World Conference Paves the Way
for Tomorrow's Female Leaders

July 25, 2005

By Michele Riggio, Ellen Christie and Lynda Selde

	Girl delegates
	Jordanian dancers welcome the delegation.

A new core image and key advocacy issues—all related to strengthening the voice of girls and young women around the world—were the focus of the 32nd World Conference of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, held in Jordan in late June.

Under the support of King Abdullah II of Jordan, the conference opened in Amman, Jordan's capital and largest city, with nearly 500 Girl Guide and Girl Scout adult members representing 122 countries, including the United States. Princess Basma bint Talal, president of the Jordanian Association for Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, hosted the event and served as its keynote speaker.

At the conference, WAGGGS renewed its commitment to tackling issues of global importance to girls through research. WAGGGS introduced its new logo and tagline, "girls worldwide say," which will give the organization a more modern and dynamic image.

WAGGGS Updates its Image, Releases Survey Results

The organization also unveiled the results of its first global research survey, which focused on adolescent health. The survey, which represents the opinions of more than 6,000 girls and young women from 100 countries worldwide, tackled issues such as HIV and AIDS, drugs and adolescent pregnancy. Its results provide WAGGGS with contemporary, global information to inform its efforts to meet the needs of girls and the issues they face in the 21st century.

Through the survey, girls ages 11-17 voiced their opinions on health and young women today. The results of that survey led to the development of seven key messages:

girls worldwide say "fight AIDS"
girls worldwide say "make healthy food choices"
girls worldwide say "prevent adolescent pregnancy"
girls worldwide say "it is important to talk about sex"
girls worldwide say "let's talk about the dangers of drugs"
girls worldwide say "ban smoking in public spaces"
girls worldwide say "discover your potential"

More than 300 American Girl Scouts also participated in the survey, and the key results were as follows:

• 92% of girls say they feel pressure to look and dress a certain way.
  • 77% of girls said that parents should be teaching their children about sex.
• Of the issues tackled in the survey, American girls said that adolescent pregnancy is the No. 1 issue that WAGGGS needs to address internationally, while 88% said teen pregnancy is an issue in the U.S.
• 84% of girls said smoking in public places should be banned.
• 54% of American girls said they do not think young women understand the dangers of drug addiction, and 42% said young women in the U.S. form drug addictions as a result of depression and desperation. Also, 75% said that it is easy to obtain illegal drugs.

	National Girl Scout President Cynthia B. Thompson enjoys an excursion in Jordan.

"We're confidant that member organizations of WAGGGS will make use of our new focus and the information that has resulted from our first survey," said WAGGGS CEO Lesley Bulman-Lever. "We have begun a dialogue here at the World Conference about how we can work together to achieve WAGGGS' vision of being the strongest global voice for girls and young women."

Tina Tyler was one of the young members of the GSUSA delegation attending the conference. "The messages that came out of the survey are transcontinental," she said. "The issues are about what is affecting girls. I am excited about WAGGGS' new focus, which addresses problems unique to girls."

Other conference highlights included voting in a new member—the Girl Scout Association of Mongolia—and electing new leadership such as former Girl Scouts of the USA First Vice President Mary Lynn Myers, who was elected Deputy Chairman of the World Board.

As WAGGGS' largest member organization, Girl Scouts of the USA was represented at the event with a delegation of 10, including CEO Kathy Cloninger, Chair of the National Board Cynthia Thompson, International Commissioner Pat Turner, and three young women.

"It was so wonderful to see firsthand the international strength of our global movement to empower girls to their highest ideals," said Cloninger. "In the not too distant future, I foresee an expansion of GSUSA's role on the international scene, making a deeper impact on and providing resources for girls at home and abroad."

What WAGGGS Membership Means

Through membership in WAGGGS, GSUSA is part of a worldwide family of 10 million girls and adults in 145 countries. Membership provides GSUSA members with opportunities for international friendship and understanding through educational activities inside/outside the United States. Girl Guide/Girl Scout organizations worldwide are connected by the same ideals and principles. The notion of forming an international movement started in the early 1900s, and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts was officially formed in 1928. It serves as the umbrella organization for national Girl Scouting and Girl Guiding organizations in the world, organized in five regions: Africa, Arab, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Western Hemisphere. Girl Scouts of the USA was one of the founding members of WAGGGS.

For more information on WAGGGS and the international strength it fosters in Girl Scouting, visit www.girlscouts.org/who_we_are/international/ or call (800) GSUSA 4U.