[Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs press release] The 58th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) meeting in New York City March 10 to March 21 will bring together women and men from the Episcopal Church and throughout the Anglican Communion.

The 2014 theme of UNCSW is “Challenges and Achievements in the Implementation of the MDGs for Women and Girls.”

Seventy-five delegates from The Episcopal Church will participate, including groups from St. George’s Church in Fredericksburg, VA (Diocese of Virginia), Anglican Women’s Empowerment, Episcopal Church Women, Episcopal Women’s Caucus, the Global Women’s Fund – Diocese of New York, and the Office of Global Partnerships of The Episcopal Church. There will also be delegations from the Anglican Communion and the Anglican Church of Canada.

Of note for the event:

• The Episcopal Church will host an opening Eucharist on Monday, March 10 in the Chapel of Christ the Lord, as well a closing Eucharist on March 21.  Both services will begin at 12:10 pm Eastern and will incorporate the stories, songs and experiences of the delegates. Bishop Chilton Knudsen of the Diocese of New York will celebrate on March 10.

• On March 11, Leymah Gbowee, Nobel Peace Laureate and Liberian civil rights activist, will speak to participants in the Chapel of Christ the Lord.

• Also on March 11 at 2 pm Eastern, the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross will host a workshop on Anglican Women at Prayer in the Hospitality Space.

• Dr. Lucille B Pilling, EdD, MPH, RN of Philadelphia, PA (Diocese of Pennsylvania), the provincial delegate representing The Episcopal Church, will lead a panel on “Accelerating Access, Integrating Services, Focusing on Women: The Challenges of the MDGs, Sustainable Development Goals, Low and Middle Income Countries and Non-Communicable Diseases” at 10 am Eastern on March 12 in the Chapel of Christ the Lord at the Episcopal Church Center.

• On March 13 at 10 am Eastern in the Chapel, Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, will speak on “The Beijing Platform for Action and the Global Development Agenda: From the MDGs to the Post-2015 Development Agenda”.

• The Episcopal Church Center, located one block from the United Nations, will provide hospitality space for participants and will host advocacy debriefs by Ecumenical Women, an international coalition of UN faith-based ecumenical organizations. The Episcopal Church is co-chair and both The Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion are members.

For more info contact Lynnaia Main, Global Relations Officer, at lmain@episcopalchurch.org

For complete details, schedule and more information
UNCSW 58
UN Women
Anglican Communion Office at the United Nations
Anglican Women’s Empowerment