The purpose of the ABAFAZI Women of Color Caucus Student Essay Awards is to discover, encourage, and promote the intellectual development of emerging Black women scholars who engage in critical theoretical discussions and/or analyses about feminist/ womanist issues concerning women of color. Scholarly essays may be on any subject relevant to Black girls' or Black women's issues and/or experiences in the United States or throughout the Diaspora.

Peacewomen is a new website and a project of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom's United Nations Office in New York. The project seeks to nurture communication among a diversity of women's organisations by providing an accessible and accurate information exchange between peace women around the world and the UN system.

It is with shock and disgust that we read to learn about the rape of a nine-month-old baby by six adult men ranging from 24-66 years old. This unfortunately is not an isolated case. The recent spate of incidents of violence against women and children where rape and gang rape and sexual abuse by neighbors, teachers, parents, grand-fathers, uncles, partners etc is escalating. This is despite attempts to raise awareness and legislative measures put in place to stop violence against women and children. Any form of violence is internationally recognized as a major human rights violation and results in physical, emotional and psychological harm.

This interdisciplinary program will explore the uses of a human security framework for identifying non-discriminatory, sustainable policies for women and girls, drawing into dialogue critical theories in the humanities and social sciences, and discourses of policymakers and activists. Applications for 2002/2003 are due 31 January 2002.

Works to strengthen women's organizations outside USA by providing small, flexible and timely grants in general support ranging from US$500 to US$15,000. The Fund supports organizations that demonstrate a commitment to women's equality and human rights.

Awarded since 1995 by the Women's World Summit Foundation (WWSF) - an international NGO for the empowerment of women and children - the Prize ($500 each) annually honours women and women's groups exhibiting exceptional creativity, courage and commitment in improving the quality of life in rural communities. Deadline for nominations is March 2002.

The IWMF was launched in 1990 with the mission to strengthen the role of women in the news media around the world, based on the belief that no press is truly free unless women share an equal voice. IWMF is involved in three areas: Raising Awareness; Building Networks; and Creating Opportunities.

AMANITARE - the African Partnership for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights of Women and Girls - was launched in Uganda in 2000, and is coordinated by RAINBO. AMANITARE's goal is to build an influential social movement to institutionalize the recognition of African women's and girls' sexual and reproductive health rights as fundamental to their civil and human rights. AMANITARE is organized into three action groups, each coordinated by an African NGO: Advocating for Freedom from Gender-Based Violence; Integrating Sexual and Reproductive Rights into Health Services; and Reaching-Out to New Generations.

On August 24, 2001, UMWA launched a new community radio station that will be a forum for debating gender issues. The station, 101.7 Mama FM, will cover women's issues as well as news of importance to other marginalized groups.

Human Rights activists yesterday warned that Africa is sinking into a food insecurity crisis because women, the main agricultural producers, are denied access and control of land.

A recent nutrition study conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Cote d'Ivoire found that women need 30 percent more energy than their male counterparts, the agency said in a statement last week.

The Equality Project has welcomes the ruling by the Pretoria High Court that lesbian and gay couples can now co-adopt children.

Stats SA, tasked with conducting the current census has apologised for its inconsistency in collecting data in respect of gay and lesbian couples.

The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD 2002) will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa from 02 to 11 September 2002. In preparation for this important event, the Women's Environment and Development Organization (WEDO) is calling on concerned women's organisations to participate in the global consultation that aims to come up with a Women's Action Agenda for a Healthy Planet 2002(WAA2002). This will be launched in the World Summit.

A reader based on the February, 1998 Inter-Regional Consultation in Kigali, Rwanda. This publication brings together case studies, testimonies and analytical studies drawn from countries in situations of conflict and reconstruction from across Africa, South and Central America, the Balkans, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific Region.

Speaking at a high level conference with finance ministers in Brussels on Oct 17, UNIFEM's Executive Director, Noeleen Heyzer, called on all governments to review their national budgets by 2015 to see how the budgets impact women and girls differently from men and boys.

On Thursday October 11th Ms. Omaima Al Mardi, Director of the Gender Centre went to work as usual, to find out that the office has been occupied by security agents who ordered her to close the Centre and leave immediately.

The issue of male presence, in physical and ideological terms, within what should be women-only spaces is not just a matter of ideological contestation and concern within the Women’s Movement globally; it is also a serious expression of the backlash against women’s attempts to become autonomous of men in their personal/political relationships and interactions.

What seems to be evident from historical accounts on marriage and the human family is that these institutions evolved from various property relationships. The word "family," in fact, is derived from fammulus, which referred to the total number of slaves owned by a man. Today, even with women’s inevitable rise out of property/slave status, her transformation from property into person continues to challenge the foundations of intimate heterosexual relationships, especially within marriage.

Machreq/Maghreb Gender Linking & Information Project is organizing its seventh regional gender workshop entitled "ACCEPT: Gender & Organizational Change" as part of MACMAG GLIP's on-going gender training and capacity building initiative. Participants represent partner development and local organizations from Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Yemen, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria who have been engaged in a process of mainstreaming gender in policies and programmes in working towards positive transformation in gender relations.