training into action in Afghanistan, where despite much adversity and personal risk, they have accomplished a great deal and are successfully operating their businesses and creating lasting value for their families and their communities.

“The other women and I dedicated to this project know that working is the only real alternative to insecurity. We have given up on the men in this region, who only know—and love—war and destruction. We women have taken it upon ourselves to stitch the future of peace for our children. We will work to help rebuild this war-torn nation.”

Rangina, Project Artemis fellow, 2005 Her embroidery business now employs more than 500 employees and her products are exported worldwide.

Donate to Project Artemis Today - www.thunderbird.edu/projectartemis

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U.S. Trade and Development Agency

Opening New

Markets Abroad Supporting High-Paying Export-Related Jobs at Home By Leocadia I. Zak

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hough there are encouraging signs that the U.S. economy is on the rebound, many challenges remain to achieving full recovery. To address those challenges, President Obama has put forth an ambitious agenda for stimulating economic development and job growth. One of its important components is the National Export Initiative, which the President launched in his State of the Union Address in January. This initiative has the challenging goal of doubling U.S. exports over the next five years, which when achieved, will support as many as 2 million jobs for Americans.

With traditional drivers of economic growth, such as consumer and business spending, still weak we must look to the 95 percent of the world’s consumers located

» We must look to the 95 percent of the world’s consumers located abroad for increased sales and export opportunities. «

abroad for increased sales and export opportunities. To coordinate and support this effort the President created the Export Promotion Cabinet. This body is working to see that U.S. companies have more and better information about opportunities abroad, is devising ways to directly connect businesses with foreign customers, and is forcefully advocating their interests abroad to insure that American companies have free and fair access to foreign markets. There are also plans to provide greater access to credit through the Export-Import Bank of the United States, particularly to small and medium-sized exporters.

Zak and foreign trade reps from Palestine

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As part of the effort to increase exports, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) recently launched the International Business Partnership Program, which directly addresses the President’s goal of connecting U.S. companies with new customers abroad.

Under the program, USTDA will host over 30 reverse trade missions to the United States in 2010. These visits will connect foreign buyers with U.S. companies, allowing them to witness firsthand U.S. technology and innovation.

They are specifically designed to create the conditions for collaboration and develop the relationships that are key to generating significantly increased exports to emerging economies. Using this approach, USTDA has achieved such notable results as opening the Brazilian market for U.S.-manufactured rail engines, facilitating the deployment of broadband internet access to much of east Africa, and providing India greater access to U.S. clean technology. These activities alone led to over $400 million in U.S. exports of goods and services to these countries and supported hundreds of jobs for Americans.

When I was in Denver recently, I met with industry representatives from throughout the state. Their energy and engagement impressed me, as did the Colorado state government’s support for efforts to expand exports. Toward that end, the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade is working actively with federal agencies, such as the U.S. Export Assistance Center and the Small Business Administration, to find

ways to support companies in their search for export opportunities.

USTDA hopes to make a significant contribution to these efforts through its International Business Partnership Program.

In the coming year, the agency will bring a number of delegations from Latin America and the Caribbean to Colorado for meetings with officials from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and with the region’s companies that are expert in clean energy development. The goal of these visits is to give the delegates firsthand exposure to the latest technology and how it can be deployed to provide efficient and clean power generation in their countries. The anticipated result is that the visits will provide decision makers in these countries with the information they need to effectively pursue their energy development goals. In the process, relationships will be formed with Colorado firms which will position them to compete favorably for the sale of goods and services when power projects are implemented in these countries.

Perhaps of particular interest to small and medium-sized companies is the aspect of the National Export Initiative that addresses financing. Because commercial banks are sometimes unable to meet the credit needs of smaller firms, the President has called on the Export-Import Bank to increase financing for export-related activities available to these businesses by $2 billion over the next year. This should enable this important sector of the business community to compete more successfully

Leocadia I. Zak serves as the Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency where she leads an agency dedicated to encouraging economic growth in emerging markets and the export of U.S. goods and services to those markets. After being nominated

by President Obama in November 2009, Ms. Zak was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on March 10, 2010.

She had served as Acting Director of the agency since January 20, 2009 and before that was the General Counsel (2000 – 2006) and Deputy Director (2006 – 2009) of USTDA. Prior to joining USTDA, Ms. Zak was a partner in the Washington, D.C. and Boston offices of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C. practicing in the areas of corporate, municipal and international finance. She served as counsel in connection with a variety of project finance transactions for energy, transportation, health care, telecommunications and tourism projects.

Ms. Zak was also an Adjunct Professor of Law and has taught “International Project Finance” at the Boston University School of Law, Morin Center for Banking and Financial Law Studies and at the Georgetown University Law Center. for export opportunities and to make greater contributions to export generation.

Overarching the various components of the National Export Initiative is the Administration’s commitment to vigorously pursue free and fair trade through policies and agreements that eliminate trade barriers; enforce standards, such as those related to labor and environmental issues; and secure reciprocal benefits from our trading partners. President Obama recently said that it’s time for the United States to “go to bat for businesses and our workers.” The National Export Initiative is designed to achieve that mission and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency will, as a part of that initiative, continue to devise programs that open markets and create highpaying export-related jobs.

Ms. Zak received her B.A. from Mount Holyoke College and her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law.

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AWEsome Beyond Words

Shock and AWE A Campaign of Peace Through Commerce By Emily Haggstrom

“Fundamentally, there are only two ways of coordinating the economic activities of millions. One is central direction involving the use of coercion - the technique of the army and of the modern totalitarian state. The other is voluntary cooperation of individuals – the technique of the market place.”

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Milton Friedman

itting stoically on a chair in the corner, dressed in thick black garments with a bright colored head scarf is Kaltom Sawaid, an Arab Bedouin woman from Israel, who has arrived in the warm humid city of Mobile, Alabama for a journey that will inevitably change her life. You see, Sawaid is the first person from her village to ever visit the United States.

Her new friend and business partner, a Jewish woman named Sima Salima, sits smiling across from her on the bed; her journey has already begun. Outside of the program they are in together,

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these two women are the most unlikely of friends. And although they share the same corner of the world in the north of Israel, their lives are truly worlds apart.

They are in Alabama with a delegation of women in the “AWEsome Beyond Words” program; a ground breaking collaboration between an Israeli women’s organization focused on a multi-disciplinary approach to empower women and promote understanding and empathy; along with its alliance partner Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs (AWE).

The work they are set to perform is meant to deepen their relationship and bring jointly made products to market through AWE and its extensive network of alliance partners.

The two women had met previously when Sawaid left her Arab village while seeking employment opportunities in Salima’s Jewish village. Their relationship took on a transformative dimension when Salima invited Sawaid to join her as a business partner in the AWEsome Beyond Words program.

The program focuses on helping women in war-torn Israel come together through deep healing and non-verbal communication practices to heal pain and decrease prejudice from generations of on-going conflict between Arabs and Jews - thereby bringing about peace and understanding.

However, pairing Jewish, Arab and Palestinian women of various religious affiliations from Judaism, Muslim, Christian, and Druze; and having them come together through war strife and embattled political regimes, to face each other and find the connection that they share can be a very trying process. And although the women come from different sides that don’t always understand each other, these two organizations have helped transform hundreds of lives directly and thousands if not more, indirectly through their personal and economic empowerment, since Beyond Words’ inception in 1995 and AWE’s in 2008.

Because of its success, the Beyond Words organization along with the group’s founder and director, Nitsan Gordon received an invitation and scholarship to bring the Arab and Jewish women of the program to Esalen, a retreat center in Big Sur, California that provides its guests with a place for spiritual and transformative healing. Along with the participants, Gordon invited six American women to join them, among them was Philomena Blees.

Blees, President and CEO of Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs (AWE), an initiative of Peace Through Commerce, launched AWE’s first global campaign in 2008 to catalyze the women’s empowerment movement. She explained that by “Accelerating Women

Entrepreneurs”, women could mitigate poverty, increase prosperity, advance peace and increase their level of economic freedom. AWE’s vision is, “A world in which all people enjoy peace and prosperity, with women fulfilling their potential as conscious leaders and entrepreneurs; the engines of innovation, wealth creation and social change.”

Gordon’s idea that feminine energy was essential to creating change in the Middle East sparked the interest of Blees and the AWE Board of Directors who believed that once women had increased strength and knowledge from their empowerment work, they could enter into the marketplace and take their rightful place beside men as equals and as leaders in their society. “Entrepreneurs do make the world a better place inherently, and yet the brand around business people and entrepreneurs is that they’re not the most wholesomely inspired group in the world. It’s usually the social workers seen in that light, and while their work is important, I think that business people are the ultimate social workers and entrepreneurship is the most creative way for them to express themselves,” said Blees. It is further evidence of the work being done by AWE’s parent company, Conscious Capitalism, whose principles state that conscious businesses led by conscious leaders can literally solve the world’s problems in a way failed diplomacy never will.

Gordon joined AWE, and its first on-the-ground program was launched in Israel in July 2009. “AWE Local” as they refer to it, is a threepart program that combines training and support for each woman, her venture, and her community. They offer programs aimed at eliminating poverty through market-based solutions supported by social, legal and economic freedom, and carried out consciously with empathy and responsibility.

Through AWE Local, Gordon reached out for the first time to Palestinian women in the West Bank. These women met regularly at safe houses; at the risk to their own safety and well-being because of the cultural barriers they were breaking to be a part of progress. The Jewish women that were currently enrolled in the program formed teams with the Palestinian women to create “products of peace,” which AWE markets through its alliance partners in the United States.

Sawaid and Salima’s journey to Alabama, along with the other women of Beyond Words, was a way for them to continue their empowerment away from the stresses of daily life and deepen their ties with AWE. Blees emphasized that, “Each woman receives highly

» The program focuses on helping women in war-torn Israel come together. «

effective personal empowerment and awareness practices for deep inner peace as a woman, while balancing the stresses of being a leader and entrepreneur. Her enterprise, she continues, “Has assisted in gaining access to global markets, growth capital, and strategic mentors to exponentially take it to scale. Her society benefits as she becomes a catalyst for establishing and expanding social, legal and economic freedom.”

The AWEsome Beyond Words staff works with women to initiate using the intangible tools available to them that their governments have historically taken for granted or suppressed. It is intangibles such as natural resources, human ingenuity and creativity which are most often ignored, but overall the missing piece to operating an efficient economic system. Through their own economic empowerment and empathetic responsibility, these women engage their communities, men and women alike, in a call to action for a market economy that mirrors the diverse commerce of their communities.

It is Blees’ hope that by understanding business and economic models, the local women of these developing and war torn countries experiencing uneven distribution of their economic freedoms, can eventually clear the path for women and men in their communities. It is the ultimate goal to create countless traditional and social enterprises and move participants from subsistent entrepreneurs to catalysts for sustainable peace and prosperity.

The program has the possibility to become a model that these women can replicate with their families and teach their communities.

However, the alignment of AWE and Beyond Words is not without concern to the status quo and draws speculation into how each entity can exist in an area that has been ravaged by war off and on since 500 B.C. Because of recent military offensives by Hamas and Israeli soldiers, it is the inherent nature of the locals to fear one another and wonder whether they will be safe in their own communities. “My husband said he is dead if I come to this program, he won’t speak to me,” said Sawaid sadly.

Challenges and resistance such as these arise constantly from males in their communities, however, slowly but surely they are overcoming this opposition. In a male driven society with male rules, women are now slowly being able to educate and support their husbands and sons with the teachings they’ve learned themselves. The tools of economic and personal empowerment become the fabric of who they are, strengthening everyone around them. The transformation will not occur

» By “Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs”, women could mitigate poverty, increase prosperity, advance peace and increase their level of economic freedom. « - Philomena Blees

Philomena Blees

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AWEsome Beyond Words

overnight, but the gradual effects will be seen in years to come.

“Change me no, inspire me yes, strengthen me yes. When we do things together we get to know one another, and then we can become friends and it won’t be Arab and Jewish, it will truly be of friends. We will work together as a team accomplishing as a team,” says Salima.

“Peace starts with each one of us. You need peace within yourself to be able to truly communicate with another person.”

Still, with the work these women do in AWEsome Beyond Words, they will have the ability to withstand the hardships of life, of war and of famine, and to embrace what they know of the principles of economic freedom which remain true and constant at all times.

Through their personal work they can sustain good times and bad by living, loving and facing adversity together. “We communicate with our hearts;” says Salima, “we took away the barrier of education, language and tradition, because when we are human we share the same things, core things.”

So while the AWE Local program is just finishing up its inaugural year, Blees and Gordon continue to work day and night to ensure its continuous success. “It’s a center where everything you do matters. The eyes of the world are on Israel,” said Gordon. If they succeed in Israel they will prove that their work is advantageous to each person they touch and that peace can be achieved through the marketplace anywhere in the world. Beyond Words will become a leader in local and global outreach programs, designed to be carried over to any country where people face adversity, whether it’s personally, culturally or economically.

To find out more information regarding Philomena Blees and Accelerating Women Entrepreneurs, an initiative of Peace Through Commerce, Inc. please visit www.peacethroughcommerce.com.

For more information on Nitsan Gordon’s work with Beyond Words or to donate please visit www. beyondwords.org.il.

For Sima Salima and Kaltom Sawaid’s beautiful handmade gourds and baskets from Israel, an effort of Jewish and Arab Women Weaving Peace, please visit www.salima.co.il.

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees.

In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

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» "I think that business people are the ultimate social workers and entrepreneurship is the most creative way for them to express themselves." « - Philomena Blees

“Those with the courage to enter the moral conflict will find themselves with companions in every corner of the globe" - Robert Kennedy, South Africa 1966

Photo by Stanley Tretick

Robert F. Kennedy boldly faced tough problems and challenged the comfortable and complacent.

To realize his dream of a more just and peaceful world, his family and friends founded a living memorial in 1968. Today the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights is dedicated to advancing human rights.

Through long-term partnerships and cutting edge methods, we assist advocates who have won the RFK Human Rights Award. We support investigative journalists and authors who bring light to injustice through the RFK Book and Journalism Awards. Our Speak Truth to Power program educates the public and provides students with a toolkit for action to create change in the classroom, the community, nationally and internationally.

Partnering with RFK Europe, we provide human rights education adovcacy programs to schools and communities across the continent. With RFK Children's Action Corps, we urge reform of juvenile justice systems.

Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit charitable organization.

Speak Truth to Power

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.

Center for Human Rights

RFK Human Rights Award

. .

RFK Book Award

www.rfkcenter.org

Juvenile Justice Collaborative RFK Journalism Award

202-463-7575

1367 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20036

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Empowering Women in the americas

T

Empowering Women in The

Americas A Critical Necessity By Jorge Gonzalez-Mayagoitia ( 72 )

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he world is finally breathing again after one of the most severe global economic downturns.

Recovery will require a lot of creativity and innovation, as well as a number of crucial systemic adjustments that leads us to sustained economic growth. Maybe for the first time in history, we need to understand that the use of female talent to address this and other pressing global challenges is not an option, but a critical necessity.

In today’s economy, a country’s competitiveness is its human capital. Women account for one half of the global population and when they are well-educated, participate in public decision-making and can earn and control income, a number of positive economic and social transformations automatically follows— infant mortality declines, child health and nutrition improve, agricultural productivity rises, population growth slows, economies expand and cycles of poverty are broken. All of these outcomes not only improve the quality of life of our communities, they also encourage faster economic growth.

Research conducted by the United Nations and the World Bank in emerging markets of The Americas demonstrates that the combined impact of growing gender equality, a rising middle class and women’s spending priorities will lead to an increase in household savings rates and shift spending patterns that are likely to benefit vital sectors of our economies, such as food, healthcare, education, childcare, consumer durables and financial services.

Within the next five years, this trend will be particularly strong in countries like Mexico and Brazil.

Reducing the gender gap and fully incorporating women in the economy could also help to address, more successfully, some of the future problems in The Americas, posed by aging populations and rising pension burdens, particularly in countries where people are aging more rapidly, like the U.S. and Canada, where the median age is 36 and 40 respectively.

Measuring the Problem

To achieve all this, there is still much to do. Persistent gaps in access to education, healthcare, technology and income are some of the biggest challenges keeping women from being fully productive members of society in The Americas. The Global Gender Gap Index 2009 ranks the performance of 134 countries based on four categories: economic participation and opportunity; educational attainment; health and survival; and political empowerment. In our hemisphere, Trinidad

and Tobago, a small island in the Caribbean, obtained the highest grade (19). Argentina (24), Canada (25) and Costa Rica (27) following close behind.

The U.S. ranked 31. However, a number of countries in the hemisphere are near the bottom of the ranking, even considering high GDP growth rates— Chile ranks at 64, Brazil at 81, and Mexico at 98. Guatemala is the lowestranking country (111), followed only by countries in Africa and the Middle East.

A similar survey, The Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010, ranked the gender equality policies of the 600 largest companies in 20 countries, including Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the U.S. The results are not very promising, especially if you consider only two pieces of critical information: 1) percentage of women employees and 2) percentage of female CEO’s. In the case of Brazil, these numbers respectively equal 34% and 11%; Mexico 36% and 0%; Canada 45% and 0%; and in the U.S. 52% and 0%.

These revealing figures prove that gender equality policies in The Americas are broadly missing, and the level of disparities that still coexist in our hemisphere, at least in regards to closing the gender gap are ever present.

Therefore, it is urgent to empower women and provide them with the full package of rights, tools and opportunities to maximize their potential, whether they decide to be entrepreneurs, elected officials or community organizers. This is one of the keys for true long-term progress in the hemisphere as labor forces expand and become more productive, household income increases and customer bases expand.

A Roadmap to Success

First, we need to make ourselves aware of the challenges posed by gender gaps in The Americas. Second, we must learn from our neighbors with the highest performance rates in gender equality and acknowledge the opportunities that might be created if we empower women in our communities. In these two processes, we need to engage our politicians and policymakers, the civil society, the private sector and academia.

Third, we need to replicate or adapt frameworks and best practices that proved to be effective in these countries.

This will certainly require significant changes in legislation, public policies and social perception of problems and solutions. The new paradigm must

promote the empowerment of all women, whether they live in urban or rural areas; strengthen women’s social and economic rights; combat all forms of violence against women and ensure women’s human rights; eliminate gender stereotypes in society; seek women’s equal representation in decision-making; and support women’s diversity. We also need to find out how to channel women into science, technology and engineering to drive innovation.

Even when it is a duty of the government to assure gender equality, in many cases the problem is a matter of women’s access to resources, such as microfinance for female entrepreneurs, training and education opportunities, healthcare, and services—whether public or private—that help reconcile family and professional life. Successful cases around the globe have proved that the involvement of the private sector and civil society is crucial.

Finally, indicators for monitoring progress in this field must also be considered.

The Biennial of The Americas: An Exceptional Opportunity

» Persistent gaps in access to education, healthcare, technology and income are some of the biggest challenges keeping women from being fully productive members of society in The Americas. «

On July 7th, 2010, the Biennial of The Americas organized by the City of Denver will present The Americas Roundtable on Women. This will be a unique opportunity in which a group of exceptional female leaders from The Americas will focus on women as drivers of the new economy and as agents for positive and effective change. It is a forum you do not want to miss.

Jorge GonzalezMayagoitia serves as Consul for Political and Economic Affairs at the Consulate General of Mexico in Denver. He is a career diplomat since 2006 and Colorado is his first post abroad. The Mexican Consulate is the oldest foreign mission in the state, being established in 1893, only 17 years after Colorado became part of the U.S. It oversees the 64 counties of Colorado and 13 counties in eastern Wyoming. As part of its economic responsibilities, the Consulate promotes trade, investment and tourism between Mexico and Colorado. For more information, visit the website at www.sre.gob.mx/denver or call (303) 331-1110.

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Kathleen Kennedy townsend

Lawyer, Author, Lieutenant

Governor

An Interview with Kathleen Kennedy Townsend By Jan Mazotti

Describe some of the barriers you have faced and how you have broken through them in your professional life.

» Oftentimes we have issues in our own life, but we don’t know there are bigger issues out there, because nobody talks about them. «

There were certainly barriers and prejudice for women in politics in 1986. When I ran for Congress, people kept asking me how I could run for office when I had three children. I pointed out that my father ran for President when he had 10 children at home and no one asked him how he could run. When I ran for Lieutenant Governor in 1994 there were only four female Lieutenant Governors in the U.S. But after that election, 21 women were elected in that position. I think two things made this happen. One was the Clarence Thomas hearings with Anita Hill. It just enraged so many people across the country that women were being examined by all these men and that there was no one out there speaking ( 74 )

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for women in politics. So I think, there was a sense across the country that women needed to have a much larger role and voice in politics. I was also helped by the women’s movement generally and by having great women friends who strengthened me, who urged me on, and who gave me help in the tough times.

Two things are important for women in politics. We must first work politically to raise consciousness and awareness and you have to find friends who will support you.

Describe some of the innovations you have introduced and their effects.

Before becoming Lieutenant Governor I made Maryland the first state in the country to require community service a requirement for all students because I believe that young people can make a difference. They can be powerful and they can see problems and change them. What we found though was that too many young people didn’t believe that about themselves and had never had the experience of making a difference – so I wanted to give them the opportunity to learn how they could change the world for the better.

For 22 years I wanted to improve the quality of people going into policing. So I worked on providing college scholarships to people who promised to be police officers for four years. When I became Lieutenant Governor of Maryland we became the first

state in the country to receive and distribute those scholarships. In fact, one time when I was in Denver, a man walked up to me in the airport and said he was a graduate from one of the first classes and that now he was with the FBI. He thanked me and told me it was a wonderful program.

I was also focused on an anti-crime effort when I was Lieutenant Governor. The Attorney General and I started family violence counseling programs where we strengthened our laws on family violence and we trained 911 operators, police officers, District Attorneys, and judges. As we did this we realized that it was not enough to train people in the criminal justice system alone, we had to change the attitudes of the community. So I made sure that every single state employee received training in domestic violence so that they could recognize potential problems and say “it’s part of my business to understand what’s going on.” We wanted to change the culture on domestic violence.

I also worked on the issues of women balancing work and family.

I had one conference, where Betty Friedan came, where we focused on working women with children. It was clear in many of the conversations that the biggest challenge was women juggling work, children, and elder care and that we had very few resources for these women. As a result, we started a number of community programs to help with these issues.

You come from a family of strong and powerful men and women. Do you think it is important for women and their work to be recognized? What are some of the underlying implications of these patterns and gender-based roles?

For a long period of time, women’s work was not really recognized or given the due that it really deserved. I think that we still have challenges in this country to recognize the importance of women. I’ve given a number of talks around the country and I usually start by asking everyone to close their eyes. Then I ask them to think of a powerful person. Then I ask them how many of them thought of women? What I have found is that even at conferences devoted to women, very few actually say, ‘Oh, I thought of a woman in power.’ So even today, we have challenges to actually recognize women as powerful.

What are the implications of that?

The implications are that we still don’t have 50% parity in the number of women in Congress and the Senate. We only have about six women who are heads of Fortune 500 companies. We still have challenges with the adjectives that women still use for men—power, strong, and aggressive—where the adjectives for women often include kind, loving, sweet, beautiful. For women in power the adjectives often change and they are accused of being bitchy and those sorts of things. We are still struggling with trying to figure out the dichotomies of being female and powerful. I believe we will see change over the next 20 years as more and more women become powerful. And, I think we will see a range of character types of women in power.

How do you see women playing a role in the global economy going forward?

» Politics and government is where we make our most solemn common decisions, therefore the more that women get involved the more apt it is that politics will accede to the needs of women. «

Was this before the Family and Medical Leave Act?

Many of the Fortune 500 companies, at least in the United States, are run by men. I think that is one of the great challenges right now. Typically, women are able to understand different cultures and traditions more easily and they try to get people to get along with one another and work together. I think women also bring verbal skills rather than command and control skills - again qualities that we will absolutely need in the global economy going forward.

No, it was after. When we initially had this conference there was not much focus on the challenges of senior care. Instead, we were focused on the challenges surrounding working families with children. As we learned more, we added the conversation around senior care—it was sort of this unspoken conversation.

I remember... I was supposed to give a speech on our senior care initiatives to 45 women legislators.

Instead of giving the standard speech I decided I would go around the room and let people tell their stories about taking care of their elderly parents.

Thirty nine people had a story about taking care of an elderly family member. It really taught me that oftentimes we have issues in our own life, but that we don’t know there are bigger issues out there because nobody talks about them.

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Kathleen Kennedy townsend

How can we accelerate or advance changes in community service, overcoming adversity, and other social justice issues?

I think one of the things women can do is get involved in politics. If they’re not going to run themselves, contribute to political campaigns or organize events. Politics and government is where we make our most solemn common decisions, therefore the more that women get involved the more apt it is that politics will accede to the needs of women. As women started engaging in politics, you saw much more interest in childcare, in healthcare, the environment, and with education.

As a result, women getting involved in politics has made a difference. The same is true in business. The more women you have, the more you can get the business to take into account the needs of women.

Who has inspired you in your life? Why? How?

I went to Catholic school as a kid, so I was always inspired by the nuns. As the recent healthcare debate escalated, I was particularly inspired by the nuns who stood up against the bishops and said, “We need healthcare.” I thought that was really fabulous because for so many years women, particularly in the Catholic Church, were treated like second class citizens.

I am certainly inspired by Madeline Albright and Hilary Clinton and what they’ve done around the world. I am especially impressed

by Hilary’s determination to make women’s issues part of the foreign policy conversation.

She’s pointed out that in those countries where women are well-treated they are less apt to get involved in terrorism. It is those countries where women are badly treated that are most apt to be terrorist countries. She’s made that connection very clearly and she’s also pointed out that when women get educated, their children benefit and so does the whole nation.

You’ve achieved all these things in life – what are you » It is those countries where women going to look back on and say are badly treated that are most apt you are most to be terrorist countries. « proud of?

It’s really hard to pick just one. I would say I’m most proud of three things. Starting the Robert Kennedy Human Rights Award, which was a way to keep my father’s legacy alive around the world, has been very rewarding. Making sure that Maryland was the first, and still only state that requires community service for graduation is something I am proud

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of. Many generations of young Marylander’s have learned that they can make a difference.

And finally, I am proud of my work with the Maryland HotSpot Initiative. Through these collaborative efforts we reduced crime 35% in high crime neighborhoods and actually demonstrated that you could reduce crime if you put your mind to it.

Do you have a mentor?

No. When I started politics there were not a lot of women in politics or law. Today, I think women are much more fortunate because they have access to female mentors. When I went to college, for instance, I didn’t have a single woman teacher. But, when I went to law school there was a great woman who I worked with, Ruth Kovnat. We commuted from Santa Fe to Albuquerque together and remain good friends to this day.

Has collaboration played a role in your success? If so, how?

Yes! Absolutely! Working with other women who supported me and who helped me was very important. I was able to mobilize and move on critical initiatives because of collaboration. For instance, when we were trying to reduce crime I realized that you couldn’t just have the police involved—you had to get police, probation, parole officers, community designers, the citizens in the community—to really make change. Problems are not just single-minded. You have to get people to work with one another.

jewel of collaboration

Changing the Face of War

Not Your

Average Joe Women Changing the Face of War By Emily Haggstrom

T

he face and culture of women involved in military combat has changed drastically over its 4000 year history. Change has not appeared more drastic since the conflicts that ensued following the September 11th terrorist attacks in 2001. For the first time in United States history, women are not just being used in military support roles, but they are becoming high-ranking commanders facing real combat.

And although there is still a mountainous debate being waged over the concerns and advantages women play in war-time initiatives, it is certain that the tactical decisions made up-front and behind the scenes to include women in crucial jobs are paying off for the U.S. military. ( 78 )

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On the torrid terrains of Iraq and in the varied climates of Afghanistan, this ever changing nine year battle against terror continues to evolve as insurgents move in and out of the local populations. Shopkeepers and suicide bombers walk side by side in the streets, and fathers and warmongers are one in the same. The front lines aren’t the trenches from the wars of the past; they are bombs and sieges on roadside checkpoints and in cafes.

The enemy isn’t a well run collective group supported fancily through government monies, they are simple yet independent militias seeking whatever funds they can secure.

Corruption and coercion have become woven into the fabrics of these societies’ war strategies.

Every day the war strategy is different and each side knows it must be creative to win,

especially when the enemy thinks and acts radically different. No military role is safe from these terrorists. Therefore, placing women in gender-based roles no longer illustrates a point.

New approaches and more volunteers are always needed. Spots that were once being given mostly to U.S. males are becoming increasingly harder to fill. By utilizing the women who are applying to fill these same spots, the military can tap into resources that could add to the number of people in combat operations. Now, of the two million active soldiers fighting for American freedom, more than 209,000 of them are women.

A Woman’s Worth

In Nangarhar, one of Afghanistan’s more modern cities on the eastern border with

Pakistan, fighting a quiet but lethal insurgency, is Lieutenant Colonel Jody Nelson. She is the commanding officer of an 853 soldier Special Troops Battalion securing the region through education and workforce development. “We all choose to serve our country for very personal reasons, but the duty our country asks us to do can be surprising,” said Nelson. “The young men and women of our country are not shooting insurgents, though they may have to at times.” Instead, they are teaching governance to emerging democracies, talking to village elders about corruption, talking about regenerating revenue and empowering the people.” Nelson and her battalion are trying to make a tangible difference to the 1.5 million people in the area where they operate.

Guided by centuries of female oppression, the Islamic front has shown that they are not intimidated and are unwilling to surrender to women. Not only is Nelson a woman but she is a woman in an Islamic Republic heavily fortified by subjugating Taliban factions. Each day poses a new challenge that Nelson will ultimately have to lead her troops through. And whether she is being scrutinized by male Islamists or by American men and women who do not believe she should be there, Nelson does not cave to the stereotype. “The barrier about women’s ability to do their job still exists,” said Nelson.

In her 24 years of military experience she has chosen to ignore the barriers which she refers to as “challenges” by continuously performing the duties assigned to her at an exceptional level and in the most professional manner possible. “I don’t dwell on what I wasn’t allowed to do or couldn’t do. I focus on what I can do and do it in the best possible way. By focusing only on the challenges you lose sight of what you can do well,” she said.

Nelson is confident that by concentrating on her work and being professional she can prove to her male counterparts and fellow citizens just how valuable women can be. And women just like Nelson consistently perform at high levels proving their ability to some of the most war hardened generals.

But don’t mistake Nelson’s hard work as a cry for praise. She believes that women shouldn’t be singled out for their accomplishments just because they are women.

She hopes that women will be recognized for their performance and contributions as a whole, for the traits they bring to the fight, their insight and their strengths. “The underlying accomplishments that should be recognized are the fact that women have served honorably and successfully in the U.S. military for many years and have integrated in combat zones without issue,” she says.

And although the presence of women in prior wars seemed unnecessary and detrimental by some critics; attitudes have shifted as people gain a better understanding of the enemy we are fighting. Because segmented areas of Afghanistan live under the thumb of the Taliban, people in these areas still lack many of their freedoms and their human rights continue to be squandered. Most women in these regions have not experienced any effects of the regime change and are still not allowed out of their homes, to hold jobs, or to attend schools.

Having women on the front lines to perform woman-on-woman searches, in the home and in segregated mosques through targeted raids and patrols have proven vital and extremely strategic for allied forces. Nelson has found that, “The women here are so awed by what we do and feel we Army women have done so

and their families can sustain without the need for opium farming or joining the Taliban. To help alleviate some of the financial strain these families have, Nelson introduced the Afghan women of her province to a carpet training facility where they are trained to weave carpets to sell in the local shops and markets.

These same women have also been recruited to serve as security detail for events where other women are present. “They want to serve their country and each serves an important role.

They need to see other successful women that are serving as a role model for them and to show them that women can serve side by side,” said Nelson.

Within this multi-faceted war are also the local men who have joined the U.S. military as civilian police and Afghan military because of the love they have for their country. They are bound and determined to serve and protect with their guests and mentors, the U.S. military, on any front and in any location. As they stand side by side with our troops most of these Afghans wear sandals with their dingy uniforms.

They are ill-equipped and lack the basic necessities, yet still continue to fight the same battles that our troops do. They are the pride of their families and towns and the future of Afghanistan. It is imperative that they are not only trained but suited properly to be sustainable.

Therefore it is Nelson and her battalion’s job within their assigned province to make sure these men have basic resources such as flashlights, t-shirts, socks and blankets. They also need to be trained in proper combat operations and be emotionally stable to withstand the enemy’s psychological attacks. Nelson has found that by working with these men and helping them to conquer feelings of being overwhelmed, intimidated or inferior to the opposition, that they can gain huge respect within their community for their ability to perform and keep their villages safe. “I am honored and humbled by their ability to fight the enemy as well as they do,” she said.

Nelson, like other commanders, works hard to secure the safety of not only Afghan’s but Americans as well. She does it not as a woman, but as a leader who supports freedom.

She is the face that is changing the war.

» "While there are aspects of the Afghan culture with which I am vehemently opposed, I cannot shout women’s liberation and burn burkas. It would widen the gap. The men of our culture must work with the men of this culture supporting our message."

- Jody Nelson

much for them. They challenge me to do the best I can and live up to the perception that the world has of American soldiers - high moral standards and courage.”

Nelson and other female troops may not be able to change attitudes in a culture that already does not respect women, but men in her battalion can. “While there are aspects of the Afghan culture with which I am vehemently opposed, I cannot shout women’s liberation and burn burkas. It would widen the gap. The men of our culture must work with the men of this culture supporting our message,” she said. By recognizing and working with women in these war zones, it can help to illustrate that men and women can, and do work together professionally without violating social norms that exist.

Military women have the unique opportunity to interview Afghani women, meet and become informed about their lives, concerns, and the future of their families, and how the U.S. military can stimulate growth to improve their quality of life. Through her interpreter, Nelson has discovered the need for work within the home to keep the family financially stable. By supporting their economic future, Nelson knows these women

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees. In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

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Educate Girls Globally some 3,839 girls not enrolled – either because they had dropped out or because they had never gone to school. By December of 2009 some 3,560 more girls had enrolled, and only 279 girls remained out of school.

Equally impressive have been increases in learning. After three months of EGG’s Creative Learning Teaching (CLT), in addition to EGG’s basic program, far more children can read in Hindi or English and do basic math than before. Dr. Barbara Herz, an economist who launched the World Bank’s Women in Development Division and who now co-chairs EGG’s Board, made these comments on the results, “The percentage of children in the

» "The gains are so large that even if the test scores are slightly inaccurate, as measures of learning often are, it’s plain that positive change is occurring." « - Dr. Barbara Herz

Educate Girls

Globally

Successful Reform Model Scales Up By Charlotte Mills Seligman

B

ased on the stunning results of its education reform program in 500 government schools in the Pali District of Rajasthan, India, Educate Girls Globally (EGG) is now expanding into more than 2,300 schools to serve more than 260,000 children, about 125,000 of them girls. Half of the funding for the expansion is coming from DASRA1, a philanthropic organization in India that has pledges from private donors four years into the future to support the model. “This is an ( 80 )

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unprecedented endorsement for the model,” says EGG Founder and President A. Lawrence Chickering. “We have demonstrated the model’s effectiveness and we are now ready to expand to other developing countries.”

The project, run by EGG’s Indian affiliate, Foundation to Educate Girls Globally, has reduced the number of girls out of school by 90% and has dramatically improved learning.

In March 2008 EGG conducted a household survey in the neighborhoods near the 500 schools initially using the program and found

Program Schools, grades III-VII, reading a paragraph in Hindi jumped from 42 percent before CLT to 59 percent after.” She says, “Those reading a paragraph in English nearly tripled, from 15 to 43 percent. Those able to add and subtract two digits doubled from 26 to 57 percent. In fact, the gains are so large that even if the test scores are slightly inaccurate, as measures of learning tests often are, it’s plain that positive change is occurring.”

The EGG program is unique on many levels: It works in operating government schools, which keep costs low. It is scalable and can be deployed exponentially in schools. It is replicable in many countries, cultures, and political systems; and it is sustainable for the benefit of future generations.

After EGG’s founding in 1999, Chickering began developing a strategy for promoting girls’ education to address the problem of poverty and extremism in developing countries.

“Research by the UN and the World Bank shows that as women are educated, birthrates fall, family health improves, literacy increases, per capita income grows, and governance and political participation improve,” he says.

“Research also shows that an uneducated and marginalized female population is a significant cause of both poverty and extremism.”

Chickering has spent more than 30 years researching, designing, and advocating reforms of government institutions and policies

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Educate Girls Globally

to empower disadvantaged people. He is a graduate of Stanford University and the Yale Law School, a Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution, and author of numerous books and articles on how civil society initiatives can support foreign policy objectives strategically.

In 2005 EGG started partnering with the World Economic Forum and then the state government of Rajasthan to create a reform model for Rajasthan.

EGG’s model regards people in the community as the greatest underutilized asset in education. By engaging all the stakeholders—communities, teachers, children, and government officials— individual programs in any of the locations will continue, even after EGG withdraws. And learning is enhanced in the schools by shifting to more creative, interactive teaching and by helping girls in the school to form local groups where they gain confidence and experience.

Because government buy-in is essential to reform government schools, EGG starts by getting the government’s

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endorsement. Working with government ministries, the EGG program helps educate large numbers of girls at a very low cost by leveraging the investment governments have already made in teachers’ salaries, physical plant, textbooks, etc. According to Chickering, EGG’s model has proven that, with a mere 2% increase in their budget, governments can reach 25-33% more girls and can significantly raise learning scores, both in reading and math.

“Most NGOs refuse to work with governments because of bureaucratic and political opposition,” explains Chickering. “But EGG believes that working inside government schools is the only way to achieve large-scale, low-cost, sustainable change. And we have shown how to do it without bureaucratic opposition.” As evidence, EGG’s 2010 budget is a modest $600,000.

Rajasthan is one of the most maledominated states in India and, thus, one of the most traditional and difficult in which to promote change. EGG’s Community Activation Model has proven successful in reversing men’s response to girls’ education from negative to positive. According to Chickering, one of the most profound moments in the program occurs at village meetings, when the girls who have dropped out address assembled village leaders, explaining why they dropped out of school and why they want to go back to school. “These moments are transformative,” he

» "Research by the UN and the World Bank shows that as women are educated, birthrates fall, family health improves, literacy increases, per capita income grows, and governance and political participation improve." « - A. Lawrence Chickering

says. “Hearing their own daughters stand up and speak out, asking for a chance in life, the elders, even in the most traditional Islamic communities, become advocates.

Our program actually promotes deep cultural change in very traditional communities.”

An important part of EGG’s model is the creation of Action Committees to develop action plans for each school. The Committees reach out to the communities and identify issues, such as teacher absenteeism, lack of clean water, or the absence of girls’ bathrooms, and set them as priorities in their action plans. “Sustainability is integral to the program,” says Barbara Herz.

“Initially, staff members chair the Action Committee meetings, which take place every six weeks, to monitor progress on the action plans. Once we determine that the Action Committees can assume full responsibility for ongoing operations, they are on their own. After that, EGG follows up with annual and/or bi-annual visits to make sure all goes well or to lend a helping hand.”

Heading up the program in Rajasthan is EGG’s Executive Director, Safeena Husain, who oversees the program as well as the training of lead teachers in the villages. “The Creative Learning Teaching (CLT) approach is not rote memorization that’s prevalent in many school systems,” Husain says. “Rather, we work to improve school quality by incorporating life and work skills, with a focus on creative learning, which increases involvement and keeps the children in school.”

EGG’s program also fosters girls’ self-esteem and leadership training through its student parliament, which has served 6,500 girls in the second stage program in 500 schools. In that stage, the program also gave leadership training to 6,500 adults who participated in the school management committees. The program also gives training in life skills, which has increased self-assertion, even in tribal schools. According to Chickering, these “soft” skills have been as rigorously evaluated as has been the attendance and learning results in the program.

Chickering believes that EGG’s model could become a powerful instrument in the U.S. government’s counterinsurgency strategy.

He was recently invited by the U.S. military to

» EGG’s model could become a powerful instrument in the U.S. government’s counterinsurgency strategy. «

visit Afghanistan and explore using the model there. He is also currently in conversations with both the Counter Operations Center and the Central Command Center in Tampa, Florida, regarding Afghanistan and other countries. He is also talking to various departments in the State Department about the same issue. “When you give people a stake in the school system, you promote a positive concept of citizenship, and you give them a reason to resist forces that are trying to bring the system down,” says Chickering.

Chickering maintains that the EGG model is a new, organic model of public policy change by engaging people to work incrementally for change. “The traditional model of public policy reform is mechanical,’ he says. “Everything happens on Tuesday—an election happens, a bill or a regulation passes.

Everything changes suddenly, and sudden changes bring uncertainty about effects; people don’t like uncertainty. So they vote no.

In our model, change happens incrementally, organically, and there is never any opposition.”

He believes that without opposition, the process transcends all current political debates. “Our model is neither ‘conservative’ or ‘liberal,’ but draws strength from across the political spectrum.

We think it is a powerful way to use conservative means to achieve liberal ends.”

“I think we’re at a tipping point,” Chickering says. “The extraordinary results we’ve gotten in India are achieving serious recognition there.

The model can easily be replicated in other countries and cultures, with measurable results and at surprisingly low costs. It is only a matter of time before governments there and elsewhere realize that with a relatively small, incremental investment, they can greatly improve their education systems.

My concern now is to build the capacity to respond to the demand we know is coming.”

Given the crippling poverty, religious extremism, and abuse of girls and women in many of the world’s most volatile regions, let’s hope that EGG’s education model reaches critical mass and becomes an epidemic of social change.

Charlotte Seligman is President of Traversant, Inc., a San Francisco Bay Area brand communications firm she founded in 1999.

She is an impassioned advocate of equal rights and education for girls and women and works with numerous nonprofits, including Educate Girls Globally, No Means No USA, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, and Refugee Transitions.

She received her B.A. in Communications from Stanford and served in the Peace Corps in Liberia, West Africa. In 2008, she received a University of Cambridge CELTA certificate to teach English as a Foreign Language.

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The U.S. Commercial Service

The U.S.

Commercial Service Partnering to Advance Exports By The Denver U.S. Export Assistance Center Staff with Jan Mazotti

I

t’s March 22, 2010, and the Denver U.S. Export Assistance Center (USEAC) is in full gear. Today is President Obama’s rollout of the National Export Initiative, and Denver is the only city in the nation to host two Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC) representatives: Ms. Leocadia Zak, Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency and Ms. Darci Vetter, Deputy Under Secretary for the Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service with the United States Department of Agriculture.

It seems only fitting that a USEAC staffed with five female International Trade Specialists (ITS) would be hosting two high level female government officials to kick off this partnership that has a goal of doubling exports over the next five years. To arrange luncheons and business meetings for the visiting dignitaries, the USEAC staff turned to its many partners, coined by the staff as “our local TPCC”, to help coordinate the activities of the day. But this is only Monday, and the staff has a full week ahead of them.

ITS Martha Butwin is preparing for an incoming renewable energy delegation from Portugal and the Azores.

“The Senior Commercial Officer at our post (Commercial Service office) in Lisbon approached me over a year ago about bringing a delegation of private and public sector industry leaders from Portugal to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and over time the event blossomed into a two day event combining two delegations from Portugal and the Azores archipelago.” The two day event could not have come to fruition without Butwin’s private TPCC, most of which

are led by women. “I’ve been working with the renewable energy industry for four years now, and have come to know Sarah Barba of the Public Affairs Office at NREL very well.

Sarah works closely with both the USEAC, an office of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Service (CS), and the overseas post to put together top-notch customized programs for the visiting delegations. “ NREL’s Visitors Program has hosted more than 150 international visitors since the lab’s fiscal year started in October 2009. Butwin estimates that the USEAC works with NREL about

» "The Colorado International Trade Office is a lean organization that relies on its partnerships with the U.S. Export Assistance Center, the World Trade Center, industry associations, chambers of commerce and other economic development groups in executing its mission to support Colorado exporters." «

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- Pam Reichert

four times a year on delegations led

by Commercial Service offices, but NREL is not the only go-to group for renewable energy delegations. “CSU’s Engine and Energy Conversion Lab is running a close second when it comes to requests for visits from Commercial Service delegations.”

Butwin works with the Engine Lab’s Wendy Hartzell to set up tours at the facility that is housed in the old Fort Collins power plant. CSU’s Engine Lab has given tours to over 1,500 people from almost every continent since the start of 2009, and has a high “geek factor” because nearly every engineer who walks through the door is a bit envious when told that some of the projects being developed there came about through CSU engineering students’ Senior Projects.

“The Engine Lab is an engineer’s paradise,” Butwin muses.

While NREL and the Engine Lab are the draws that bring the renewable energy delegations to Colorado, most delegations also want the opportunity to meet with local businesses to determine if there is a synergy of products that the visitors seek. Since this mission was on a tight timeframe which precluded extensive one-on-one business meetings, ITS Butwin turned to Shelly Curtiss, Communications Director of the Colorado Cleantech Industry Association (CCIA), to structure a Business Roundtable that included a networking event to bring local businesses to meet with the delegation members. CCIA is a non-partisan organization with 135 members that represent Colorado’s expansive cleantech sectors including biofuels, geothermal, solar, wind, smart-grid, storage and transportation.

Executive Director Chris Shapard states, “It is our mission to create a business climate that enables Colorado to lead the world in clean technology.” Although CCIA is not an international organization, it has formed partnerships with local international business organizations to promote exports among its member companies.

ITS Butwin’s renewable energy portfolio often overlaps with colleague Lana Lennberg‘s environmental industry coverage. Case in point is the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade’s Market Development Cooperator Program grant that the State has received to promote sustainable product exports to Mexico and China.

Pam Reichert, the Director of the Colorado

The Trade Mission from Portugal and the Azores at NREL.

» The synergistic partnership between Jones and Marquez spurs a formidable business relationship to tackle the frustrating, yet rewarding, international trade issues company’s face in the realm of exporting. « International Trade Office (ITO) has assembled partnerships locally with the USEAC, the Colorado Association for Manufacturing and Technology (CAMT), the Colorado Cleantech Industry Association (CCIA), Connected Organizations for a Responsible Economy (CORE), the Denver Office of Economic Development and the World Trade Center Denver to promote the Colorado Export of Innovative and Sustainable Technologies (COExist) program. The Colorado ITO created the program to support exports and business exchanges between Colorado companies, government, and industry leaders in the targeted area of sustainable and environmental technologies. The three-year program runs from January 2010 through December 2012 and includes outgoing trade missions to China

and Mexico, incoming buyers groups from those countries and export counseling and technical assistance.

The ITA funds will support trade show booths, travel, and funding for technical assistance. Reichert expressed that “The Colorado International Trade Office is a lean organization that relies on its partnerships with the U.S. Export Assistance Center, the World Trade Center, industry associations, chambers of commerce and other economic development groups in executing its mission to support Colorado exporters. The U.S. International Trade Administration’s Market Development Cooperator Program provides a framework for more formal programming and coordination with all of our partners.” Interested Colorado companies can access the application for the program at: http://www. colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?c=Page&cid =1165009699722&pagename=OED IT%2FOEDITLayout Although each ITS in the Denver USEAC has an industry portfolio that dictates many of her responsibilities, the group also works on outreach efforts throughout the states of Colorado and Wyoming.

ITS Lana Lennberg has a longterm relationship with Julie Morey, Director of the Grand Junction Small Business Development Center.

Morey states, “The synergistic relationship between the SBDC and the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Denver makes it possible to help western Colorado companies enter international markets much more quickly and efficiently than they could without access to trade specialists and their knowledge of international markets and industries. Trade specialists such as Lennberg have been willing to travel to Mesa County to meet with our businesses one-onone or to assist the SBDC in providing export training to local businesses.”

Senior ITS Selina Marquez’ primary industries include healthcare and processed foods. Marquez finds that sometimes her best business partners are also her clients. Debra Jones, COO of Magnolia Trading LLC is a shining example of a savvy women-owned company in the international arena. Magnolia Trading is an international distributor of premium food brands with exclusive partnerships with Earth Balance, Horizon Organic Dairy, International Delight Coffee Creamers, Silk Soymilk and others. With over 04.10 - 6.10

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65 distributors worldwide Mrs. Jones shows commitment, skill, and creativity when dealing in overseas markets.

Marquez considers Magnolia Trading a collaborative partner verses a client. Marquez has worked with Magnolia on various issues from identifying appropriate government agencies for product registration to verifying regulatory requirements to import product for a given country, or working jointly to locate country labeling requirements. The synergistic partnership between Jones and Marquez spurs a formidable business relationship to tackle the frustrating, yet rewarding, international trade issues company’s face in the realm of exporting.

As the ITS covering the information technologies portfolio for the USEAC, Suzette Nickle has always been interested in the latest technology trends. After attending a session on social media and international marketing at Johnson & Wales University’s Global Professional Forum, she envisioned how what she learned that day could benefit not only Colorado exporters, but exporters across the country. She immediately engaged the speaker, Rosie Branstetter, Principal at Fiveseed, a Denver-based strategic consulting firm specializing in brand development and integrated marketing for start-ups, nonprofits, and socially responsible companies throughout the United States. Nickle emphasized that she, “Recognized this as an opportunity to work with Rosie to develop a series of interactive webinars to educate businesses on how to implement a sustainable international social media strategy,” a strategy that Nickle and her colleagues believe most of their clients would like to see further developed.

Together, Nickle and Branstetter have introduced an initiative to research international social media trends, develop leading-edge instructional content, and deliver engaging presentations. This custom-designed webinar series will provide businesses with a deep understanding of the trends and opportunities to integrate social media into a broader international marketing plan. Session topics will include Social Media 101 and Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for International Marketing. The program will be offered beginning in Summer 2010.

While incoming buying delegations and social media outreach are key in moving local companies forward in their exporting endeavors, it is paramount that U.S. ( 86 )

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Japan America Society and multiple key executives in Colorado who have made it their goal to land the DenverTokyo nonstop flight. Tokyo will be Denver’s gateway city and will allow passengers to connect to destinations across Asia.

Jackson coordinates the efforts of key business and government leaders across the Denver Metro area, as well as the airport’s marketing efforts in Tokyo, where a considerable marketing strategy is under way. This is where Jackson has tapped the expertise of the U.S. Commercial Service. ITS Dooley and Commercial Officer Helen Peterson (CS Tokyo) work with Jackson to provide in-country support for DIA’s marketing efforts. To date, there have been three Colorado-Japan trade missions including support from the U.S. Commercial Service in Tokyo, receptions and networking opportunities, all of which play into the outstanding collaboration orchestrated by Jackson and the Ascent to Asia Committee at large. Success for the committee, and for local exporters intent on selling into Asian markets, will see a nonstop Denver- Tokyo flight taking off from DIA in the near future!

At the end of the day, two successful export outreach events have been delivered, and a week’s worth of activities have been outlined. The five Denver USEAC International Trade Specialists with over 65 years of international trade work between them - have come together on this Monday in March to celebrate this landmark initiative. Yet the mission of the U.S. Commercial Service remains unchanged: to promote economic prosperity, enhance job creation, and strengthen national security through a global network of the best international trade professionals in the world. The Denver USEAC staff executes this mission with a plethora of talents among them coupled with a shared electronic rolodex of global partners.

» While incoming buying delegations and social media outreach are key in moving local companies forward in their exporting endeavors, it is paramount that U.S. companies travel to foreign markets to develop relationships. «

companies travel to foreign markets to develop relationships. In the air traffic arena, Denver USEAC Aerospace ITS Danielle Dooley can attest that collaboration is key for Ms. Laura Jackson, Air Service Specialist at Denver International Airport (DIA). In addition to her role as the Senior Director of Research and Planning for the airport, Jackson is at the helm of an airport-, city- and state-wide effort to launch Denver’s first nonstop flight to Asia.

The Ascent to Asia campaign was launched in 2008 to capture the power of DIA, The Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, State of Colorado, World Trade Center Denver, Japan Consulate in Denver,

The U.S. Commercial Service is located across the United States and in U.S. Embassies and Consulates in nearly 80 countries. Whether you’re looking to make your first export sale or expand to additional markets, turn to the Commercial Service for the expertise you need to connect with lucrative opportunities and increase your bottom line. To contact the Denver Commercial Service office, visit www.buyusa. gov/colorado or call 303-844-6623.

jewel of collaboration

Nancy Stevens

Determination

Leads to Success Blind World Champ Motivates through Sports By Barbara Fuller

W

hen Nancy Stevens was 11, a friend put a playing card in her bicycle spokes, watched in her rearview mirror, and called out directions to Nancy, who pedaled just behind. Nancy and her friend thought maybe they could ride their bicycles to school together—not a particularly novel idea for most children.

But for Nancy, the idea was enlightening. Up until then, she had ridden only on the sidewalks, feeling for the cracks in the pavement to keep her orientation.

Might she really ride beyond her small neighborhood?

Nancy Stevens is blind—and has been since birth. She is 49 years young, five-foot-even, with a constant beaming smile.

“My parents were creative,” she says. “They just wanted to figure out a way to do this safely.” They provided her with a tandem to ride with her younger sister, Lisa, and she continued to ride that tandem throughout college. Thus began Nancy’s belief in herself and the athletic ambitions that would carry her around the world.

Now, some 38 years later, Nancy has skied for the U.S. Paralympic team at Nagano, Japan, has won three world championships as a blind triathlete and has earned numerous other awards as an international athlete.

She has also inspired hundreds of others to become involved in sports as a disabled athlete or to assist disabled athletes. Through her skills workshops and motivational speaking, she reaches out to athletes and others with a message: Set a goal and make it happen. I did it, and so can you.

“I have been successful for two reasons,” she says matter-of-factly. “One is

» Nancy has skied for the U.S. Paralympic team at Nagano, Japan; has won three world championships as a blind triathlete; and has earned numerous other awards as an international athlete. «

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that I had the support of my family. The other is that I learned to have confidence in myself through sports.”

That confidence transcends the ski slope beneath her or the bike trail in front. “I figured, if I can do all this,” she says, “then surely I could find employment. I want others to find that, too.” Her career life has taken her from athletic training, to managing an independent living organization, to facilitating training clinics for other blind athletes and guides. She wants others to have the opportunity to build that same confidence she has known.

Nancy recalls one Christmas when she, her parents, and four of her six siblings (two others

were away at college) all got cross-country skis.

Near their home in Kalamazoo, Michigan, her father would lead the group and the others would take turns guiding Nancy, then 11 and fifth in the line-up of seven children. With bells on their poles and calls of “right” or “left” from just in front of her, her brothers and sisters would guide her as she struggled to find tracks in the ungroomed snow. She hated those outings at first; she recalls her frustration and dismay at holding the others back. But eventually she got the hang of the sport and grew to love it. It was good exercise, and she enjoyed the quiet outdoor time in the woods with her family.

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Nancy Stevens

During high school and then college, she took on the faster-paced sport of downhill skiing. While spending a semester abroad in Germany as part of her Kalamazoo College education, she convinced ski instructors at Innsbruck, Austria, to let her teach them to guide her. With a laugh, she says now that she wasn’t sure they understood at first what she was asking in her broken German—but they caught on. Later, back in the States, she moved to Colorado “to be a ski bum” after graduating from college. There she found a new home at Winter Park, training grounds for many disabled skiers. She intended to stay a year, but doors kept opening. “Heck, if I can teach ski guides in Austria,” she told herself, “surely I can get a job.”

Nancy did get a job. She began her Colorado residence in food service at Winter Park but soon moved on, and in 1992, she took a position as Founding Director of High Country Options in Frisco, Colorado. The program, founded by the Developmental Disabilities Resource Center in Denver, was established to help disabled individuals in the mountain region build skills and find employment. Too often, Nancy says, people would tell newly disabled individuals to move to Denver so they would have access to services.

But people didn’t want to move to Denver.

So Nancy spent her time talking with social service agencies and with people from the surrounding towns, distributing informational brochures, and providing leads for resources to help people develop independent living skills and obtain access services. High Country Options hoped to serve at least 10 people in its first year, but within six months, Nancy had attracted 37 clients. Over 5 1/2 years, she assisted more than 100 individuals and provided more than 50 disability awareness programs to children, businesses, and government entities. She recalls working with one particular woman, newly disabled, who had refused to leave her house after having a stroke. The woman eventually found her way back into the community and entered employment at a recreation facility childcare. “She took baby steps,” Nancy says enthusiastically, “and then she took a great job.”

After earning three gold medals at the January 1998 Paralympic trials and participating as a member of the U.S. disabled cross country ski team in Nagano, Nancy turned to bicycling—back to the tandem that had liberated her as a young girl. Now, though, she was to pedal from Portland, Oregon, to New York City, one of 21 riders to cycle the full 10 weeks and 3,000 miles on a journey intended to motivate girls. The ride was sponsored by Outward Bound, a nonprofit organization that promotes personal growth through experience and challenge in the wilderness. Throughout the fall of ( 90 )

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» With skiing and bicycling mastered, Nancy moved on to the next challenge: a triathlon. She later went on to take the gold at world championship triathlons in 2005 at Honolulu, Hawaii; in 2006 at Lausanne, Switzerland; and in 2007 at Hamburg, Germany. « 2000, cyclists crossed the country, giving presentations at schools and for girls’ groups along the way and encouraging young listeners to trust in themselves and to get involved in low-impact activities.

With skiing and bicycling mastered, Nancy moved on to the next challenge: a triathlon.

Without even knowing it, she and her thenguide, Nancy Reinisch, qualified for the world championships. She later went on to take the gold at world championship triathlons in 2005 at Honolulu, Hawaii; in 2006 at Lausanne, Switzerland; and in 2007 at Hamburg, Germany. From the beginning, she says, the U.S. Triathlon Association has included disabled participants at the same time and place as sighted participants. And throughout, Nancy has worked with guides, often helping to train them herself. “Nancy’s a very good teacher,” says Helen McQueeney, who raced with her in Switzerland. “She’s had so many guides. She just tells people what to do.” Helen was amazed by the spirit of the many disabled athletes she met in Switzerland. “They were all very upbeat,” she says, “very encouraging.”

Broadening her reach, Nancy next organized two Tri-It Triathlon Camps in

Glenwood Springs, Colorado, in 2007 and 2008. Some seven or eight guides and seven or eight blind athletes participated in the event each year to swim, bicycle, and run. “For two years, [the camp] was the event of the spring,” says Carol McCurry, who had run with Nancy in Hawaii and who coached runners at the camp. When Nancy came to the Glenwood Springs community, Carol says, “she was this athlete, and everyone wanted to be with her. … She has a personality that draws people in.

People would stand in line to help. … It just kind of changed your life.”

Although only guides who had competed in triathlons themselves were able to participate at the Tri-It camps, blind athletes could be novices. “Your job,” Nancy told the blind participants, “is to help me and to share with these sighted women. We’re all learning together.” Sighted guides tend to say, “Oh, let me do that for you,” Nancy says, but the blind person needs to learn not to let someone else do everything. Pairs need to be comfortable working together. On the clinic agenda were not only sports techniques and guidance for working together but also such practical skills as fixing a broken bike chain. “I wanted

» With more than 50 million disabled individuals in the country—and with newly disabled veterans returning from Iraq—it’s more important than ever to provide opportunities so people will know what they can do. « everybody to see that they could do a triathlon, that they could put all the pieces together,” Nancy says. She hoped that the women would share what they learned with others back in their home regions throughout Colorado, California, Utah, Maryland, Indiana, Texas, and Virginia.

“I’ve seen her work with people of all backgrounds and all abilities,” says Lori Miller, another blind athlete and world competitor who attended a Tri-It camp. “By demonstration, by talking, by sharing, by doing: She’s shown me and a lot of people that you just keep doing, no matter what.”

Now located in Bend, Oregon, Nancy continues her work to open up opportunities

for disabled individuals. After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, she took a brief time out to focus on her health. But she has successfully battled the cancer and jumped back into work, fit and as positive as ever. From her home, where she lives with her chocolate lab Koko, she reaches out to her community.

In January, she worked with Oregon Adaptive Sports to develop twin clinics to train guides for blind skiers, both Nordic and downhill.

Although Oregon’s Mt. Bachelor has hosted disabled skiers for years, she says, she wanted to see more outreach to blind skiers in particular.

“It used to be that Winter Park was ‘it’ for blind skiers,” she says. “But people don’t have to travel quite so far now. Now we have a choice.”

At the clinics, participants learned the basics of working with blind skiers and practiced techniques for guiding skiers. Next year, she hopes to repeat the clinics and also to host a ski camp for blind skiers at Mt. Bachelor. “I love encouraging people to get into sports,” she says, “and the more guides, the more opportunity.” She also admits, with her characteristic grin, that she has a selfish motive: “I want to have guides so that I can ski all I want to myself.”

Kendall Cook, Program Director for Oregon Adaptive Sports, says Nancy sometimes speaks to and holds the attention of 40 to 50 volunteers at a time. “It’s particularly inspiring for our volunteers to see someone with a disability coaching them,” he says. But people don’t really see her disability, he adds, because she is so comfortable in her work. She has very high levels of confidence and skill and is “the true model” of independence.

Disabled individuals face obstacles beyond the obvious. Finding guides is one.

Finding funding is another, Nancy says.

“As a blind athlete, not only do I have to be committed to training 15 to 20 hours a week, but also I need to find other people to do that training.” In addition, disabled athletes need to fundraise for two people, not just for themselves. But with less than 25 percent of disabled individuals in the workforce, it is important to give people the confidence to perform, she says, both athletically and in the work world. A disabled athlete knows that she is able and can achieve other goals as well. With more than 50 million disabled individuals in the country—and with newly disabled veterans returning from Iraq— it’s more important than ever to provide opportunities so people will know what they can do.

When she is not leading training clinics or engaging in sports personally, Nancy gives motivational speeches and disability awareness workshops for schools, churches, and other organizations throughout the country. Through personal stories that hold listeners and get them laughing, through tips about etiquette in working with disabled individuals, through song as she plays her guitar, she engages and inspires. Her goal? “To give back to sports,” she says. “To help people get involved in sports.” And through that avenue: to help people get involved in life.

Barbara Fuller is Director of Editcetera, an association of freelance publishing specialists, based in Berkeley, CA. To contact her, see www.editcetera. com or email barbara@editcetera.com.

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Women with a Cause

passion to everything, she uses every moment strategically to empower everyone around her, even those she has just met.

After six years of serving as chaplain to 800 senior citizens living in government housing in downtown Denver, where she did everything from planning day trips to counseling, Kiely decided to take a sabbatical. Serving seniors was a full-time volunteer job, filled with challenges and rewards. Then Kiely came across a different calling largely by accident.

» The goal is always to empower women through improved skill sets, thereby attaining selfsufficiency with an eye towards ownership once they demonstrate the skills necessary to sustain the enterprise. «

Women with

a Cause

Women Helping Women to Help Themselves Through Sustainable Goodness By Rebecca Saltman

W

hen you first look at Susan Kiely you see a kind face on a statuesque woman who could clearly command a room. What ( 92 )

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you may not note on the surface is a woman with such dedication that no part of the world is too big or exempt from her touch.

When I first met Kiely her enthusiasm was infectious. Not only does she bring

As she assessed her last six years she knew she was ready for a change. In December of 2005 she received an invitation to attend the World Vision AIDS Breakfast. She sat and listened to the plight of women living in the developing world. In Africa and Asia women have little education, many dying in their 20s. Her heart broke, her sabbatical ended and her new adventure began. This was the catalyst for the Women With A Cause (WWAC) movement.

Kiely was inspired with the idea of designing clothing that would be manufactured

by India's Dalit women; a lower caste prevalent in India’s society, who had never been offered real employment opportunities, much less learned a marketable skill. Months of travelling to India, constructing a definitive for-profit business plan, and assembling a team of American seamstresses led to the creation of the first Women With A Cause programs.

The Dalits, more commonly referred to as Untouchables, outcasts, and most recently “slumdogs”, comprise nearly one quarter of India’s society, with population estimates of 250 million people. The term Dalit means “those who have been broken and ground down deliberately by those above them in the social hierarchy.” Dalits constitute the largest group of people in the world categorized as victims of modern-day slavery. Their plight is enforced

by the cyclical nature of the caste system, and societal bylaws which provide stability for the populace as a whole, while severely curtailing individual growth. Although officially outlawed throughout India, the 93% Hindu population has not adopted any new measures to counteract an entrenched Hindu norm.

“They (Dalits) receive no education and are not allowed traditional jobs,” Kiely described.

“The jobs they can get – cleaning human waste, house servants, other “untouchable” tasks – exist solely for the Dalits. No one else is expected to perform them.” And yet she was impressed by their tenacity. She found their widespread adoption of rigorously healthy personal hygiene remarkable, especially given these outrageous tasks.

For the first four years Kiely self-funded Women With A Cause, while she created teams of collaborative partners that had similar missions. The goal is always to empower women through improved skill sets; thereby attaining self-sufficiency with an eye towards ownership once they demonstrate the skills necessary to sustain the enterprise.

One of WWAC’s first partners was the Dalit Freedom Network. The Dalit Freedom Network is a human rights, non-government organization that partners with the Dalit people in

India. They represent a vast network of justiceminded, modern-day abolitionists committed to freedom for India’s “untouchables.” They believe there is an end to Dalit injustices, such as human trafficking and child labor, while dismantling slavery in all its forms - historical, cultural, legal and illegal - throughout India.

Kiely saw that Women With A Cause and its programs could grow to encompass, then accomplish, both organizations’ missions.

Understanding both the depth of injustice toward Dalits as well as the delicacy of their mission in its early stages, WWAC embarked on a very emotional tradition. American women washing the feet of the Dalits working for Women With A Cause brought a new dimension to the work. This simple, timehonored gesture showed that they as women and their work were valued. As Kiely puts it, “We wanted to create an environment where they realized in God’s eyes there is no caste system - all women are equal.”

All of these experiences in India have evolved an uncompromising mission. Women With A Cause is providing economic development programs focusing on education and skills training for women, which will enable them to earn a sustainable income.

» "We wanted to create an environment where they realized in God’s eyes there is no caste system - all women are equal." « - Susan Kiely

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Women With A Cause built an economic training center in Hyderabad, India, where a team of six seamstresses currently produce her SK Designs clothing.

"The $100 to $150 Western-style jackets, made from vibrantly patterned Indian silk cloth, were designed with women over 45 in mind," Kiely says. She points out “I have worked very hard to get the prices down keeping in mind that I want my women to get a good wage!”

All of the products are sold at home shows and third party retailers. Eventually, Kiely hopes to sell products in retail locations and in partnership with fair trade organizations. Kiely says, "I want the women who buy these products to really understand our mission."

Kiely is also taking her years of experience and making it even more personal by bringing it home. Women With A Cause is in the process of implementing its extraordinary systems and mission, enabling women to learn skills and earn a sustainable income right in their home town of Denver. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, the current recession and a 10% - 15% unemployment rate will force 1.5 million more people into homelessness over the next two years. As a result, Women With A Cause has decided to launch the WE Initiative 2011 – Women: Educate, Empower, Elevate.

Kiely and her team have been assessing where the jobs are and how to get women back to work here in the U.S. They found that medical professionals were desperately needed - there has been a 27% increase in nursing job openings. The need within the healthcare industry is burgeoning as boomers, the largest segment of any over-25 demographic, continue to age and nursing replacements in the upcoming rank-and-file are few. Nursing is a sustainable profession with salaries starting at $52,000 per year. So WWAC has decided to focus its work here in the U.S. on homeless mothers.

Understanding the root cause and trends endemic to this particular brand of homelessness is crucial; these are not chronically homeless women, drug addicts, diagnosed mentally ill or paroled criminals. In fact, 47% of these women have some education past high school; but issues such as divorce, downsizing, or voluntarily exiting career paths to take care of sick children or aging parents are reasons most often cited as catalysts for their homelessness.

Kiely has engaged in partnerships with schools such as Regis University that educate nurses, and in 2011 will start with 3 women

may be lacking, stipends for babysitting, and case managers. The mentors will be women experienced in nursing from a variety of industry backgrounds who are entering the twilight of their careers. The biggest issue currently is class space in the nursing programs for these women. Considering the huge gaps in geriatric nursing, there is a great hope that these women may find themselves reaching towards fulfilling careers in Gerontology.

If all of this wasn’t enough, during the month of April 2010, team members of WWAC traveled to the east coast of Africa, specifically to Ghana and Ethiopia.

There they investigated candidates for partnerships with an eye towards creating a women's training facility that would provide the women with the embroidery skills to make purses and other craft items. WWAC found its connection to Ghana through Project C.U.R.E. and the First Lady of Ghana, Her Excellency Mrs. Ernestina Naadu Mills, who had visited Denver in July 2009 and graciously met with Kiely. The First Lady was impressed by the concept of women creating sustainable enterprises by themselves, for themselves. The trip was a tremendous success. They are now sending 24 computers to African partners: six to Ethiopia, and 18 to Ghana. Kiely and her team are committed to finding a teacher in those countries to imbue women with a new sense of esteem and purpose. Because there are only two facilities in Ghana currently allowing Americans to travel and reside there, a larger plan is being formulated to bring some Ghanian women to the U.S. in the role of “ambassadors” where they will be trained so they can return and train others.

The synergy here is undeniable. Kiely’s drive and perseverance are paying both spiritual and tangible dividends, in ways that are rapidly growing beyond the immediate scope of WWAC’s programs. The women being helped through WWAC’s efforts will in turn become the bedrock of geriatric nursing in Denver, and eventually throughout the country. Not bad for a sunny but unassuming chaplain looking to comfort an inner-city flock of 800 seniors just a few short years ago.

“Next to being a Grandmother, I am having the time of my life!” exclaims Kiely.

» Tthe current recession and a 10% - 15% unemployment rate will force 1.5 million more people into homelessness over the next two years. «

» The First Lady was impressed by the concept of women creating sustainable enterprises by themselves, for themselves. «

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in each of the participating schools. WWAC will work with local nonprofits focusing on this community, to identify the best candidates.

Over a 3 to 6 month period, candidates will be put through a rigorous assessment to make sure they are ready for the commitment and also to ascertain the strength of their support systems. Once accepted to the four-year program they will have mentors always working with them, temporary assistance through TANF, tutors to assist with hard sciences or math that

Rebecca Saltman is a social entrepreneur and the President and Founder of an independent collaboration building firm designed to bridge business, government, nonprofits and academia.

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jewel of collaboration

Temple Grandin

Not An Affliction

But A Gift

Insights from Innovator, Author and Adult with Autism, Temple Grandin

By Allison Salisbury

A

n autistic visual thinker and an expert on animal behavior, Temple Grandin has designed humane handling systems for half the cattle-processing facilities in the United States and consults with the meat industry to develop animal welfare guidelines. PETA says, “Dr. Grandin's improvements to animal-handling systems found in slaughterhouses have decreased the amount of fear and pain that animals experience in their final hours, and she is widely considered the world's leading expert on the welfare of cattle and pigs.”

As an author, Grandin’s books about her interior life as an autistic person have increased the world's understanding of the condition. She is revered by members of the autistic community, because she is a voice for those who are sometimes challenged to be heard.

She credits her autism with her ability to “understand” livestock. She visually understands what makes them balk - rapid movement, contrast, and other distractions. Recently HBO released “Temple Grandin” a movie that documents her life as an autistic woman who, with a supportive family and brilliant teachers, broke into the slaughter industry, when men were the norm.

I had the distinct pleasure of talking with Grandin about her life, her accomplishments, and her thoughts on autism in general.

Describe some of the innovations you have introduced and their effects on the meat industry.

I have designed some good cattle handling systems. I designed the center cut restrainer system that is used in all the big plants.

There are two things that will improve the industry—better equipment and better management. For management, I developed a very simple scoring system for evaluating the efficiencies of meat plants. Instead of saying things are wrong, I developed a system where you can evaluate systems based on how many cattle fell down, how many cattle were mooing their heads off, how many cattle got poked with the electric prodder, how many cattle were not stunned right? I can count these things with my scoring system.

» "I am appalled at the lack of good science teachers and that we are taking a lot of the handson classes out of the schools." « - Temple Grandin

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My visual thinking helped me with the cattle industry stuff because animals think in sensory ways. I wrote about how animals think in pictures, they think in sounds, they think in touch sensation. Animals are sensory based thinkers. I am also a sensory based thinker. The way I think helps me understand animals. That’s the connection.

How can we better tap into visual thinking skills in the education of children with autism?

Talk about some of the barriers you have faced and how you have broken through them – both in business and in life.

Well in my professional life, women were not welcome in the cattle industry in the 1970s so I learned how to sell my work and not myself. I was determined. People thought I was a little different but when I built my systems they worked. You have to have things that work.

What connections have you made between autism and the cattle industry?

When people saw pictures of things that I had designed, they would go, ‘ooh – wow, maybe we ought to pay attention to that.’ I also had to make myself very knowledgeable - that took a lot of effort.

If a child is a visual thinker you have got to incorporate drawing, Legos, and other visual things. We need to be building that strength. My mother really emphasized my interest in drawing. She did everything she could to encourage that.

We need to be looking at what kinds of jobs these kids can have when they grow up—graphic design, photography, industrial

Who has inspired you in your life?

design—fields that really use visual thinking skills.

The movie did a great job of showing how I think in pictures. The word “horse” is said and a whole bunch of different horse pictures come up. When I design things it is the same – I can actually test run them in my head.

Another kid might be a mathematics kid, so you work on the math. We have to build on the area of strength. Kids need to be working on their work skills young.

It depends on when and why. When I was in high school it was my science teacher. Another person who helped me was Ann out at the ranch. Good teachers and mentors are instrumental.

How has collaboration played a role in your success?

I’ve had some great people I’ve worked with and I’ve had some great students who have been good at the things that I am not so good at. I have a student right now that can do all the statistics, something I’m not good at. We make a good team. The visual thinker is good at thinking up experiments and then there are those that are really good at doing the experiments. Those people working together in teams are important.

What innovations would you like to see for children living with autism?

It varies with the severity of the autism.

It could be anyone from a Silicon Valley computer person to someone that’s got epilepsy is non-verbal and has lots of medical problems.

My big concern is for those smart kids where they don’t have a science teacher. I had a great science teacher that got me interested in studying. I am appalled at the lack of good science teachers and that we are taking a lot of the hands-on classes out of the schools. Those are the classes where some of these kids can really excel—you know, wood shop, art, auto mechanics, music—a lot of these specialized things have been taken out of schools because we’ve just got to study for the test. I believe you can work material for the tests into these classes.

Someone said you “are a woman who has overcome a serious disability to lead a normal life...” Do you really lead a normal life? Do you see yourself as a woman with a disability or has it been an advantage?

Well, I don’t really have a normal social life. Work is basically my entire life. But the thing is... I am who I am. One thing that helped me was anti-depressant medication - it helped stop the horrible anxiety and panic attacks. Thinking In Pictures, my most important work on autism, details the careful use of medication.

I think way too much medication is given out like candy and way too much is given out to little kids. I would try diet and exercise first.

How can we improve the way that we work with children in schools in light of budget cuts and program cuts?

Sometimes the best teachers are the quirky teachers. Mr. Carlock, my high school science teacher, was so interesting and he was a NASA space scientist. He had interesting things to do in his lab and that got me interested. All of the projects in the movie were actual projects from original drawings—the dip vat to the optical illusion room—it was all how I originally made it. You have got to tap into what these students are interested in and then you’ve got to broaden it. So if a kid likes race cars...you’ve got to do some math with race cars, look at the history of race cars, write about race cars. You must tap into that interest and use it.

Discuss the research-based correlations between autistic behaviors and diet?

While diet is very variable, I think it definitely helps people. Some people are helped by the wheat-free and dairy-free

» "I am proud of things I have done in livestock and in autism that have made real change out in the real world." « - Temple Grandin

diets. Cutting out the sugar and carbs can be important too. I have personally cut out tons of sugars and have cut the wheat. It’s made a big difference in my health and how I feel. But it is important to note, that for other people, changing the diet doesn’t work. I think everybody ought to try it.

You’ve achieved all these things in life – what are you going to look back on and say you are most proud of?

I am proud of things I have done in livestock and in autism that have made real change out in the real world. It is not about abstract ideology, but about real things happening on the ground with real people and animals. I like improving something.

To learn more about Temple Grandin’s work with livestock visit www.grandin.com or to learn more about her work with autism visit www.templegrandin.com.

Allison Salisbury is a freelance writer who works with children with Autism and behavioral challenges. She works for the Cherry Creek School District in Centennial Colorado.

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Marcia McGilley

W

Marcia McGilley Building New Businesses in a Down Economy

By Shawna Ervin

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hen John Brackney, President and CEO of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, asked Marcia McGilley if she’d be interested in helping with the Cleantech Open’s (CTO) business competition for cleantech startups, there was no question about it. McGilley was definitely in.

“I had chills,” she said. “I knew it would be a perfect fit with our South Metro Denver Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and something I personally believed in. To be on the ground floor working with these exciting companies was an honor and a challenge.”

As the Director of the South Metro Denver SBDC, Marcia lead 9 consultants last year in assisting over 500 entrepreneurs in the South Metro area with over 1000 hours of consulting that resulted in 226 jobs created, 116 jobs retained, 79 new business start-up and over $7.5 million dollars in capital formation, exceeding all the SBA’s goals during this down economy.

With this experience and her conversation with John Brackney, McGilley dove in headfirst and developed a unique pilot project connecting SBDC’s across the Rocky Mountain Region with the CTO program that has been turned into a model for the rest of the nation. The model allows SBDC’s to partner with the Cleantech Open business competition to assist early-stage cleantech companies with market research, consulting and training. The Cleantech Open was a natural fit with the SBDC’s mission – to help businesses start and grow – as well as with McGilley’s personal interests in the environment and sustainability.

The SBDC’s workshops, market research assistance and one-on-one consulting were a perfect fit with what the Cleantech Open contestants needed to be able to launch or grow their businesses successfully.

“What the contestants get through the Cleantech Open from the SBDC is the ability to make better and wiser business decisions, which in turn creates jobs, which builds a healthy economy,” Brackney said.

“That’s the reason the Chamber is so excited about this project.”

SBDC’s across the nation are dedicated to helping small businesses start and grow by providing one-on-one consulting, mentoring and various workshops, which often mean the difference between a business failing or succeeding. SBDC’s are funded by a combination of federal, state and local entities; the South Metro Denver SBDC is hosted by the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce.

Over the course of the competition the South Metro Denver SBDC provided 300 hours of consulting and training for Cleantech Open contestants. McGilley coordinated workshops, read business plans, gave feedback on presentations, and supported the contestants in in-depth market research and one-on-one consulting in all phases of the competition. In a way that is rarely seen, the Rocky Mountain Region brought together volunteers from private businesses, non-profits and government entities to work together for a common vision – helping businesses get to the next level.

McGilley also applied for, and received, a WIRED (Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development) grant to fund the workshops. The WIRED grant is funded by several government entities.

“This was an enormous task,” Brackney said, “bringing together so many volunteers from public, private and government entities to work alongside one another for a common vision. This project represents a big societal and cultural shift. Marcia McGilley put in many hours of her time each week to put on a successful project for everyone involved in the Rocky Mountain Cleantech Open.”

“It was exciting,” McGilley said. “Each week we were able to see progress with the teams as they worked on their business plans and presentations. I could see how we were helping each team. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to this year’s competition.”

For McGilley, work with small businesses is not something she considers merely a job.

It is deeply ingrained in her. No matter where she is in life, she said she will likely always have a business on the side. Currently, she owns Limelight Presentations LLC, a business specializing in coaching professionals to shine in the limelight whether speaking to a large audience, the media or as an expert on a panel. She has been a professional member of the National Speakers Association for over ten years. Marcia is also a professional actor, represented by Big Fish Talent Agency, where she acts in television commercials, corporate videos and films. Last year, she participated in three 48 Hour Shoot-out short films, two were award winning. In her spare time, she can be seen on stage or in improvisational comedy

» For Marcia, work with small businesses is not something she considers merely a job. It is deeply ingrained in her. «

» As a result of the SBDC’s work in the Clean Tech Open, more than 900 jobs will be created over the next five years.

These same companies have raised nearly $7 million in capital formation already. « performances. Combining her professional speaking and acting interests is what created Limelight Presentations. Her motto is “Don’t be a lemon in the limelight!” She helps people communicate and present themselves more effectively. As the Director of the SBDC, Limelight is still operating but has taken a back seat to launching and growing businesses.

With small business in her blood – 12 of her immediate relatives own, or have owned, small businesses – McGilley started her first small business in 1989 with the help of an SBDC. After a year in business she was asked to be an SBDC consultant, and after 20 years of owning businesses and working with

SBDC’s she has helped launch more than 1,000 businesses. As a self-professed "business midwife", Marcia is passionate about helping birth businesses and go through the growing pains side by side with the business owner.

"The passion oozes out every pore of entrepreneurs," she said. "You can’t help but want to help them. I get up each morning excited to go to work. I love hearing the new ideas people have and am honored to be part of the launching and growing process for these businesses. I get to help people make their dreams come true. It’s so rewarding!"

Overall, 24 of the 65 initial contestants became new SBDC clients using the SBDC’s services during the application process.

The 12 semi-finalists received in-depth market research, business planning training, consulting and presentation skills training along with feedback before and after their judging sessions. Two semi-finalists later participated in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) business competition in Golden, Colorado. NREL reported that companies going through the CTO process have a 40 percent higher likelihood of being selected than non-CTO companies due to the extensive training, consulting and mentoring. As a result of the SBDC’s work in the Clean Tech Open, more than 900 jobs will be created over the next five years.

These same companies have raised nearly $7 million in capital formation already.

“The SBDC added a lot of value to the Cleantech Open,” said Jerry Healey, Rocky Mountain Cleantech Open Mentor and Program Chair. “The SBDC added workshops, expertise, additional volunteers and paid expertise. It is through the SBDC’s efforts that the Colorado teams really had a leg up on the other regions.”

In every state represented, the Cleantech Open makes a difference for its contestants. Nationally, CTO contestants have an 85 percent success rate, far higher than the typical 50 percent failure rate among small businesses. Last year, in the Rocky Mountain region’s inaugural year, the region brought in 64 contestants and 12 excellent semi-finalists, which surpassed the CTO’s expectations.

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Marcia McGilley

Cleantech Open Process • Deadline to enter Executive Summary – May 22 • 12 – 20 semi-finalists selected from all applicants • Attend workshops, symposium and clinics – Summer • Submit business plan – September 11 • Mock Judging – October • Final Judging and Awards Ceremony – November “Being originally from Colorado I was thrilled and excited to see Colorado becoming involved in the Cleantech Open,” said Katie Roberts from the Cleantech Open headquarters in California. “They really took the initiative as our first region of our expansion. I think Colorado is a thriving place for cleantech companies and I was excited to see the incredible amount of ambition the Colorado volunteers and companies had.

We are excited to see what happens this year in the Rocky Mountain region.”

The CTO is the world’s largest Cleantech business competition. The CTO’s mission is to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental and economic challenges. CTO is a catalyst for bringing leaders together to accelerate promising technologies and companies. Originally founded by a group of California volunteers in 2005, the competition aims to provide in-depth training and mentoring to clean energy startups, as well as an opportunity to complete and fine-tune a business plan.

In 2008, a group from the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce’s Renewable Energy Taskforce visited California looking

for ways to put Colorado on the map with clean energy. The Cleantech Open was exactly what they were looking for; so they worked to form the Rocky Mountain Region, a six-state region including Colorado, Arizona, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.

Today, there are four regions representing a total of 22 states in the business competition and a new global ideas competition, making the CTO the world’s largest Cleantech business competition.

The Rocky Mountain region’s unique project has paved the way for other regions as the Cleantech Open expands. As the point person for the model, McGilley has been in talks with 14 other Colorado SBDC'c, as well as other SBDC's in the Rocky Mountain region. She is working with the new North Central region and the

» The CTO’s mission is to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental and economic challenges. CTO is a catalyst for bringing leaders together to accelerate promising technologies and companies. « ( 100 )

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SBDC contacts in Minneapolis to tailor the model to work there, as well as other regions in the Cleantech Open. The model is remarkably flexible allowing any state or region to take what they need or want from it and do as little or much as they would like.

“Marcia has been instrumental in being a liaison to the other regions and making those connections,” said Dick Franklin, Rocky Mountain Cleantech Open Director. “She has been shortening the runway and adapting the Cleantech Open to new areas for 2010.”

Contact Marcia McGilley, Director of the South Metro Denver SBDC (Small Business Development Center) at 6840 S. University Blvd., Centennial, CO 80122, 303.795.0142, mmcgilley@besthchamber. com or at www.SmallBusinessDenver.com. For more information on the Cleantech Open visit www.CleantechOpen.com.

Shawna Ervin is a former reporter and owner of a small business. Her business, Ervin Communications, offers writing and editing services to a variety of businesses and non-profits. For more information, visit ervincommunications.com.

jewel of collaboration

Robyn O’Brien

Crusader for

Clean Food Robyn O’Brien’s Mission to Change the way People are Fed By Jan Mazotti

"The public will always believe a simple lie rather than a complex truth."

- Alexis de Tocqueville

I

t was a day like any other. Robyn O’Brien awoke and prepared breakfast for her four children. The three oldest got a tube of bright blue yogurt, some frozen waffles and scrambled eggs. The

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baby, Tory, got a banana and some eggs too.

After breakfast, she put Tory down for her mid-morning nap while the other kids played.

When she went to check on the baby, she noticed that Tory’s little face was bloated and red, and her eyes were swollen shut. She rushed Tory to the hospital. The doctor said it was an allergic reaction – most likely to eggs. O’Brien’s first thought, “Since when did an egg become so dangerous?”

A Little Background

Raised in Houston on meat, potatoes, Doritos, and Ding Dongs, Robyn O’Brien proclaims she was not a foodie. She was your

average Texas girl, raised in a conservative family. She earned her MBA from Rice University and graduated at the top of her class.

She went to work for a major investment firm

» She believes that if a group of committed people do a few little things it will add up, and change will happen. «

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Robyn O’Brien

as an analyst for a team that managed approximately $20 billion in assets. She intimately understood “enhancing profitability and shareholder value” and “managing earnings and expectations”. When her first child was born, O’Brien became a full time mom.

Now with four beautiful children, O’Brien is the founder of the AllergyKids Foundation, which strives to protect American children from the chemicals now found in our food supply. She is also the author of The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick And What We Can Do About It. The book takes an in-depth look at the deregulation of the food industry in the U.S, how food has become a mish-mosh of chemicals and additives, and how she is on a personal quest to engage people and challenge the status quo of what people put on their tables.

Just the Facts

Today, the American population suffers from a list of chronic health conditions, from asthma, to food allergies, to cancer, to diabetes. Every family has been impacted on every rung of our socio-economic ladder, creating a tremendous burden on our healthcare system, while countries around the world barely seem to sniffle. Have you ever wondered why?

O’Brien says it has to do with how the food industry in the U.S. enhances their profitability by using chemicals in our food supply that have been banned in other parts of the world.

For several years and for very personal reasons, she has been trying to “figure out” the cause of the allergy epidemic and understand the link between nutrition and health. She found that there have been steadily increasing disease rates over the last 70+ years including cancer, autism, and autoimmune diseases. In fact, she said, “1 in 8 children suffer from asthma and 9 out of 10 cases of breast cancer are linked to environmental causes, not hereditary causes.” She argues (and documents well) that much of the linkage between poor health and immune disorders is related to the “fake” foods we eat. ( 104 )

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So, what are we to do when it is openly documented that only 4% of the average American diet consists of “real foods” like vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and fruits?

Or that 80% of the average Americans calories are from white flour, sugar, and oil? Or that 60% of our calories are processed foods?

O’Brien asserts “fake/techno” foods tend to be cheaper and easier to access. She found that corporate, government and non-profit relationships between the producers of foods, seeds, pesticides, and insecticides were more co-mingled than the money that caused Wall Street to crumble. She discovered that for years, corporations knew of the dangers of large quantities of genetically engineered products, including soy, in their foods and still they put them on the shelves of the local grocer. She learned that hidden allergens are rampant in our food supply because of mislabeling. In fact, approximately five products a week are recalled because of mislabeling and over the past 10 years, nearly half of those recalls were never publicly announced.

Something even more disturbing—milk. How can milk be disturbing? O’Brien said that for the past 15 years or so much of the nation’s milk has come from cows that have been injected with a genetically engineered growth hormone known as rBGH, a hormone, made in a lab to mimic hormones of female cows. While there are plenty of financial reasons to be concerned about this (of which you can learn from her book), rBGH is injected so that milk cows increase their production levels. But what most people don’t connect is that hormones injected in cows become hormones ingested by people, which is concerning considering that the industry learned of the hazardous outcomes to the herds; increases in cystic ovaries, disorders of the uterus, decreases in gestation length and mastitis.

"Think of the mastitis for a minute," she said, “Think of the bacteria and pus pouring out of those inflamed udders— infections that aren’t even being treated. How does that affect us, our kids, and the babies in our wombs?” That thought was stunning and disgusting.

» Approximately five products a week are recalled because of mislabeling and over the past 10 years, nearly half of those recalls were never publicly announced. «

She did give a more positive view on the milk industry as she changed topics, almost one-third of the largest U.S. dairy processors are now rBGH-free.

It All Starts With Farmers

O’Brien posits that spiraling healthcare costs are partially connected to the way we eat. She says that, “Americans spend almost 20 cents of every dollar managing disease— allergies, asthma, cancer, obesity—and only 10 cents of every dollar on food.” She argues that the environmental maneuvering of the food producers is much to blame and going organic may be more expensive, but much better in the long run.

Empowering farmers is part of the solution, O’Brien claims. In a recent article, Health Care Begins With a Grocery Cart, O’Brien says that organic food costs more than its conventional counterparts because our taxpayer dollars are not used to support organic farms to the same extent as conventional farms. She argues that, “it is more profitable for farmers to grow crops laced with chemicals than organic ones because they will receive larger government handouts from the USDA Farm Subsidy program, more marketing assistance, and stronger

crop insurance programs.” She says that it costs farmers more money to produce organic products because they do not receive the same level of financial handouts and then are charged a fee to label their goods “organic.”

Basically, they have a higher cost structure with the added fees and expenditures.

She asked, “Wouldn’t it make more sense to use taxpayer dollars to subsidize the crops without chemicals given the evidence pointing to the impact on our health? What if our most powerful weapon in the war on healthcare was a farm subsidy?” She answered, “Health reform should begin at the USDA, with an equal allocation of tax dollars between organic and conventional farming,” which would enable more organic alternatives and ultimately drive down costs.

The Rest Of The Story

O’Brien is on a mission to share how food makes us sick and what we can do about it.

While she may be an unlikely crusader for cleaning up our food supply, she is doing it. She fundamentally believes that safe food is a social justice issue.

She believes that collaboratively we can all play a role. “We simply have to get savvy and stand together so that our voices can be heard by leaders in our government and the food industry the same way that families overseas have made their voices heard,” she said.

She knows that no one will save the world overnight. But she believes that if a group of committed people do a few little things it will add up, and change will happen. She strongly encourages parents to choose better food options at home, like eating plain rice with your own spices, instead of prepackaged rice mix. Or perhaps promote better school lunches that serve chemical-free milk. She says whatever you do — do something!

Nell Newman, Co-founder & President of Newman’s Own Organics says, "As eaters, we are all shareholders in our food supply and can learn from Robyn's work. Her efforts are both inspiring and important. " O’Brien counters, “Though we can't change the beginning of our stories, we can change the end.

Hope is the knowledge that change is possible, even when it seems hard to imagine.”

» The linkage between poor health and immune disorders is related to the “fake” foods we eat. «

Learn more about Robyn O’Brien’s efforts or buy the book at www.robynobrien.com.

Learn more about the AllergyKids Foundation at www.allergykids.com.

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MARGARET KELLY

What was the first job you had out of college?

I worked at Metropolitan Hospital in Detroit. It was good. I was there for about a year. I had met my husband in college and we were dating at the time. He got a job offer out here so once we got married we moved to Denver. At the hospital, I was a financial analyst and I was working on budgets. When I moved to Denver, I took the same kind

» I just took advantage of opportunities that came my way and had the guts to pursue them even though I was scared to death. «

Margaret

Kelly

Chief Executive Officer RE/MAX International, Inc. By Luke Wyckoff

What is the earliest business transaction you can remember conducting?

From age 12 to 22 I worked for my father’s factory in Detroit. I worked cutting steel and making nuts and bolts at my father’s company. I hated it. The first thing I tried to negotiate was renting a machine from my father. I wanted to buy the steel, bid out the project, rent the machine from him, and keep all the profit. My father didn’t really go for it. I was his employee, after all.

The second business transaction that I can remember is buying gold coins. I bought ten ounces of gold coins for $300 and then sold it for $8100. Believe it or not, that money paid for my college.

Where did you go to college?

I went to Oakland Community College in Michigan. I got a two year accounting degree. ( 106 )

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Then I went on to a four year college. I went to Welsh College in Michigan and got a BBA in finance and accounting.

How did you choose finance and accounting?

I took an accounting class in high school and I liked it. I wanted to get out of the dirty job. I didn’t want to be covered in machine oil for my entire life. I thought that I could be a bookkeeper so I decided to get an accounting degree and I thought that that would be it. Fortunately, I went on and got my four year degree. The funny thing is, my parents supported me but probably always wondered what I was going to do with that degree. I came back to Walsh college years later and was the commencement speaker. That was one of the high points in my life. Both my parents were gone by then, but I felt their presence and knew they were proud of me.

of job at Presbyterian St. Luke’s. I was a financial analyst and then got promoted to manager of the department. I had worked there five years, I was pregnant, and I decided to quit because the job was moving to Texas. I tried the stay-at-home mom thing for a while but always knew that I wanted to do something else. I wanted to go back to work. I was bored. I was pattern vacuuming the carpet! There was a tiny little ad in the paper for a financial analyst at RE/MAX. That was in 1987 and my son was 11 months old. He just turned 24.

What are some of the major decisions that you’ve made that have helped you get where you are today?

I’m the youngest of six kids; I have one brother and four sisters. We all worked at the factory for about ten years because my father needed workers. My sisters and I were not encouraged to go to college. I was always expected to just get married and have kids.

I knew that I was meant to do more than that so they finally let me go to college. I had to trust and follow my gut. I have always worked really hard at every job I’ve had but I didn’t have goals of being CEO. I didn’t have any high expectations. I just took advantage of opportunities that came my way and had the guts to pursue them even though I was scared to death.

Who were some of the major influences in your life?

My parents. My father took me to the factory even though my friends were out - I was working. I worked every holiday and

every summer. I hated it at the time but it taught me an important work ethic. My father and mother both taught me many important lessons.

Professionally, my mentor has been David Liniger who is the founder of the company. As I grew in the company, and got to know him, I watched him and I learned. He has been a tremendous mentor. I didn’t know it at the time but he wanted to promote me from a management consultant to the head of the Colorado region.

He came in and sat down and offered me the position of regional manager of Colorado. I said “No. I’m not ready.” He turned beet red and he said to me, “If I think you’re ready, why don’t you think you’re ready?” Then he walked out of the room and didn’t talk to me for about a week. I thought that’s it - I’m done. I blew it.

Then, about a week later he came back and said to me, “I usually don’t offer again, but would you like to be the regional director of Colorado?” This time I replied with, “Yes absolutely. I would love to.”

I realized that my self-doubt shouldn’t hold me back when there were others who believed in me enough to promote me to such a great position and see the potential in me. So that was a huge lesson. I learned to believe in my own potential rather than my self-doubts. Years later he offered me the president position. I had been dealing with health issues – I had just overcome cancer so I told him I had to think about it. I realized that being president was the role I wanted and that it was an amazing opportunity for me. I took the job the next day.

I became president in 2002 and CEO in 2005.

What are some of the challenges that you have had to overcome?

There have been many challenges but the biggest one was between 1999 and 2001. Over a 24 month time period, I had breast cancer and I ended up with cervical cancer. So I had a hysterectomy and mastectomy, and I lost my father. After all the surgeries for the cancer I

» I wasn’t going to let my self-doubt hold me back. «

then blew out a disk in my back. I was numb up to both hips, couldn't use one of my legs, and had to get emergency back surgery. I sat back and said, “Okay. God what are you trying to tell me here?”

I decided to take a six month leave of absence. I needed time to heal physically and mentally wrap my head around it and figure out what I wanted to do. At that time I realized that I truly wanted to come back and I wanted to work. So, I came back. The Komen organization came to us at RE/MAX and asked us to be a national sponsor. I got to be a speaker as a survivor and a sponsor. If I hadn’t come back I wouldn’t have had that opportunity. I was also offered the presidency at that time. I really had to think about it and do some soul searching. I didn’t know if I wanted the stress of being a president. I thought about it overnight. I realized that it was an amazing opportunity.

How many women get this kind of opportunity? I thought that I could have the opportunity to be an example for women. Here is a woman from Detroit who worked in a factory, and now I get to be president and ultimately the CEO of the largest real estate company in the world. That is a dream come true! I wasn’t going to let my selfdoubt hold me back from taking that job. I took the job and I’ve never regretted it. I love it.

What motivates you?

Absolute love of the job, love of the people I work with, and love of the membership. I am so excited to get out in the field. After 23 years here, I know so many of the brokers and agents by name and it’s like family. I’m on different boards. Those types of things excite me. I like challenges. I like to push myself, but at the same time, after all these years, I truly love what I do. It is a joy every day. I love to get up and say, “Let’s go.”

» You don’t have to sacrifice everything in one area to be able to succeed in another. You really can do it all. You just have to know what’s important and what’s not and how to schedule properly. «

What is the most rewarding part of your job?

The people. We are in a relationship business. Buying and selling a home is all about relationships. The internet is out there and it’s great but it’s still really about buying and selling, meeting with an agent face-toface, forming a relationship, and ultimately helping people. This business is all about relationships and that has to start from the top.

What accomplishment are you the most proud of?

Take everything I just said and wrap it up with a big bow. I’ve been married to my husband for 28 years and we have two sons.

Being a working mom and having a great relationship with my family is something I am very proud of.

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MARGARET KELLY

You don’t have to sacrifice everything in one area to be able to succeed in another. You really can do it all. You just have to know what’s important and what’s not and how to schedule properly. I learned early on that somebody else can clean the house, someone else can help me buy the groceries, and maybe I can spend more time with the kids. It’s all about learning to balance and prioritize. I’m very proud that I can do all that I do and still have a strong family life.

How do you balance it all?

» Women have a lot of self-doubt and put other people first. I think women hold themselves back more than men do. They need to know that it’s okay to take a risk and make mistakes. «

It was hard at first. It was tough on the boys when I would travel.

We would get college kids to come and live with us; kind of like a nanny. My husband and I would get out of the house early but we were there every single night for dinner unless we were traveling. I would also get the kid’s school calendar and book around it. If I had a conflict I would sit down with the boys and explain it to them.

They were very understanding. You need to balance it all out. My husband is wonderful. We are a team, and I couldn't do it without him. He is very supportive. A lot of guys would be intimidated having a wife as a CEO but he is behind me every step of the way saying, “Go for it. I’m proud of you.”

How would you define your leadership style?

I have no way to define it. I think leadership style needs to be defined by the people that you lead. I believe in team. I love to get input from people. I love for them to disagree with me. I want honesty. The problem is that most compliments and feedback go downhill - they don't go uphill. Employees don't tell their boss they want to change something because they are afraid. I try to encourage feedback as much as possible. I try to instill in the team that they need to take risks or we’re never going to grow as a company. I’m very inclusive but I’m also the one who has the responsibility of making the ultimate decision.

» I think leadership style needs to be defined by the people that you lead. « What are your words of advice to young women in the work place?

There are a lot of things that women do that men don’t. Women are not better than men in the work place and vice-versa. Women bring the skill of team and are more inclusive. Men charge forward and are better about complimenting each other.

Women have a lot of self-doubt and put other people first. I think women hold themselves back more than men do. They need to know that it’s okay to take a risk and make mistakes. Women think they can do it all. They need to realize that they aren’t going to be perfect and that’s okay. If you are a working mom and you go home you are going to have guilt that you’re not working. If you go to work, you’re going to have guilt that you’re not home with the kids.

Either way, you are going to have guilt so you need to figure out which one is best for you. Nothing is ever guilt-free. Women just need to prioritize and give themselves a break once in a while. That’s it.

Luke Wyckoff is the Chief Visionary Officer for Social Media Energy. He can be reached at Luke@SocialMediaEnergy.com.

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jewel of collaboration

Engineers Without Borders

The Teflon Duck Cathy Leslie: Executive Director of Engineers Without Borders USA By Michael Connors

A

s volunteer and aid organizations have matured over the last decades, they have come to understand that if you truly hope to change the world, you must start with women. For it is feminine tendencies that nurture, create and hold communities together, and it is this instinct that most benefits society. There has been a noticeable trend over the last twenty years of a move away from large infrastructure projects, to small, sustainable and community-based projects, where innovative advances from solar cooking to micro water-purification have, perhaps, made much more of an impact in the lives of the worlds poor. Sadly, women and children tend to bear the brunt of the brutality inherent in poverty. To help address these fundamental needs, Engineers Without Borders – USA (EWB-USA) supports communitydriven development programs worldwide through the design and implementation of sustainable engineering projects, while fostering responsible leadership. By empowering women in these ( 110 )

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communities in a collaborative model, EWB-USA helps insure the future success of the projects they undertake. What becomes apparent when looking more deeply into the EWB-USA organization is that the nature of the work they do helps attract women into the field. Just look more closely at their leadership—Cathy Leslie, the Executive Director, who comes from a distinguished background of professional engineering and philanthropy.

» "You either got out or developed a thick skin, one of the two. I like to tell people that I became a Teflon duck-- whatever I couldn’t duck, slid off." « - Cathy Leslie

During my interview with Leslie, it became apparent that there is a symbiotic relationship between the organization and the community it serves, and as she had pointed out: “What good is leaving out fifty percent of the population?”

Here we focus on Leslie and, by extension, the importance of attracting women into engineering by supporting a curriculum and professional environment that values collaboration, resulting in successful projects.

Leslie has an extensive history of community building and collaboration that began with her work in the Peace Corps and has continued with EWB-USA. Being a woman, however, in engineering is a truly daunting task; not to mention leading one of the most preeminent volunteer groups in the country. Leslie was heavily inf luenced by her father, who was a civil engineer. Early on, her family moved to Australia where he was involved in the development of the iron ore industry. He had a “hands on” approach to engineering and also had clear expectations of Leslie. As a girl she, “was expected to participate.”

She was also expected to attend college and when asked about some of the hurdles in school, she notes there was a distinct sexual bias with some of her professors. She remembers that “there were lots of jokes where I went to school about women coming up there to get their Mrs. Degree... the good ol’ boys club was definitely alive and running then. You either got out or developed a thick skin, one of the two. I like to tell people that I became a Tef lon duck-- whatever I couldn’t duck, slid off.” It is telling and sad, actually, that women have

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Engineers Without Borders

experienced this kind of gender hazing in male dominated fields and it is this hazing that permeates the “pipeline problem” when it comes to guiding girls to the right educational avenues that will lead to a successful career in engineering.

The “fifty percent” issue raised

by Leslie earlier—ignoring half the population of a community which you wish to help—is an apt metaphor for some of the ills plaguing the engineering

» If you create a culture of collaboration, communication and community outreach, you will attract more women to the field. And as a result, both communities prosper. « curriculum today. A recent National Research Council study, Women Scientists and Engineers Employed in Industry: Why So Few? explored the reasons why women comprise only 12.3 percent of the industry workforce. Here is a short summary of their findings.

Limited access is the first hurdle faced by women seeking industrial jobs in science and engineering. While progress has been made in this area in recent years, common recruitment and hiring practices that make extensive use of traditional networks often overlook the available pool of women.

Once on the job, many women find paternalism, sexual harassment, allegations of reverse discrimination, different standards for judging the work of men and women, lower salary relative to their male peers, inequitable job assignments, and other aspects of a male-oriented culture that are hostile to women. Women to a greater extent than men find limited opportunities for advancement, ( 112 )

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particularly for moving into management positions.

The number of women who have achieved the top levels in corporations is much lower than would be expected, based on the pipeline model.

As demonstrated, the obstacles are daunting at best and stem from a culture of isolation that is endemic in the field. Leslie terms it as the “silo approach.” What is missing is an emphasis on communication and community outreach. Leslie notes that, “I was missing some skills that I wish they (the University) would have taught me; communication skills, working with people skills. . . . I think those are the things that women really bring to the table. But I don’t think they (the Universities) are there yet.” In order to attract women to the field, in general, is to enhance the community outreach aspects that are important in order to work with communities on engineering projects. Clearly, in order to build female representation in Engineering, there needs to be more of a focus in the discipline that emphasizes “real world” community outreach and not just the math.

But what is perhaps most fascinating is that EWB-USA completely bucks the trend of declining female involvement. Noted in a National Research Council Study, women tend to avoid engineering because of its isolationists tendencies. Yet, in an IEEE Spectrum article, Engineers Without Borders’ Prachi Patel comments on the “Higher Purpose” of the EWB-USA volunteers and their desire to make

real changes in the poorer communities around the world. He says, “That higher purpose is particularly attractive to women, who make up more than 40 percent of student volunteers, twice the proportion of female engineering graduates.” In Patel’s article, Leslie observes that, “Women identify more with people and humanity. They don’t thrive on creating technology for technology’s sake.” This is not to say that solid engineering and math skills are not important, but that there are some educational and professional gaps in the areas of community outreach and communication that must be addressed. In other words, if you create a culture of collaboration, communication and community outreach, you will attract more women to the field.

Ultimately, what we see is a positive feedback loop: as volunteer organizations attract more women, at all levels, they are better able to interact and benefit the women of the communities they are trying to help, as well as the engineering community as a whole. And as a result, both communities prosper.

This positive feedback loop is absolutely crucial in order to mitigate the impact of economic hardship on women and their community. In a recent report published by the Economic and Social Council, it is noted that, “Evidence showed that the loss of women’s income more adversely affected children and caused generations of families to remain in the poverty trap than the loss of men’s earnings.”

Thus it is fitting that organizations like EWBUSA have recruited more women and promoted the role of women in their organization. Leslie clearly recognizes that “gender empowerment is huge” and that, “It makes sense that if you have a community--half of which is women--why are you just designing what the men are telling you?

What we found at EWB-USA is that oftentimes women own, maintain, have to fix, and have

» While the awareness of the role of women in their community has not been a determining factor in the projects EWB-USA has undertaken, it has had a huge impact on the outcome. «

to educate. So to be left out of the decisionmaking authority, like they historically have been, is a main problem.” And while the awareness of the role of women in their community has not been a determining factor in the projects EWB-USA has undertaken, it has had a huge impact on the outcome.

Anytime people with different resources collaborate and come together with a common purpose, magnificent things can happen. This is not true if you exclude fifty percent of the population. On a closing note, Leslie hopes to lead EWB-USA into the next decade with a comprehensive approach geared towards sustainable projects and all that entails. She encourages anyone interested in EWB-USA, and all of the great projects supported by the seven chapters, to learn at www.ewb-usa.com.

And for all the young girls out there thinking about becoming an engineer, Leslie has some advice, “In my life I definitely have strayed to the . . . people side of engineering but I am more than thankful for my engineering degree because what that does is give me the technical background and the confidence that I know what I am talking about. My recommendation to all the young women out there would be to get your engineering degree, pick your schools carefully, and pick who you’re working for carefully. It is worth it!”

Great advice indeed.

Michael Connors has an M.A. in literature and an extensive background in teaching. He is a Colorado native and spends his free time in the Rockies skiing and hiking.

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jewel of collaboration

Dafna Michaelson

H

ave you ever seen someone on TV and thought, “Wouldn’t it be great to know that person and have that person in my life?” Such was my experience when I was watching the show CBS Sunday Morning. As I watched the story of the 50 in 52 Journey unfold, I learned of a single mother who traveled across all 50 states in 52 weeks.

It highlighted her journey, “To find the people who are moving America forward; to share and celebrate the incredible ways in which ordinary people do extraordinary things every day; and to bring together both problems and solutions with idea-generators and problem-solvers.”

As the story unfolded, I realized I had to meet this amazing woman, Dafna Michaelson, in person.

Little did I know that my introduction might get lost in the shuffle since the 50 in 52 Journey was getting at least an email a minute for more than 48 hours. When I didn’t hear back I thought, “I didn’t rate” until I received an email asking for forgiveness for the lack of response. It was one of the nicest emails I’ve ever received.

Resently, Dafna and I sat down to talk about her journey.

What was the inspiration behind the 50 in 52 Journey?

My Meeting with the Journey Woman Dafna Michaelson By Rebecca Saltman ( 114 )

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In May 2008 my boyfriend and I were in the grocery store. He turned and said, ‘Hey let's get a lottery ticket.’ I am not one to buy lottery tickets, even if the lottery is worth $450,000,000. I grew up poor, but my parents religiously bought lottery tickets. Each week, ticket after ticket, dream after dream, there was loss after loss. I wondered if my boyfriend had listened to my history at all because he bought a ticket anyway.

Egging me on as we left the store, he chirpily asked me, ‘Ok, what are we going to do when we win the lottery?’ I was appalled and asked incredulously, "Are you really going to torture me with this?" But he insisted, so I gave in and started dreaming. I completely outfitted my dream car - a Porsche Cayenne, hybrid of course, down to the custom leather.

Then he asked me if I was going to travel.

You know how you watch a movie and the music changes, the lighting becomes direct, the camera pans directly to the actors eyes and you, in the audience, know that what is about to happen next will change the course of the character’s life forever. The question was

simple, ’Was I going to travel?’ I stopped for a minute and said, "Yeah, I'm going to travel, I'm going to go to all 50 states and I'm going to meet with every governor and ask them how they are working to engage their citizens in solving community problems." It flew off my tongue as if I had been dreaming about it for years, when indeed it was nothing I ever thought about before.

Where does an idea like this come from?

I spent a year involved in Leadership Denver (LD) with the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, a program that takes up-and-coming civic leaders in Denver and shows them the inner workings of major systems that keep our city and our county running. We looked at education, law enforcement, transportation and poverty. It was completely fulfilling, but very troublesome for me. It opened my eyes to a whole host of things I wanted to complain about.

But, since I was about 14 years old my personal value system doesn’t allow me to complain about a problem unless I am willing to work on the solution. As a child, this was pretty easy because the problems I was complaining about all had to do with my life, my world, and things I could impact. As I grew and as my community grew, and as my understanding grew...let's just say I got involved on a lot of boards and became a very busy person.

What I learned from LD was that there were no longer enough hours in the day to work on all of the 'problems'.

As our economy began to dip, and as the presidential election was upon us, I heard my peers saying things like, ‘I can't wait for a new president to get elected so they can start solving my problems...’ I was shocked that they didn't understand that the government, who I believe in and support, is not responsible to solve our problems at home. That is up to us. It felt as if people were losing more and more control over their finances. We were not yet in a depression, but everyone around sure seemed depressed! One thing however, seemed very basic to me - I believe that problem solving begins at home, in your community, and with your neighbors.

» I'm going to travel, I'm going to go to all 50 states and I'm going to meet with every governor and ask them how they are working to engage their citizens in solving community problems. «

How did you start the 50 in 52 Journey?

After declaring my intent to take these trips, I felt like I could change the way we viewed ourselves as a society by looking at people who were getting involved in solving problems and taking control of their situations. I knew I would meet all

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jewel of collaboration

Dafna Michaelson

sorts of people. It didn’t matter how much education or money they had - it was about giving back inspiration that they needed that we all needed.

I started talking to friends and dreaming up an itinerary - 50 states in 52 weeks. I could start on the first full week of 2009 and take two weeks of vacation. I'm a single mom sharing custody of my children with their dad, so I figured I'd only travel on the days they were with him. I began to form a business plan and a board to see if we could pull this off. I could see it clearly, it was going to work.

Along the journey I wanted to meet the people who raised their hands and said, "I have a problem, you may have that problem too, I'm going to solve it for both of us!"

Those were the people I knew could inspire the rest of America to know that the control rests within each of us. Those were the people truly moving America forward.

I resigned from my job the very next day.

» This is an amazing country we live in. I will continue to find people like these for the rest of my life to use as the mirror that I believe truly reflects who we are as a society. «

It is amazing that you left your job in the heart of the financial crisis. How did you do that?

The first months were hard because of the failing economy. Fundraising was almost impossible. My friends and supporters told me to bail, but I couldn’t.

I made a promise. I knew that there was a need. It was time to reflect the true story of our strength as Americans. I felt like America needed a reminder of how great we actually are.

So, I liquidated my 401K and on January 7, 2009 I hit the road.

» Problem solving begins at home, in your community, and with your neighbors. «

Did you accomplish your goal of visiting every state? Who did you meet? How did you tell their stories?

I did visit all 50 states. I personally interviewed 490 people across religions, races, socio-economic levels, and political agendas. I interviewed the rich and the poor.

I interviewed lieutenant governors, clergy, bankers, teachers, children, social media moguls and the list goes on. I always say to people, “I dare you to look and NOT find someone who looks like you.” The stories are numerous and I am working on a book to share the stories as well.

This is an amazing country we live in.

I will continue to find people like these for the rest of my life to use as the mirror that I believe truly reflects who we are as a society.

Where do you go from here?

From here I am using the lessons I learned along the Journey to help others launch new initiatives around the country. If you have an idea you would like to put into action shoot me an email and let me help you along the way. Think you don’t have any ideas? I challenge you to think about one thing you complain about on a regular basis and choose to raise your hand and say, “I’ve got this one.”

And then know, I’ve got your back!

While the traveling is complete, Dafna was recently featured in the new eBook 33 Voices. She is also a featured blogger for Change Your City Denver and is working to bring together social entrepreneurs around the country to encourage them in their work.

For more information you can find Dafna and the Journey on Twitter.com/dafna_m and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/50-in-52Journey/106743227866. The Journey interviews and blog entries can be found at www.50in52journey. com. More information on next steps can be found at http://www.journeyinstitute.org. And the book 33 Voices can be found at http://www.33voices.com.

Rebecca Saltman is a social entrepreneur and the President and Founder of an independent collaboration building firm designed to bridge business, government, nonprofits and academia. And, a brand new Board member at the 50 in 52 Journey!

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jewel of collaboration

TRADING FOR TREASURE

Trading for

Treasure Helping the Person in Front of You By Beth Parish

W

hat do you do if your 16-year-old daughter Ashley comes home and says that when she finishes school she is moving to Rwanda?

If you are Connie Stevinson you start a non-profit organization that helps Rwandan woman build community wealth through their skills as weavers. Both Connie, and daughter Ashley, told us that the story was not simplistic, and how women—near and far—inspired them to make a positive impact on the world.

Connie says there is no abbreviated version of her story—only the long version. It is a story that details Connie’s ventures and their impacts on communities in the U.S. and abroad. ( 118 )

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The Long Story...

As a busy mom, successful CPA, and smart businesswoman, Connie and her family supported various charitable ventures. As the economy took a hit, area non-profits were hit hard as charitable giving declined and grant opportunities shrunk. Connie brainstormed with her husband and friends about fundraising strategies that could help these groups raise money without asking for cash. So Connie and her partner Ellen Palazzo decided to sell used goods, solicited from friends and family, on eBay with proceeds helping area non-profits.

Such was the beginning of Trading4Treasures.

As Connie was making a positive impact for area non-profits, Ashley had a chance to

travel to Rwanda with Camp Kivu over spring break; it was after this service-learning trip that Ashley decided she was moving across the world to help improve the lives of Rwandan woman and children. Connie admits she knew about the genocide, but had to find Rwanda on a map. It wasn’t until a chance encounter with Susan Holleran that she learned more about this country in need and that her life journey would begin moving her closer to Rwanda.

In June 2009, Connie was fortunate to travel to Israel and Turkey with her daughters.

While on the church trip, they met up with Susan who had been inspired by a Rwandan genocide survivor’s story. Upon return from Israel, Ashley convinced her mom to come to a

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TRADING FOR TREASURE

meeting with a man from Rwanda who wanted to start a camp for children. Connie asked her new friend Susan to join them and meet Jonathan Nimrod from Kids Across Africa. The women were impressed with the organization and Susan swayed Connie to head to Rwanda on a fact-finding mission.

Not convinced at first, but led by excellent guides, the women spent time with Opportunity International surveying the land acquired for the new children’s camps, visiting orphanages, and gorilla trekking.

On the last day of the trip, their guide brought them to a basket weaving operation in southern Rwanda. The weavers supplied baskets to Macy’s department stores in the United States; the 3,000 weavers, from 52 cooperatives were coordinated and led by sisters Joy Ndungutse and Janet Nkubana.

Connie learned that for four years, Macy’s had been selling the Rwandan baskets in the U.S. and that the efforts helped the Rwandan weaving cooperative grow from 20 to 3,000 weavers, supporting women across Rwanda in

the wake of the genocide. Joy was worried, to the point of losing sleep, that the weavers were too dependent on the orders from Macy’s. She wondered... What if the Macy’s consumers did not want baskets anymore? What if Macy’s needed to move on? Joy had a conundrum.

Without hesitation, Connie told Joy that she would help the Rwandan women get additional distribution in the United States.

While many of us want to help others, few of us would have taken on a venture in an area we knew nothing about, from a country we had just learned about, in an industry where we had no experience. Given years, many of us could have helped the Rwandan women gain distribution; not Connie, she returned from Rwanda and started her distribution efforts in January. Most of us might have asked a local shop or two to carry the baskets; not Connie, she started at the top with the New York International Gift Fair. Vendors wait years to get into the show; Connie was admitted to the show with a week’s effort. After New York, she did a February show in Denver and today the baskets are in 48 diverse retailers. In just four months, Connie had helped Joy and the 3,000 ( 120 )

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» While many of us want to help others, few of us would have taken on a venture in an area we knew nothing about, from a country we had just learned about, in an industry where we had no experience. «

weavers in Rwanda gain peace of mind with basket distribution in museum gift shops, small gourmet shops, trendy boutiques, and even the Food Network. The funds help the weavers educate their children, feed their families, and build their community.

While most of the world’s consumers are more interested in fair trade, these co-op created products actually make a difference— and the weavers and crafts people know it.

Connie remembers one weaver in a remote, hard to reach village co-op who missed the weekly bus that would get her products to market. Knowing that her U.S. consumer would not wait a week for the baskets, the weaver borrowed a bike and rode for two days to get to the next town to take the next bus to the big city. She made the distribution.

Not one to be idle, Connie is currently administering both Trading4Treasures and the Rwandan basket social enterprise with the Trading4Treasures profits helping to fund the administrative side of the basket imports. In addition to helping Rwandan women support their families and build a business, the import of the Rwandan baskets helps support a microfinance organization that is providing small loans to entrepreneurs starting small businesses in Rwanda.

As Connie and Susan traveled to Rwanda, they were struck by the needs of the people—and she told me a story about Mother Theresa. When asked whom she was going to help, Mother Theresa said she helped the person in front of her. For Connie, first it was area non-profits and then it was Joy; for Susan it was an orphanage in Rwanda. The lesson... if we all take a step to help the person in front of us then we have a chance of doing something with great impact; if we do nothing then nothing gets done.

Connie reminded me that there are many women who are looking for ways to give back— that they have a hunger but have not had that a-ha moment. Connie’s moments came to her.

For others we need to find our moments. A first step for some of us might be purchasing a basket that helps a woman across the world build her business; for others the first step might be donating an item that can be sold to raise money for a non-profit. For still others of us, our children might open the doors for us or a friend might prod us on to a new venture. I hope that Connie’s story has helped you think about opening that door to help someone who stands in front of you.

To learn more about Connie and her non-profit efforts please visit http://www. trading4treasures.com; to learn more about Macy’s efforts to support Rwandan products please visit http://www.macys.com/rwanda.

Beth Parish is working on her doctorate, researching the impact of social mission on consumer purchase behavior.

Whether you run, walk or stroll, discover with every step your power to change the world. Join the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure® and the movement that started it all. Together, we promise to end breast cancer forever. To find a race near you, call 1-877 GO KOMEN or visit komen.org.

This space provided as a public service. ©2009 Susan G. Komen for the Cure ® The Running Ribbon is a registered trademark of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

COLLABORATION CLOSE UP

Ashoka

Colorado Performance

Excellence

C

olorado Performance Excellence will be hosting a CPEx Achievements in Excellence Event: The Making of a World Class Organization on June 16, 2010. The keynote is Debbie Collard, Director of Communication and Business Services for Boeing.

Working with David Spong, Collard led business excellence activities at both Aerospace Support and Airlift and Tanker Programs, resulting in several state quality awards and the Baldrige National Quality Awards in both service and manufacturing. For more information on this event please visit http:// www.coloradoexcellence.org/. Colorado Performance Excellence will also be holding the annual CPEx Quest for Excellence IX – Creating States of Excellence on Friday, November 5 at the Marriott Denver South.

D

www.ethiopiareads.org Ethiopia Reads has launched a new website. Check it out at www.ethiopiareads.org.

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enver Mayor John Hickenlooper and Ashoka’s Siobhan Canty announced the launch of Denver’s Change Your City Campaign. Lynn Price, Susan Kiely, Neil Bellefeuille, Lloyd Lewis, Chef Ann Cooper, Steve Bigari, Ashoka U, Bernard Amadei, Ashara Ekundayo, and Kendra Sandoval were recognized as Denver Changemakers for 2010. The Change Your City campaign is an initiative to establish Denver as a hub for social innovation and social entrepreneurship in the United States.

www.icosamag.com COSA Magazine is excited to announce the launch of a new website in June 2010. Check it out at www.icosamag.com.

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ICOSA Magazine is also happy to announce that we are now on Twitter. Follow us at www.twitter.com/icosamagazine.

The Biennial of the Americas

D

uring the month of July the Biennial of the Americas will be holding a month long summit in Denver. The 2010 Biennial of the Americas is an international event celebrating the culture, ideas and people of the Western Hemisphere, hosted by the City of Denver. Throughout the month of July, Denver will welcome national and international visitors for a cross-cultural experience bridging and unifying the artistic, intellectual and

Project C.U.R.E.

political progress of the hemisphere's 35 nations. Through the comprehensive coordination of art exhibitions, cultural programming and conversational roundtables, the Biennial of the Americas will bring together established and emerging leaders. During the 2010 Biennial of the Americas, there will be roundtables on Education, Philanthropy, Health, Poverty Reduction, Trade, Energy, and Women as the New Economic Drivers. Visit www. biennialoftheamericas.com to learn more.

S

ince the story on Project C.U.R.E. was printed, they celebrated the loading of their 100th container of the fiscal year. This container was delivered to Hospital General de Oriente Chiriqui in San Felix, Panama. The contents, worth more than $350,000 will completely outfit a large rehabilitation center. Project C.U.R.E. will also be hosting their annual First Ladies Luncheon with the First Lady of Panama – Marta Linares on July 21, 2010. For more information check out www.projectcure.org.

On April 22nd a monument rose.

The Hard Hat Gala was held at the McNichols Bulding at Civic Center Park in the heart of Denver. It was a preview of the restoration taking place at one of Denver’s historic buildings, the future hub of the Biennial of the Americas. Guests had a chance to sample some great local fare, rub elbows with some of our international neighbors, and even mix it up little on the dance floor.

HotPress Web continues to push the limits building online businesses using Adobe’s Business Catalyst website platform.

This includes the new ICOSA website, Denver Metro SBDC, Denver Preschool Program, Jing Restaurant, and the Denver Share Spaces project by the Urban Land Conservancy. HotPress is also happy to announce a new hire with Carol Lemke joining their design team.

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Would Like To Thank The Following Friends For Their Inspiration

Amanda Amoroso Laurie Anderson Angie Beasley Debra Benton Paul Bergman Biennial of the Americas Phyllis Blees Martha Butwin Siobhan Canty Rachel Chaparro Sharon Clinebell Colorado State University

Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame Michael Connors Denver U.S. Export Assistance Center Danielle Dooley Educate Girls Globally Engineers Without Borders Shawna Ervin Donna Evans Diane Fannon Audrey Fisher Barbara Fuller Susmita Gongulee Thomas, - Consul General of India Jorge Gonzalez-Mayagoitia Donna Good Triche Guenin Robyn Gunn Sandra Hanna Tom Hardy Heidi Heltzel Bruce Hutton International Dance Foundation

Collaborative Women:

Daryl James Jeff Klein Lana Lennberg Nicholas Lumpp Selina Marquez Charlotte Mills Seligman Monfort College of Business Suzette Nickle Beth Parish Christopher Pelley Gretchen Peters Ali Recek RE/MAX International Republic Financial Corporation Rebecca Saltman Ashley Shuyler Elliott Smith Judith B. Taylor Trading4Treasures U.S. Trade and Development Agency White House Project Kate Warne Sandy Williams Women With A Cause Luke Wyckoff

Inspiring Innovation & Driving the New Economy A pril - June 2010 4120 Jackson Street Denver Colorado 80216 I www.icosamag.com ( 124 )

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Experience What We Can Do For You.

POLK MAJESTIC Meetings & Incentives provides custom full service planning for corpor ate meetings, incentives and events.

www.polkmajesticmandi.com

THE AMERICAS ARE COMING TO DENVER

This July, The Biennial of the Americas brings the Western Hemisphere to the Mile High City for a month of provocative talks by world leaders, hot music, stunning art and great food.

Experience The Biennial of the Americas in Denver July 1-31, 2010 www.biennialoftheamericas.org