For the first time the Women’s Forum expanded to a Special Regional Meeting, the Women’s Forum Brazil held in São Paulo on 4-5 June. UFFP gives you a brief focus of the major lines.
Maria das Gracas Foster CEO PETROBRAS
Maria das Graças Foster, the first woman ever to preside over the massive Brazilian energy corporation Petrobras, gave a firm and emotional speech that included endearing stories of her experience as a woman working in a male-dominated company. “My challenge was not to accept any limits, and not to give up. My message to you is: do not accept limits when you are in search of equality between human beings,” she said.
Martha Rocha, Chief of the Civil Police of Rio
In a widely noted speech during the closing sessions, Martha Rocha, Chief of the Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro discussed violence against women in Brazilian culture. In her career as a female police supervisor, she said, « I realized that one of the ways to reduce violence is to empower women. »
Jacqueline Franjou, Executive Vice-President of the Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society
“In the past two days, we have discussed and heard fresh and persuasive ideas about education, environment, entrepreneurship, corporate governance, and consumption. These are women’s issues because these are human’s issues”, said Jacqueline Franjou, Executive Vice-President of the Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society, which organized the event. « We have all been moved by this two-day meeting, and we are eager for more depth, debates, and discoveries. The Women’s Forum will be back in Brazil”.