Expanding the Foundation: The 11 Days of Action and the International Day of the Girl

By Grace Kellett

The Women’s Federation for World Peace, International (WFWPI) Office for UN Relations in New York was pleased to be involved in the NGO Working Group On Girls (WGG) for the past several years, as one of the office’s five main areas of impact. Every year WFWPI aims to build the level of involvement in all five areas, and this year that included becoming a sponsor for Day 6 of WGG’s 11 Days of Action campaign.

The Working Group on Girls (WGG) is an organization of NGOs who are united in their commitment to working with and for girls to advocate for the unique issues that girls face around the world. Originating during the build-up to the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, China, WGG has continued its work at the UN through their standing with UNICEF and has developed several key initiatives, including sponsoring the annual summit commemorating the International Day of the Girl (IDG) at the UN Headquarters in NY on October 11. 

The International Day of the Girl (IDG) was adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 19, 2011 with the intention to “galvaniz[e] worldwide enthusiasm for goals to better girls’ lives, providing an opportunity for them to show leadership and reach their full potential.” Since its adoption, WGG has commemorated this day on October 11 of each year with the IDG Summit, an inspiring day of celebration and speakers that has become quite popular among “girls, boys, adults, teachers, leaders, politicians and…organizations.” 

To generate a global conversation about girls and their experiences in the lead-up to the IDG Summit, WGG initiates a social media campaign called the 11 Days of Action. Every day is sponsored by a different organization who presents their perspective on the topic of the girl child. This involves the opportunity to host a Twitter chat where people from all over the world can interact over the questions that are posed, and to initiate a social media call to action for that day, such as calling everyone to post on their Instagram using a specific hashtag. This creative campaign builds up global momentum, exposure and excitement and culminates as the IDG Summit. While WFWPI has contributed to the campaign and the IDG Summit in the past, this year the office in NY decided to become one of the sponsors in the 11 Days of Action Campaign.

As the official sponsor of Day 6, WFWPI was featured on the IDG Summit website. WFWPI used that exposure to highlight its holistic approach to the empowerment of girls as leaders in their communities, pointing to such projects as the initiative in Thailand to educate girls of the Karen tribe. In addition, WFWPI hosted a twitter chat and called for those in the audience to show solidarity through the use of specific hashtags and posting on Instagram with a caption that started with “An educated girl is…”

 WFWPI is privileged to have been able to support WGG and its efforts related to the IDG this year, and looks forward to continuing to develop its impact in this area through its invest and support approach.