UN CSW 62 – International and Vermont – Practices for Rural Agricultural Development and Peacebuilding
A Multi-Party Collaboration Including YANA and Yale Blue Green
Held Thursday, March 22nd from 12:30-2:00pm at the United Nations Church Center, 777 UN Plaza, 2nd floor, NYC
On March 22, the Permanent Mission of Iraq to the UN, the Al-Khoei Foundation and the Grace Initiative (of VT), along with organizational support from the Yale Alumni Nonprofit Alliance (YANA) New England and Vermont, Yale Blue/Green organized a seminar for the UN Commission on Status of Women (CSW) 62 in New York. This year the UN CSW focused on the empowerment of women and girls in rural development. In view of this year’s theme, our seminar called for empowering women and girls in advancing peacebuilding through community agricultural practices, with international and Vermont perspectives. The CSW seminar focused on an innovative practice that Grace Initiative with its partners, including in Colombia, is promoting is called a Restorative Rural Agricultural Development (RRAD). Here, Vermont practices, through inter alia farmers, CSA managers and State legislative representatives provide insight. An organic fertilizer company, GrewGrow Ventures was a sponsor.
Yvonne Lodico DIV ’09, founder of The Initiative for Governance, Reconciliation, Agriculture and Coexistence (Grace Initiative) and the YANA New England regional chair for Vermont, brought these groups together into an NGO CSW [Committee on the Status of Women] Forum parallel program event as part of the 62nd second session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW62 (2018)).
Jessica Scott FES ’17 from Yale Blue Green, who works with SDG Academy, an initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), moderator.
- Ms. Sahar Alsahlani, Al-Kohei Foundation
- Ms. Zaytoon Faraj, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Head, Iraqi Delegation UN CSW
- Ms. Rita Reddy, UN DPKO Adviser
- VT State Representative Amy Sheldon, who participates on agricultural committee, and is spear-heading legislation on regenerative soil;
- Heidi Lynch, Vermont Farmers Food Center, Coordinator for Health Care Share (a farm-fresh food assistance program for Vermont families in need)
- Amy Frost, Circle Mountain Farm, Guilford, VT, CSA and social justice
- A diplomat who is on the delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iraq, for Women’s empowerment
- Mr. Isaiah Chabala, Former Ambassador of Zambia to the UN
More information: