Our first newsletter of the year began with us sharing our excitement for the opportunities in 2024 to share, learn and connect meaningfully. What a year it’s been since – and what a joy it’s been to see that excitement ring true.
This week marks two months since our flagship event, the Healthy World Conference: Dialogues on Health, Gender and Climate Resilience! On May 14 and 15, over 300 people joined us online and in-person on the traditional territory of the Kanien’kehà:ka Nation, also known as Montréal, Quebec. Grounded in an interactive and dialogue-forward approach, each session raised important questions and shared pertinent insights on the interconnected nature of climate, health and gender equality. View photos from the conference here and check out participant reflections with the #HealthyWorldConference hashtag!
In February, we were pleased to connect with members and partners in Calgary and Toronto for our CanWaCH Dialogue series! A screening of Dan Pallotta’s insightful documentary, UnCharitable was followed by vibrant evenings of discussion, networking and reconnection between leaders, professionals and practitioners in global health.
The year has also seen us offer a 101 workshop on menstrual equity for youth engaged in our network and two rounds of our popular training series designed for ChatGPT beginners. These ChatGPT cheat sheets from Salanga are designed to help members and partners unlock AI’s power for monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEAL) and gender-transformative global health programming.
During International Development Week, CanWaCH was delighted to partner with Bigger Than Our Borders, Cooperation Canada, ONE and Results Canada for a vibrant evening reception hosted by the parliamentary Global Cooperation Caucus. Prior to the reception, our CEO Julia Andersion spoke to the caucus, stressing the need for Canada to demonstrate steady and focused leadership and build upon Canada’s commitments across successive governments to advancing the health and rights of women and children globally.
A month on, we joined members, partners, representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations and UN entities for the Commission on Status of Women 2024 (CSW68) and shared a special edition gender equality bulletin to mark International Women’s Day.
Following the release of Budget 2024 in April, a coalition of over 100 NGOs representing a wide-range of development, humanitarian, environmental and advocacy groups welcomed new funding for humanitarian programs. The end of the month and the start of May saw us join sector partners in New York for the 57th session of the Commission on Population and Development (CPD57) and the 30th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action. We were excited to see Felicia Gisondi, a former Plan Canada Girls Belong Here participant with our CEO Julia Anderson deliver Canada’s national statement!
The Equal Futures Network, a CanWaCH initiative, received this year’s Bravo Award in recognition of Equal Futures 2023: A Gender Equality Summit! Awarded by the Yukon Convention Bureau to a successful business event in Yukon, involving Yukoners who have worked to bring meetings and conventions to the territory, the award celebrated the summit’s significant efforts.
We were thrilled to receive exciting news from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Women and Gender Equality Canada on CanWaCH forming the National Women’s Health Research Initiative Coordinating Centre. The coordinating centre will connect the 10 Pan-Canadian Women’s Health Coalition Hubs working to improve women’s and gender-diverse people’s health. Learn more about the Coalition and how it is improving the health of women and gender-diverse people here.
May saw the release of our 2024 Global Health Impact Report! Considering the increasing effects of the climate crisis and the disproportionate consequences of climate change on the world’s most vulnerable, this year’s report places an emphasis on climate data and considers the challenges and opportunities of measuring impact at the climate and health nexus.
The 2024 Global Health Impact Summit took place on May 13. This year’s theme was “Rising tides: Measuring climate impacts on the health and rights of communities in crisis”. To foster an intimate learning environment, and given its peer learning approach, the event saw only those involved in presentations in attendance. Attendees explored the tools, methodologies and indicators required to effectively measure the multifaceted impacts of climate-related challenges, considering the health and rights of communities in crisis.
Did you know? We have a quarterly data for impact bulletin! Sign up here to discover the latest data news, announcements and resources.
We’re delighted to have welcomed Fòs Feminista Canada, HelpAge Canada and Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) to the CanWaCH membership this year!
Fòs Feminista is an intersectional feminist organization centered around the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women, girls and gender-diverse people. Together with local partners across the globe, the organization engages in health care, education and advocacy.
HelpAge Canada supports community-based initiatives through its partnerships across Canada and abroad to improve the lives of older persons and their communities. As a founding member of the HelpAge Global Network – a unique worldwide alliance of over 170 members in 91 countries – they stand up for the rights of older people in Canada and around the world.
Since 2002, JHR has worked in over 29 countries around the world to train and engage local journalists, media outlets, civil society organizations and other relevant stakeholders to strengthen and improve human rights coverage in local contexts.
Our CEO Julia Anderson has published several articles and reflections this year, including an article in the Hill Times on the need to push back on the false dichotomy between foreign and domestic priorities and an article in the Montréal Gazette alongside CanWaCH board member Mark Brender on the importance of focusing on local priorities and the knowledge of local partners in support for Haiti.
This year has also seen CanWaCH publish a range of stories and commentaries on Write to Thrive, including six ways climate change and gender equality are intertwined and good practices and lessons for integrating unpaid care work in gender transformative health programs. View the latest at CanWaCH.ca/stories.
CanWaCH is piloting virtual coffee chats for our members this summer! Join us for the first one on August 22 at 1 p.m. EDT on the topic “Empowering local voices: Navigating best practices and challenges in localization”. Open to all CanWaCH members, virtual Coffee Chats will provide an informal setting for members to connect, discuss their work and share best practices.
We are looking for enthusiastic leaders who can bring their passion and expertise to support CanWaCH’s initiatives and objectives! The current Board of Directors is an extraordinary group of individuals who exemplify leadership and dedication to global health and gender equality. If interested in submitting a nomination form, please email Julianna Stonehouse. Completed nomination forms must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT, Monday, September 30, 2024.
Have an opportunity that you would like to share with us? Please contact us at [email protected].
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