Hilary Ratcliffe is the International Programme Director (IPD) for Soroptimist International (SI), a global volunteer movement of over 80,000 club members, working for the rights of women and girls. Each year Hilary attends the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and heads up a team of Soroptimists who are there to lobby for the rights of women and girls. This year at the CSW58 Hilary is coordinating the biggest ever Soroptimist delegation. Managing 50 delegates as well as preparing for 2 parallel events she certainly has her work cut-out! Below Hilary gives us a ‘day in the life’ account of her role as IPD at this year’s CSW.

"At 6.30am I get up, or rather lie in bed whilst roommate SI
President Ann brings me a cup of tea! I can’t function without my injection of
tea before the day starts. I get ready and at 7.45am we have the SI core delegation meeting in our room.

Up to 15 keen members arrive to share their
experiences from the day before. We then have a briefing based on the
conclusions being debated by the Government representatives. Our input to those
deliberations is then talked through using a briefing paper prepared by the Head of Programme & Advocacy Reilly Dempsey, put together the night before. We talk about tactics and then set off on our walk to the Church Centre which is opposite the UN Headquarters.

At 8.45am there is an NGO briefing where the UN team shares with us their insights. We are informed about the sticking points being debated so that we have even more focus for our lobbying work. At 9.30am I stick around in case any of the Soroptimist delegates wish to talk to me.

It is now 10.00a.m which is time for the beginning of the main government sessions in
the UN building, OR alternatively you can go to attend the parallel/side events. On this day, which is Tuesday, I head off to
prepare for SI’s workshop shared with WAGGGS and YWCA where I will be moderator. I end up on floor cutting out figures of a
woman and a man from a cardboard box; making cards needed; and deciding on how I will word my introductions. 

At 11.30am I walk down several blocks towards the
Armenian centre where the workshop will to be held. In a deli opposite I meet up
with all of the panel members and we share how the side event will work.

It’s soon 12.00pm so it’s over to centre to prepare the room!!

The event starts at 12.30pm and lasts
until 2.00pm – everyone felt it went very well, the feedback is positive and there is a good atmosphere in the room.

Our next event is at 4.30pm in the same
venue so I meet up with some fellow Soroptimists to have some food beforehand – this is never a problem in New York, I have never seen so many food outlets!!!

I go across to the room for 4.00pm to be there to
support SI President Ann who is speaking on the panel of the event. The event is organised by Zonta International and President Ann will be speaking alongside several other key speakers from women`s rights organizations. The room is small and very overcrowded so I sit
crushed up and very hot but at the same time very pleased with our contribution to the panel.

At 6.00pm and luckily in the same building is the
NGO CSW reception. I stand up; network and enjoy some food, but after a long day I
retire to my room about 8.30pm, collapse, and get ready to do the same thing all over again tomorrow!

The CSW is not a rest cure, but it is fun and it is exciting. I
wouldn’t miss it for the world.