The San Diego World Affairs Council presents the
Distinguished Speaker Series
Elahe Amani & Rosemary Straley
Elahe Amani - President, Women’s Intercultural Network
Rosemary Straley - CEDAW catalyst, League of Women Voters
Presenting:
"Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)"
In April the San Diego County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to adopt a CEDAW ordinance. California has taken the lead in implementing the goals of CEDAW in the U.S., San Francisco enacting their ordinance in 1998 and Los Angeles theirs in 2003.
Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1979, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is the international human rights treaty addressing issues impacting the rights of women. Of 193 member nations, 186 ratified this treaty (NOT the U.S.).
Elahe Amani, president of the Women’s Intercultural Network (WIN) which guides Cities For CEDAW, will explain the provisions of CEDAW and describe the global context in which it operates. Rosemary Straley, who leads the CEDAW working group composed of representatives from community organizations mobilized by League of Women Voters, will brief us about San Diego.
Speaker bios
Elahe Amani
Elahe Amani has served in broad-ranging roles as administrator and lecturer with the California State University System for 31 years, primarily at Cal State Long Beach and Cal State Fullerton. She retired recently with emeritus status as interim Director of Academic Technology.
As an activist, Iranian-born Amani has received many awards and international recognition for her contributions to the efforts of civil society organizations, especially in areas promoting cross-cultural understanding. She has served in many leadership roles, including chair of Women from Asia and the Middle East.
A highly-respected advocate for human rights and women’s rights, she leads a delegation to the UN and orchestrates presentations at the annual conference of the Commission on the Status of Women which draws 25,000 women from 193 nations. Skilled in peacemaking and conflict resolution, Amani is senior trainer of Mediators Beyond Borders. She is a well-published writer both in English and Persian.
Rosemary Straley
Rosemary Straley has played a catalytic role in the advancement of women in the U.S. and globally, directing policies, programs, and resources toward achieving equity for girls and women.
After 15 years in Washington DC as educational planner with DHEW and evaluator with GAO, she was selected as sole American in Paris at UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning. She earlier served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ghana under President Kennedy and as a PC country director in Cameroun under President Carter.
Straley’s career in international development, which also included projects with World Bank, UNDP, UNICEF, USAID, U.S. Trade & Development Program, took her to 158 countries. Back in California for retirement, as national coordinator of the Hillary Support Network she was active in the effort to elect our first woman president. She was honored as “2018 Woman of Empowerment.” In the 1960’s Rosemary earned a BA and MA at Stanford and an EdD at Harvard.
