The AP-NGO Forum on Beijing+15, held from 22-24 October at Miriam College, Philippines, ended as a celebration of women’s victories and a new beginning for moving forward. DAWN, who continuously advocates for women’s empowerment, actively participated in the forum as speakers and facilitators in various plenaries and workshops.

Among the key speakers were Josefa “Gigi” Francisco, General Coordinator of DAWN, who spoke at the plenary, An Agency for Women in the UN, At Last! (Listen to Speech), and Gita Sen, who was joined by Marina Durano as moderator in the final plenary, Beyond the Crisis: Forging Ahead with Development Alternatives (Listen to Speech). Two of DAWN’s RTI alumnae, Shuchi Karim and Anupama Sekhar, likewise participated in the young women’s plenary, featuring feminists of today’s generation.

On the last day of the forum, seven RTIs from South and Southeast Asia shared their personal journeys as young feminists and how their unique feminist politics affect their daily lives. Entitled, Translating Feminist Knowledge: Young Feminist Reflections, the workshop was well-received by the attendees, who were humbled and at the same time inspired by the unique presentations of the RTI speakers, namely: Nilusha Hemasiri (Sri Lanka), Anupama Sekhar (India), Chandra Sugarda (Indonesia), Winnie Ma and Fiona Luk (Hong Kong), and Suchi Karim (Bangladesh). It was ended by a lively exchange of queries and analysis on feminisms and the challenges that young women face today.