Our commitment to Raising Women’s Voices gets off to a powerful start with a webinar about how to drive change through policy development.
Make Change Happen!
Our first webinar of the year aims to give you the confidence and the knowledge needed to get involved in policy making in The Green Party.
On Monday 22nd April, Anne Gayfer, Policy Development Co-ordinator, will talk about the work of the PDC (Policy Development Committee) and the policy working groups.
Join us at 7pm to find out how you can get involved.
Green Party Women’s very own Liz Mansfield will then talk to us about the Truth About Zane campaign.
What is the story behind the campaign? How was the campaign’s profile raised within the Green Party? What was the ground breaking achievement of Green councillors in Lewes and how was it brought about?
Register for our zoom webinar here.
There will be time for questions from our members after our speakers have given their presentations. We will take questions from the floor but would really appreciate having as many questions as possible in advance.
Get in touch at info@greenpartywomen.org.uk and let us know whether your question is for Anne or for Liz.
Committee News
The committee met on Monday, with members reporting back on what they had achieved since the March meeting, agreeing the Social Media policy and strategy for the year, planning our first webinar and discussing issues around EEDI (Equity, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion).
The productive meeting was ably chaired by Liz who stepped up to the role at very short notice, allowing us to finish with an Open Mic session where any observers were able to raise matters of interest or of concern.If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can read the full minutes here.
In the interests of transparency and openness, all documents discussed have already been uploaded to the Green Women’s Space to make them accessible to all of our members. You can also read them by clicking on the links below:
April Membership Secretary report
Building an Inclusive, Equitable and Diverse Green Party
As you are aware, from a previous newsletter, Hamza Egal, EEDI (Equality, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) manager for the Green Party is conducting an EEDI needs assessment survey. This is your opportunity to share your experiences and make suggestions for improvement to current practice.
The survey is confidential and should take about 10 – 15 minutes to complete. It was originally due to close at the end of March but with hundreds of submissions already, it is providing invaluable data which is helping Hamza and his team to pinpoint challenges and craft solutions that will make a real difference in the next few months, especially on EEDI training.
As a result, the deadline has been extended and the survey will now stay open until 29th July. Take part in the survey and please share with your local party.
Club News
Quick reminder: our next book club will be on Tuesday 30th April at 7pm and, as always, will be on Zoom. This month, we are going to be reading Everyone Knows Your Mother is a Witch by Rivka Galchen. “Funny and Scary” according to our Twitter team.
Green Witchers, our birding (and more!) club is back and will again be hosted by Anne. Our first meeting will be at 7pm on Tuesday 16th April and will focus on the tension between supporting green energy and supporting wildlife and wildlife habitats.
Register for Green Witchers here
Green Women in Action
We usually celebrate women in GPEW but we couldn’t ignore the amazing achievement of the Swiss environmental campaigners who, in a landmark case, have won the first ever climate case in the European Court of Human Rights.
The campaigners are all women and are mostly in their 70s. They successfully argued that their sex and their age made them particularly vulnerable to the effects of heatwaves linked to climate change.
Read more about their historic victory.
2 Minute Activism
In the run up to the 2024 General Election, Women’s Aid is calling for the national prioritisation of domestic abuse and other forms of violence against women and girls (VAWG). Find out more about the campaign.
We are proud to confirm that the Green Party’s Caroline Lucas is part of the Women’s Aid network of Parliamentary Champions, already helping to elevate the voices of survivors of domestic abuse.
We would encourage you to sign Women’s Aid’s open letter which calls on all political parties to commit to investing in services to reduce domestic abuse and to support survivors.
best wishes,
Tina, Sue, Kaz, Hazel, Jess, Anne, Linda (Loppy), Sarah, Siobhan, Rachel, Liz and Amanda
Your Green Party Women committee