Tomorrow marks International Women's Day, which is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.
8 March is a day full of events to celebrate the story of numerous women throughout history who struggled for equality, and their achievements enjoyed today. This years' theme for Women's Day is "Balance for Better", aiming for a more gender balanced world. In Malta alone, there are numerous events being held around the island - one, in particular, is the 5th Edition of The Women in Me.
The event, which will be held at Is-Suq Il-Belt on Friday from 5pm onwards, is a unique event which celebrates and understands the different aspects and desires of each woman. The Malta Independent met up with Denise Bugeja, one of the organisers of The Women in Me to talk more about the concept of the event and the planning behind it.
"The conception of Women in Me was pretty spontaneous and funny," said Denise. "My mother was attending a conference in the UK and on the way back she and a friend began discussing and brainstorming on doing a similar event and something for Women's Day."
They wanted to set up an event which would attract all types of women, regardless of age, status, religion or profession. "We had two months to prepare for the first-ever Women in Me and we have come a long way since then. Today Women in Me is run by my mother, my siblings and me."
She explained that the name also reflects the concept that being a woman has many different roles.
"I am a mother, a full time professional in the mental health sector and an event organiser and I am also into health and fitness. There are many things which make me a woman and the name reflects that there is more that there is more than one woman in me."
Denise said that out of the event, her family formed the Bland Group, which offers activities to promote empowerment and personal development. "Unfortunately we don't have much time to organise as many talks and events as we would wish to. We already have had two major events in the past, one about post-natal depression and another about parenting." She explained that the name came the family's initials: Bugeja, Leah/Louise, Anthony/Astrid, Natasha and Denise.
She explained that planning Women in Me event begins the moment the last event finishes when the group collects all the feedback from the audience and sponsors. "We give a questionnaire so as to know what the women enjoyed most, what they wish to see more of and to get a better understanding of our audience."
Throughout the years, the event has seen different speakers discussing a range of topics from fitness, hypnotherapy, makeup and mental health, and Denise explained that this year the programme is very different from previous editions. "This year we included a talk about the environment with Cami Appelgren (founder of Malta Clean Up and runner up for MEP with PD) and Celine Schranz who will be talking about interior design and give a bit of a boost to the discussion of self-awareness and confidence for women."
All women are invited to the event to learn more about empowerment and to come together in one place to celebrate the diversity and differences that make a woman. She explains that the event also attracts a lot of women who come on their own and end up mingling and enjoying the company of other women during the numerous talks and activities.
"We have also had numerous men who attended the talks is well - again this event is open for everyone, regardless of age, religion or status. We want everyone to enjoy themselves and learn more about empowerment and what it means to be a woman."
Denise explained that, once, a woman whose son had passed away had come to the event and said that the event had grounded her and helped her move on. "The fact that our event had such an impact on one person makes me extremely happy and that we know that for some women this event is so much more than just talks, but it is a day to truly enjoy themselves."
Proceedings will go to SOAR Sjaf: creating a hub for women who suffered from domestic violence
Whilst Denise hopes that people will enjoy the event, she explains that their main goal is to raise awareness for NGO's working towards improving the wellbeing of women. This year the proceeds will go to NGO SOAR Sjaf, which is a support service offered by St Jeanne Antide Foundation to women survivors of domestic violence and their children. The NGO provides a broad range of support with the aim to empower survivors and take charge of their lives. "SOAR Sjaf are working to create a Hub which will be the necessary space to house the NGO's services and a safe space for these survivors."
Women's Day is a day to celebrate all women and their achievements
When asked what International Women's Day means for Denise, she said that it is simply a day to celebrate all different types of women and their progress throughout time. "We celebrate all the achievements which women fought hard for, the right to vote, our freedom of speech and to be able to speak out and share ideas." The day is a thank you to other women, past and present, who work hard for equality, and continue to push forward for the work which still needs to be done.
from The Malta Independent https://ift.tt/2IVyhQY
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment