Women Donors Network | Women’s Leadership Archives

Topic: Women’s Leadership

Board Chairs Write In: What are your reflections on Leena Barakat’s first year as President & CEO?

Much has happened in the year since Leena Barakat stepped into the role of President & CEO. We have been engaged in a rigorous strategic planning process with many moments of connection and inspiration while continuing our commitment to move millions to movements for justice.
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A Look at WDN’s Support of Military Justice Reform Following Biden’s Executive Order

The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. President Biden recently stripped military commanders of their authority over cases of sexual assault, rape, and murder. This follows two decades of pressure from female lawmakers, victims of sexual assault, and the general public, including the WDN community.
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Two photos. On the left Susan Sandler. On the right, Mary Foley Cooper is pictured. They both smile at the camera.

In Remembrance of WDN Members Susan Sandler and Mary Foley Cooper, Inspirations to Us All

Susan Sandler (left) and Mary Foley Cooper (right) On Friday and Saturday, December 16 and 17, beloved WDN members Susan Sandler and Mary Foley Cooper passed away. Many in our network had ties to at least one of them. With their passing, we have lost two dear community members whose brilliance, compassion, and dedication inspire us all.
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In Tribute to the Magnificent Donna P. Hall

Image: Donna P. Hall, WDN President & CEO Emerita Donna P. Hall has worked at the cutting edge of public health at the Kaiser Foundation, incubated women’s funding at Rockefeller, earned her MBA from Stanford University in an era when women were marginalized to a mere 10% of the student body – and, over the last two decades, she has transformed Women Donors Network from an organization with a “start-up” feel and a small footprint to an effective and growing force in progressive philanthropy.
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We Just Wrapped Our Annual Conference, Here Are the Highlights

We gathered at WDN Connect 2022 as a community of audacious women and filled our days and nights together with knowledge-sharing, commitment, and celebration. We were grounded in the memories of the past and inspired to grow into the future. It is abundantly clear that we are feminists, activists, donors, and doers working side by side to push the needle toward justice – a spirit we saw in action throughout our time together.
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Meet WDN’s 3 New Board Members!

It is with great pleasure that we announce our three new Board members for 2023: Mary Cooper, Zoe Mercer-Golden, and Nancy Westcott. As we complete a year of dynamic transition at WDN, our incoming cohort brings a deep and diverse set of intergenerational skills, professional experiences, and life experiences to the strategic work ahead.
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Ultraviolet Gives WDN a Founding Mother Award for 10 Years of Partnership

Karen Finney, UltraViolet Education Fund Board Chair, and Donna P. Hall, WDN President & CEO Emerita, during UltraViolet’s ten-year anniversary celebration. Congratulations to UltraViolet for ten years of breaking boundaries and winning change across politics, government, media, and pop culture. You are building a world that represents all women and we are deeply proud that you honored us as a Founding Mother.
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When Women Lead Financial Decision-Making

Women are often the most directly impacted by the world’s challenges including health care, unemployment, education, climate displacement, and violence, yet are excluded from financial leadership roles and capital allocation. Only 5% of chief executive officers, fund managers, or venture capital recipients are women (Shaber, Marime-Ball, 2022).
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In Communities, In Courtrooms, In Philanthropy, In the Streets – Celebrating the Transformative Leadership of AAPI Women

Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) women are reimagining our present. They are leading movements in their communities, in courtrooms, in philanthropy, and in the streets to bring us into a brighter world than the one we’re living in today. As we celebrate their heritage during the month of May, we also celebrate the future they are fighting to build.
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a portrait photograph of a farmworker. They wear a bandana over their face and a hat and reach for a bunch of grapes

Grantee Spotlight: Building Power for the Women Who Feed Us All

Farmworkers are perhaps the single most essential workers in our communities. Without food, nothing else matters. And yet, farmworkers often toil under backbreaking conditions and for poverty wages. Roughly 50% of farmworkers are undocumented, leaving them at risk of deportation and exploitation by employers.
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