Behind-The-Scenes of OneMama’s Game-Changing United Nations Adventure

What really goes on at the United Nations? Let’s peek behind-the-scenes at OneMama’s UN Women journey!

Siobhan and I took the hotel car to the airport together making it the first time we were alone at all, after a high-energy week surrounded by the whole team. On our drive, I took notes in my phone about some pieces Siobhan wanted me to write in the coming months. It was our first alone in-person meeting in the two years we’ve know each other (I did meet OneMama through a hashtag), so the creative muse was definitely working overtime.

It’s safe to say after a packed week and our last minute airport shuttle meeting, there is so much coming up in the next months. Not only did the team tackle our roles with such resilience at the United Nations annual Commission on the Status of Women, we also spent time meeting really influential people that will turn into lasting partnerships. We went full speed at every moment; every meal was focused around action items first, and our meal in front of us, second. It was fast paced, but for the most part, we all thrived.

The point of me sharing about our little meeting in the car was because with all the exciting things coming up we really knew we wanted to take a moment and share the main theme that came out of our time at the United Nations before moving forward.

The past few years OneMama has presented at the United Nations as a delegate at the Commission on the Status of Women but now have we begun our journey towards Consultative Status. We are in the process of applying for this status, that will allow us to better advocate for the women in our village and support voices around the world in a whole new way. Consultative Status will allow us to have a voice at the policy table and help us fight for real action. We met influential people while at the UN who will be partnering and advocating for us to make this process towards consultative status as smooth as possible.

In case you don’t know, the Commission on the Status of Women allows for NGO representatives, international delegates, and nation states to share their opinions and sculpt policy at the United Nations. We’ve loved sharing as a delegate voice for our NGO for the past few years, but we are ready to make that jump, to not only talk about what we do and how we succeed as a NGO, but also be amongst the people who make the official policy changes. How cool is this?! When we talk about advocating for women in a whole new way this is what we believe will make those things happen.

We are looking forward to our new partnerships and the things that will birth over the next year, but we also just celebrate all that happened while at the CSW61. This is the same exciting energy that Siobhan and I shared on our way to the airport, every moment supported our greater vision, from the people we met, to the growth we had as a team. As we both rushed off in different directions to catch our flights, it felt like a pretty symbolic closure to the last week – the hustle was non-stop but we also knew we could close the short chapter with confidence in the future. Amazing things coming! Thank you for being with us along the way.