OSCE staff recognized for their dedication to advancing gender equality

OSCE Secretary General Helga Maria Schmid recognized the outstanding achievements of OSCE staff in advancing gender equality and empowering women in the OSCE at the fourth award ceremony that took place at the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna today.

“The OSCE has a crucial role to play in promoting peace and security - and women's equality is an important component of this. We remain steadfast in our commitment to empower women and combat all forms of violence. Throughout the year, we have continued to make improvements within the Organization as well, I am proud to say that we now have gender parity among our international staff and in senior management. Significant progress has also been made in promoting a safe and secure working environment. Today, we highlight the outstanding contributions of our gender champions for their dedication and commitment to making gender equality a reality for all,” Secretary General Schmid said.

Three staff members and one project received the OSCE Gender Champions Award, which recognizes significant contributions in to advancing gender equality in four categories: leadership, staff member, gender focal point and project.

Ambassador Alena Kupchyna, Co-ordinator of Activities to Address Transnational Threats, received the Leadership Award. She was recognized for raising gender awareness amongst her staff and strengthening the gender focal point structure within the Transnational Threats Department in OSCE Secretariat.

Dimitar Dimitrovski, Media Assistant in the OSCE Mission to Skopje, received the Staff Member Award for his contributions to a project supporting the Platform for Investigative Journalism and Analyses in conducting a nationwide survey, publishing a baseline study, and producing the “Dangerous Network” documentary on the experiences of women media workers who face online harassment.

The Gender Focal Point Award was presented to Julia Haas, Associate Project Officer from the Representative on Freedom of the Media, who was nominated by colleagues for her principled stance as an equality activist, and dedication to the cause of streamlining a gender-sensitive approach across all projects and activities.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) received an award in the project category for the “Capitalizing on the Human Dimension Mandate to Advance Gender Equality” (CHANGE) project. The project demonstrated a unique approach to strengthening holistically the individual and collective impact on democratic institutions, policies and social norms to advance gender equality, women’s human rights and women’s safety.