WASHINGTON, DC. May 23, 2011 La Pietra Coalition, a global initiative to advance women and their economic opportunities will hold its 3rd annual meeting meet in Florence, Italy at New York University’s Italian Campus from May 28-30. The Coalition’s platform advocates investing in women’s economic growth as the critical step to greater prosperity for communities, companies and nations. The Coalition grew out of a gathering in Florence in October 2009, convened by Vital Voices Global Partnership and New York University (NYU) with the support of the Paul E. Singer Family Foundation at NYU’s Italian campus, Villa La Pietra, which gave the coalition its name. This year 50 participants from the private sector, government and civil society will gather again in Florence, among them Bethaina Kamel, political activist and Egyptian presidential candidate and also Kah Walla, candidate for President of Cameroon. “The world can no longer afford to ignore the talents and potential of women who have proven they can be a stabilizing force in their societies and meaningful contributors to economic growth when given the opportunity,” said Sandra Taylor, Senior Director of La Pietra Coalition, located in Washington, DC. “Our mission is to bring about change that opens doors for women to achieve their full economic potential in business or civil society and we will be reaching out to key leaders, including those of the G-20 and other global organizations,” said Taylor. Last fall the Coalition partnered with the Economist Intelligence Unit to develop the first Women’s Economic Opportunity Index that rates 113 countries on their provision of economic opportunity to women. The Index highlighted the issues of labor policy and practice, access to finance, education and training, and legal and social status as most critical to achieving the goal of expanding women’s economic opportunities. The Coalition now has formed working to focus on specific strategies to pursue change in each area.
For more information on La Pietra Coalition, Visit: http://lapietracoalition.org