WORLD BANK FAMILY NETWORK

ANNUAL REPORT 2008-2009

World Bank Family Network Mailing Address: 1818 H Street, NW; MSN H2-204 Washington, DC 20433 Street Address:

600 19th Street, NW Room H2-200 Washington, DC 20433

Main Phone:

202-473-8751

Fax:

202-522-3142

Email:

[email protected]

Website:

www.wbfn.org

World Bank Family Network

ANNUAL REPORT May 2008 – June 2009

Editor: Louise Shimizu Assistant Editor: Christinne A. Secrest Layout: Gilda Dadush Printing: World Bank Group Printing and Graphics

WIVES/WBVS/WBFN PRESIDENTS Rula Ghani

2008 – 2009

Chantale Holzmann

2007 – 2008

Gilda Dadush

2006 – 2007

Kristina Jensen

2005 – 2006

Rosa Lia Troch

2004 – 2005

Lois Khairallah

2003 – 2004

Chantale Holzmann

2002 – 2003

Elizabeth Medina-Tata

2001 – 2002

Barry McIsaac

1999 – 2001

Hada Zaidan

1996 – 1999

Katy Doyen

1994 – 1996

Caroline Berney

1991 – 1994

Ruksana Mehta

1988 – 1991

Anne Dickerson

1985 – 1988

Carla Peperzak

1982 – 1985

Miliza Wright

1981 – 1982

Paula Jeffries

1978 – 1981

Miliza Wright

1977 – 1978

Ruby Wingate

1974 – 1977

Ruth Isbister

1972 – 1974

Table of Contents Foreword

Highlights of the year

4

10

President’s Report

12

President-Elect’s Report

22

Special Events

24

Activities & Programs

34

Arrivals and Welcoming

36

Communications

40

Education and Information

44

Parents and Tots

51

Social and Cultural Activities

54

Teen Programs

62

Family & Personal Support

64

Spouse Issues: A Special Report

70

WBFN Outreach Programs

78

The Book Project

80

The Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund

83

Around the Office Salute to Volunteers

96 102

FOREWORD

When outgoing President Rula Ghani asked me to assume the editorship of this FY09 Annual Report toward the end of the fiscal year, I was excited to have this involvement in a document that I consider to be one of the most important in the organization. I say this because these reports remain in WBFN year after year and, together with the Mosaic newsletters, serve as a reference for those who come after. I would like to thank Rula also for offering me this space to write a few words on my own experience with the Family Network, it being my last year as WBFN Coordinator before my retirement at the end of July. Following tradition, this Annual Report is a compilation of the reports of the leaders of each of the WBFN activities. It aims to increase understanding of all aspects of the organization and serve as a written record of its accomplishments. Reading through it, you will experience the diversity of WBFN’s activities and of its leaders, since each leader reports in her own style. You will also witness the commitment of these creative, good-willed individuals from around the world, who on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis make space in their lives to contribute to something beyond themselves. A feature this year is the extra section allotted to a Special Report of the Spouse Issues Committee. Since two long-term members and pillars of the Committee, Chantale Holzmann and Rosa Lia Troch, are moving away from Washington DC, the Committee thought it timely to go beyond a report of the fiscal year and submit instead a summary of accomplishments since it made recommendations to the WBG president in 2003, and the issues that are still pending today. WBFN hopes the report will bring readers not only an understanding of the issues and achievements to date but also support for the new members of the team who will be fighting for more fairness for victims of abuse. Another departure from past annual reports is the extended period covered: May 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009. In the past, in order for the report to be published in time for the WBFN Annual Meeting in May, the period covered was May 1 to April 30 instead of the fiscal year, July 1 to June 30. To avoid this spanning of two fiscal years, which has tended to confuse readers (and writers!), this year’s report has been extended to cover through to June 30. This will allow future reports to cover just one full fiscal year, starting with FY10. I would like to take this opportunity to thank two communications professionals who have made an outstanding contribution to this report, Gilda Dadush and Christinne Secrest. Having revolutionized the design of the report of the last fiscal year, Gilda kindly volunteered her talents to adapt it for this year’s report and its cover. One may not be able to judge a book by its cover, but we all know how important a cover and the design is! Christinne, as Assistant

6

Editor, once again very patiently and meticulously took on the job of soliciting, receiving and compiling all of the activity reports and then assisted with preparing the final edited version for the printers. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to both persons and especially thank Gilda for the all the training she has given to Christinne and myself, which has enabled us to work not only with the layout of this annual report but on all of WBFN’s communications. Before ending the discussion of this year’s report, I would like to say a few words about the person who led the organization through the year, Rula Ghani. Rula generously volunteered time out of her busy life to lead the Family Network through a hugely transitional period. As you will read more in detail in her President’s Report and other sections of this publication, these transitions in many respects influenced and struck at the very core of the way WBFN does business. For this, WBFN needed a truly strong leader. It needed someone who could quickly and acutely assess each situation as it presented, mobilize available resources, reach out for help when needed and astutely lead the organization successfully through the transition. And this is just what Rula did. Although her husband’s work kept him mostly overseas, her children were spread in opposite corners of the country, and her aging mother lived across the world, she remained here in Washington, committed to ensuring that under her watch WBFN sailed productively and smoothly through whatever challenges arose. Throughout the year, she held her team of key volunteers together and, ever looking out for the good of the organization, was determined to leave WBFN standing strong when the time came for her to step aside. I have found that at WBFN the right person nearly always appears at the right time. Rula was most surely the right person for this moment. WBFN was fortunate to have her, and I feel privileged to have worked so closely with her.

My Reflections As for myself, after six years of “living” in the WBFN office (nearly ten if we count the years spent as a volunteer), I think that as WBFN Coordinator I have had the best job in the World Bank Group. Where else in the Bank can programs spread their wings, and, being supported so widely, fly so freely yet so smoothly? Where else does one work with such a fine group of people whose motivation must be something other than their own material gain? Where else is one so frequently and readily rewarded by warm smiles of such a wide range of grateful clients? By “clients,” I refer to the WBFN members, the spouses/partners of WBG staff or retirees, who range from women in their nineties to job-seeking twenty somethings to male spouses/partners to pregnant women. They run the gamut of professions from medical doctors to studio artists and come from all corners of the world. All are equally important in the eyes of the organization, regardless of their religion, ethnicity, culture or orientation; and WBFN tries its best, with its varied programs and numerous references, to address their needs.

7

Although my experience of growing up in several countries, having parents who came from different cultural backgrounds, schooling in multiple systems, marrying a Japanese, traveling the globe, and interacting with other parents at my children’s schools on several continents somewhat prepared me for the job, it was not always easy, but certainly always rewarding. There was not a dull moment. Each day the glass office doors opened to bring in a new face, a new challenge, a new idea, a new joy—a newcomer looking for a friend, a member whose life was falling apart, a team of volunteers eager to start their next project, a proud parent introducing the newest member of the WBG family. I was not always the first responder, but I was connected to every facet of the organization and at least partially responsible for or involved in whatever WBFN’s response would be. A bill to pay, a Mosaic to print, a phone to answer, a tear to dry, a smile to return, a problem to solve, a custom to explain, a lunch to order, emails galore… my job description was three pages long; I administered the overall budget of the organization, managed its office and that of the MMMF. There was hardly a volunteer that I did not know nor corner of the Bank that I had not seen. I shook the hand of each World Bank Group president during my term, attended meetings with vice presidents, directors and managers, interacted with colleagues in nearly all HR and GSD services, and even got to know the guards, electricians, carpenters and movers who supported our events and office. Such is the scope of WBFN and the job of its Coordinator. I must admit that I performed the job often at the cost of my work-life balance and relied on the understanding of my family, especially that of my husband, but I am grateful that they accepted that it might have been worthwhile. I will remain eternally grateful to all the WBFN Presidents whom I had the pleasure to support: Lois Khairallah, Rosa Lia Troch, Kristina Jensen, Gilda Dadush, Chantale Holzmann and Rula Ghani. Each taught me something different and was amazingly creative. Each took on the responsibility of becoming the face of the organization, and each earned the respect and support of her fellow volunteers and WBFN’s partners in the Bank and elsewhere. Each knew that the “buck stopped” with her, but that the organization followed democratic processes and that it was her Executive Committee who made the decisions, not just herself. Each learned that in order to maintain an attractive environment in which every volunteer, every member felt appreciated, valued and respected, she needed to be the best listener, and to ensure that rules were followed and fairness took place. Each tried to hold a grand vision for the organization and keep the good of WBFN in mind in every decision she took, to ensure that the WBFN kept on track with its mission and made the best use possible of its resources. Each faced challenges, but managed to meet them and leave the organization stronger than when she arrived, or at least still going strong. None of these good people were given a mon-

8

etary reward for the incredible work that they did, but must have found reward otherwise, each in her own way, for how else could she have spent everyday, day in and day out, working so hard? These women all have my utmost respect for all that they did and for who they are. We find that many WBFN members, like the spouses/partners they live with, are committed to eradicating poverty in the world. This is why the outreach programs under the WBFN’s umbrella have done so well, and, in the case of the MMMF and the Book Project, continued for over 25 years. I have had the privilege of working with several outreach efforts at WBFN and hail each of the volunteers who has contributed to them. Although each of these projects took resources and tremendous effort to maintain, they have not only made the lives of women and children around the world a little brighter but also brought together thousands of WBFN members and given them a sense of worth and mission. It is impossible to mention every volunteer here, but I would like to especially recognize the presidents of the MMMF and the Book Project with whom I worked, Hanna Woicke, Lois Khairallah and Caroline Berney of the MMMF and Sue Stern, Helen Aitken, Jenny Hesketh, Josephine Barry and Hilary Welch of the Book Project. They had the responsibility not only of managing their volunteers and programs but, as the leaders of registered U.S. charities, indeed of running a corporation and constantly ensuring that it was in compliance with U.S. law, all on a volunteer basis. I cannot express the depth of my admiration for all that they and their Boards accomplished. It was an honor to work with them. I will not forget, either, the other volunteers with whom I worked closely, the members of the WBFN Executive Committee and the Representative Council. All were well-educated/ experienced individuals who committed to trying to understand the organization, lead an activity, help represent it and help make the lives of its members a little smoother or more meaningful. Some have given their time for a year, others for a good part of a lifetime, such as Ruby Wingate who has been with the organization since its beginnings and who still now sits on the MMMF Board. I cannot possibly list everyone here, but clearly without these fine volunteers, the organization could never have continued the way it did. They took the prime responsibility for their activity/program, wrote the guidelines, kept the records, wrote the reports, managed the budget and sometimes worked jointly with counterparts in other organizations on joint projects. WBFN also depended on their feedback as to whether they thought WBFN was supporting its membership to the best of its ability, was out of touch with its members or had become overextended. Most of them skillfully recruited and led teams of other volunteers, striving to find the most appropriate role for each, provide training, and instill in all a sense of ownership, accomplishment and pride in its successes. This is not easy to do in a multicultural environment, but thanks to the clear guidelines and structures managed

9

by the leaders, it was heartwarming to watch and support them as they worked well together, sharing their skills and experience, achieving results and enjoying each other. Nor do I want to forget those volunteers whose length of commitment may have been less, but who kindly gave their valuable time, whether as a one-time food server at the MMMF Fair or a host for a Get-Together. Each was important to WBFN, filled a need at the time and contributed to the success of the program. Because I “lived” at WBFN, some may not have been aware that I was considered by the Bank as an HR staff member and under the management of the Global Mobility (HRSGM) Program Manager. I was expected to attend Global Mobility monthly staff meetings, to keep abreast of HR matters, to help ensure that the WBFN leadership was kept up-to-date on WBG policies that might affect the families. In this capacity and others, I had the good fortune to work with many supportive people throughout the Bank. I could depend on information from experts in the HR Service Center, and on help with managing the WBFN budget from HR Resource Management staff. I came to know the ins and outs of holding events at the Bank thanks to many in the Conference Services. And what would I ever have done without my friends at the Health Services Department, the Legal Department, Ethics, the Information Solutions Group, the Credit Union, the General Services Department, and especially those in the WBG Graphics? The list could go on, and on, but special mention should be made of Geremie Sawadogo, Program Manager of HRSGM, who throughout most of my term oversaw my work and gave me guidance on numerous occasions, helping me to avoid some potentially problematic situations. But, of all my colleagues at WBFN and the Bank, I am sure I will not forget my predecessor and mentor Joanne Garrity nor my supporting staff and consultants, WBFN’s two Program Assistants Christinne Secrest and Mimi Besha, Accountant Lilian Kew, and Event Planner Carmen Eliam. Thanks to them, I walked into an already very well functioning office and without them any contribution that I might have made over the years would have been impossible. They schooled me when I arrived on the job, came to the rescue whenever I felt overwhelmed, and were constantly there to support me in whatever way they could. I cannot thank them enough. Standing now on the eve of my retirement, I cannot help but wonder what WBFN’s future will be. Through the years, WBFN has been blessed with a core group of long-term, dedicated volunteers who have maintained the organization and mentored new volunteers to shape and carry it on. Today, families relocate more frequently, have different expectations, communicate differently, enjoy fewer benefits, and live in more insecurity. WBFN has made many changes to try to keep up with the times. Its communications are increasingly electronic and

10

many volunteer positions have been tailored to accommodate short terms. While this means that keeping in contact with overseas members is easier and that members here only for a short time can still volunteer, maintaining a volunteer organization in such an environment is not easy, at least not without changing even more the way WBFN works. Will WBFN be able to meet this challenge? I hope so. One need only attend any of WBFN’s events to witness that no matter how the world or the Bank has changed, people are still people. They like to learn, to laugh, to feel worthwhile and to be included. And isn’t this what WBFN is about? The work that WBFN does is tremendous, as the following pages will tell. It provides a forum for its members to grow and to blossom, a niche for them to showcase their abilities, meet each other, and form lifetime global friendships. It is there when its members arrive and when they leave; it is there in times of need or just for fun. I know of no other similar organization that does it as well. I wish all success to the successive teams of volunteers who will be carrying on the mission of the Family Network, and to my successor Catherine Mathieu, in whom I have the strongest of faith. Louise Picon Shimizu Editor

11

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR

The overview of activities of WBFN in the pages of this Annual Report bears witness to how much can be accomplished by the relatively few. We hope that this record will serve as an incentive to those who have yet to take that first step of calling us to say, “I want to help.”

WBFN LEADERSHIP AT WORK

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

This year again was an eventful year at WBFN. It involved a continuous effort to adapt to changes at the World Bank Group and to refine our tools accordingly, while cheerfully carrying on WBFN’s mission of welcoming and supporting WBG families.

Adjusting to Changes in the Bank Welcoming comes naturally to an organization such as WBFN and we have had several opportunities to introduce ourselves and help new interlocutors within the Bank discover the role and reach of our organization. Last spring we welcomed a new VP of HR, Hasan Tuluy. This fall, we welcomed in turn Rajesh Vidyasagar, new director of HR Client Services, then Iouri Bairatchnyi, new head of Global Mobility. Fons Marcelis, manager of HR Corporate Operations, took over the supervision of the HUB and the Domestic Abuse Prevention program, and we presented to him our hopes and concerns, as we did a couple of months later to Edna Diez and her team at the HR Service Center. In an institution such as the Bank, where rotation of functions is cyclical, it is important for WBFN to keep reasserting its message and reminding our successive interlocutors of our historical commitment to serving Bank families and of the Bank’s official acknowledgment and appreciation of our role and mission. Similarly, as the Bank strives to improve some of its family-oriented services, WBFN has strived to make the voice of the families heard. The revamping of the HR Service Center is a case in point: we have repeatedly argued for the option of maintaining face-to-face consultations, advocated for workshops on filling out applications for work permits for WBG spouses and partners, and produced a colorful flyer to be included in the Bank’s recruitment packages to alert potential new Bank staff to the existence of WBFN and the support network it provides. The new climate of financial constraints at the Bank did not affect WBFN. After all, we have for years perfected the art of functioning with a minimal operating budget, relying on the resourcefulness and dedication of our member volunteers to generate events, programs and activities of the highest quality and the utmost interest to our membership. By contrast, the new climate of security constraints, especially regarding Bank-related information flows, has been more difficult to navigate. By its very nature, WBFN’s mission is to encourage strong and positive interaction between Bank families and the Bank. A happy family makes for a happy staff, which makes for a more pleasant and productive atmosphere at the Bank. Information security, however, requires that information flows be closely regulated and remain within the Bank’s firewalls. This is difficult to reconcile with WBFN’s goal

14

to establish a computerized Member Management System (MMS) accessible to our members from their home computers. We are working closely with the Office of Information Security and we hope that a solution can be worked out in the near future. Finally, the climate of “insecurity” now prevailing in the world has compelled the Bank to think through an Emergency Preparedness Program. We at WBFN have fully embraced the concept and have taken part in workshops with the clear goal of ensuring that family needs are addressed and taken into account. WBFN’s participation in setting up Family Assistance Centers in cases of extreme emergency is now a given. And we hold a yearly emergency preparedness program for our members to raise their awareness and encourage them to be ready for any eventuality.

WBFN’s Response to New Bank Demographics This was not an easy feat. Previous WBFN presidents had warned in their annual reports of the changing profile of need of childcare, schooling and even pre- and post-natal support. Often too, spouses and partners are keen on pursuing a career of their own. But most significant is the fact that their affiliation with the Bank is of short duration. The concept of “quick on-boarding” is being pushed to the limit. Any newly arrived spouse or partner is warmly welcomed and encouraged to stop by our offices to meet with other members and lend a helping hand whenever possible. Before long, the new member forms a bond with one WBFN team or another, and starts assuming responsibilities. In some instances the new member is relying on skills he or she already has (such as IT, writing, graphic design, or event planning). In others, the member is taught a new skill by another WBFN volunteer and enjoys exploring new ventures. The concept of “flexible volunteering” is also being successfully tested. Most WBFN assignments are broken into manageable parts. We encourage teamwork and a member can volunteer for as many parts of an assignment as she or he can assume. As many of our younger (and not so young) members are constantly searching for gainful employment, if the member of a team is suddenly offered a job, whether for a temporary or a permanent position, another team member steps in and takes on the volunteer responsibility. WBFN remains keenly aware of its responsibility to train its volunteers by giving them the opportunity to learn more about teamwork and professional interaction through workshops and retreats. The theme this year was conflict resolution with an emphasis on transparency, mutual respect, and open-mindedness.

15

Continuing Our Dialogue with Our Sister Organizations This year, WBFN Executive Committee members met regularly every quarter with the Board members of the IMF and IADB Family Associations. These meetings allowed us to share our experiences and compare family-specific policies. To date, our most successful joint program is the Teen Summer Program—always a crowd pleaser. Very well attended also were two networking sessions for job-seeking spouses and partners. Increasingly, other WBFN activities in the neighborhood are also attracting members of the other family associations.

Refining Our Tools WBFN volunteers have finally completed the revamping of our website. Many hours were spent to synchronize the website and our newsletter Mosaic, and to develop its website version, MosaicPlus. The team streamlined the information on our site, made it easier to find and better suited to the needs of our members. Similarly, many WBFN volunteers were involved in the implementation of the Member Management System (MMS). Throughout the year, teams were formed with successive IT savvy members who pushed hard to make this MMS happen. A dedicated team from the Bank’s VP unit ISG worked closely with our volunteers to develop the needed application. And by the end of spring, WBFN was able to merge three of its databases into one. This allows us to have now a better handle on our members’ profile and needs. The MMS is also set to eliminate distinctions between members at Headquarters and those in Country Offices by referring only to “Duty Station.” The system is not completely functional as yet. We are still waiting for an additional feature that would allow our members to access the MMS from their home computers so that they can update their own profile throughout their affiliation to WBFN. Over the years, various members have often talked about the need for an “upstream package” that would provide a family preparing to come to the Bank with all the necessary information to ensure a smooth transition. This year, thanks to a day-long workshop attended by sister organizations and by staff of the GM relocation team and of the HR Service Center, we were able to produce an exhaustive compilation of tips and advice on four topics: Housing, Schools, Health, and G-4 related legal issues. A first draft is being published in the 2009 June and September issues of Mosaic and MosaicPlus.

Carrying on Our Mission of Welcoming and Supporting Bank Families Welcoming has always been and will remain WBFN’s hallmark—the capacity to create a warm and supportive environment where newcomers feel at ease and to which members keep coming back. Alongside our traditional welcoming coffees, surviving culture shock workshops, and activities in the neighborhoods, we have initiated office gatherings during which

16

members are introduced to the leaders of the various WBFN programs and activities to encourage their quick integration. WBFN also takes to heart its mission to inform and educate its members. In addition to our Spouse/Partner Orientation Program and our Information Seminars, we are constantly updating the relevant information regarding Bank benefits and services, staff rules, and U.S. family and tax laws, through articles in Mosaic or under “useful information” on our website. Similarly, our yearly Emergency Preparedness workshop offers the opportunity to newcomers to familiarize themselves with Bank procedures in the event of an emergency. On a lighter note, we also run articles on various neighborhoods, post on our board announcements of concerts, film festivals, and other local attractions, and encourage our members to make the best of what the Washington area has to offer. In that regard, the WBFN International Cultural Group organizes an amazing series of outings and museum visits, always securing the presence of a scholar or a specialist to guide the tour. WBFN continues to offer classes in computer proficiency and English language. A new offering this year is the very successful Business English course with three sessions covering guidelines for meetings, presentations and negotiations. Our Financial Literacy classes, at the Bank and online, remain a big hit. This spring featured an additional class, “Getting on With Money.” As for our Investment Club, it weathered the financial crisis with limited losses. Last but not least, we are here to provide support to our members and cheer them on whatever their goals may be. Many of our younger members became parents during the year, and it is a delight to accompany them through their pregnancy and later to marvel at the progress of their babies. We also rejoice each time one of our members finds a job, as this brings the needed financial stability, especially to the families of new recruits to the Bank. By listening and working with Bank families, WBFN is in a privileged situation to perceive the various trends and to become aware of the problems and challenges facing each new wave of Bank recruits. This is why we often find ourselves alerting the various services of HR and GSD to the concerns of our membership and their struggles. We consider our advocacy role an extension of our welcoming role. WBFN has a strong core of volunteers who deeply believe in the importance of their work. Some of them, driven by the same motivation as their spouses of contributing to the development of the world, choose to dedicate their efforts to the two WBFN outreach programs: the Book Project and the Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund. Others are more comfortable working within the Bank community and giving back to newcomers the same warm wel-

17

coming they themselves received. All of them are driven by a strong sense of commitment, responsibility, and generosity—the very hallmarks of WBFN.

Acknowledging Our Core Contributors

As in other years, the generosity of WBFN members exceeded expectations and took many forms, from the member who brought a cake to be sold at the MMMF Fair to the President-Elect who agreed to put on hold her personal life for two years to serve our community. But first, I would like to mark the passing on of Babs Knox, one of the icons of our organization. Babs was there in 1972 at the founding of the Family Network (then called WIVES) and was instrumental in co-founding the MMMF and the Book Project 10 years later. All who knew her will certainly miss her, and she will remain an inspiration for us all.

Executive Committee For the first time in WBFN’s history, the Executive Committee comprised four officers who had joined the organization less than a year before. This was a striking example of “quick onboarding.” “Flexible volunteering” was also put to the test: each time an officer was successful in securing a paid job outside WBFN, the other EC officers redistributed among themselves her responsibilities. This proved to be rather successful and, at the end of the year, I can say in all sincerity that every one of the EC officers pulled in her weight and greatly contributed to a very eventful FY09. My first thanks go to our secretary, Jyoti Chitale, who generously opened her house for our first EC retreat, remained unfailingly good humored while taking the minutes during our meetings, and made a valiant effort to keep the level of performance at the Spouse/Partner Orientation Program despite the fluctuations in HR Service Center support. With her warm smile and good spirits, our welcoming chair, Maaike le Grand, attracted many a newcomer as she tirelessly attended to their integration into our community. Leading her team with enthusiasm and persistence, she discovered many new neighborhoods in the Washington area by attending all the get-togethers, sometimes arriving there on her bike. Her diligence kept the Buddy Program on track during Tracy Russell’s stay in South Africa. Maaike also implemented with brio two successful office gatherings and, despite her busy schedule, maintained her affiliation to the Mosaic Team contributing to a smooth transition for Vidya Rangan, the new editor.

18

Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar, our nominating chair, looked high and low to find new officers for the FY10 EC. Despite her obligations to her young children and her career, she managed to keep in touch with the WBFN community of which she has been a long-standing member. She also organized a wonderful farewell party for Rosa Lia Troch welcoming a large number of WBFN members to her home. What would WBFN’s office be like without Marie Diop! Her smiling energy and her easy conversation contributed to a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. By compiling in a special file all the skills of the newcomers, she helped the team leaders find new members for their activities. She is completing a three-year mandate on the EC and I thank her deeply for her presence and commitment. Besma Huc spent many months recruiting and training volunteers to man the four teams of the MMS. This was a Herculean effort, especially considering that those of our members who have IT credentials are always the ones to find a paid job within a couple of months of their arrival. She patiently explained to each new member of an MMS team the breadth of the project and the particularities of the task of the moment. We could have never dreamt to undertake such a huge transformation of our management system without her drive and inspiration and for this we will always be grateful. The children of Bank families are deeply obligated to Swati Srivastava who organized three major events with grace, magic and practical determination. Always in good spirits, Swati has a “can do” attitude and a wealth of resources. This translates into very successful programs that have kept the families happy and asking for more. Not everybody can feed and entertain over 800 people at a time and remain cool and serene! In addition, Swati has found the time to take up website design and management under the able mentorship of Gilda Dadush. She is a quick learner, and we look forward to her contributions in FY10. The picnic this year was Daniela Drapakova’s crown piece. She gamely succeeded the task from Aminata Bojang who was away on paid assignment for a month. Daniela proved to be a master organizer, holding regular meetings and overseeing the distribution of tasks, never loosing her calm. It was refreshing to see such a young member involving herself with such steadiness in preparing this large event. The games were a big hit and the atmosphere at the picnic was very joyful. Daniela also contributed immensely to the Welcoming Team, bringing her rigorous work ethics and taking charge of a lot of paperwork. She also found the time to take pictures and post them on various Picasa albums. Lately, she also created several short films on WBFN activities. Thank you, Daniela, for all the hard work and your unfailing commitment.

19

Aminata Bojang delighted us in April by adding a new member to the big WBFN family: her son Sengane. But being pregnant during the year did not prevent her from contributing to the huge success of the WBFN Annual Exhibits. Putting her professional event planner skills to work, Amy dealt with the conference services to make sure that every booth and every stage was ready to receive the various teams and presenters. She juggled the schedules of all the participants, made sure their demands were attended to, and was open to any new suggestion. Here again, it was great to see a young member take on such a complex and demanding task with natural grace and authority. Thank you, Amy, for spending the last weeks of your pregnancy pounding the floor of the Atrium, making sure that WBFN would be presented under its best light! My task at the helm was made much easier by the presence of two talented and capable members leading WBFN’s two outreach programs. Hilary Welch gallantly took over the Book Project after the departure of Josephine Barry and is bringing her business acumen and her wealth of organizational expertise to adapt the Book Project to the new changing environment of the Bank. Similarly, Caroline Berney is skillfully overseeing a major readjustment of the Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund to better prepare it to face the challenges of the new century. Thanks to their combined efforts, WBFN can offer its members two volunteering venues that directly promote education throughout the world. And what would I have done without the constant support of my senior advisors? As past presidents of WBFN, all three had been in my shoes and the mere knowledge of having them by my side gave me comfort and confidence. In her quiet but thoughtful way, Lois Khairallah repeatedly provided me with the right angle to look at a confusing situation. Always available, she was generous with her time and advice. Her insight helped me make some difficult decisions that eventually proved to be the right ones for WBFN. Gilda Dadush (who technically did not sit on the EC but still sat outside my office working on WBFN’s website) maintained an animated stream of essential questions: “What is WBFN?”, “How do we conceive of print vs. electronic publications?”, “What is private information, what is not?” etc. This daily barrage kept me on my toes, always looking at the big picture and not drowning in details. We bantered and argued and even laughed but through it all she kept me focused. As for Chantale Holzmann, she was both my model and staunchest supporter. Last year, I had learned at her side the intricacies of leadership as I observed her skillfully navigating the Bank’s bureaucracy. This year, she gave me space to perform, yet was quick to come to my assistance, reviving my inner drive when I was about to falter. Her obvious pleasure at telling stories is but a cover of her incisive mind. She has the knack of cutting to the chase,

20

identifying problems and looking for solutions. She taught me that if something is good for the families of the Bank, there is always a way to make it happen. The privilege of carrying on the torch will now fall on Anne Folliet. As president-elect, she has spent this year eagerly absorbing the tenets of WBFN’s mission and goals. She was a very quick study, and I feel comfortable entrusting her with leading WBFN for the next year. Thanks to her training in business and marketing, she brings a keen desire for refining WBFN’s public message. I am extremely grateful for her willingness to devote next year to serve our community. Anne has a generous soul and a sharp mind—a wonderful combination for someone standing guard on the interests of the Bank’s families. She has surrounded herself with a dynamic team and I am sure that their concerted effort will result into yet another fulfilling year at WBFN.

Representative Council WBFN cannot achieve its mission of creating and maintaining a warm, welcoming, and supportive community for Bank families without the contribution of its many volunteers who lead its various groups and activities. It is within those groups and activities that newcomers get to meet other members, seek advice, and strike friendships. It is through these groups and activities that they begin to feel that they have found a home away from home. Leaders of WBFN groups and activities constitute the Representative Council. Some groups have been functioning for many years; others are relatively new, answering a mounting demand among our members or simply representing a new offering by a new arrival. But the contribution of all those volunteers, who take it upon themselves to organize and maintain an activity throughout the year, their contribution is essential to fulfilling the mission of WBFN. In the name of our community, I would like to applaud their dedication and generosity. My heartfelt thanks and gratitude go to the leaders and actors of the Book Groups, the Language and Literature Groups, the Parents and Tots Groups, the Bridge Groups, the International Cultural Group, the Quilting Group, the International Cuisine Group, the Financial Literacy Classes, the Investment Club, the News Discussion Group, the Male Spouse Group, the Teen Summer Program, the Surviving Culture Shock Team, the Spouse Issues Team, the Website Team, the Mosaic Team, as well as all the members organizing welcoming activities in the neighborhoods. Some members come, others leave. This year, we bade farewell to two past presidents of WBFN, two formidable women who left their mark on WBFN. Rosa Lia Troch accompanied her husband Henri to a well-earned retirement in the south of France. Chantale Holzmann also headed to the south of France where her husband Robert will take over his functions at

21

the Bank’s office in Marseille in September. Both ladies will remain active members of our community and have promised to keep an ongoing online conversation with the rest of the membership.

Our Partners in the Bank WBFN occupies a special place in the World Bank Group. As an organization of volunteers we cannot be subsumed under the category of staff and do not fit neatly in the hierarchy of the Bank. But we are part of the community of the Bank as, by definition, we are spouses or partners of Bank staff. The Bank recognizes and appreciates our role supporting Bank families and advocating on their behalf. This was again clearly expressed by President’s Zoellick in his recent message to the attendees of the WBFN Annual Dinner on May 19, 2009. During the course of a year, WBFN interacts with many units of the Bank and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all Bank staff with whom we interacted this year be it at HRS, HSD, GSD, ISG, Security, Legal, and Ethics, the Staff Association, the 1818 Society, or the Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union. WBFN truly appreciates their advice, their services, and their help in finding solutions to the problems facing Bank families. In particular, I would like to extend WBFN’s heartfelt thanks to HR Vice President Hasan Tuluy, HRSVP Program Director Aulikki Kuusela, HRSCS Director Rajesh Vidyasagar, HRSRM CAO Adrian Poffley, HRSCO Lead Human Resources Specialist Fons Marcelis, HSD Director Bernard Demure, GSD Vice President Robert Van Pulley, Chief Counsel David Rivero, Legal Assistance Officer Jeffrey Silverstein, Counsel Patricia Miranda, Pension Administration Manager Kerry Mack, Ethics Program Officer Kurt Nemes, Security Operations Manager Peter Gallant, Security Specialist Tanya Sisler. One of WBFN’s major efforts this year has focused on developing a new application for our Member Management System (MMS). WBFN benefited from the help of several ISG staff members. On behalf of the WBFN MMS teams, I would like to recognize the enormous contribution of the ISG team of developers led by Luis Rivas and Bahman Jalali. Beatriz Pinto, also from ISG, was always available to help identify roadblocks and keep the project on track. Roman Binder from HR also kept a watchful eye and cheered us on. To all, thank you for your perseverance and dedication.

Our Staff at WBFN WBFN is a complex organization featuring various committees, groups, events and activities, a constantly changing membership with evolving demands and needs, and an array of tools that need regular updating. How does it run so successfully?

22

We are blessed with a gem of a Coordinator, Louise Shimizu, who has dedicated the past six years of her life to making sure that every little detail pertaining to WBFN is attended to. Patient and gentle, Louise finds a solution to every problem. She listens attentively to the requests of WBFN members and draws on her intimate knowledge of the Bank when giving her advice. She is wonderful to work with, quick to understand, sharp in her insight, determined to get the job done. This was her last year before retirement and we will miss her dearly as she takes off in September to visit her newly born granddaughter in Australia. We are also indebted to Christinne Secrest and Mimi Besha, the two program assistants who ensure the smooth running of WBFN’s daily activities. Their warmth and reliability contribute to the welcoming atmosphere of WBFN’s office. Our grateful appreciation also goes to Lilian Kew who brings such care to our bookkeeping and to Mariela Eberhardt, our long-term volunteer who makes sure that we always have a supply of Welcoming Kits ready for distribution. Cecile Ferri joined the WBFN staff in December 2008. With joyful energy, she has assumed the administrative responsibility for the MMMF and it is a pleasure to have her around. Looking back on the past two years, I marvel at the spirit of trust and collaboration that permeates our organization. Together we all stand strong and committed. We are not afraid of debate and argument because we know that we are all working together towards the same goal, that of strengthening our community and creating a safe haven where each one of us can feel at home. The two years that I have spent first as president-elect then as president were some of the most rewarding years of my life. Thank you for giving me the chance to serve; it was an honor and a privilege. Rula Ghani President, June 2009

23

PRESIDENT-ELECT’S REPORT

After a year of “total immersion,” I am still amazed at WBFN, its role, programs and achievements. Another source of infinite wonder: the incredible effectiveness, professionalism and generosity of WBFN’s volunteers, who form such a great family, a community to which any new member can immediately belong, a group with inborn solidarity and natural team spirit! A full year of commitment and interactions within the greater community of the World Bank—staff and families—is ending, but this is only a point in a long timeline going back to 1972. In our offices we have on the wall the pictures of most of the Executive Committees of WBFN: a reminder of all those who have preceded us through the years in trying their best to help other spouses and partners of World Bank staff. All that we do, our programs and our achievements are issued from a building on what has been developed by others before us: a snowball effect of energies and ideas.

Improving Communication about WBFN WBFN does so much; therefore, we need to communicate about the existence and the scope of those activities and programs available for our members. Over the past year, our website has been totally “revamped” by Gilda Dadush. Now, it communicates better about who we are and how we can be of help to our members. Furthermore, the wealth of information that our website encompasses is more easily available. With kind recognition, Gilda acknowledges that at different stages various members of our team helped her. We do extend our thanks to Swati Srivastava and others who helped. Still: thank you again, Gilda! Duina Reyes, as in past years, helped us with our designs. For this year’s visual theme, Duina created an alliance of vivid and warm orange, with green bamboo—symbols of serenity, growth and strength. We used that design on our invitations, posters, certificates and letters. For all the signs and other materials that we intend to use again, year after year, for our Annual Exhibits, we chose a harmony of yellow, black and silver-grey. We also created and began using stand-up posters stating our identity clearly with a prominent and easy-to-read logo, and with the simple text: “Spouses and Partners Volunteering to Help Other Spouses and Partners of WBG Staff.” The primary purpose of the WBFN annual events is to create awareness in the World Bank community of the Family Network and the work it does, to bring members together and to thank the many WBFN volunteers and WBFN partners. This year’s Annual Exhibits were very successful and attractive thanks to the incredible and efficient organization skills of Aminata Bojang. We are also grateful to Swati Srivastava who with her contagious, smiling energy

24

led the entertaining Children’s Art Competition Reception, held at the end of the Exhibits week! The Annual Dinner on May 19 was a joyful and successful evening, where Bank partners met with volunteers and their spouses/partners, everyone discovering and learning about unexpected aspects and accomplishments of WBFN. For the unusual and exotic flower arrangements, we had to thank again Na’ava Feder, who has lent her talent to us for years, and who was skillfully helped this year by Madina Seydi. Read more about each of these events in the next section of this report, “Special Events.” Anne Folliet President-Elect, June 2009

25

Special Events happen only once a year. They involve longterm planning and fall under the leadership of either an EC Chair or Member-at-Large. They require a huge input from our WBFN volunteers and attract a large number of members and their families.

SPECIAL EVENTS

CELEBRATING OUR DIVERSITY

Annual Family Picnic As in past years, the Annual Family Picnic took place on the lawns of the Bretton Woods Recreation Center in Germantown, however, the picnic was organized jointly not only with the family association of the IMF but also that of the IADB. On the sunny day of October 4, 2008, we welcomed about 220 people, complete families, babies, children, teens, grandparents and even dogs. The potluck buffet table was full of delicious dishes, desserts and other specialties brought by each family. Thanks to Paula Vasquez from the IMF, the whole sitting area and the registration and buffet tables were decorated with colorful autumn motives, which made the space even more friendly and welcoming. After the lunch, children and their parents joined the carousel of games, facilitated by excited and very kind teen game masters. Families could train their brain cells at the Memory game; practice throwing skills at the Coin game; become actors and mime funny animals or sports; and tryout their flexibility at the Limbo and Hula Hoop game. Everybody had a chance to play “Clean the Backyard” and “Catch the Dragon’s Tail,” and to put to test their teamwork at the Human Knot and Magic Carpet games. We enjoyed everything and had tons of fun! At the toddler corner, some were drawing pictures or creating masks and origami, while Sharmi Kulkarni was patiently decorating the hands, palms or legs of tens of girls and their moms with elegant henna floral arabesques. The picnic concluded with a raffle drawing, and three lucky participants won popular family board games. The whole event couldn’t have been organized without the enthusiasm of many volunteers, who helped to prepare the event and buy and bring the props, and who lent their helping hands wherever it was necessary. Special thanks go to Daniela Drapakova, Maaike le Grand, Nour Loutfy, and Louise Shimizu, who oversaw the preparations and organization of this successful event.

Children’s Holiday Party In the month of December, many parties are given in the Atrium of the World Bank MC building, most of them organized by various Bank departments. But one party is special, organized entirely by the volunteers of WBFN and intended to bring Bank families with children together to celebrate this festive time of the year. The Children’s Holiday Party of December 6, 2008, was extremely successful. The MC Atrium was filled with over eight hundred participants, about half of whom were children. Fiftyseven WBFN volunteers helped prepare, set up and manage this joyous event.

28

We started the planning two months in advance, and all the while our concern was to put together activities which were guaranteed to put a smile on little faces. All the activities were planned and organized with that smile in mind. On the day of the Party, 20 of us gathered from morning itself, decorating the Christmas tree and the river with ducks and various other holiday decorations. While we were having lots of fun with the young volunteers, Ana Villacampa’s children, the Dinorock group was setting the stage with large Dinosaurs. At around 1:30 p.m., families began to arrive. By then we were all ready and waiting to welcome them with entertainment and food. The Dinorock puppeteers started their show at 2:30 p.m. with a wonderful performance by the Dinosaurs, a story about different places and cultures, and of course an explanation of the very large and prominent Bank ID’s that the dinosaurs were wearing. They kept the entire audience, adults as well as children, enthralled for a complete half hour. They continued with a very lively singa-long of holiday songs. Meanwhile, the various activity tables of nail art, face painting, origami, calligraphy, make your own toy, magic, etc. were busy with older children lining up to experience each activity. They were all very popular and drew huge crowds. It was pleasant to watch the four and six year olds getting their nails and face painted by the 14 and 16 year olds. The best part of the activity tables was that they were managed by the teenagers. We also had a hair gel section which was giving makeovers. We did get to see some very funky hair styles. Tien Comlekoglu gave a very interesting magic performance with his sister. The lucky dip tickets also sold well and we had three winners. Proceeds from it and the entry fees for children, totaling $2,095, were used to contribute holiday gifts for troubled teens in the DC area through the charity Children’s Law Center. The highlight was the visit by Santa Claus. The expression of awe on the faces of the children was wonderful to see the moment they first realized that their favorite Santa was among them. All the little ones got their pictures taken with Santa and also wrote out wishes for the not so fortunate children of the world for Santa to take a look. The whole afternoon passed by in a blink, and it was soon time for us to pack up. The little ones were looking forward to their naptime, exhausted and happy. WBFN thanks the families for their generous donation of new toys, which we subsequently delivered to the charity Toys for Tots, and all the volunteers for their invaluable time and dedication in making this event so successful.

29

Annual Exhibits The WBFN Annual Exhibits were held this year March 16-18, in the MC Atrium, with the Children’s Art Competition on March 21. Our main booth introduced visitors to WBFN’s achievements and programs, but also showed WBFN’s impact on our members’ lives. We collected and displayed photos and testimonials, giving a better and livelier picture of our real identity. On big screens, we presented a diaporama of photos and a film on the origin and the achievements of WBFN. Other booths featured our English classes, our financial classes and our investment club, our Quilting Group, English Classes, the MMMF and the Book Project. Global Mobility, HIV/AIDS Prevention for Families, HRS Corporate Operations and the Credit Union, all of whom also serve WBG families, co-sponsored and participated with booths in the exhibition. The Pangea Artisan Market at the IFC was also invited to participate, as were individual WBFN members who wanted to display their artistic skills and talents. Jewelry was made on the spot and hung alongside hand-knitted scarves. Oil paintings and 3d-arts, along with white porcelain painting, were created and displayed. An interior design firm brought in samples of its materials, and one member gave insightful counseling. The most striking presentation was certainly the serene and elegant Japanese tea ceremony hosted by Yukako Wada. Thank you, Yukako, for your grace and your dedication! WBFN also wishes to recognize the kind loan by some of our members of pieces of traditional clothing. And, thank you to the Urasenke Washington D.C. Branch for the majestic kimono, which added a dimension of beauty and timeless elegance to our exhibition. At the Quilting Group booth, a beautiful green quilt was displayed and visitors gathered around to watch group members adding finishing touches to another quilt in progress. The Wandering Winners Investment Club held a meeting-on-the-spot and encouraged visitors to join the WBFN financial literacy classes. The three days of the exhibition featured events of great appeal and interest. The demonstrations of Tai-Chi and Sword Tai-Chi by World Bank staff member Kurt Nemes and by Nan Wang of the IMF which attracted new adepts of the sport/discipline. On Tuesday the World Bank and IMF Chorus’ songs brought a captive audience to the Atrium, as did on Wednesday the Kenechi Fashions African Fashion Show organized by Marie Diop and modeled by some of our members. We all appreciated the kind support and the talent of our fellow WBFN member Carlos Winder, who sang and played the guitar on each day of the exhibition and who went on to seduce its young audience on the afternoon of the reception for the Children’s Art Competition, held at the end of the exhibition week and led by Swati Srivastava with a contagious, smiling energy!

30

The Annual Exhibits were possible thanks to 78 WBFN volunteers, 6 non-members, and 5 partner units from the WBG. They all did a tremendous job and WBFN wants to applaud them. We especially want to recognize WBFN volunteer Aminata Bojang. Without her dedication and management of the planning during the two months prior, the event could not have been the success that it was.

Children’s Art Competition The theme for this year’s Children’s Art Competition was “Family—Everyone We Love.” It was amazing to see the maturity in some of the artwork done by the young artists. Some were a simple depiction of love and family bonding, while others were about the good times spent together as a family. There were the interesting ones too, like the 5-year-old’s family of ghosts, and she insisted that the ghosts had families! Many children sketched their pets, saying that they were part of the family too! The judges, Nathalie Barthes-Pouliquen, Marie Diop, Sadeem Alkadi and Miren Fernandez, had a tough time deciding the winners from approximately 100 entries, and we ended up with a lot of ties. The reception for these young artists was a challenge in itself. We had to come up with activities that would entertain children from the age group of 3 to 15. Of course, we have so much talent in our own organization that after a couple of emails back and forth, we had the program taking shape. Tara Sharafudeen, organizer of Celebration of Cultures, helped us get in touch with some very talented artists who had previously performed at the Bank. Mrinalini Pillai and her friend performed a very beautiful Kuchipudi-style piece (classical Indian dance). Carlos Winder, a WBG spouse and long-term WBFN member, sang songs in many different languages. Just before the certificate distribution, we had a very melodious and beautiful performance by Annemarie Brink Olsen, one of our very dear members. This year we also had a marathon scrapbooking event at the reception, an idea suggested by Miren. Rula Ghani took pictures of the artists, the artwork, and the assembled families. Anne Folliet then printed the pictures, thanks to some useful technology, and then the children took their photos to the tables where Miren, Sadeem and several other volunteers helped them create their scrapbook page. Oh! The materials that the kids used to decorate their page got even the adults present curious and eager to become a child again. It was interesting to see that we had nailed the right activity, one that was popular with all ages! WBFN thanks every volunteer who helped us. We were more than 25, each adding their little strokes to the big picture. Events like these are successful only because of the strong volunteer community we have at WBFN, and it is amazing how people who speak different languages actually come together during these events.

31

Multi-Organization Meeting Historically, WBFN has always reached out to its sister organizations, the Family Associations of the IMF (IMFFA) and of the IADB (IDBFA). This year was no exception. Already in July 2008, the Teen Summer Program was the product of a close collaboration with members of the IDBFA and was a great success with the young ones. We were not as lucky with our picnic in October 2008, which we tried to sponsor together with the other two associations. Very few families from the IMFFA and the IDBFA attended. But when the time came in April 2009 to start planning for the next Teen Summer Program, members of the IDBFA and this time the IMFFA were keen participants and managed to put together another terrific program. We also held formal meetings between the Boards of the three associations. On November 7, 2008, the IMFFA hosted the first meeting during which we discussed our respective activities and compared notes. On February 20, 2009, the IDBFA took its turn and held the second meeting at their Democracy Boulevard quarters. After exchanging news of concern to the three associations, we were treated to a presentation by Liz Coleman of Global Mobility, which focused on the challenges facing a trailing spouse wanting to pursue a career in the DC area. On April 15, 2009, WBFN organized the third meeting around the theme of “What I would have liked to know before arriving in Washington”—or, in other words, “a pre-departure package.” Participants were divided into four different groups to discuss matters pertaining to health, schooling, housing, and G-4 visa legal issues. The discussions were very animated and informative. Yvonne Quahe from Global Mobility and Juan Alvial and Monina Monserrat Malixi from the HR Service Center were on hand to answer questions and clarify certain points. The resulting text of several pages was subsequently edited and sent to the heads of the IMFFA and IDBFA. It has been published in two parts in Mosaic and MosaicPlus. Eventually, we hope to turn the text into a web-friendly presentation to be posted on the WBFN site and would thus be accessible to prospective spouses the world over. All in all it is very gratifying to work with our sister organizations. We learn so much from each other and our cooperation strengthens each one of us.

Annual Dinner For one evening every year, WBFN members gather to celebrate the year past and to look ahead to the future. In a festive atmosphere, members mingle and chat among themselves and with the various WBG staff and outside professionals, who have supported our organi-

32

zation and have collaborated with us throughout the year, and our spouses who have stood steadfast by our side. 2008 Annual Dinner—On May 13, 2008, the World Bank 12th floor gallery, decked with flowers, (thanks to Na’ava Feder and Catherine Labaste) was a most elegant venue to celebrate not only a year well done, but also the 25th anniversary of the WBFN Book Project. Our STC and event planner, Carmen Eliam, had made sure that every detail was attended to and we enjoyed a superb dinner, said by some to be the best meal they had experienced at the WB. The evening kicked off with an address by WBG President Zoellick, who commended WBFN and its outreach programs on their good work, especially thanking outgoing President Chantale Holzmann, praising the Book Project on its 25 years and congratulating the MMMF grant recipients. In her opening speech, President-Elect Rula Ghani summed up WBFN as “the most dynamic group I have ever been part of, a group dedicated to maintaining a safe, warm and welcoming community for all the families joining the Bank, whether at Headquarters or in Country Offices, to facilitate their relocation and to help ensure that they can lead a meaningful, productive, yet enjoyable life while associated with the Bank...This year has been a watershed. It does not come as a surprise. With Chantale Holzmann at the helm one could expect no less. With a twinkle of the eye and a firm understanding of the Family Network, she has skillfully led us to what promises to be a stronger yet more flexible future.” Rula then introduced her newly elected EC members, who together with her would pick up the baton in FY09. Also thinking of the future, Rula explained to the guests that the WBFN Annual Report would no longer appear on the tables at the Annual Dinner. WBFN had decided to do “its share to save the planet” and the report could be found online instead. WBFN President Chantale Holzmann then took the floor. Under the theme “Keeping Up with Changes,” Chantale emphasized that WBFN still depends on the dedication of the volunteers and their genuine spirit of solidarity and generosity in order to fulfill its mission. The year’s challenges had been concentrated in three specific areas: changing demographics, the need to redefine our tools, and advocacy for family issues in DC and abroad. Under her watch, WBFN had also continued to lobby for a stronger corporate engagement in the fight against domestic abuse, pushing for more widespread and comprehensive abuse-prevention education within the WB, and the establishment of further measures (amendments of the Code of Conduct) which will prevent abusers from creating financial hardship for their dependents. She ended by emphasizing WBFN’s strengths: • We achieve much because our values are strong multicultural understanding, openness of mind, creativity, and altruism.

33

• We achieve much because we can count on the help of dedicated staff in many departments. • We achieve much because we know how to pass on to newcomers the strong vision and mission of our organization. Chantale then presented Aulikki Kuusela, who had worked closely with WBFN while acting VP of the World Bank HR, with the WBFN Award, an award established to honor WBFN’s former Honorary President, Elaine Wolfensohn, and given to staff members who have demonstrated their commitment to family-friendly policies. Next at the podium was Book Project President Josephine Barry, who marked the 25th anniversary by thanking all of the Book Project volunteers who had worked hard to ensure that schools and libraries in developing countries had books. Josephine then treated all to behind-the-scene anecdotes, spiced with humor, recounting how over the 25 years, over 100 countries were reached and over 3,000,000 books were sent. An MMMF report followed, highlighting the newly launched pilot project in South Africa and introducing the eight MMMF recipients present at the dinner, each glowing in the encouragement she felt from her newly found fans and supporters. Finally came the raffling of the beautiful golden quilt, “Sunshine from Africa,” hand sewn by WBFN volunteers. The winner was Sandor Sipos and the proceeds of over $2,000 would be presented to the House of Ruth, a shelter for women and children in the Washington DC area. Thus, the evening ended on a note of joy in giving, the spirit of trying to make the world a little bit better for others, as could be expected of WBFN members, families of WBG staff! 2009 Annual Dinner—This year’s theme was “Stepping into the 21st Century,” a clear allusion to the reorganization of our office systems and the revamping of our website. In this spirit, it was befitting that the president of the WBG, Robert Zoellick, who was traveling abroad, addressed the audience through a video-message. New technology is amazing and if you were unable to attend the dinner I enjoin you to visit our website and listen to him praising WBFN’s work and congratulating its volunteers on their reach and their achievements. You should have been there to partake of the warm and lively atmosphere! Friends were happy to see each other but also took time to meet newcomers and to make new friends. Seated around tables beautifully adorned with exotic flower arrangements (thank you Na’ava and Madina!), they engaged in lively conversations and reluctantly ceased to talk when speeches started. They laughed and clapped when past president Chantale Holzmann was handed as a farewell gift an art book entitled Women Who Read Are Dangerous. They cheered when the most active

34

volunteers were recognized in the speeches. They listened with awe to the singing of Annemarie Brink Olsen, our own WBFN nightingale, who enchanted us with a Scottish ballad. They greeted warmly the 10 MMMF recipients selected this year. They followed with interest Hilary Welch’s account of a shipment of books to Sudan that almost never made it to destination. In short, it was a great evening that concluded with the formal presentation of Anne Folliet’s Executive Committee that will take over in July 2009. What a great sight to see all these new faces eager to carry on WBFN’s mission and ready to work hard to maintain our network of support! As we stood up to take our leave from each other and from our guests, the MMMF recipients started a circular song and dance on the side, near the podium. Before long, they were joined by many among us and for a good twenty minutes the reception hall echoed the jubilant sounds of people dancing and singing. What a great way to celebrate the end of a great year!

35

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMS

Activities and Programs are organized and take place throughout the year, they fall under the leadership of either an EC Chair or Members-at-Large. This year WBFN sponsored on average thirty activities/programs per month.

AN ART EXHIBITION AT WBFN

ARRIVALS AND WELCOMING

The WBFN Welcoming Team is in charge of welcoming newcomers, inviting them to venues where they can meet other WBFN members, pose their questions about relocation issues, and get more acquainted with the various activities within the Family Network to ease the sometimes difficult times of transition. Four time-tested steps have been developed over the years: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Welcoming Coffee/Information Sessions Get-Togethers Spouse/Partner Orientation Program Surviving Culture Shock Workshop

This year a new initiative was launched, adding of a fifth step to those above, an informal presentation of WBFN activities at the WBFN office, the Office Get-Together. Welcoming Coffee—The Welcoming Coffee is held generally every first Tuesday of the month in the World Bank H Building, the building where the WBFN office is located. The setting of these coffee/information sessions is informal and newcomers can bring their young children. Several WBFN members briefly introduce aspects of relocation such as child care possibilities, the legal aspects of living in the U.S., getting a driver’s license, etc. Participants get an overview of the various activities, seminars and classes that WBFN has to offer. From August 2008 to May 2009, 88 newcomers attended these Welcoming Coffees, held August 9, September 20, October 10, November 7, December 5, January 10, February 8, March 10, April 7, May 5. Another is planned for June 2. The multicultural environment, visible camaraderie, and shared memories of comparable experiences make for an often instantaneous feeling of relief and support. Get-Togethers—These Get-Togethers are a meeting point for both newcomers and those who have been in the area for some time. For details, see the description of this program in the Social & Cultural Activities section of this report. Spouse/Partner Orientation Program—Five Spouse/Partner Orientation Programs (SOP) are held throughout the fiscal year, generally in September, November, January, March and June. This one-day program is a shorter version of the four-day orientation that a new World Bank staff receives. Reet Jukkum and Katherine Fishburne of HR Orientation, Lara Koroye of IFC and a member of the WBFN facilitate the program. WBG staff make presentations similar to those made to the staff but with an emphasis on the spouse/partner’s perspective. Usually, the November and March SOPs are hosted by IFC.

38

The SOP continues WBFN’s role of welcoming spouses/partners to the WBG community and helping them settle as quickly, as smoothly and as far as possible in their new environment. This one-day program introduces the participants to the history and the work culture of the Bank. It gives them an overview of the benefits for staff and families, U.S. visa issues, work permits for G-4 visa holders, taxes, wills and retirement benefits. The program also familiarizes them with the health services for the staff and families, health insurance, the Security Operations Center, the Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union, the Global Mobility services and Family Issues. Last but not least, the SOP introduces the participants to the work carried on by WBFN, all its programs and resources, and the ready-made support network that it provides. Of the people who attend, some are recent newcomers of one or two days, some have been in the DC area for up to five years. Besides the informative presentations, many come to meet new people and discuss some of their common problems and concerns. Some members of the WBFN Representative Council and the Executive Committee also attend these orientation programs to help newcomers feel welcome and provide a variety of pertinent information. This year, 160 spouses/partners attended the SOP. WBFN would like to thank Reet Jukkum, Katherine Fishburne, Karen Burke, Lara Koroye and Mimi Besha for their continuing support and participation in making this program a success. Surviving Culture Shock Workshop—Formerly “Arrivals Multicultural Workshop,” this program is described under the Family Support section of this report. Office Get-Together—Since newcomers arrive year round, and are always on the lookout for ways to make friends, improve their English or find some new activity to fight boredom and depression, we introduced this new initiative. Twice this year, we have invited attendees of the most recent SOP and Get-Togethers, as well as other newcomers, to come to the WBFN office around lunchtime, where several WBFN members presented WBFN activities in an informal setting. This personal approach gave newcomers a chance to pose questions, and figure out what appealed to them. The Book Project, Mosaic, International Cuisine, and language classes, among others, were presented. In total 20 attendees joined in. Beyond these five steps, the following volunteers also contributed substantially in welcoming personally newcomers to the DC area at workshops, coffee/information sessions, the WBFN office and other venues: Daniela Drapakova, Aminata Bojang, Badia Benadi, Marie Diop, Anne Folliet, Rachida El Yadari, Rula Ghani, Belkys Lopez Rabello, Swati Srivastava, Vidya Rangan, Annemarie Brink Olsen, Isabelle Tausch, Moira Whyte, Phi Fostvedt, Ignas Diu, Chantale Holzmann, Rosa Lia Troch, Dupe Odugbemi and Maaike le Grand.

39

The Welcoming Team is comprised of many members, and operates both at the office and in the neighborhoods. The team met five times during the last year to discuss ongoing developments, get feedback from each other and discuss future developments. Speaking of transition, it deserves mention that the Welcoming Team itself is going through a thorough transition, due to the ongoing development of a new Membership Management System. The team is working on several tracks simultaneously: 1. In the existing Access membership database, the Office Team processes New Alerts, Changes of Duty Station and Termination Alerts as sent by HR. Daniela Drapakova has done an incredible job in detailing the steps to be taken at the Welcoming Desk in written guidelines, and doing the bulk of the work at the desk. Rosa Lia Troch worked tirelessly until the very end of her stay in DC to help out with whatever task lay on the Welcoming Desk: presenting a Welcoming Coffee, presenting WBFN at new staff orientations, training new volunteers, helping newcomers deal with the nitty gritty details of their travails in drivers’ license land, applying for a work permit, getting appropriate help when in distress, etc. We will dearly miss her energy, and incredible broad knowledge of the whole terrain. Belkys Lopez Rabello and Yukako Wada impressed us by their incredibly quick on-boarding with the various tasks at Welcoming. Meanwhile, while members move in and out, a constant need to train new volunteers remains: we were happy to welcome Meltem Aydogmus, Yuan Amanda Wang, Nefertare Galiba and Laurentine Batonga as well at the Office Team. Steadily, and without missing a beat, Miren Fernandez, Mariella Eberhardt, Indira Sampath helped out with the myriad of tasks such as putting together Welcoming Kits, checking addresses of returned Mosaics, and other help, without which all our services could not have been provided. Those kits do not appear automatically out of the sky; it is tough work done by many, too often invisible, hands! From July 2008 through May 2009, a total of 407 new families were registered, an average of nearly 37 per month; a third were on extended-term contracts, and twothirds on term or open-ended contracts. 2. The existing Buddy System, started by Tracy Russell, got a revamping, triggered by Tracy herself when she left in December for South Africa. After ample discussions, scrutiny and tryouts, we settled for a new setup based on pairing newcomers with WBFN buddies of their own cultural background, who speak the same language. Maaike le Grand updated the existing buddy list by calling all members and developed a set of instructions with DO’s and DON’T’s for buddies. A set of additional background information is being put together by Yukako Wada and Daniela Drapakova. The goal is to call newcomers as soon as they arrive in the DC area to assist them with different aspects of their

40

relocation when they need it most. Buddies are not professional facilitators, but they can lend the newcomer a listening ear, point out where to find the dearly missed food from the home country and refer them to services of the World Bank, classes and activities of WBFN or other venues that could be useful. 3. The simultaneous development of a new Membership Management System (MMS) by ISG using the software SharePoint caused the team to rethink the way they will function once the MMS is in place. Unfortunately, this is not progressing as hoped. Testing of the MMS, preparing key information lists for the new system such as a complete list of countries, provinces and capitals of the world, and rethinking the core elements of the WBFN registration form took tons of time. Invaluable help in these areas was provided by Annemarie Brink Olsen, Belkys Lopez Rabello, Vidya Rangan, Sandipa Thaya Basnyat, Uta Steckhan, Muhammad Faisal Javed, Louise Shimizu, Gilda Dadush, Corinne Sinnassamy, Nefertare Galiba, Asmin Sen and others. The hope was to have a less time-consuming data processing system, which would leave more time for the team to welcome newcomers by talking to them on the phone or in person. This goal has not yet been reached; and significant obstacles still need to be overcome. 4. Area Coordinators Isabelle Tausch, Dupe Odugbemi, Phi Fostvedt and Moira Whyte did an invaluable job in helping to find new hosts for Get-Togethers, calling newcomers in their area, and giving feedback to the whole team. We regret that Dupe Odugbemi and Isabelle Tausch have to leave the team and hope we can find new members to take their places! 5. Male Spouse Coordinator Ignas Diu has been our ever-friendly male spouse coordinator until he became too busy with a new job and a new baby! He has been a true bridge among the many young male spouses, and they have started to meet each other for a beer or a soccer game. We hope to find a replacement, since he is dearly missed! The male spouse group is not to be underestimated; they form 20% of our members. Welcoming is one of the key activities of WBFN. Once newcomers realize they are not alone and that others are facing, or have faced, the same challenges, they become encouraged to engage in new activities, to learn new skills, to discover opportunities they had never thought about, and find strong friendships among their peers, no matter how different in culture and background they might be. One of the incredible strengths of the WBFN network is the myriad of settings in which members can engage, volunteer, find friends, support and care, thereby empowering themselves in many ways. WBFN strives to continually adapt to the needs of the changing membership. This can only be done through the work of many volunteers. It is always a pleasure to see how quickly new friendships emerge and new ideas and initiatives become reality when people get together to help and meet each other.

41

COMMUNICATIONS

This year, WBFN made a big effort to integrate our main means of communication—our Mosaic newsletter and our website—and we have achieved a streamlined and better version of both. Mosaic is now available online in PDF format and as MosaicPlus, which brings color, more photos and more information to our members. Our attempts to reach a wider audience through various communication channels have been successful and well received.

Annual Report The Annual Report chronicles the Family Network’s varied activities and events and highlights the diverse talents of its members. It brings to the readership a concise summary of WBFN achievements and challenges, programs and activities during each fiscal year. All the chairs and coordinators of the various projects and activity groups submit reports of their work along with the names of the volunteers who helped organize these projects and events. Last year, thanks to the initiative of our diligent and creative in-house designer, Gilda Dadush, WBFN developed a more colorful, organized and user-friendly format and applied it to the FY08 Annual Report. In keeping with our goal of greener and more efficient organization, the PDF version of the Annual Report is now available online.

Mosaic Mosaic, WBFN’s newsletter, is published ten times a year, with the prime purpose of informing members of our activities and programs, inclusive of our two outreach programs, the Book Project and the MMMF. Mosaic also provides a platform for our members who wish to share their opinions or hone their creativity. Our Mosaic Team is constantly evolving and changing. As old members move out, we always welcome new members. We meet alternate Mondays to brainstorm ideas for upcoming issues, including the thematic content and cover design. Our challenge each month is to come up with an issue that reaches out and touches a chord in every reader, provides a refreshing outlook at all our activities and clubs, and reminds our readers that they are part of a vibrant community. We always welcome member participation in the form of write-ups, letters, photographs, announcements, etc., because member participation is what provides our newsletter relevance and meaning. This past year, we underwent a change in editorship. Maaike le Grand moved on to become WBFN Welcoming Chair and, although she remained a part of the team, she passed on the editor’s reins to Vidya Rangan. We received numerous articles as well as positive feedback from our members both here and abroad. Our most popular stories were our series on “Eth-

42

nic Foods” and “Teen Views.” Both were diverse in subject and style and brought original viewpoints, variety, entertainment, member involvement and feedback to the issue. Running statistics on our distribution over the past year, we find that the printed version of Mosaic is mailed to over 3,900 members, and over 1,700 of them receive our PDF version through email. Of these, around 200 have elected to receive the PDF only. Our foray into the electronic sphere was our most remarkable accomplishment this year: the integration of the printed Mosaic and a new online version, MosaicPlus. We determined that an online version could enhance our reader’s experience: it would be a “plus” if through the use of color, we could offer more vibrant pages and vivid pictures; we could also overcome the time and space limitations of our printed materials and provide additional highlights, more extensive coverage of our activities, bonus pictures, links to other sources and more timely announcements and information. Beginning in May 2008, we ran numerous brainstorming sessions and eventually came to a consensus on what we liked and what would work. Our motto was not to complicate things, but to apply a user-friendly and low-maintenance approach to both the printed and online products. We determined that it would be easiest for our readers to navigate and to maintain if we produced an online mirror of the printed version, keeping the contents, writing style, order of stories, categorization, issue dates, etc. the same. The first task, then, was to streamline and strictly regulate the template of the hardcopy Mosaic along the lines of what had been decided in the brainstorming, so that each month it could easily be transformed into the online mirror, and the previous month archived. A team of volunteers was formed to work on this, and our design and tech guru, Gilda Dadush, began work on the template for the online version. After many trials, when all were happy with the results, Gilda began training both staff and selected volunteers in the maintenance. Many of the Bank web pages are developed using the easy-to-master, but not very versatile, software E-publish; we chose instead to use Dreamweaver—the most popular web-design software today—which, although more difficult to learn and master, allowed for more flexibility and creativity in design (not to mention a bigger plus on a résumé!) MosaicPlus now appears on the WBFN website and with the click of an icon from the homepage, each member has access 24/7, from the comfort of their homes, not only to the current issue, but also to the online archives, which starts from the September 2008 issue.

WBFN Website FY09 saw the concretization of work done by the Website Team to restructure and rationalize the WBFN website. After implementing the final design, following the guidelines agreed upon by the team, Webmaster Gilda began training staff and selected volunteers to help with the content input and maintenance.

43

The most readily visible change in the website is the redesign of the Homepage, which provides members with direct links to many more revamped or updated, interactive and useful areas of the website such as: • • • • • • •

“About WBFN,” enhanced with video clips A Directory of WBFN Activities and Programs “Special Announcements,” including guidance during widespread crises or emergencies Volunteer and Job Opportunities WBFN Annual Report, Mosaic Archives and MosaicPlus Feature articles from Mosaic and announcements of upcoming events Forms for members to register with WBFN, update their contact information, or gain access to password-protected areas of the website • Practical information, newcomers sections, help with emergencies or family problems • WBFN calendar and photo album The WBFN website is now more functional and easier to navigate, and we are better able to update and provide information “at your fingertips.”

E-Announcements Complementing the “Special Announcements” section of the website, we continue to email members our @-a-glance e-bulletin or send simple email messages to highlight important announcements.

Posters and Flyers Other important WBFN communication tools are posters, flyers and brochures. We use these to advertise our activities and events within the Bank in an effort to reach our members through the Bank staff. As in the past, this year’s team of highly dedicated WBFN members drew on their professional skills and talents to produce unique, vibrant and attractive posters and flyers to promote our events and programs.

Backstage As Mosaic Editor and Webmaster we send a big note of thanks to all the members of the Mosaic and Website Teams: Annemarie Brink Olsen, for her deep insights; Mariel Escudero for her invaluable InDesign help; Imogen Morizet, who brought a new enthusiasm to Mosaic meetings; Asmin Sen who gave a fresh approach to our cover design. Many of our beautiful Mosaic photo pages were done by Luis Liceaga. We also owe thanks to all our other team members and writers who helped ensure a smooth publication process and also helped together with Lois Khairallah to reorganize the Mosaic: Maaike le Grand, Mary Lee Kingsley, Sandipa Thapa Basynat, Nour Loutfy, and Srijana Sharma Silwal. We owe a big thank you to

44

Rula Ghani and Anne Folliet for providing perceptive input and updates on activities; and to our Graphics Team members—Sadeem Alkadi, Pamela Chilet and Duina Reyes. We welcome our new members, Louise Aseem and Henry Kerali, and hope to get them more actively involved. Sharmishtha Kulkarni, Daniela Drapakova and, Raquel Mundaca helped define the new content of the website and its functionality; Sadeem Alkadi was invaluable with the new design. Swati Srivastava is currently working on the creation of the MosaicPlus pages. And, we are also indebted to our contributors who submitted articles and information in a timely manner and the WBFN staff, Louise, Christinne and Mimi, for their constant support and help with every publication.

45

EDUCATION AND INFORMATION Computer Classes

Every other week, mornings (9:30–12:30), one or two of the following courses was offered: Windows, MS Word (Introduction and Intermediate), MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Dreamweaver, and Adobe InDesign. Students paid a fee of $120 per course, with the exception of Windows ($80) and Intro to MS Word ($140). This year we had, on average, four students per class, but the Dreamweaver and Photoshop courses were especially well-attended and in demand. We are thinking of adding some advanced courses for Dreamweaver and Photoshop in response to interest expressed. Also noteworthy is the Internet Explorer course, which was cancelled last year but is experiencing a rebirth as many have expressed an interest in it. On the other hand, the Adobe InDesign course has been cancelled each time due to lack of interest. Thank you to all my wonderful students who attended my courses, as well as to the nevertired Mimi Besha and Christinne Secrest for their help, and a big thank you to Louise Shimizu and Rula Ghani for their continuous support and help in organizing and maintaining the courses.

Language Classes and Groups English Classes—WBFN offered two series of English Classes again this year, following the successful pilot program last year. The first series ran for 10 weeks from September through December 2008, and the second for 12 weeks from February to May 2009. Classes met on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Students paid a fee of $5/hour plus a nominal textbook/materials fee. Three classes were offered: lower level, middle level and higher level. The three teachers assessed the students before assigning them to the appropriate class. Tessa Bliss and Julie Page continued to teach the lower and higher level classes, respectively, with Sarah Brau joining them and teaching the middle level. All students were spouses or partners of World Bank staff and came from diverse professional and academic backgrounds. The reasons for attending classes varied, but ranged from a desire to progress from survival English right through to a need or desire to be competitive for entry to the U.S. work force. The classes covered the four main language skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing, and also included grammar due to popular request! At the upper level there was also a focus on accuracy and fluency. Each teacher designed her own program according to the needs of

46

her students. In addition to the English language focus of the class, students shared common experiences of their lives in Washington DC and also celebrated the differences in their cultural backgrounds. At the beginning of the February course, the three classes, along with representatives from WBFN, gathered for morning coffee so that students could become better acquainted and to enhance communication between the three classes. This was in addition to the customary end of course lunch, and students also frequently met at the end of class for lunch. The teachers greatly appreciated the invaluable support and assistance of the WBFN staff in managing registration and enrollment and facilitating the operation of the classes. Business English—In Spring 2008, WBFN identified a need among its members for English courses more directly applicable to a workplace setting. We tested this by offering a pilot session on language used in U.S. business meetings, taught by Frank Sterrett. The response was very positive. Accordingly, in September Frank began teaching a series of three courses, totaling over 60 classroom hours: 1) an overview of the full range of spoken business communication skills; 2) business presentation skills; and 3) cross-cultural negotiation skills. Methods used included case studies, group presentations and individual contributions, as well as the more traditional methods associated with language learning. This approach directed the courses towards the learner’s needs and drew on their professional and life experiences. Thus, although these were primarily language courses, participants developed and applied business skills, including problem solving, teamwork, and relationship building. These skills are easily transferable and vital to individual success in a U.S. business setting. Students paid $5/hour plus a nominal textbook fee. Feedback from participants has been very positive and WBFN has decided to offer the courses again in FY10. Advanced English/Introduction to Literature—We were a small group that met Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m. We read short stories. My students were from Madagascar, Korea, Japan and Finland. Survival English—The Survival English conversation class for beginning-to-advanced speakers of English met Wednesdays at the World Bank (11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.). Participants conversed on a chosen topic; grammar and vocabulary were explained and introduced as questions arose. Discussions were frequently very lively and centered on everyday issues involving life in participants’ countries and in Washington. Our philosophy has been that there is no such thing as a full class. We always manage to accommodate newcomers! Usually, participants feel comfortable to join the fee-paying classes after a few weeks.

47

Intermediate French—Taught by Catherine Gouarne, these classes were held on Thursdays from 10:00 a.m. to noon in Bethesda. Advanced French Conversation—This group met on Tuesdays, 10:00 a.m. to noon. Taught by Brigitte Juhel, participants read plays or novels and discussed them during the meetings. Advanced Spanish Conversation—We met every Friday from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., except during summer, at various members’ homes. We read short stories of well-known Spanish-speaking writers and numerous articles from newspapers and magazines. The nonnative Spanish speakers in our group have continued making remarkable progress in their language skills. As in previous years, our group undertook many activities. We went to theaters, movies, museums, and concerts. Our traditional Christmas party at the house of Carlos and Veronica Reyes was a great success. Our spouses were our special guests. Another important point to mention is that many members have belonged to the group for many years and are known to return to visit us even after moving away to other countries.

Financial Education WBFN offers a series of three basic courses: a two-day seminar and two computer-based e-learning courses, which are designed to introduce participants to the financial world and equip them with tools to make informed decisions about spending, saving and investment. This year a new class “Getting on with Money, was added. The WBFN office staff provides invaluable assistance for all of the financial courses. Money Matters Seminar—Our longtime financial literacy trainer, Cary Clark, presented her popular Money Matters Seminars on October 7 and 8, 2008, and again on February 24, 25 and 26, 2009, when a third day was added, open to current and former financial course participants. Topics covered included demystifying financial jargon, understanding your family’s pension plan, how the stock market works, and how to construct a portfolio appropriate for your particular circumstances. Aydin Tuncer, Vice President, Investments of the Global Wealth Management Group at Raymond James & Associates, Inc. made a presentation on how to find and evaluate a financial advisor. He also discussed the differences between the services provided by a financial planner and a financial advisor. An extensive and lively question and answer session followed. A total of 44 people attended the classes. The participants’ reviews of the classes were highly favorable, and many signed up for the online Family Budgeting Course. Getting On With Money Seminar—Cary Clark led this one-day seminar on March 23, 2009. Participants examined their attitudes towards money, looked at the impact these have on the way they manage their finances, and identified strategies to improve financial planning

48

and decision making. The 13 participants decided to continue to explore topics related to money management together online. E-Learning Courses—The Family Budgeting and Savings and Investments courses are computer-based e-learning courses. They were originally developed by Cary Clark and now retired World Bank staff member, Kathy Tanner. The courses were used as part of the program to introduce WBG staff to the net pension plan started in 1998. WBFN has continued to make these courses available to WBG spouses with the financial backing of the World Bank HR Department, the courtesy use of the World Bank Institute website, and the assistance of Cary Clark, WBG staff members, including Isabelle Bleas (now retired) and Sheila Jagannathan of WBI, and the WBFN volunteer facilitators. This year the WBFN volunteers were Sally Macartney, Djyldyz Kydyrova, Dupe Odugbemi, and Tessa Ravry. The e-learning environment replaces the traditional classroom with a “virtual” classroom online. Students can participate at any time of day from any location with Internet access. They communicate with other participants on the website’s discussion boards. Facilitators answer questions and to encourage student participation and discussions. The program has been expanding not only to include more members in country offices but also to MMMF recipients and persons working for NGOs or inter-governmental agencies around the world. Classmates can be around the corner or halfway around the world. Introduction to E-Learning—For many participants, these courses constitute their first experience with e-learning. The Introduction to e-Learning class provides the opportunity to become familiar with the course software and e-learning environment. WBFN course facilitators conduct the class in a computer training room. They introduce the software, and then the students get hands-on experience in its use. Overseas participants, who cannot attend this face-to-face class, receive an online orientation. This introductory class was held prior to each online course this year. Family Budgeting—The Family Budgeting course establishes the foundation for successful personal financial planning: setting up efficient recordkeeping, creating a budget, tracking expenses, getting out of debt, setting financial goals, determining net worth. Learning to manage household expenditures paves the way for savings and investment decisions covered in the Savings and Investments course. The five-week course contains one unit per week, with a homework assignment for each unit. Participants also discuss topics of interest in a general online forum. Everyone is encouraged to share their opinions. The Family Budgeting course was offered this year starting in October and again in March after the Money Matters seminar. A total of 38 people participated.

49

Savings and Investments—The online Savings and Investments course helps participants prepare for future financial needs, especially retirement. Participants estimate their savings requirements, investigate their family pension plan, learn about the trade-offs of putting their savings in stocks, bonds or cash and research sources of information and investment advice to manage their portfolios in a global economy. This course is organized in the same way as the Family Budgeting course and was held twice this year, once in September and again in January. There were 11 participants.

Wandering Winners Investment Club The Wandering Winners Investment Club (WWIC) was founded in June 2001 by 25 World Bank spouses. Most had attended the WBFN financial literacy seminars taught by Cary Clark. Membership at the WWIC has proven to be an enriching experience that improves financial awareness, stock market savvy and provides an opportunity to make new friends. WWIC meets the second Wednesday of the month from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the World Bank. WWIC is registered with the National Association of Investors Corporation (NAIC). It operates under a set of bylaws, holds a monthly official meeting plus optional weekly study group sessions, conducts intense stock research, endeavors to maintain a balanced and profitable portfolio, has a broker, and attracts first class guest speakers. 2008 was a challenging year for the Wandering Winners Investment Club. The severe economic downturn impacted everyone in some way, including the WWIC and its portfolio. Fortunately, WWIC members were able to collectively maintain a positive attitude, and to learn a lot about the Global Economy and its impact on the Global Markets. We also grew in our understanding of the importance of knowing when to sell stocks, and we continued to learn about “Dollar Cost Averaging” as an investment strategy. The club held very lively and interesting meetings. Members researched and made presentations on the telecommunications sector, as well as on the following companies: Fannie Mae, Freddy Mac, IPO VISA (V), Veolia (VE), Consolidated Water Desalinization (CWCO), CIA Saneamiento Basico Estado (SBS), Smuckers (SJM) and Google (GOOG). We also benefited greatly from the knowledge and perspectives of excellent guest speakers: • Mr. Alfonso Guerra, Senior Advisor to Executive Director, IMF: “The Global Economy Perspective 2008” • Mr. William E. Leffinwell, Jr., Vice-president of Fiduciary Investment Management International: “Impact of the Bailout on the U.S. Economy”

50

• Mr. Mako Parker, Senior Program Manager, Office of the Chief Economist, American Bankers Association World-Class Solutions, Leadership and Advocacy: “The Current Banking and Economic Environment” • Aydin Tuncer, Vice-President and Investment Wealth Management Specialist at The Global Wealth Management Group Raymond James & Associates: “Economic Outlook for 2009” The Club follows NAIC guidelines and WWIC Partners are NAIC members. Members receive the NAIC magazine Better Investing and have access to the NAIC website at www. better-investing.org. All the members of the WWIC deserve recognition for their hard work and perseverance in what has been the most difficult economic year for this club. The WWIC keeps faithful to its original agreement: “The purpose of the partnership is to benefit partners educationally and financially, by investing in securities, while employing fundamental principles and techniques of sound investment practices.” Special thanks to the WWIC 2008 Officers: President, Delia Reyes; Vice-President and Stocks Gains Keeper, Susan Steel; Treasurer, Martine de Lusignan, and Vice-Treasurer, Patricia Caicedo; Secretary, Sonja Kuhn; Auditor, Sabine Keinath; Parliamentarian, Sally Macartney; and for updating the club’s archives—Mari Parker and Felicia Taylor-Lewis. Many thanks also to Jeanne Haji for guiding the Wednesday Mini-Meetings. WWIC was pleased to welcome the following new members this year: Isabelle Tausch, Djyldyz Kydyrova and Tessa Ravry. And, we bid fond goodbyes to Rosa Lia Troch and Preeti Chandramani. New members are always welcome. We encourage those who are interested to come and observe our meetings. Officers for 2009: President, Lois Khairallah; President-Elect (Vice President), Tessa Ravry; Treasurer, Patricia Caicedo; Assistant Treasurer, Djyldyz Kydyrova; Auditors, Sabine Keinath, Sally Macartney, Geeta Chandrasekar (in training); Secretary, Brinda Dayal Prakash; Assistant Secretary, Isabelle Tausch; Parliamentarian, Sally Macartney; Education Officers, Jeanne Haji, Martine de Lusigan, and Delia Reyes; and Archivist, Mari Parker.

Information Seminars Since 1985, these seminars, arranged by Monika Sergo, have been providing information geared to help WBG families better understand how U.S. laws and WBG regulations apply in areas where foresight and careful planning can significantly influence the outcome of various difficult situations. The seminars focus on topics such as estate law, wills, taxes, family law, immigration and WBG benefits. All seminars were well attended and much appreciated.

51

Attendees benefited greatly by having this opportunity to get valuable and reliable information and clear answers to their many questions presented to our experienced and professional guest speakers on a range of important issues. The following seminars were offered in FY09: • • • • • • • •

Estate Planning in the U.S.: How to be prepared in the event of a family crisis Estate Tax in the U.S. Family Law in the U.S.: Your rights and responsibilities Work Authorization for Spouses with G-4 Visas U.S. Income Tax: Preparing and paying How to Qualify for Permanent Resident Status in the U.S. Retirement: Why careful planning ahead is so crucial World Bank Benefits: What you need to know

52

PARENTS AND TOTS Groups meet weekly in various venues, providing much-needed time and space for parents and children to socialize and find a sense of belonging: an invaluable service to WBFN members, and fun for their children, too.

Maryland (MD) Parents & Tots The MD Parents & Tots is a playgroup for WBG and IMF spouses and their young children (typically 0–5 years old). Stay-at-home parents chat with other grown-ups over a cup of coffee and the children try out someone else’s toys. Currently we meet Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to noon, and on average five families attend each gathering. Generally, a member hosts the playgroup at her/his home, but occasionally we go out to a puppet show, a playground or for another child-friendly activity. In addition, we try to meet one evening every two months, without the children, for a “night out” at a local restaurant. In the past year, we have welcomed several new members as well as sadly said goodbye to others who have left the area. It’s been an especially busy year with lots of younger siblings joining the fun. Most of our gatherings this year have been at members’ homes, with only a few outings to either a playground or a nature center. The children have been doing a good job of sharing their toys, and the adults have been able to have a few half-finished conversations about life in DC. As a special activity in the past year, we successfully organized a “postholidays” Saturday brunch for the whole family in February. For the third year now, we have been using Yahoo! Groups and it has proven to be an efficient way of organizing ourselves. Besides using it to do all of our scheduling, we have continued to share information via its various functions about items of interest to our group members. Those interested in joining just need their name and spouse’s UPI number at hand for a semiquick approval and visit: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BankFundKids/

Virginia (VA) Parents & Tots VA Parents & Tots is a playgroup for WBG and IMF parents and their children, from newborns to about age four. It is a great way to connect with other families in the same stage of life and similar living circumstances. We share information, and encourage and support one another as we are raising our precious little ones in this unique international environment with its joys and challenges. Meanwhile the children enjoy playing and forming their first friendships.

53

Our group gets together every Tuesday, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. We mostly meet at each other’s homes, but when the weather allows, also at parks, playgrounds, splash grounds or swimming pools. On average, about five mothers and their children are at each meeting. Our highlights this year included a baby shower and welcoming a newborn, as well as celebrating our children’s birthdays and a Halloween party. We welcomed new families and also had to say goodbye to others who moved on to school or who moved away. We have also started a “Moms Only Evening” on the first Friday of the month. This has been a wonderful way to get to know each other even better as we enjoy relaxed uninterrupted conversation over dessert. It is also a way to stay in touch with people who are no longer able to attend the weekly morning meetings. I would like to take this opportunity to THANK all the wonderful members of this group for all their effort and enthusiasm in making our playgroup work so well. We always welcome new families and hope they will discover how nice it is to be part of a greater international community.

DC Mothers & Tots We are parents from around the world with children between zero and five years of age. Most of us (or our partners) work for the WBG or IMF. But we are not exclusively linked to these organizations and are open to others who want to join us. We are currently trying to revitalize this great forum and welcome new parents to become part of our group. They can sign up on our yahoo group website or contact [email protected]. We usually meet one afternoon a week. Our get-togethers are focused on fun activities for the kids—either at a playground, pool, the zoo or somebody’s house. All members are asked to get engaged and initiate a playdate as a “host” every now and then. In the past, we also had a “moms’ night out” at one of the numerous restaurants. They always were a big success! The commitment of all is essential for the success of the group.

Spanish Maryland (MD) Parents and Tots The Spanish MD Parents & Tots playgroup is a place where moms bond and share experiences about being both a mom and a woman. Our playgroup sessions are undemanding and simple. We aim at having an entertaining and enjoyable time with the kids. I lead the sessions with some core activity like singing songs or playing musical instruments and try to introduce a theme at every session. I plan songs and rhymes to complement the theme, so that they are all components of the central idea, be it animals or colors, etc. We use traditional instruments like maracas, drums, egg shakers, casta-

54

nets, and bells. I try to incorporate color into every session by using scarves and parachutes as we play and sing. I also introduce something new at every session to enhance the playgroup experience. It is so much fun for both the kids and us. Once the activity is done, we socialize and have some light snacks and beverages. The playgroup provides us with invaluable time to make friendships and is a helpful support system for moms. The moms in our playgroup are varied, ranging in age from 28 to 40. We have stay-at-home moms and working moms—a pediatrician, a biologist, a lawyer, a mathematician and a student, to name a few. We have moms from Brazil, Costa Rica, Peru, Nicaragua, Argentina, Chile and Spain. Yet, all of us want the same thing: fun-time for our kids and a break from routine. One of the playgroup’s goals is to create an environment where children can develop Spanish skills. One of the fears is that our children may increasingly lose their home language and eventually only understand it, and not be able to speak it or write it fluently. This playgroup attempts to take a first cut at deepening the children’s relationship with a language different from the one they will mostly hear while watching educational videos (e.g. Baby Einstein) or listening to baby lullabies. It’s quite amazing to see how much the children have developed in many areas. They know the dynamics of the group, they are looking forward to the songs, and they have already memorized movements. In other words, they are learning through playing and singing. I believe that a playgroup acts as an extended family for a new mom and creates a healthy and nurturing environment for both the moms and kids.

55

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ACTIVITIES Bike Tour

On a sunny Friday morning in mid April, seven spouses met at a metro station up a hill in Arlington to explore the back roads during one of the most beautiful seasons Virginia has to offer: tulips, cherry trees, gardens full in bloom, cute little wooden white houses with front yards, and then steep tree-shadowed valleys with gurgling creeks. “It’s just like in the movies!” commented a spouse. They were not all pro’s; a Mexican spouse had just dusted off her old bike and had not checked the 100% state of her brakes and tires, or gears. Despite the mostly downhill route, she really had a tough job to get to the finish. Her conclusion? She decided to buy four new bikes for the whole family! Halfway, the group stopped to have a picnic at one of the picnic tables along the route, with brown bag lunches they had brought, and to get to know each other a little bit better. From there the route stretched along the little stream of Four Mile Run Bike Trail and then the broad waters of the Potomac, where runners, plane spotters and other walkers had to share the sunny trail. The group decided to keep in touch and meet up for later tours in autumn. The goal is not to race, but to explore new neighborhoods and meet up with other spouses at a leisurely pace, meanwhile savoring the pleasures of the true independent biker: birds all around, fresh air, free-of-charge first class parking facilities whenever and wherever you want and healthy exercise—all in one!

Book Groups African Book Group—The African Book Group meets every third Monday of the month, with a hiatus from July to August. Meetings take place in the homes of the participants. We enjoy tea or coffee with sweet and savory accompaniments before getting down to discussions of the books. We try to read books from authors from all areas of Africa. In December, we chose to go to Strathmore Music Center to listen to the fabulous Soweto Gospel Choir, an outing that included our husbands. January’s book club was cancelled due to insufficient members able to attend. We will finish the year with our June potluck luncheon combined with the English Book Group. The books we read this year between September 2008 and June 2009 were: • • • •

The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif When a Crocodile Eats the Sun by Peter Godwin The Translator: A Tribesman’s Memoir of Darfur by Daoud Hari So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba

56

• Anthills of the Savannah by Chinua Achebe • A Bend in the River by VS Naipaul • The House at Sugar Beach: In Search of a Lost African Childhood by Helene Cooper English Book Group—The English Book Group is coordinated by Zane Stuggins and Myra Jacobs. We are growing and have about 30 members in all, with about 15, often more, present at any given meeting. Good friendships have developed among our members, and the group provides support and encouragement in times of need. New members settle in easily, as we offer a warm welcome to anyone who enjoys reading and discussing books. English need not be your native tongue; indeed, it is not for most in our group. We take turns hosting meetings on the fourth Wednesday of every month from September to June. Meetings include an hour’s socializing over brunch, followed by an hour of book discussion. We represent many different nationalities and diverse cultural backgrounds, and so discussions tend to be lively, drawing on our varied life experiences and viewpoints. We make sure that everyone’s voice is heard, no matter how many are present. Members suggest titles for reading: these cover recently released novels, classics, non-fiction, and memoirs, including translations into English. Between May 1, 2008 and April 30, 2009 we read the following books: • The Gathering by Anne Enright • Journey Across the Four Seas: A Chinese Woman’s Search for Home by Veronica Li • The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell • The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier • Arthur & George by Julian Barnes • The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery • Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones • The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz • The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga • March by Geraldine Brooks Many thanks to Martina Luzuriaga, Vim Maguire, Nandini Lal, Vasso Maniatis, Zane Stuggins, Myra Jacobs, Sabine Tourreilles, Mercedes Irigoyen, Silvia Domenge, and Inga Luhde, for hosting our meetings during the past year. Our group arranges outings, especially those relevant to our shared readings and individual member initiatives. This year we saw The Duchess film (based on a book the group read), War Child, a moving documentary about a Sudanese former child-soldier, directed by a local filmmaker friend of our member Nancy LeBaron, and also The Shakespeare Theatre’s Twelfth

57

Night (accompanied by family members). On occasion, we get together for lunch and try out a new restaurant. Myra Jacobs and her husband Michael Fuchs once again graciously hosted our December potluck dinner, where our spouses joined us for a lovely evening of delicious food and interesting conversation. For the third year in a row, we joined forces with the African Literature Group for another glorious potluck in June 2008 hosted by Vim Maguire. Author Veronica Li, a former World Bank employee, joined us for discussion of her fascinating account of her mother’s search for a better life, Journey Across the Four Seas. At the 2009 June potluck, combined with the African Book Group, Willem Zyip will be our guest, talking to us about his yearlong trip sailing across the Atlantic, solo. French Book Group—We meet the third Friday of every month to discuss a book chosen by the group. The books are from Francophone authors and the discussion is led in French, although one does not need to be a native French speaker to participate. The group is open to newcomers. Everyone has the opportunity to express feelings and opinions about the book in an open-minded atmosphere. Surely, the nice cup of tea or coffee provided by the host is part of this very friendly atmosphere! All our participants deserve thanks for their interest in the books we read and their vivid participation. And, a very special thanks goes to all the hosts who opened their homes so kindly. Between October 2008 and June 2009 we read the following books: • • • • • • • • •

Et si c’etait vrai by Marc Levy Ensemble, c’est tout by Anna Gavalda La chambre des officiers by Marc Dugain Gourmandises by Muriel Barbery Miraculée by Immaculée Ilibagiza Voyageuse de nuit by Francoise Chandernagor Une saison avec Marcel Proust by Rene Peter Syngue Sabour - La Pierre de Patience by Atiq Rahini Seraphine by Francoise Cloarec

German Book Group—We meet every third Wednesday of the month. Our members take turns to host the event. We concentrate on reading contemporary German literature from German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland); we also read and discuss contemporary books from other European countries that have been translated into German. In every session, we discuss a number of different books, since we order only one copy of the

58

books to be discussed during the year. Our discussions usually last two hours and are followed by a luncheon provided by the host. Last year, one morning was dedicated to viewing a German video dealing with the life and times of Alexander von Humboldt. His personality and life was the center of a book we had read during the previous months.

Bridge Friday Morning Duplicate Bridge—We get together at different members’ homes on Friday mornings, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Representing a wide range of nationalities, we play at the intermediate level. Although the total strength of the group is around 25, we usually have three or four tables. While the bridge is serious it is a very relaxed and friendly atmosphere with socializing and snacking between rounds, not to mention the support system we provide each other. We welcome new members any time. Another Duplicate Bridge Group meets the third Wednesday of every month from 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Get-Togethers Except for July and August, every month two members open their houses in Maryland and DC or Virginia for a friendly coffee and some light snacks. These Get-Togethers are a meeting point for both newcomers and those who have been in the area for some time, or are returning members. As our motto goes, it is the perfect opportunity to make new friends and meet old friends. It is especially the mix that makes these venues so attractive, because they give the incentive to join in a cultural activity, express concerns on a topic, ask others about their opinion about a certain doctor, etc. From September 2008 through June 2009, 161 WBFN members attended the Get-Togethers: 14 in September, 20 in October, 10 in November, 15 in December, 11 in January, 15 in February, 19 in March, 10 in April, 22 in May, and 25 in June.

International Cuisine A culinary demonstration is presented once a month on a Friday. A different theme is proposed for each meeting, and people are invited to join us around 11:00 a.m. Copies of the recipes are provided to the attendees. A participation fee of $15 is required. Many thanks go to all the participants, especially the hosts who welcomed us and shared their culinary knowledge and traditions with us. We had a first meeting at Catherine Labaste’s house on October 12 to discuss the ideas for this culinary year.

59

The subsequent meetings featured: • Italy: Catherine Labaste demonstrated Petites Cuillères Italiennes. The menu consisted of eggplants with Parmigiano, pasta with ricotta and pesto, pasta with ricotta and dried tomatoes, polenta and shrimps, rosemary leeks and crab, and for dessert, limoncello baba and whipped cream and balsamic strawberries. Each dish was presented on a small spoon. (Nov 14) • Poland: We had an exquisite lunch based on Polish cuisine, and presented by Helen Podolske at her house. The menu consisted of barcz (beet soup), pierogi (potato and cheese) and fish in horseradish sauce with vegetables. (Dec 12) • Brazil: Solange Amorelli demonstrated Brazilian cuisine at her home. She shared with us a famous Bahian fish dish, Moqueca Fish and a passion fruit tiramisu for dessert. (Jan 30) • France: We had a demonstration of a typical French winter meal, Raclette-Pierrade, followed by a mango tiramisu. Isabelle Tausch was the host. (Feb 27) • Soufflé: We had a demonstration of how to make a perfect soufflé. Catherine Labaste hosted us. The menu consisted of soufflé with cheese, soufflé with crab and tarragon, soufflé with potato, and for dessert, soufflé with chocolate and soufflé with vanilla. (Mar 27) • Morocco: Kawtar Khenejer will host a Moroccan cuisine demonstration at her house. The menu consists of flan with eggplant, tajine chicken with lemon, tajine beef with prunes and almonds, and for dessert, sesame almond cookies with fruit. (April 24) • Germany: Carla Vetter will demonstrate how to cook asparagus with ham, stuffed beef rolls with homemade spaetzle, and for dessert, rolled raspberry cake with cream. (May 8) • Senegal: We will feature an exotic menu of Senegalese cuisine, presented by Madina Seydi: sambos (with meat), chicken yassa, thiebou dieun (fish with rice and vegetables), and for dessert, thialery small cakes of millet four with yogurt). (June 5)

International Cultural Group The International Cultural Group meets whenever an educational or culturally interesting place, activity or exhibition is identified. The dates for meetings are not fixed, and the number of events per year is also flexible. During the past year, the International Cultural Group events were: • Exhibition of Imperial Muraqqa Albums: The albums were on loan from the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, Ireland at the Sackler Gallery. Our group of 20 was led by Barbara Diamond, curator of the exhibition. (June 2008)

60

• Garden and Cosmos–The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur: The exhibition displayed Indian miniature paintings very rich in detail and color. Paintings reflected stories that viewers could easily relate to. We had 22 persons on the tour. (November 2008) • Meridian International Center’s Art for Cultural Diplomacy Exhibition: The exhibition showed the paintings of Nikolai Timkov, a Russian painter, who created landscapes with immediacy, intensity, and profound reflection. Dr. Curtis Sandberg, Vice President for the Arts at the Meridian International Center, led the tour. Including one retired gentleman, 22 members attended. (March 2009) • We have organized a tour of Dutch Cityscapes from 17th Century Holland for Tuesday April 14 at the National Gallery of Art. The tour number is limited to 15 persons. • The May meeting will be: Art Enables: Outsider Art Inside the Beltway. The International Cultural Group seizes the opportunity to sample some of the unique cultural experiences available to those who live in the greater DC area. A disappointing aspect of the year’s activities was the very low interest in the programs shown by new WBFN members.

News Discussion Group This group, coordinated by Phi Fostvedt, meets the third Tuesday of the month from 10:30 a.m. to noon in a member’s home to enjoy lively discussion on current topics based on news articles, columns, radio commentaries, etc. New members are welcome to join the group.

Quilting Group Following last year’s very successful fundraising with the handmade quilt “Sunshine from Africa,” the WBFN Quilting group met throughout 2008–2009, working together on a new group project, this time a sampler quilt for a twin bed initially baptized “Recession.” A choice of 16 pieces of cotton materials, in hues of blues, reds and beiges, with various patterns and shades from dark to light, was initially made. Then each member of the quilting group, using a different block pattern, hand stitched at least one 12” square, choosing among 13 of the 16 available materials for her pallet of colors. Fifteen “patchwork” squares were then sewn together in a diamond pattern with intermediate “lozenges” in two other lighter beige colors, the lot then framed by a border of “geese” made from the by then 15 different available materials, backed and framed by a dark brown 16th color. The resulting patchwork was then “sandwiched” with a middle batting material and the dark brown back using big basting stitches. We are now meeting once a week to hand “quilt” our creation using geometric shapes. We are hoping to finish the work, including six cushions using the remaining patchwork squares, by the end of May 2009.

61

Over a three-day period in March, during the lunch hours, we had the great pleasure of showing off our “work in progress” and our expertise by quilting around a table during the 2009 WBFN Annual Exhibits in the Atrium. We attracted a lot of interest, many questions were asked, many were surprised and even amazed that we do it all by hand, and several were interested in buying the quilts shown and/or raffle tickets for the one in progress. We plan to dedicate the money earned by our new quilt (over $2,000) again to the House of Ruth, a local Washington DC charity helping women and children in need. The making of the quilt is, in fact, a fil conducteur, or “binding thread” for our group to get together. During the process of hand sewing and quilting, one is forced to relax and “let go” to do it right—a perfect way to loosen up and enjoy the moment; a form of yoga. And once we are relaxed around the table, tongues loosen and all sorts of great ideas, different experiences, hints, tips, advice, jokes good and bad, come out. Some of us have been in the U.S. for decades, some of us have just arrived; all of us benefit from the experiences and know-how obtained from each other. Following are the ladies who contributed to making the FY09 quilt for the House of Ruth: Patricia Garcia, Ivonne Marchant, Sophie Sinmao, Jyoti Chitale, Isabelle Tausch, Sowmya Sundararaman, Stefanie Borchert, Gabriele Hofmann, Chantale Holzmann, Anja Gutschera, Harriet Kelman, Junjuan Yang, Liz Hemming, Sang Yu Sang, and Vivienne Mordasini.

WBFN Gallery All WBFN members, immediate relations, spouses/partners, and parents of long-term consultants are welcome to display their creations in the WBFN Conference Room, H2-201. We enjoy a large variety of work, including fine arts, jewelry, photography, ceramics, drawings, cloth and textiles. Exhibits hang for one month or more. The artist can invite friends to visit the gallery during the exhibit, and may promote or sell the artwork during special events like receptions. The artists are allowed and encouraged to have an opening reception. The exhibits are publicized in Mosaic and through flyers posted around the Bank. In November and December 2008, the WBFN Gallery exhibited paintings by Fatima Farazana. The exhibit, “Symphony of Nature,” was dedicated to her deceased parents who were the center of her inspiration and admiration. Fatima started her artistic training in Dhaka Art institute, and after leaving Bangladesh attended classes in Interior Design in the U.S. The paintings are an impressive observation of the beauty and the assortment colors of Nature, Fatima uses mainly oil paintings and some pieces of work are inspired and related to her involvement with interior design.

62

From Early January up to March 2009, the WBFN Gallery displayed an interesting variety of paintings and sculptures by Nathalie Barthes-Pouliquen. Nathalie’s work “A Voyage in Asia” is a true reflection of her migrations from the heart of Central Europe to the British Isles, from the Seine of the impressionists to the boundaries of Asia and the New World. From April to June, the WBFN Gallery featured “Ronya Cawe Min,” an exhibit of photography by Asmin Sen. “Ronya Cawe Min” means “light of my eye” in her native language, Kurdish. Asmin feels she exists on the boundaries somewhere between East and West as a female, as a mother, as an architect, and as an artist…she wishes to share some moments of life from her observation, first with her 15-month-old beautiful daughter Ronya, and with anyone who loves to have a voyage in dreamful moments.

63

TEEN PROGRAMS

This year again, WBFN organized a Teen Summer Program. The 3-week program for WBG teens, held July 1–17, 2008, was expanded to include teens from the IADB and aimed to increase the teens’ knowledge of and interest in the functions and roles of the WBG and other international institutions. Altogether 30 teens participated. The teens learned about the history of the World Bank, visited the Trading Floor, and attended presentations by Bank staff on security, communications and HIV/AIDS, including how they could get involved in the fight to increase awareness of the disease. At the Office of Institutional Integrity, they played a game to test their observational skills and saw pictures of some of the unfulfilled government projects that the Office had investigated in the past. And at WBFN, they attended a stimulating presentation on financial literacy and budgeting by WBFN member Dupe Odugbemi, wrote articles for Mosaic and helped sort books at the Book Project. The teens also visited the IADB three times, where they learned about the IADB programs in the infrastructure and environment sector and were given an overview of the IADB’s youth programs and urged to get involved. They even got to play at being the Board of Directors of the organization (sitting in their chairs, no less!). And, they had the chance to have their pictures taken with the President of the World Bank, Mr. Robert Zoellick, and the President of the IADB, Mr. Luis Moreno. Our thanks go to Jo Bartlett and her team of eager volunteers who led the program and gave their time and effort to make it as entertaining and engaging as possible. A team of volunteers, led by Miren Fernandez and Georgine Ahmad, has been working on plans for the Teen Summer Program scheduled for July 2009. The program will be held jointly with the spouse associations of the IMF and IADB, and, so far, 31 teens, children of staff in the three organizations, have been accepted to the program.

64

FAMILY & PERSONAL SUPPORT

By helping members know their resources, WBFN provides them with the tools to function optimally in their new environment. Nevertheless, problems may occur, and WBFN is there to support and guide them through the crisis.

WELCOMING NEW FAMILIES

Embracing and supporting the families of the WBG is the mission of the WBFN. Our primary goal is to help families relocating around the world settle happily into a new environment. Our programs and publications are filled with information to raise members’ awareness of their rights, benefits, responsibilities and resources. These range from the Spouse/Partner Orientation Program to the Information Seminars to the toolkit Planning Makes a Difference. Nevertheless, sometimes problems are simmering under the surface, or come to a head, and need to be addressed. WBFN sees its role as guiding its members to the various resources available to help resolve the issues.

Surviving Culture Shock Workshop Transitions are never easy. Bank families who are moving from one country to the other have to cope with a variety of challenges. Through the “Surviving Culture Shock Workshop” (formerly “Multicultural Arrivals Workshop”) WBFN provides a forum for members to realize that what they are experiencing is normal and guide them in navigating their transition. This program is not only for new arrivals; members can attend at any point in time and greatly benefit from it. Facilitators lead the discussion on the challenges WBG spouses/partners face, including the loss and gains involved in moving from country to country and in changing cultures, as well as the psychological aspects of moving, the process of change, and American values and culture. Representatives from WBFN speak about the opportunities offered by WBFN to attendees. This year, Nancy LeBaron, Yvonne Quahe and Kate Lu co-facilitated the workshops, with support assistance provided by Mimi Besha. Volunteer Daniela Drapakova contributed by personally contacting newcomers and inviting them to attend the workshops. Rula Ghani and Anne Folliet represented WBFN at the workshops. Four workshops were offered in the period under review, with a total of 54 participants: 12 participated in the workshop of June 9, 2008; 12 on September 25, 2008; 8 on February 9, 2009; and 22 on June 8, 2009. Those attending felt that the greatest benefit was the realization that they are not alone and that others are facing the same challenges. The workshops provided an opportunity to meet new people, and participants were encouraged to exchange contact details, as this could be a starting point for building a new support group. Feedback from participants indicated that aspects of American culture were especially challenging, and they appreciated a segment of the workshop which specifically addresses American values and culture.

68

Emergency Preparedness The World Bank Group has always had a system in place to respond to emergencies. In the past few years, given the increasing security concerns in the world, this system has evolved from a list of phone numbers to call to a thorough plan detailing what mechanisms will be triggered in case of a major calamity so that the continued functioning of the Bank is ensured and the needs of staff and their families are met. During FY08, WBFN had been increasingly involved in the emergency preparedness discussions and the mock-up exercises. Our members eagerly took part in both, and we were thus able to represent the concerns of Bank families. We hope that our observations and recommendations, especially regarding the setup of Family Assistance Centers, were taken into account. In FY09, WBFN’s interest in being part of the emergency preparedness activities at the Bank remained strong. On February 19, 2009, both the president and the president-elect of WBFN took part in a workshop that was held off-site in Tyson’s Corner. Simulations of emergency scenarios were acted out, most of them involving the process of setting up a Family Assistance Center. By the end of the exercise, there was a consensus among the participants that WBFN should be integrated in the process and that a representative of WBFN should be included in the team running the Family Assistance Center. WBFN’s own annual Emergency Preparedness Workshop was held on April 21, 2009. Geremie Sawadogo (Senior Human Resources Officer, HRSNW), who was in charge of developing a part of the Bank’s emergency preparedness program when he was HRSGM Program Manager, led the discussion. Unfortunately, Iouri Bairatchnyi, who is replacing him now in these functions, was unable to attend. About 25 newcomers took part and found the discussion very helpful. A group of six or seven was willing to be part of a WBFN emergency preparedness team that would follow up on these matters during the year. A few days later, the rising concerns regarding the Swine Flu underscored the need to have such a team.

Family Consultation Service Bank families are resilient. For them, home is in many places. They are citizens of the globe. However, it can be distressing to be separated from family members and friends and colleagues—wherever they may be. The Family Consultation Service (FCS) is one of the many resources provided by the World Bank Group to assist WBG families to settle in the Washington area successfully. For a number of years, the WBG has offered families free-of-charge confidential short-term counseling, problem solving support and referral information through the FCS. This service

69

is provided by the counseling firm COPE, Inc. FCS is not intended to be a long-term service, but is a starting point for resolving a problem. Counselors look for the strengths of the person, and these strengths guide family members to their own solutions, with the assistance of the counselor. The majority of people who contact FCS want help with personal or domestic concerns. Many spouses/partners experience a feeling of loss at having had to give up work that was so meaningful to them before coming to be with the Bank. Getting reestablished professionally is not easy to do, and the complications of finding work in the U.S. continue to trouble many spouses. Also, parents may be bewildered by the local school system. When children cannot adapt to a new school, the entire family experiences the added stress of an unhappy child. FCS counselors coach parents to speak to school officials about their children. Often, the relationship between parents is tested by these changes. A third party, an FCS counselor, can intervene and support communication in a helpful way. FCS counselors try to be sensitive to cultural differences and to support helpful cultural beliefs. They are prepared to call upon counselors from other cultures to assure cultural sensitivity and culture-specific ways of problem solving. They can also refer individuals to professionals who speak languages other than English. FCS’s phone number (202-628-5104) appears in each issue of the WBFN Mosaic. Phone contact with FCS is possible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Appointments can be made within three days. COPE/FCS provides a separate office at Metro Center, 12th and G Streets, for the use of spouses who wish to meet with the FCS counselor away from the Bank. Dr. Helene King and two of her FCS staff, Cece Dorough and Malahat Baig-Amin, also work closely with the WBG’s Domestic Abuse Prevention Coordinator, Elizabeth Legrain, to provide free-of-charge, confidential emergency assistance in domestic abuse cases via the HUB (202-628-2288).

70

SPOUSE ISSUES: A SPECIAL REPORT

For many years, domestic abuse was a taboo subject. Some believed the myth that, unless physical battery was involved, no abuse existed. Others just blamed the victims. We’ve come a long way since then!

ROSA LIA TROCH & CHANTALE HOLZMANN

Spouse Issues Committee The Spouse Issues Committee got its name in 1996, an outgrowth of our “Pension Rights on Divorce” initiative formed in 1993 as a resource for Bank spouses and staff facing marital breakup. The name of today’s Committee reflects the position that these issues pertain to all WBG spouses/partners and staff, not just those facing divorce. Due largely to the determined lobbying of our volunteers, themselves spouses, the WBG altered its Staff Retirement Plan, as of January 2, 1995, to “permit payments…for the support of divorced or legally separated spouses of retired Plan participants,” becoming the first international organization to recognize U.S. court orders enforcing pension distributions to staff spouses. WBFN’s Spouse Issues Committee continues to focus on lobbying for family-friendly policies and aims to help members in need get the appropriate access to information and to resources in close collaboration with the Bank’s Human Resources Domestic Abuse (DA) Prevention Coordinator Elizabeth Legrain. With two of their champions and former WBFN presidents, Rosa Lia Troch and Chantale Holzmann, leaving headquarters after a decade of lobbying and fighting for victims of abuse, WBFN Spouse Issues Committee thought it was appropriate to review here the recommendations they provided in 2003 to the then WBG President, Mr. James Wolfensohn, and to assess the progress made and underline the pending challenges.

2003 Recommendations 1. Provide some free legal assistance to victims Spouses continue to be disadvantaged in court, as most do not have the means to pay for litigation. Pro bono services are almost impossible to get for WBG spouses, as they are “perceived” by the community as being wealthy, which they are not. Being on G4 visas, they also are not eligible for many free social services available to U.S. citizens. Some of the victims even have to live in shelters with their children while waiting for the abuser to pay family support. WBFN and the DA Prevention Coordinator continue to explore options, but due to the recession, the pro bono avenue does not look bright. One positive outcome is that since 2005 each victim of abuse can receive up to US$7,500 from the HUB, an amount directly paid to the attorneys, so that victims can sort out their chances of staying in the country if they choose to do so. Furthermore, the World Bank has contracted with DV LEAP, a domestic violence specialists and lawyers group that advises victims’ attorneys in the maze of DA legal battles. DV LEAP, affiliated with George Washington Law School, provides professional DV legal consults with victims of abuse regarding their

74

legal situation and needs relating specifically to family law and protection order issues. They help victims to retain particular DV knowledgeable attorneys, including communicating with said attorneys to assist in placing the case. If necessary, they will provide technical assistance (consultation) with victims’ attorneys to assist them in adequately addressing the abuse issues, including suggesting legal authorities and resources. Currently, three national experts work on the program. DV LEAP is updating a referral list of DV attorneys in the tri-state area that it developed in January 2008 to include both pro bono and fee charging attorneys. The attorneys on the list have reasonable expertise in domestic violence as well as family law. Legal fees remain a huge burden for victims, and abusers know how to play with the legal system, to let the issue drag at length, leaving their victim destitute, even after the divorce has been settled. Sadly, a divorce does not stop the abuse; in many cases it reinforces it. Collaborative Divorce, a relatively new legal process in the U.S. for a legal separation or divorce, costs much less when both parties agree to this form of litigation. Nonetheless, in any level of abuse or conflict, it is strongly discouraged. 2. Identify a champion and issue a strong corporate statement WBFN wants to thank Managing Director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for her strong appearance in the WBG October 2008 event to promote DA awareness. Together with HR VP Hasan Tuluy, she denounced the assumption that the WBG was immune to the issue and recommended that measures be taken. Her speech addressed numbers of cases in past years, what the Bank could be doing better, and accelerated efforts to amend Staff rules...Short of calling Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala a DA champion, WBFN wants to thank her for her commitment which brought an immediate response within the institution. Since January 2009, HR has moved the DA Prevention program from HRSGM, Global Mobility, to HRSCO, Corporate Operations, supervised by Fons Marcelis. This strategic move by VPHR is to elevate the program to be managed by a Senior HR officer. Fons is motivated to work with the Task Force to move the program forward. 3. Amend Ethics Code & SR 8.01 As per the 1998 Policy, the World Bank had adopted procedures designed to ensure (a) provision of pertinent information relating to salary and benefits to a spouse, even if the partnered staff member blocks such access, and (b) greater compliance with spousal- and child-support obligations.

75

The two changes to that 1998 Policy are: 1) A shortening of the time period—from thirty calendar days to five business days—for a staff member to provide the WBG with evidence of compliance with his or her personal legal obligation as referenced in the 1998 Policy. The time period starts on the date that the staff member is contacted by the Office of Ethics and Business Conduct. In the amended 1998 Policy, the staff member must have: • Provided the salary and/or benefits information as requested by court order or request from a judicial or civil authority in the context of divorce or child support, or • Paid spousal or child support as per the court order. This change was precipitated by cases where spouses suffered disastrous consequences (including, in some cases, eviction) due simply to the 30-day period allowed for the staff member to respond and meet his or her personal legal obligations, especially with respect to spousal and child support. 2) The second change addresses staff members who repeatedly fail to make court-ordered spousal or child support payments. If the WBG receives a second or subsequent court order for the payment of spousal or child support regarding the same staff member, or receives a complaint (together with the court order) about a late or partial payment for spousal or child support already ordered by a court, the Office of Ethics and Business Conduct will contact the staff member and give the staff member three business days to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Office of Ethics and Business Conduct that he/she has complied with the court order. Otherwise, the Bank Group will authorize the deductions for spousal or child support from the staff member’s salary in accordance with the court order. 4. Provide staff and spouse education: the WBG Domestic Abuse Awareness Program Education of staff and families is a key ingredient in preventing the escalation of domestic abuse. WBFN is very grateful to Elizabeth Legrain, the DA Prevention Coordinator, for putting up many seminars and presentations to serve that purpose. This year’s seminars were: “Third Culture Kids” (Dennis Hunt), “Emotions Friend or Foe” (Patricia McGraw), “Raising Children Between Two Cultures” (Pilar Alfaro-Palacio), and “Building Healthy Relationships” (Claudia Niemtzoff). All were well attended and were topics which did not contain the deterrent word “abuse” but whose contents served to illustrate various situations in which a person loses self esteem and the results of it. On October 1, 2008, Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright gave the keynote speech to launch DV Awareness Month in the U.S. Batalan Drums captivated the crowd as they performed in advance of the session. The Info Shop organized this well-attended event with

76

a capacity crowd of 600 in the World Bank Preston Auditorium, open to outside media. Dr. Albright called on the audience and on all of society to recognize and prevent the problem. An important step in curbing such abuse, she said, is not making any excuses for it: “Make no mistake. When a man beats his wife, or when an employer hits a household servant, the issues involved are not cultural; they are criminal, and the remedy is not a wink and a shrug, it is an arrest warrant and jail.” This unforgettable event, “Partnering to Prevent Domestic Abuse,” was co-sponsored by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Inter-American Development Bank. On October 29, 2008, Elizabeth organized a panel on domestic violence titled: “What You May Not Know!” Panelists comprised of Aulikki Kuusela, HRS VP Program Director; Professor Joan Meier, George Washington University and Director of DV LEAP; Patricia Hoff, Child Abduction and Response legal expert; Patricia Romano McGraw, forensic psychologist and author; and Helen Hall, DC DV Police Unit Advocate. WBG victims whose children have been abducted gained more insights in the complexity of the problem, especially when dealing with overseas, staff immunities and employer’s bureaucracy. 5. Accountability: Develop and institute standard protocols, information sharing, and monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to resolve abuse cases in an equitable and timely manner Since the creation of the HUB and the DA Prevention Coordinator position, a more comprehensive and coordinated approach to helping victims has been put in place. The HUB draws together representatives from the Bank’s Benefits, both the Bank’s and the IFC’s Human Resources departments, Business Conduct and Ethics, Legal, Health Services, Security, the Staff Association and the Family Consultation Service/COPE (COPE plays an essential role in identifying whether a call to its 24X7 hotline is a DA case, and whether the safety of the caller is at risk). In November 2008, the Bank became a corporate member of Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence (CAEPV). On October 24, 2007, WBFN and many HR and HSD representatives attended the presentation “Can We Afford to Overlook Abuse?” by Kim Wells, Executive Director of CAEPV (caepv.org). CAEVP has more than 100 members, for the most part large private U.S. companies like Liz Claiborne, Xerox, etc. By becoming a member of CAEPV, the World Bank recognizes that Domestic Abuse: • Is not simply someone’s “private or personal business.” It costs employers a great deal in a number of ways, including the potential for putting co-workers at risk. • Does not merely affect a small or isolated number of individuals. If we consider only the classification known as “domestic violence” (as opposed to “domestic abuse”), ac-

77

cording to statistics from the U.S. Justice Department and Center for Disease Control, 25% of women and 7% of men are affected. DA Prevention Coordinator Elizabeth Legrain deserves our continued applause and respect for the immense work that she performs on behalf of the victims. What makes her unique in this endeavor is that she shows the same respect and gives the same level of attention to all victims, spouses or staff alike. Adding the coordination of prevention training programs and seminars to all of her other considerable tasks is, in our view, a lot for merely one person, no matter how dedicated and experienced. We hope the Bank’s upper management will give this vital issue the recognition and resources it deserves, and increase staffing sufficiently to help Elizabeth fulfill the demands of the program.

Pending Issues What are the red flags that the WBFN Spouse Issue Committee still sees and which will require extra attention and hopefully a fair outcome for victims of abuse? • In 2009, we still see victimized spouses, often already disadvantaged by inadequate English skills and meager financial resources that become further depleted by the cost of legal representation, be obliged to struggle through additional legal and financial hurdles and administrative humiliation to get their rightful due, while the at-fault staff use their Bank position and status to impress the courts or delay court appearances, even resorting to dubious foreign court orders to avoid paying support, not to mention staying overseas or using missions to avoid being served U.S. court orders. • In 2009, we still see spouses who hear about their “divorce” the day the Bank notifies them that they are not medically insured any longer. Husbands provide the Bank with divorces from overseas jurisdictions. The Bank accepts them. But lately the MD court has ruled on many spouse divorce cases of this sort, some in the higher court of appeals, granting pension rights for spouses. MD also has ruled that a resident of the state has a right to a due process divorce regardless of legal status, i.e. illegal. These cases are particularly important for spouses who suddenly find themselves divorced, without legal status and monetary resources. WBFN feels that the Bank’s policy of removing a G-4s’ visa and insurance after 60 days from a lifechanging event is too fast. As we know, abusers wait until they must inform them of Aetna policy removal and by then a spouse has less than 30 days to react. In some cases, spouses need to leave the country before they can litigate, as court process is slow. In other cases, the Bank staff resigns from the Bank and the spouse is the last to know. He is out of the country before she can obtain court orders for support.

78

The position of the WBFN Spouse Issues Committee is that the U.S. justice should prevail and the Bank should be more cooperative in letting the U.S. courts work. Blocking of information should also be lifted, as it is in corporate U.S. firms, and staff should be easily subpoenaed if that is the decision of the court. Further on, the Spouse Issues Committee feels that spouses should be reimbursed directly for their medical expenses, instead of having the staff be reimbursed and overseeing the spouse’s health history, which can work against her at court. As a conclusion, WBFN Spouse Issues Committee recognizes that a lot of progress has been made since 2003 but that a lot still remains to be done to protect the families in difficulties. WBFN would like to thank the following individuals who have been particularly attentive to our program: Jack Maginnis, a DC attorney, who practices in the three jurisdictions, provides one hour pro bono consults to referrals and is a panelist at WBFN’s annual Family Law seminar; Anne Albright, attorney with Albright & Rhodes, who practices in MD and DC and has litigated on some challenging G-4 issues to benefit the program; Jacqueline Antoine, a French psychologist, who has counseled many Francophone spouses through NVFS; Dr. Patricia McGraw, a MD forensic psychologist experienced in abuse, who has provided advice in development of the program; Bill Silverman, HR Benefits Program Manager, who continues to devote his expertise; and Geremie Sawadogo for his management of the DA Prevention program for the past three years until January 2009. Special thanks go to the House of Ruth for providing state of the art support to WBG victims in their shelters, and to the House of Ruth, MD, for continued support to our most severe cases of DV. Thanks also to the WBFN Quilting group for auctioning a beautiful handmade quilt to benefit the House of Ruth. Thank you to Louise Shimizu, the WBFN Coordinator, for overseeing the technicalities of the Barry McIsaac Emergency Fund and instigating a complementary resource sheet for spouses seeking information on divorcing. Thank you also to the new volunteers who have joined the Spouse Issues Team and will be fighting for more fairness for victims of abuse. The former members remain as advisors to the team and will do their best to bring support and institutional memory to make sure that battles fought and won over two decades will not be forgotten.

79

WBFN OUTREACH PROGRAMS In 1982 and 1983, World Bank spouses started the Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund and the Book Project. Today, WBFN volunteers continue to manage these two charities, which support the education of women and children in the developing world: the Front Line of Development.

VOLUNTEERING AT THE MMMF FAIR

THE BOOK PROJECT

This year the WBFN Book Project was 25 years old! Since its incorporation in the District of Columbia in 1983 as a 501(c)(3) public charity, Book Project volunteers have sent more than three million books to schools, libraries and even colleges in developing countries. While there is cause for celebration, there is also cause for sadness. The standard of education in many developing countries has advanced little since the Book Project was first founded. • Around 16 percent of young people in the 15–24 age group are illiterate. • 862 million adults and young people worldwide cannot read and write. • 98 percent of people who cannot read and write live in developing countries. The need identified by our founders 25 years ago is as great as ever, and the requests for books still keep coming. Surprisingly, however, the number of requests for books reaching us by snail mail has declined and increasingly requests come to us via the Internet. Requests for books for elementary and secondary schools dominate, but we are hearing more often from vocational schools and colleges, as well as village libraries serving adult populations wanting to learn to read. Requests are also coming from former French-speaking countries where the administrative language is now English and children and teachers are in need of texts to teach in English. Large shipments have been sent to Ethiopia, Cameroon and Sudan. In all instances, we have been able to work with reputable NGOs established in the country, with connections to Bank members and volunteers. For Ethiopia we worked with Children’s Hope International; in Cameroon, Nascent Solutions has a school meals program and was pleased to be able to deliver food for the mind along with food for the body. The Sudan American Foundation for Education (SAFE) helped collect books, and their partner in Sudan was a University for Women. Ghana will follow shortly. Jim Lancaster established AladAfrica to support several small villages in Ghana and came to the Book Project to help pack the shipment. We hope to be able to continue with this model with future large shipments. The World Bank generously pays the shipping costs from our door to the nearest port of entry in the destination country. We were, therefore, somewhat alarmed to learn the cost of shipping was rising. World trade was such that there was a shortage of containers and this was pushing up the cost of rental. Small shipments are funded by sponsors and went this year to Uganda, Tanzania and Pakistan.

82

Almost all the books sent by the Book Project are donated by schools and school systems in the Washington Metro Area. One volunteer has the specific role of Donations Coordinator, (self-described “beggar in chief ”), and through her efforts, charm, persistence and ongoing contact we have been able to ensure a good supply of books. We shared the celebration of 25 years of the Book Project with our most supportive donors by inviting them to a special “thank you” lunch in the Bank. Representatives came from private schools and public schools and the all important Warehouse Managers from Fairfax and Montgomery Counties accepted the invitation; a total of 17 guests. They were able to see the Book Project in action and, of course, network! Once solicited, we need somewhere to store the books, and continue to be grateful for the space made available for us in the warehouse in Sterling and the staff there who so speedily arrange for the skids to reach our packing room. There are others who help us in our mission: when our stock of boxes ran out, GSD patiently researched a new supplier who could provide boxes of the right weight and correctly printed with our logo; Freight Forwarding who rise to the challenges we set in shipping to the nearest port [“The Sudan shipment cannot go to Djibouti—Djibouti is not in Sudan (it’s in Djibouti!); it must go to Port Sudan.”]; Office Movers who move skids into the packing room, realign skids as we pack, and then shrink wrap and take them away to be shipped. Of course, the Book Project would not be the Book Project without the volunteers. Some volunteers who took particular responsibilities from May 2008 through April 2009 and were our Board Members are: President: Josephine Barry finished her term as President in June 2008 and left a well-oiled machine behind. Her plans to continue as the Small Shipment Coordinator foundered when she moved to Singapore. We were very sorry to lose her knowledge and experience but Hilary Welch took over as President on July 1. Secretary: Tessa Ravry took on the role of secretary and arranges the Board and Group meetings and ensures the minutes capture the lively discussions. She does this in addition to sorting and arranging the Book Sales where the Project “sells books it cannot send.” Packing Coordinator: Ann Waters continued managing the packing room but with her experience and eagle eye she was as much a Quality Controller. Treasurer: Martine de Lusignan is to be thanked for her commitment. Martine has kept us and the books straight.

83

Shipping Coordinator: Doina Olievschi has handled all the administrative tasks that ensure the requests from schools are recorded, labels for all the boxes printed, so that volunteers can match books to requests received. Small Shipments Coordinator: Lena Persson almost single handedly managed requests from individual institutions corresponding, organizing the boxes to be shipped and obtaining the money to cover the costs. Book Donation Coordinator: Pushpa Pherwani worked the phones and the printer contacting schools and other potential donors, following up with thanks for donations received and to renew requests for further donations of used text/library books. Archives & Publicity Material Coordinator: Yvonne Kurtz is our chief organizer of paper, computer filing systems and all archival material. Her talent on the computer has helped with much of the publicity materials. Mosaic & Publicity Articles Coordinator: Sue Ramchandran has continued to write the regular Book Project column in Mosaic, but we are also delighted to have some of her artwork on the walls here at the Book Project. We have maintained a solid core of volunteers who between them worked 3,959 hours: but more are needed to keep the pace and the commitment to put books in the hands of children. We had not considered the Book Project susceptible to the economic climate. We fretted early on about the possible impact of the cost of shipping, but with the global economy slowing, shipping containers are readily available and costs are falling. Nearer home and of concern is the impact of budget cuts on local schools and school systems. Will they hold onto their text books longer? Will the supply of good quality used books be reduced to a trickle? We believe inviting our donors has paid continuing dividends as they think of the Book Project first for donating books. We are also looking at other organizations that share our commitment to literacy and will pursue leads that ensure the Book Project continues to fulfill a mission that is as important today as it was 25 years ago.

84

THE MARGARET MCNAMARA MEMORIAL FUND Overview

Since its inception in 1981 to honor the life of Margaret Craig McNamara, whose husband was President of the World Bank from 1968 to 1981, the Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund (MMMF) has granted scholarships to women from developing countries for university study in fields which benefit women and children in their home countries. From 1983 through June 2009, MMMF has awarded 151 grants, totaling $1,315,900 to women from 58 developing countries, with 11 of these grants awarded during FY08 and a record 17 in FY09. The MMMF is organized as a U.S. tax-exempt 501(c)(3) public charity under the umbrella of the World Bank Family Network. It meets monthly for 10 months of the year, generally on the fourth Thursday. Committee meetings are held throughout the month. Board President is Caroline Berney; Vice President is Hada Zaidan, who succeeded Naline Kouame in January 2009; Zane Stuggins is Secretary; and Charlottes Jones-Carroll is Treasurer, succeeding Lilian Kew in September 2008. Leaving the Board were Vim Maguire and Pietronella van den Oever. New members joining the Board were Gilda Dadush, Jayati Datta-Mitra, Joanne Garrity and Andree Wynkoop. Sadly this year, one of the MMMF’s founders, Babs Knox, passed away. The continued work of the MMMF will be a lasting memorial. She will be very much missed.

New Initiatives Traditionally, MMMF grants have been awarded to students enrolled at accredited institutions in the U.S. or Canada. This year, under an expanded pilot Overseas Project (OSP), the MMMF increased its grants from two to four for students from Africa studying at the University of Pretoria and added three new grants for students at the University of Cape Town. Under the able leadership of Naline Kouame, Dominique Lallement and Elna van Greuning, efforts to build overseas projects for MMMF are continuing. Growing partnerships of volunteers and staff in the World Bank country offices, as well as university representatives, have increased the MMMF base of support and helped make the overseas project feasible. We are grateful to all our friends and volunteers, both near and far. The Annual Forum held at the World Bank in May, and co-sponsored by the World Bank Gender Network, gives the U.S./Canada recipients the opportunity to share their goals and achievements with both staff and WBFN members. The 2008 Forum took place on May 12, 2008, and although one recipient, the first student studying in Canada to receive an MMMF grant, unfortunately could not attend, all eight studying in the U.S. participated. Keynote

85

speaker Obiageli Ezekwesili, World Bank Regional Vice President for Africa, hailed the recipients on their achievements and encouraged them in their endeavors towards ameliorating critical social and economic ills in their countries. The Forum was followed for the first time by an MMMF Friends Reception at Pangea, the IFC artisan market, where recipients received their certificates in the presence of MMMF supporters, including former MMMF Honorary President Elaine Wolfensohn. During their Washington visit, the recipients were welcomed, entertained, and housed through arrangements made by the Hospitality Committee, led by Kimi Nyawata and Georgine Ahmad. A get-acquainted, potluck dinner with all Board members, their spouses, and the new recipients was held at the home of the Board President, Caroline Berney, as a kick-off event, has become an annual tradition. A similar pattern was chosen for the May 2009 recipients’ visit to Washington. The Forum was held on May 18, 2009. All ten recipients studying in the U.S. or Canada attended, and the MMMF was privileged to have as the keynote speaker Otaviano Canuto, VP & Head of Network for PREM and the World Bank Gender Network, who spoke eloquently about the importance of educating women to an overflow audience. The MMMF was also honored to have Kathleen McNamara, daughter of Robert and Margaret McNamara, distribute the certificates to the recipients during the MMMF Friends Reception which followed at Pangea. Significant improvements in communication with current and former scholarship recipients have been initiated through the tracer study, under Hada Zaidan, and by Andree Wynkoop. Encouraging preliminary results from the long-term findings of the tracer study have reassured the MMMF of its success over the years in meeting its goal: to educate women for leadership positions which positively impact the lives of women and children in developing countries. According to the study, 85 percent are now in their home countries; most are working in an educational setting, Women’s Ministries and Government, Policy and Management; and the work of almost every respondent impacts the status of women and children in their communities. The tracer study presents the possibility for tapping into this group of women who are leaders in their respective communities and could possibly open up opportunities for the MMMF Overseas Project in these countries. A new Board Orientation for members and a Board Retreat, led by a professional facilitator, were two initiatives taken in 2009 to increase Board productivity. An expanded Annual Report, edited by Board member Sarah Brau and distributed to current MMMF scholarship recipients, and continued monthly articles in Mosaic continued the Board’s communications outreach. A successfully enhanced website for MMMF and streamlined online application procedures have been projects of Board member Gilda Dadush.

86

A new staff member, Cecile Ferri, joined the MMMF office in November 2008 to facilitate its operation. The dedicated assistance of WBFN staff Louise Shimizu, Mimi Besha and Christinne Secrest is gratefully acknowledged.

Donors and Fundraising Volunteers from the WBG spouses and partners donate generously of their time to raise funds for MMMF grants through MMMF Fair participation, and serving on the MMMF Board and Selection Committee and Selection Panel. The MMMF International Arts and Crafts Fair, held on October 28–30, 2008, and chaired by Georgine Ahmad, raised a total of $55,178 gross, approximately $52,000 net. Fair Treasurer was Ruby Wingate assisted by Joanne Garrity and Charlotte Jones-Carroll, and Enid Burki organized the numerous WBFN volunteers. The MMMF Table, featuring international items, was led by Gilda Dadush and Marie Diop. Sixty vendors participated in this annual event, which will again take place November 3–5, 2009. MMMF is grateful to the WBG staff who have designated the MMMF to receive honoraria and gifts offered to them in their official capacities. Also some World Bank new retirees have generously donated their retirement party funds to the MMMF. MMMF Friends who respond each year to the Fall Letter Campaign with their generous donations are also an integral part of the MMMF donor team. The Friends received a total of $36,208 in FY08 and $33,762 in FY09 under the leadership of Nadereh Chamlou, who succeeded Dominique Lallement as Friends Chair, and Christine Stover. The Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union is to be thanked once again for its generous contribution.

Challenges The greatest challenge facing MMMF in the past year has been the financial impact of market fluctuations on the value of the MMMF’s investments. MMMF had been putting annual surpluses (after grants were given out) into invested reserves to build a more sustainable source of funding for future grants. By calculating drawdowns from reserve as % of a three-year average value of investments and maintaining a balanced portfolio, the MMMF has attempted to smooth the market fluctuations. Nevertheless, the depth and breadth of market losses may reduce grants funding.

87

Therefore, an Investment Working Group has been established to make recommendations to the Board, and new procedures put in place to streamline financial decision-making and information flow. An enhanced fundraising plan is also being created. These measures should prepare the MMMF to meet the future challenges.

Selection of MMMF Recipients The MMMF Board extends its gratitude to all the volunteer teams who worked on the various aspects of the selection process for both the U.S./Canada Program and the OSP Africa, including the volunteer team at ISG, and especially Luis Rivas, who worked on the MMMF online application process. U.S./Canada Program—In May 2008, MMMF awarded nine scholarship grants of $14,000 each for the academic year 2008–2009 to women studying at accredited institutions in the U.S. or Canada. Together with the two OSP recipients who had received their grants in December 2007, this brought the total number of FY08 recipients to eleven. For the 2009–2010 academic year, the FY09 Selection Committee, comprised of 13 volunteers from 10 different countries, received and reviewed 164 applications for grants from 58 countries. In May 2009, grants of $12,000 each were awarded to ten recipients. In the first and second rounds of reading, three different selection committee members read each application. In the third round, a panel of ten members read all the finalists. Each candidate was screened during all three stages against the criteria set by the trustees and listed in detail on the MMMF website (mmmf-grants.org). The applicant needed to demonstrate a commitment to improving the lives of women and children through her previous and current course of study and through any paid or volunteer work; she had to show financial need and be over 25 years old; and she must plan to return to her country or another developing country within two and half years of receiving the scholarship. In April 2009, a Selection Panel of five members of the Selection Committee and five women from the WBG staff, made the final choice of recipients to be presented to the MMMF Board for approval. All ten were finally approved, receiving a total of $120,000. Selection Committee & Panel (FY09): *Solange Amorelli, Enid Burki, Vania Castro, *Isabelle Chatterton, *Jill Crowther, Madeleine de Kock, *Marie Diop, *Navodini Harmsen (Chair), *Vesna Heysch De La Borde (Vice Chair), *Elizabeth Legrain, *Nikita Sunil Malik, Dorine Otieno, *Safie Sarr, Sathya Selvam, Swati Srivastava, *Olga Stein, Leila Thomas, Judy Wolf (*Panel Members)

88

OSP Africa Project—A separate but similar application and review process was used for the OSP, the only difference being that the applicant must already be enrolled in the University of Pretoria (UP) or the University of Cape Town (UCT) and living in South Africa. The application period opened in July 2008 and the deadline was August 31, 2008. In November, finalists were selected from a total of 43 applicants representing 15 countries and awarded grants of $4,000 each. The Awards Ceremony for the recipients was held on February 18, 2009, at the World Bank Office in Pretoria, South Africa. At both universities the applications were collected at the International Funding offices and were brought back to the MMMF’s contact persons there: Jeanne Goosen at UP and Linda Vranas at UCT. The 2008 OSP Selection Committee and Panel consisted of 20 volunteers (9 in Pretoria and 11 in Washington), representing 10 countries. Members of the Pretoria team, World Bank staff volunteers in the Country Office in Pretoria, completed the first two readings of the 29 applications received at UP. Of the 29 applicants, 4 made it to the final reading by the Selection Panel. Simultaneously, the second team in Washington DC read the 14 UCT applications, and 4 applicants made it through to the final round. The finalists from both universities were then combined and read by a team of 10 Selection Panel members. The Panel voted to present 7 of the 8 finalists to the Board and all 7 were chosen as recipients, receiving a total of $28,000. OSP Selection Committee & Panel (FY09): Pretoria Team: Faith Babalwa Chirwa, Khetsiwe Dlamini, Shirley Faragher, *Melanie Jaya (Chair), Catherine Kadennyeka Masinde, Nokuthula Pearlygate Mathobela, Thirumeni Thiru Naidoo-Swettenham, Phindite Ngwenya, Christina Romero. Washington Team: *Elna van Greuning (Chair), Corrie Bridgman, *Enid Burki, *Andrea Dore, *Mamou K. Ehui, Jocelyn Fofack, *Navodini Harmsen, *Patty Hoyes, *Elizabeth Legrain, *Nikita Sunil Malik, Moustapha Ndiaye, Safie Sarr, Sathya Selvam, *Swati Srivastava. (*Panel Members)

FY08 MMMF Recipients JALELE DEFA (ETHIOPIA) PH.D. Candidate: Political Science; University of Nebraska, Lincoln Jalele plans to finish in the U.S. by December 2010, where after she will do her research and complete her dissertation in Ethiopia. Her dissertation “Formation and Growth of Political Parties in Multi-Ethnic Societies” focuses on cases from the horn of Africa. Particular attention will be given to the role of parties in multi-ethnic societies and the role of women in these parties’ past and present. She was granted a tenured teaching position at Addis Ababa

89

University, the oldest and most prestigious university in Ethiopia, and for the past nine years has been her department’s only female lecturer. NADIA ALICINA IBRAIMO (MOZAMBIQUE) Master’s Candidate: Agriculture; University of Pretoria Nadia’s thesis is a soil water balance model for prediction of crop growth under various rainwater harvesting management scenarios, with a goal of improving water productivity under dry land conditions in Mozambique for maize producing regions. She chose agronomy because 80% of the rural population in Mozambique is dependent on agriculture for their subsistence. Her longer-term plans include creating farmers associations and setting up an agricultural institute offering incentives to women faculty in her country. FANNY HOWARD NEWBALL (COLOMBIA) Master’s Candidate: Sustainable International Development; Brandeis University, Boston Fanny is from “pueblo raizal,” an Afro-Caribbean ethnic minority in Colombia. Her thesis is “Strategies to Achieve Political Empowerment in Developing Countries: Lessons from the World for Young Women.” She examines women’s political empowerment and representation in government in developing and developed countries, studying political inequalities and their roots by closely following young women in the Archipelago of San Andres and Providence, where she grew up. Fanny has a contract to return to Colombia after a maximum of five years. She plans to complete her studies by May 2009 and contribute to the welfare of her minority by working on the environment and on the displacement of Afro-Colombians. MARIE-THERESE NJIE (THE GAMBIA) Master’s Candidate: Counseling and Spirituality; Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Canada The first MMMF scholar studying in Canada, Marie-Therese’s research is on spirituality and cultural practices in the healing of trauma victims. At 18, she became a religious sister of the missionary Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny. Sent by her Congregation to postwar Sierra-Leone, she began working there with former child soldiers and women victims of rape and abuse. She plans to finish by August 2009 and return to Sierra-Leone to “train trainers in counseling skills, establish a program to increase the number of counselors in the country, and help alleviate the consequences of war” especially on women and children: the hardest hit by the war. She envisions developing a counseling center that would offer quality health care but also care and counseling to the war victims: women and children with immense psychological and emotional needs. (Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union Fellow)

90

MARTINA OCHIEL (KENYA) Doctoral Candidate: Education; University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Martina expects to be completed by June 2010. Her thesis on HIV/AIDS and child-headed households in Kenya is a descriptive study that identifies poverty as a primary determinant of prevalence and severity of HIV/AIDS and advocates for a shift from culturalism as a paradigm for the pandemic. On return to Kenya, she will continue teaching at the village high school but thereafter aspires to move to tertiary education to continue community-based efforts. EUNICE OMANGA (KENYA) Doctorate: Public Health; Drexel University, PA Eunice is researching the impact of Kenya’s industrial pollution on public health by assessing community risk perception. She wants to create public policy intervention by using community decision-making to mitigate the adverse impact of industrial pollution on human health. The first woman from her village to go to university, she demonstrated leadership in the traditionally male-dominated chemistry field. A firsthand witness of death due to political violence and HIV/AIDS, she was touched particularly by the suffering of women and children. She expects to complete her degree in December 2009 and return to Kenya to identify, prioritize and address health problems. (Sukriye Karaosmanoglu Fellow) JACQUELINE ORAM-STERLING (JAMAICA) Ph.D.: Education Administration; Illinois State University Jacqueline’s thesis explores the leadership practices of a female school principal who transformed a school into one of the best high schools in Jamaica. Married with three children, she obtained a university degree, commuting three hours one-way. Her belief in education as a gateway to success led to her study of Jamaican women in positions of educational leadership. On leave from her position as lecturer at Mico University College, Kingston, she expects to complete her degree by May 2009 and on her return to Jamaica plans to teach school administrators, offer new teacher training courses, and work at the highest levels of education. LI PENG (CHINA) Master’s Candidate: Public and Environmental Affairs; Indiana University, Bloomington Li’s thesis, entitled “Institutional Failure and Social Discrimination: Female Migrants Face Adverse Conditions,” addresses the adverse circumstances of female labor migrants in China in a socio-cultural and institutional context. She plans to plans to complete her degree by

91

July 2009 and return to China to work for NGOs or government agencies to tackle female migrant workers issues, which would include political involvement, lobbying and inter-institutional cooperation. ANAMIKA PRIYADARSHINI (INDIA) Ph.D. Candidate: Global Gender Studies; State University of New York, Buffalo Anamika’s research is “Home-based Workers – the Disenfranchised Workers of the Indian Economic History,” which analyzes the historical transformation of women artisans and examines the impact of globalization on women workers. Married, she expects to finish by May 2010 and to return to India to explore a career in teaching and to continue her work with community-based organizations and home-based workers to address their socio-economic concerns for equal employment opportunities. (Charlotte Conable Fellow). ANITA SHARMA (INDIA) Master’s Candidate: International Development Policy; Duke University, NC Anita’s dissertation is on micro-enterprise development for rural poor women in India. She was posted in tribal Jharkland, one of poorest states in India. By organizing poor tribal women into self-help groups around microfinance and implementing various livelihood programs with them, Anita explains the role of these groups went beyond the financial dimension: they are “a forum for mutual learning, support and building solidarity.” On her return to India in June 2009, she wants to resume with an NGO working towards women’s socio-economic development and gender equality in India. Five years later, she plans on creating an organization of her own. HAZEL RUFARO ZARANYIKA (ZIMBABWE) Honors Candidate: Community Development; University of Pretoria The Honors degree is a prerequisite for Hazel’s Master’s program at the university. She holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honors) from the University of Cape Town. Her work focuses on effective risk management strategy for low-income households, with an evaluation of micro insurance. She was inspired by her volunteer work in Harare with child-headed households. She hopes to create an NGO focusing on promoting interests of women through income-generating projects and adult literacy.

92

FY09 MMMF Recipients STELLA AJABJI (CAMEROON) Master’s Candidate: Sustainable Development; World Learning SIT Graduate Institute, VT Stella’s thesis is “Developing a Microfinance Project for Women: assessing impact on poverty alleviation and environmental conservation.” She plans to return home in 2010 to create a women’s microfinance program at the Environment and Rural Development Fund Center for Conservation Finance. MAINGAILA MOONO BANDA (ZAMBIA) Master’s Candidate: Health Systems & Public Health (Epidemiology), University of Pretoria Maingaila‘s thesis is “HIV/AIDS Knowledge, Attitude, and Sexual Practices among Youths Aged 10–24 in Zambia.” Her research focuses on the sexual activity and awareness of HIV/ AIDS among youth in the Zambezi district, investigating youth perceptions of risk of acquiring HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases. Her findings will guide implementation of appropriate interventions. GRACE TAMARA HANDY (SRI LANKA) Master’s Candidate: Education; Truman State University, MO Grace’s thesis is “Strategies for working with emotional and behavior disordered children can be used for working with children who are victims of violence.” She finishes her studies in the U.S. in 2010 and returns home to work with the University of Colombo’s teacher training program. She envisions creating awareness campaigns in connection with NGOs. MARYANNE KAMAU (KENYA) PhD Candidate: Health Education; University of Western Ontario, Canada Maryanne’s thesis is “Exploring the impact of AIDS-related stigma on learning social interactions of HIV/IDS children: a focus on AIDS orphans’ experiences in Nyumbani orphanage in Kenya.” She plans to finish in 2012 and will return to Kenya to collaborate with Kenya Education Institute to design health education programs. (Charlotte Conable Fellow) HELEN NAMONDO LINONGE (CAMEROON) D.Phil. Candidate: Sociology; University of Pretoria Helen’s thesis is “The Treatment of Female Offenders in Prison: A Cameroon Case Study.” She researches prison conditions for women, as most prisons are built to incarcerate men.

93

Many prisons are not adapted to women’s needs in hygiene, pregnancy and motherhood and impact women’s physical and mental health. She will resume her duties at University of Buea. EKAWATI LIU (INDONESIA) Master’s Candidate: International Development; American University, Washington, DC Ekawati’s thesis is “The roles of international NGOs in promoting effective self-governance in disabled persons’ organizations in developing countries (Case studies: Nepal & Tibet).” She returned to South East Asia in June 2009 to work for international NGOs, design school curricula, and train teachers. (Bank-Fund Staff Federal Credit Union Fellow) EDIDAH AMPAIRE LUBEGA (UGANDA) Ph.D. Candidate: Rural Development; University of Pretoria Edidah’s thesis is “Do farmer organizations work for the poor? The role of second-order farmer associations in linking farmers to markets and delivering benefits to women and other marginalized groups.” She examines market linkages to benefit farmers, especially women, equitably; strengthening farmer organizations; and impact of monitoring and evaluation in farmer associations’ internal accountability. INGRID MEINTJES-MOAKES (REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA) Master’s Candidate: Social Science (Gender Studies); University of Cape Town Ingrid’s thesis is “Gender and AIDS activism, the experiences of women AIDS activists and implications for effective responses to the pandemic in South Africa.” Ingrid’s research uses interviews with grassroots women AIDS activists, her experiences with Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), and her knowledge of gender-based power dynamics in civil society. Ingrid will work to empower women against HIV/AIDS. GLADYS MOMANYI (KENYA) Ph.D. Candidate: Conflict Analysis and Resolution; Nova Southeastern University, FL Gladys is studying internal displacement issues and how they affect the population. She plans to finish her studies by June 2011 and return to Kenya to begin in the Department of Religions at Kenyatta University a program in Peace and Conflict Resolution Studies.

94

ARUNDATI MURALIDHARAN (INDIA) Ph.D. Candidate: Public Health; Boston University, MA Arundati’s thesis focuses on developing an intervention with female sex workers and their non-paying partners in red light districts of Mumbai. She finishes her studies in the U.S. in 2010 and returns to India to pursue a position in a public health organization to promote the health and rights of women and girls. (Sukriye Karaosmanoglu Fellow) ELIZABETH NGADZE (ZIMBABWE) Ph.D. Candidate: Plant Pathology (Bacteriology); University of Pretoria Elizabeth’s thesis is “Epidemiology of Soft Rot and Potato Blackleg Diseases in Zimbabwe.” She is doing research in the diagnosis of plant disease and will develop practical disease management strategies to ensure national food security. She will return to continue lecturing at the University of Zimbabwe and will translate agricultural manuals to local languages to reach all farmers in Zimbabwe. ANNA TINA SALIMO (ZIMBABWE) M.Sc. Candidate; Molecular and Cell Biology; University of Cape Town Anna’s thesis is “Human papillomavirus (HPV) diversity and possible recombination in South African women.” Her project is based on identifying the types and variants of HPV that infect women with HIV in Cape Town. Her research will provide valuable knowledge on the natural history of HPV against a background of HIV infection. FARINA SO (CAMBODIA) Master’s Candidate: International Affairs; Ohio University Farina’s thesis is “Experiences and Expressions: Cham Muslim women under democratic Kampuchea.” She finishes her studies in 2010 and returns to the Documentation Center of Cambodia to establish a women’s study center for research and development. Her research will contribute to the public education system by improving the curriculum on modern Cambodian history. BYELA TIBESIGWA (TANZANIA) Ph.D. Candidate: Economics; University of Cape Town Byela’s thesis is “Community and Home-Based Care for Patients with HIV/AIDS.” Byela’s focus on community and home-based care (primarily by women and girls) was motivated by

95

the realization that this was the predominant model of caring for HIV/AIDS patients in SubSaharan Africa because of limited healthcare services and access. MARCELA VECCHIONE GONCALVES (BRAZIL) Ph.D. Candidate: Political Science; McMaster University, Ontario, Canada Marcela’s thesis is “On Boundaries Inside: Indigenous people and the limits of citizenship.” She will finish her studies in Canada by January 2011 and return to Brazil to create a project in alliance with indigenous organizations to promote the education and health of indigenous people and implement guarantees of mobility rights in countries of transit. VIDA YAKONG (GHANA) Ph.D. Candidate: Medical Anthropology; University of British Columbia, Canada Vida’s thesis is “The influence of gender relations on women’s reproductive health care decision making in Ghana.” She finishes her studies in Canada in 2012 and will return to Ghana to train nurses at Tamala University and continue “Ghana Rural Opportunities for Women,” a project she founded in 2007. WAGANESH ZELEKE (ETHIOPIA) Master’s Candidate: Education; Illinois State University Waganesh’s thesis is “My Brother with Autism.” She finishes her studies in 2010 and will return to the Joy Center for Children with Autism in Ethiopia, helping families and children through early intervention programs. She seeks to collaborate with other children-centered organizations, community leaders and agencies to advocate with policy makers.

96

AROUND THE OFFICE

The office is the nerve center of WBFN where volunteers and staff actively attend to the nuts and bolts of WBFN’s operations in a warm and friendly atmosphere and where members are always welcome.

A DAY AT THE WBFN OFFICE

Upgrading Our Member Management System This was the second year of collaboration between WBFN and a team of ISG, the Information Systems Group, a VPU of the WBG. The goal was to develop a new application for streamlining the registration of new members, maintaining our members’ database, and managing the activities and programs we offer to our members. In the preceding year FY08, the ISG team had decided that the application most befitting WBFN’s business requirements could be developed by using a SharePoint platform. Under the continued leadership of Besma Huc, WBFN volunteers were reorganized, as early as September, into four groups. The first group was to follow up on the collaboration with ISG; the second was to prepare for data migration into the new application; the third was to be responsible for testing the new application; and the fourth was to manage the change from the old system to the new. Unfortunately, given the heightened concern within the Bank regarding the security of information networks, the ISG team encountered one hurdle after another, missing successive deadlines, and finally delivering at the end of March a product that fell short of our initial goal. Two main WBFN requirements had not been met: 1. The proposed product could only function within the WBG information systems firewall, which meant that our members, who are by definition communicating from outside the firewall, could not access it. 2. The SharePoint platform did not prove flexible enough to support the great variety of queries needed by WBFN volunteers and staff to perform adequately. The recommendation of the ISG team was to pair the SharePoint platform with Access 2007. Instead of a streamlined application, WBFN now has to deal with two applications and to keep them synchronized. Still, the WBFN volunteers gamely took on the challenge. Now under the guidance of Tania Gnesdilova, who is well-versed in the Access application, the old system of several databases was merged into one database, which was then migrated into Access 2007. By the end of FY09, WBFN was enjoying a unified database but the synchronization between the two platforms (SharePoint and Access 2007) remained problematic. WBFN will have to continue its collaboration with the ISG team during FY10 to resolve the pending problems.

Staff Changes Ever since we started working on upgrading our MMS in FY08, we spent many hours rethinking our working processes within WBFN and the mechanisms of cooperation between volunteers and office staff. Indeed, the purpose of merging and streamlining our various

100

databases was initiated with the idea of giving the volunteers more time for direct human interaction with our membership. By extension, we needed to readjust the scope of tasks performed by the office staff. In recognition of the sustained growth of the MMMF and of its projected expansion overseas, we had already reached the conclusion in FY08 that the WBFN Coordinator and program assistants could no longer adequately assist in the running of this outreach activity of WBFN. The prospect of the added responsibility on our staff for an upgraded MMS reinforced our decision. At the beginning of FY09, an agreement was reached with our WBG counterparts that the MMMF would hire a dedicated part-time coordinator to attend to all MMMF activities. The selection process took place in the summer of 2008 and, by mid-November, Cecile Ferri was entrusted with the task. At ease with new technologies, a fast learner with a joyful disposition, Cecile has been a welcome presence around the office. During FY09, we were also able to reconfirm in their positions Mimi Sercalem Besha and Christinne Agustin Secrest, WBFN’s program assistants. Their knowledge and experience have been invaluable in this time of transition. Running WBFN activities is no small feat and their attention to the logistics and operational details of all Bank-based events, seminars and activities, ensured the orderly unfolding of the year. Lillian Kew, our part-time consultant for the past several years, diligently attended to our bookkeeping and assisted the WBFN Coordinator with the WBFN budget. One concern loomed large over FY09: By the end of July 2009, Louise Shimizu, our invaluable WBFN Coordinator, was slated to retire. Six years earlier, Louise had assumed the position at a time of difficulty and turmoil within the WBFN office. With tact and patience, Louise reestablished an atmosphere of harmony and efficiency. Replacing her was not going to be easy. By January 2009, the WBFN Executive Committee appointed a committee to write Terms of Reference (TOR) for her replacement. February and March were spent refining the TOR with Francoise Herve of the HR VPU. Basically, we were looking for a person with some knowledge of the workings of WBFN, at ease with volunteers, and with very solid skills in written English, budgets and bookkeeping, website maintenance, IT applications, and last but not least, office management—a long list of requirements! The job announcement was posted on March 24, 2009, both inside and outside the Bank. Over 200 applicants responded, out of which 39 were selected as fulfilling the criteria of the TOR. Guided by Francoise, a short-listing committee reduced the list to 3 candidates who were then interviewed in May by yet another committee. One candidate emerged as the com-

101

mittee’s choice: Catherine Mathieu. An economist with college-aged children, and a former Welcoming Chair at WBFN, Catherine has the skills and the dedication needed to oversee the well functioning of WBFN for the next few years. She will assume her new responsibilities in August 2009.

Office Assistant Volunteers The WBFN staff wishes to acknowledge the commitment of the Office Assistant Volunteers who come to the office either on a regular basis or for a specific period of time to support WBFN activities. They are an important part of our team. Their willingness to assist the staff in answering phones, preparing mailings, photocopying, computer-data entry, assembling various materials, or other specific tasks is greatly appreciated. This year, university student Nicole Teke diligently translatied articles from English into French on the topic of domestic abuse. The articles, totaling 33 pages, will enhance WBFN’s domestic abuse prevention efforts for our WBG community and will soon be posted on our website. Nicole worked well with the WBFN volunteers and office staff and showed sensitivity to the topic at hand, far beyond what one would expect of a person of her years. And, of course, what would we do without Mariela Eberhardt? Yes, each Monday morning again this year she continued to assemble the WBFN Welcoming Kit and Planning Makes a Difference, prepare materials for the MMMF Fair, help with mailings and keep us informed of her adventures around the world or exciting happenings in New York or DC. A special thanks goes to Mariela from all of WBFN!

Equipment & Surroundings Our offices received a new look in November as part of the ongoing remodeling of the H Building. We now have new carpeting, freshly painted walls and a few of our ceiling tiles have been replaced. We have also benefitted from the Bank wide upgrade of computers. All our computers CPUs have been replaced and we have shifted from using Windows XP to Windows Vista. The change occurred in May 2009. Earlier in the year, WBFN had relied on its own budget to upgrade its Creative Suite applications from CS3 to CS4. This allows our staff and volunteers to maintain a professional level of performance in producing posters, flyers, newsletters, annual reports, and in regularly updating our website.

102

SALUTE TO VOLUNTEERS

An organization such as WBFN cannot exist except by virtue of those who volunteer their talents, services, and above all, their time, so willingly and unsparingly. We gratefully thank all those whose names appear in the following pages and sincerely hope that none have been inadvertently omitted.

WBFN’S CORNERSTONE—ITS VOLUNTEERS!

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE July 1, 2008–June 30,2009

President President-Elect Secretary Welcoming Chair Educational Programs Chair Nominating Chair Member-at-Large Member-at-Large Member-at-Large Member-at-Large

Rula Ghani Anne Folliet Jyoti Chitale Maaike le Grand Marie Diop Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar Aminata Bojang Daniela Drapakova Besma Huc Swati Srivastava

106

PROPOSED EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE July 1, 2009–June 30, 2010 President President-Elect Secretary Welcoming Chair Nominating Chair Mosaic Editor Member-at-Large Member-at-Large Member-at-Large Member-at-Large Member-at-Large

Anne Folliet Maaike le Grand Sally Macartney Nannette Deduque Aminata Bojang Vidya Rangan Daniela Drapakova Belkys M. Lopez Rabello Annemarie Brink Olsen Birgit Sheldon Swati Srivastava

107

Annual Membership Meeting Held each year toward the end of the fiscal year (July 1 to June 30), the WBFN Annual Membership Meeting is an opportunity for the WBFN leaders to report on the achievements and challenges of the year, for members to voice their suggestions and concerns, and for all to vote on the slate of executive committee members for the coming fiscal year. Annual Meeting 2008—With the theme “Keeping up with the Times,” WBFN President Chantale Holzmann opened the FY08 WBFN Annual Membership Meeting, held in the MC13-121 Board Room on May 8, 2008. Over 40 WBFN members attended. It was clear from the reports of the leaders of the various activities that “WBFN Today is Going On Strong!” Reports from the various activity leaders confirmed WBFN’s challenges in trying to meet the needs of a younger and more mobile membership, which has required rethinking of the definition of membership and new distribution of tasks. Under the topic of “Redefining Our Tools,” members reported on the new WBFN English Classes and Buddy System, improvements in the WBFN website and Mosaic layouts, the new online Mosaic and Yellow Pages, reaching out more broadly to members abroad through Skype and the online financial classes, new Yahoo groups among the Parents and Tots Groups, and the groundwork underway on combining our membership databases and improving our membership management systems. Looking ahead, WBFN plans to establish ties with newly arrived WBG interlocutors and maintain the existing relations with Global Mobility. Nominating Chair Rosa Lia Troch then presented the slate of candidates for the new FY09 Executive Committee, a vote took place, and the slate was approved. After recognizing the dedication and work of members of the FY08 EC and presenting those who were stepping down with certificates of appreciation, Chantale Holzmann handed the gavel to the newly elected President, Rula Ghani. Annual Meeting 2009—Over 45 WBFN members met on May 14 in the Preston Auditorium to hold this year’s Annual Meeting. The gathering included most heads of activities and some twenty of them addressed the audience and reported on the highlights of the year. Together we reminisced on the increasingly successful efforts of the Welcoming Team, the joyful atmosphere that underscored the picnic in October, the Holiday Party in December and the Children’s Art Competition in March, and the positive energy that motivated all the volunteers during the three days of our Annual Exhibits in the MC Atrium in March.

108

Then, the respective presidents of the Book Project and the MMMF reviewed their achievements for the year: Seven shipments of books to seven different countries, and seventeen scholarships awarded to seventeen brilliant women from developing countries. We were then told that the Information Seminars program is going on strong, the Investment Club had an eventful year but managed to stay the course, for the fourth year the Teen Summer Program is well-poised to start in July, and the Spouse Issues Team has been totally reorganized to make way for a smooth transition after the departure of two of its main members. English language classes and financial literacy classes still attract a lot of participants. Our volunteers are being assigned more specific and more limited responsibilities. Our system of managing our members is getting refined and we are on the verge of merging three of our databases into an improved one. The architecture of our website has been radically revamped and closely synchronized with our other publications such as our newsletter Mosaic. A web version, MosaicPlus, has been launched and offers more pictures, lengthier articles and the possibility to explore earlier issues. Looking ahead, WBFN will carry on increasing its collaboration with the family associations of other international organizations. It will maintain as well its close relationship with Global Mobility and with the newly restructured HR Service Center. As for our Members Abroad activities, now that our databases are being unified and improved, we hope to resume them with even more gusto than before. In short, we have achieved a lot this year! To carry on the work of WBFN next year, the new members of the Executive Committee were introduced to the meeting. In accordance with the by-laws, their biographies had been published one month earlier. The audience voted unanimously to vote them in. Our best wishes to them to carry on WBFN’s mission for the next twelve months.

Executive Committee The WBFN Executive Committee (EC), assisted by the WBFN office staff, is responsible for all WBFN activities. Furthermore and throughout the year, EC members meet with WBG staff to address the concerns of WBFN members and Bank families and to reach solutions together. As per the WBFN By-laws, the EC can include up to 12 voting members, serving terms of either two or three years. Non-voting members also attend the monthly meetings, namely the respective heads of the Book Project and the MMMF as well as two past presidents of WBFN in the capacity of Senior Advisors.

109

The EC for FY09 featured the five regular positions of President, President-Elect, Secretary, Nominating Chair, and Welcoming Chair. In addition, it included an Education Chair and four Members-at-Large, all four having recently joined WBFN. Despite their short affiliation with WBFN these four members had already demonstrated their leadership qualities and their dedication to our organization: Swati Srivastava had brilliantly organized the Children’s Art Competition in March 2008, Aminata Bojang and Daniela Drapakova had put together a cheerful and very effective Annual Exhibits also in March 2008, and Besma Huc had undertaken since September 2007 the massive task of inspiring us to rethink the many ways we do business at WBFN and overseeing our efforts to improve our information systems. Flexibility and teamwork prevailed during FY09. Whenever an EC member had to absent herself either to attend to family emergencies or to take on a short term paying job, other members stepped in and assured the continuation of whatever activity in which she was involved. The result was a very productive year.

Nominating Committee The role of the Nominating Committee is to identify suitable candidates eligible to fill existing openings on the EC by attending various programs during the year and getting to know the volunteers. Names of candidates are then presented for discussion at EC meetings and, eventually, a slate of EC officers for the following year is finalized and published in the Mosaic and on the WBFN website at least 30 days before the Annual Membership Meeting, so that members can voice their concerns before voting on the slate. The slate includes the five positions of President, President-Elect, Secretary, Nominating Chair and Welcoming Chair, plus additional positions (up to a maximum of twelve as per the WBFN By-laws). For this year, Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar was the Nominating Chair and was assisted by Isabelle Tausch and Dupe Odugbemi. The slate presented for FY10 EC included the five permanent positions plus five members-at-large and the Mosaic Editor.

Representative Council The Representative Council (RC) meets twice annually, with a business meeting in the fall or winter and a recreation/appreciation meeting in late spring. Members of the RC are listed in each issue of Mosaic under the Activities section and on the WBFN Activity Groups Directory page. RC Members are the ones most frequently in direct contact with members, creating programs and activities reflecting member interests on the basis of that interaction. Many RC members hold gatherings, which range from a book-group meeting, a language class, or a news discussion group, to get-togethers to welcome newcomers. RC members may teach

110

creative writing, organize information seminars, arrange cultural tours, or coordinate events such as the Children’s Art Competition or Holiday Party. RC Annual Business Meeting—This year, the annual business meeting took the form of a workshop centering on the theme “Understanding Yourself & Others.” On March 9, 25 volunteers from various activities and programs attended the workshop and, judging from the laughter and intense atmosphere around the room, everybody enjoyed the event. Licensed family counselor Chris Wright led the workshop. He proved to be a very entertaining and likeable facilitator. He started by introducing to the audience the esoteric Enneagram system of nine personalities. According to that system, people are born as one of nine personality types, and each type comes with a set of core needs. These core needs are assumed to shape all our moods and actions. By identifying which type of personality we are and what core needs we have, we learn to understand what triggers our likes and dislikes, what makes us react so swiftly to certain words, actions, or situations while we remain totally unaffected by other words, actions, or situations. Similarly, by identifying the type of personality of people we interact with, we understand better the why and how of their reactions. Hopefully, the workshop has given us a set of tools and skills to be used while dealing with others either as individuals or in a group dynamic. “Why is it that I feel this is very important and you do not? And why is it that you feel this is so very important, when it is really a trivial matter for me?” These simple questions can be asked every time we encounter problems in our interaction with others and will help us move along with and not away from others. It is a process that also requires a mutual willingness to meet the other on his/her terms in order to feel each other’s needs and consequently solve a particular conflict. It was a well-organized day, with lots of fun, an excellent lunch and food for thought to carry home. RC Appreciation Outing 2008—RC members enjoyed a sunny June day touring Old Alexandria with a very knowledgeable and entertaining guide. This was followed by a luncheon at the historic Gadsby’s Tavern and a cheerful awards ceremony that recognized the achievements of each volunteer. RC Appreciation Outing 2009—RC members were treated to a tour of the Hillwood Museum and gardens. This year, again, the June weather was beautiful. A large number of RC members were in attendance for the awards ceremony during which we had scheduled a special tribute to Louise Shimizu, our retiring WBFN Coordinator. In recognition of her unfailing dedication to WBFN during the past six years, Louise received a framed parchment, beautifully designed by Gilda Dadush and featuring a poem written by Ki Harley. Many

111

spoke eloquently of their interaction with Louise over the years, and we all assured her that she would always enjoy a special place at WBFN. Ce n’est qu’un au revoir—At WBFN we like to say: “Once a member, always a member.” It is true that our membership’s turnover is constant and that a large number of our members have had to move on either because their spouse has relocated, has changed institutions, or because they have become busy with family or professional obligations, but we always cherish their occasional visits. It is so good to see you Maha, Carol, Nadida, Shahin, Ratiba, Srijana, Ignas, Helio, Sahr, Faisal, and all those of you who make sure to stop by our office when in town! This year though, two of our long-standing members have had to say goodbye. Rosa Lia Troch and Chantale Holzmann had each given so generously to WBFN over the years and had managed to steer our organization towards higher performance and greater outreach. WBFN owes them a lot and we hope that the marvels of modern communication will allow them to remain actively involved even from afar.

112

«A

nnual

Exhibits

Chair: Anne Folliet Coordinator: Aminata Bojang Volunteers Georgine Ahmad Meltem Aydogmus Claudine Barandagiye Caroline Berney Mimi Besha Tessa Bliss Kerstin Bohrer Sarah Brau Sonia Cavallo Runde Giorgia Ceccarelli Carolina Correa Saskia Cumpl Gilda Dadush Martine de Lusignan Marie Diop Daniela Drapakova Miren Fernandez Nefertare Galiba Vera Gilbert Jeanne Haji Chantale Holzmann Charlotte Jones-Carroll Lisbet Kemp Henry Kerali Lois Khairallah Sharmishtha Kulkarni Lariza Lailla Gamarra Maaike le Grand Belkys Lopez Rabello Sally Macartney Maria Maldonado-Villar Ivonne Marchant Mireille Molette Vivienne Mordasini Lorraine Nagy Kurt Nemes

«

Felicia Nwabueze Doina Olievschi Annemarie Brink Olsen Noriko Onoguchi Gilda Ordonez-Baric Julie Page Cory Perez-Wielinga Pushpa Pherwani Anne Quinn Vidya Rangan Tessa Ravry Duina Reyes Diana Saez Masaharu Shimizu Swati Srivastava Denise Standen Uta Steckhan Frank Sterrett Zane Stuggins Isabelle Tausch Meena Tharmaratnam Ana Villacampa Vanita Venegopal Yukako Wada Min Wang Nan Wang Yuan Amanda Wang Norie Watanuki Ann Waters Hilary Welch Carlos Winder Janka Zavadska

«

Annual Dinner 2008 Coordinator: Rula Ghani Caroline Berney Na’ava Feder Catherine Labaste

Annual Dinner 2009 Coordinator: Anne Folliet

«

«

Volunteers Caroline Berney Nannette Deduque Na’ava Feder Annemarie Brink Olsen Madina Seydi

Annual Family Picnic Coordinator: Daniela Drapakova Volunteers Jo Bartlett Aminata Bojang Helio Cola Rodriguez Marie Diop Daniela Drapakova Anne Folliet Rula Ghani Chantale Holzmann George Kokrashvili Sharmishtha Kulkarni Maaike le Grand Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar Prakruti Patel Srijana Sharma Silwal Swati Srivastava Junjuan Yang Janka Zavadska

Annual Membership Meeting 2008 Chair: Chantale Holzmann

Annual Membership Meeting 2009 Chair: Rula Ghani

Annual Report Editor: Louise Shimizu Assistant Editor: Christinne Secrest Layout: Gilda Dadush

Arrivals & Welcoming Chair: Maaike le Grand MD Coordinator: Isabelle Tausch VA Area Coordinator: Moira Whyte

«

DC Area Coordinator: Phi Fostvedt

«

Welcoming Specialists Meltem Aydogmus Laurentine Batonga Badia Benadi Aminata Bojang Marie Diop Ignas Diu Daniela Drapakova Mariela Eberhardt Rachida El Yadari Anne Folliet Nefertare Galiba Rula Ghani Chantale Holzmann Belkys Lopez Rabello Nour Loutfy Dupe Odugbemi Annemarie Brink Olsen Zainab Rahman Vidya Rangan Tracy Russell Indira Sampath Swati Srivastava Rosa Lia Troch Yukako Wada Yuan Amanda Wang

Book Groups African Coordinators Melitta Carter Monica Schott English Coordinators Myra Jacobs Zane Stuggins French Coordinators Marie Yasmine Auclert Catherine Labaste Leonore Oblitas

«

«

German Coordinators Sigrid Blobel Ursula Revuelta

Book Project Officers President: Josephine Barry / Hilary Welch Treasurer: Martine de Lusignan Secretary: Tessa Ravry Shipping Coordinator: Doina Olievschi Packing Room Coordinator: Ann Waters Book Donation Coordinator: Pushpa Pherwani Volunteers Anna Dahlborg Anna Dahlstrom Oreana Ebanks-Taylor Sarma Geetha Michael Graham Giselle Happi Zebade Kebede Yvonne Kurtz Osvaldo Mabyaia Antje Liese Muentinga Lena Persson Paula Pitman Sue Ramachandran Bodo Ramandimbiarison Caridad Pena Rogriguez Marina Shah Evelyne Taffin Anna Villacampa

Bridge Coordinators Marlene Bolze Farida Dossani Kathryn O’Brien

Children’s Holiday Party Coordinator: Swati Srivastava

«

Volunteers Nicolas Alvarez-Couceiro Paula Alvarez-Couceiro Hanna Anderson Kevin Assie Marcelline Assie Badia Benadi Tessa Bliss Aminata Bojang Stefanie Borchert Remy Bustani Salsabil Chebli Kaouthar Chebil Yunying Chen Tien Comlekoglu Ondi Conde Marie Diop Ignas Diu Neema Diu Daniela Drapakova Dianne Dumais Rachida El Yadari Glaucia Fernandes Miren Fernandez Anne Folliet Thibaut Folliet Rula Ghani Vera Gilbert Jacob Gordon Marcus Gordon Mary Clare Gubbins Isaura Hernandez Chantale Holzmann Abril Ibarra George Kokrashvili Sharmishtha Kulkarni Aditya Kumtakar Vidya Kumtakar Djyldyz Kydyrova Anaelle Legrain

«

«

«

Elizabeth Legrain Nicolas Legrain Maaike le Grand Maimouna Ly Francoise Marin Diana Mayer Dupe Odugbemi Aisha Pinga Pinga Sonia Rodriguez-Crane Masaharu Shimizu Srijana Sharma Silwal Isha Srivastava Isabelle Tausch Genet Telahun Victor Vergara Ana Villacampa Chloe Welmond Moira Whyte Fabrizio Zarcone

Taiyeba Granier Sharmishtha Kulkarni Lariza Lailla Gamarra Anaelle Legrain Elizabeth Legrain Chang-Yung Lee Augustin Nikolova Annemarie Brink Olsen Sonia Rodriguez-Crane Isabelle Tausch

Computer Classes Instructor: Tania Gnesdilova

EC Nominating Committee Chair: Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar Committee Dupe Odugbemi Isabelle Tausch

Educational Programs

Children’s Art Competition

Chair: Marie Diop

Coordinator: Swati Srivastava

Emergency Preparedness

Judges Sadeem Alkadi Marie Diop Miren Fernandez Nathalie Barthes-Pouliquen

Coordinator: Rula Ghani

Volunteers Sadeem Alkadi Paula Atela Sandipa Thapa Basynat Aminata Bojang Nadine Chapman Christopher Cutler Gilda Dadush Marie Diop Minerva Espinosa-Apurada Miren Fernandez Anne Folliet Rula Ghani

«

«

Financial Education Coordinator: Sally Macartney

Financial Literacy Courses Instructor: Cary Clark Facilitators Elena Franzoi-Siewerdt Djyldyz Kydyrova Sally Macartney Dupe Odugbemi Tessa Ravry

Wandering Winners Investment Club President: Delia Reyes / Lois Khairallah Vice President: Tessa Ravry

«

«G -T et

ogethers

MD Hosts Nathalie Barthes-Pouliquen Rachida El Yadari Miren Fernandez Anne Folliet Besma Huc Nandini Lal Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar Catherine Mathieu Isabelle Tausch Leila Thomas DC/VA Hosts Xiaojia Sarah Fang Vera Gilbert Gabriele Hofman Swati Mishra Vidya Rangan Swati Srivastava Karin van Woerden

Graphics Team Pamela Chilet Gilda Dadush Duina Reyes

Information Seminars Coordinator: Monika Sergo

International Cuisine Coordinator: Catherine Labaste Hosts Solange Amorelli Kawtar Khenejer Catherine Labaste Helen Podolske Madina Seydi Isabelle Tausch Carla Vetter

«

International Cultural Group

«

Committee Vim Maguire Shirley Scheyer Pat Streifel

Language Groups English Teachers Tessa Bliss Sarah Brau Marie Diop Helen Maybury Julie Page Frank Sterrett Ruth Sysak French Teachers Catherine Gouarne Brigitte Juhel Spanish Teacher Isabel Moreno

Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund (MMMF) MMMF Honorary Members Charlotte Conable Sukriye Karaosmanoglu Patsy Preston Hanna Woicke Elaine Wolfensohn MMMF Officers President: Caroline Berney Vice President: Nalinie Kouame / Hada Zaidan Treasurer: Lilian Kew / Charlotte Jones-Carroll Secretary: Zane Stuggins MMMF Coordinator: Cecile Ferri Assistant Secretary: Louise Shimizu MMMF Directors Georgine Ahmad Sarah Brau

«

«

Gilda Dadush Jayati Datta-Mitra Joanne Garrity Nalinie Kouame Dominique Lallement Leonora Kimi Nyawata Ruby Wingate Andree Wynkoop Historian: Harriet Baldwin MMMF Advisors Sigrid Blobel Helen Frick Lois Khairallah Margaret Lane Priscilla Linn Carla Scearce

MMMF Friends Chair: Nadereh Chamlou Financial Secretary: Christine Stover Founding Member: Harriet Baldwin

MMMF International Arts and Crafts Fair Chair: Georgine Ahmad Committee Caroline Berney Sarah Brau Sigrid Blobel Enid Burki Gilda Dadush Jayati Datta-Mishra Ineke de Haan Cecile Ferri Joanne Garrity Charlotte Jones-Carroll Lilian Kew Lois Khairallah Nalinie Kouame Vim Maguire Kimi Nyawata

«

Carla Scearce Zane Stuggins Ruby Wingate Andree Wynkoop Hada Zaidan

«

MMMF Recipients’ Hospitality Coordinators Georgine Ahmad Kimi Nyawata FY08 Hosts Sarah Brau Geeta Chandrasekar Charlotte Jones-Carroll Dominique Lallement Clare Scrimgeour Pietronella van den Oever Elna van Greuning FY09 Hosts Sigrid Blobel Sarah Brau Vania Castro Madeleine de Kock Charlotte Jones-Carroll Clare Scrimgeour Judy Wolf Andre Wynkoop

MMMF Selection Committee, Africa Pretoria Team Chair: *Melanie Jaya Pretoria Team Volunteers Faith Babalwa Chirwa Khetsiwe Dlamini Shirley Faragher Catherine Kadennyeka Masinde Nokuthula Pearlygate Mathobela Thirumeni Thiru Naidoo-Swettenham Phindite Ngwenya Christina Romero Washington Team Chair: *Elna van Greuning

«

«

Washington Team Volunteers Corrie Bridgman *Enid Burki *Andrea Dore *Mamou K. Ehui Jocelyn Fofack *Navodini Harmsen *Patty Hoyes *Elizabeth Legrain *Nikita Sunil Malik Moustapha Ndiaye Safie Sarr Sathya Selvam *Swati Srivastava * Selection Panel

Volunteers Sandipa Thapa Basynat Ignas Diu Nefertare Galiba Muhammad Faisal Javed Catherine Mathieu Maaike le Grand Belkys Lopez Rabello Annemarie Brink Olsen Vidya Rangan Helio Cola Rodrigues Corinne Sinnassamy Uta Steckhan

MMMF Selection Committee, US/Canada

Volunteers Sandipa Thapa Basynat Gilda Dadush Dianne Dumais Mariel Escudero Rula Ghani Mary Lee Kingsley Maaike le Grand Luis Liceaga Imogen Morizet Annemarie Brink Olsen Asmin Sen

Chair: *Navodini Harmsen Vice Chair: *Vesna Heysch De La Borde Volunteers *Solange Amorelli Enid Burki Vania Castro *Isabelle Chatterton *Jill Crowther Madeleine de Kock *Marie Diop *Elizabeth Legrain *Nikita Sunil Malik Dorine Otieno *Safie Sarr Sathya Selvam Swati Srivastava *Olga Stein Leila Thomas Judy Wolf *Selection Panel

Memeber Management System Coordinator: Besma Huc/Tania Gnesdilova

«

«

Mosaic Editor: Vidya Rangan

Multi-Organization Meeting Coordinator: Rula Ghani Volunteers Georgine Ahmad Jyoti Chitale Nanette Deduque Miren Fernandez Anne Folliet Chantale Holzmann Nancy LeBaron Maaike le Grand Sally Macartney

«

«

Maria Helena Maldonado-Villar Annemarie Brink Olsen Monika Sergo Swati Srivastava Yukako Wada

News Discussion Groups Coordinator: Phi Fostvedt

Office Assistants Mariela Eberhardt Nicole Teke

Parents & Tots DC Mothers and Kids Playgroup Coordinator: Verena Braunoehler

MD Parents and Tots Coordinator: Katja Vinha

MD Spanish Parents and Tots Coordinator: Gabriela Gonzalez

Representative Council Chair: Rula Ghani

Spouse Issues Committee Chair: Chantale Holzmann Committee Barry McIsaac Rosa Lia Troch

Surviving Culture Shock Facilitators Nancy LeBaron Kate Lu Yvonne Quahe Volunteers Daniela Drapakova Anne Folliet Emergency Preparedness Coordinator: Rula Ghani

Teen Programs

VA Parents and Tots

Coordinator: Jo Bartlett

Coordinator: Birgit Sheldon

Volunteers Sadeem Alkadi Aminata Bojang Miren Fernandez Rula Ghani Anja Gutschera Den-Ny Hwang Ana Kaiganich Nour Loutfy Madeleine Masson Dupe Odugbemi Swati Srivastava Rosa Lia Troch Janka Zavadska

Quilting Group Coordinator: Vivienne Mordasini Volunteers Stefanie Borchert Jyoti Chitale Patricia Garcia Anja Gutschera Liz Hemming Gabriele Hofmann Chantale Holzmann Harriet Kelman Ivonne Marchant Sang Yu Sang Sophie Sinmao Sowmya Sundararaman Isabelle Tausch Junjuan Yang

«

«

WBFN Gallery Coordinator: Na’ava Feder Exhibitors Nathalie Barthes-Pouliquen

«

«

Fatima Farzana Asmin Sen

«

WBFN Website Webmaster: Gilda Dadush Volunteers Sadeem Alkadi Daniela Drapakova Sharmishtha Kulkarni Raquel Mundaca Swati Srivastava

Yellow Pages Volunteers Jo Bartlett Gilda Dadush Sahr Mbayo

«

«

WBFN African Fashion Show Annual Exhibits 2009

www.wbfn.org [email protected]