BPW/UN matters, including deadlines, can be found on the BPW and UN website
The Canadian Federation of Business and Professional Women (BPW Canada) is proud to hold ECOSOC Consultative Status with the United Nations, granted in 2021. This accreditation allows BPW Canada to actively participate in the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) each March in New York, contributing to global discussions on gender equity and the advancement of women.
Each year, BPW Canada may send up to 20 official delegates to CSW, where they attend UN sessions, engage in civil society forums, and take part in advocacy and policy discussions. This opportunity empowers BPW members to bring Canadian perspectives to global challenges and return home with insights to support local action.
Business and Professional Women (BPW) has been actively engaged with the United Nations since its early years. BPW played a key role in lobbying for the creation of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and has long advocated for women’s rights and equality on the global stage.
BPW has held Consultative Status with the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) since 1947.
Today, 21 BPW representatives participate in UN processes at headquarters in New York, Vienna, and Geneva, as well as with international bodies including UNESCO, UNICEF, International Labour Organization, World Health Organization, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization, the Council of Europe, the European Women’s Lobby, and UN Women.
Learn more about BPW International: https://www.bpw-international.org
BPW Canada’s engagement with CSW strengthens our mission to advocate for a more just and equitable world. Through this international platform, we ensure that Canadian women’s voices are heard and that our national advocacy aligns with global priorities — including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Beijing Platform for Action.
If you are interested in joining the Canadian delegation for CSW70 or supporting our UNCSW initiatives, watch for our Call for Delegates in October 2025 or contact our Vice President UNCSW at [email protected].
Together, we move from global dialogue to local action — empowering women at all levels.
The 70th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) marked one of the most politically significant moments for global women’s rights in recent years. For the first time in decades, the Agreed Conclusions were adopted by recorded vote rather than consensus, following intense negotiations and attempts to weaken established commitments under the Beijing Platform for Action.
The final outcome passed narrowly, with 37 countries voting in favour and the United States voting against. This unprecedented development reflects growing global tensions around gender equality, reproductive rights, and human rights frameworks, and underscores the importance of sustained advocacy by civil society organizations such as BPW.
Despite these challenges, governments reaffirmed commitments in key areas including women’s economic empowerment, prevention of gender-based violence, leadership and decision-making, and addressing the digital gender divide. The Agreed Conclusions also emphasized the importance of inclusive approaches that reflect the diverse realities of women and girls.
For BPW, CSW70 is a reminder that global progress cannot be taken for granted. Translating international commitments into national and local action remains essential. BPW members can continue to play a vital role by strengthening advocacy on economic independence, social protection, leadership development, and emerging policy issues affecting women.
Freedom for Empowerment: Self-Defence Redefined
The 8 Essential Pillars to Reduce Violence, Advance Gender Equity, and Enable Empowerment for All Women and Girls. In partnership with NFBPWC.
Date: March 10, 2026
Time: 12:30 – 2:00 PM EST
Place: The Church Center for the UN (CCUN), 2nd Floor
Format: Hybrid event – virtual & in-person
This parallel event was hosted by BPW Canada as part of CSW70 NGO Forum programming and was open to all registered participants. Recording to be available soon.
The 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69), held from March 10–21, 2025, marked the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. This milestone event brought global attention to the progress made—and the persistent gaps—in achieving gender equity.
BPW Canada’s 20-member delegation participated in high-level UN events, civil society forums, and advocacy briefings. Delegates engaged with international peers, attended thematic sessions on leadership, economic empowerment, and health equity, and contributed feedback as part of the WAGE Rapid Response Team, supporting Canada’s official submission on the CSW Zero Draft.
A major highlight was BPW Canada’s official NGO CSW Parallel Event, hosted in partnership with the Gender Equity Coalition of Ontario and BPW International. Titled:
“Pathways to Gender Equity in the Workplace: Strategies to Cultivate Inclusive Workplaces, Elevate Leadership, and Expand Opportunities in Trades and STEM”
The event featured a dynamic panel of leaders working across engineering, labour, academia, and international advocacy, including:
Held in-person at the Church Center for the United Nations and streamed online, the event explored critical strategies for promoting equity in underrepresented fields, breaking down systemic barriers, and building inclusive leadership cultures.
As part of our follow-up, BPW Canada is preparing a 2025 Delegate Summary Report, which will highlight key learnings, session takeaways, and calls to action for local and national engagement. We also continue to support member-led events across Canada to localize the global commitments of Beijing+30.
In 2025, the global community will mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995).
The sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women will take place at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 10 to 21 March 2025.
Representatives of Member States, UN entities, and ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from all regions of the world are invited to attend the session.
The main focus of the sixty-ninth session will be on the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly. The review will include an assessment of current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women and its contribution towards the full realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
BPW Canada has Special Consultative Status through ECOSOC and is able to have 20 Delegates attend CSW each year. Watch this page for details on applying to be one of the In Person Delegates.
The Commission on the Status of Women is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. A functional commission of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). It was established in 1946. The CSW is instrumental in promoting women’s rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women.
In 1996, ECOSOC expanded the commission’s mandate and decided that it should take a leading role in monitoring and reviewing progress and problems in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (the key global policy document on gender equality) and in mainstreaming a gender perspective in UN activities.
During the commission’s annual two week session, representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations and UN entities gather at UN headquarters in New York. They discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action as well as emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women.
Member States agree on further actions to accelerate progress and promote women’s enjoyment of their rights in political, economic, and social fields. The outcomes and recommendations of each session form the “Agreed Conclusions” document which is forwarded to ECOSOC for follow-up.
Parallel events organized by NGOs are coordinated by the NGO Committee on the Status of Women (NGO CSW/NY), which is a group of New York–based women’s NGOs in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council. For more information on the NGO CSW67 Forum and on NGO parallel events, please visit the website of NGO CSW/NY at https://ngocsw.org/
UN Women: https://www.unwomen.org/en/how-we-work/commission-on-the-status-of-women
NGO CSW/NY: https://ngocsw.org/
UN Web TV: https://webtv.un.org/
VIEW PRESENTATION: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0kYEiSZp38
Access to Clean Water in Indigenous Communities in Canada event was hosted by the Canadian Federation of Business and Professional Women. It was our pleasure to welcome to the discussion moderator Patricia Crowe with our dynamic speakers Jessica Vandenberghe, Nicole Hancock and Tasha Beeds. We were truly in awe of the work these women do and their willingness to share their time with us.
If you missed the event please check out the recording.
View moderator and panelist’s bios and links here.
“The Generation Equality Forum is a civil society–centred, global gathering for gender equality, convened by UN Women and co-hosted by the governments of Mexico and France. Kicking off in Mexico City, Mexico, on 29–31 March 2021, and culminating in Paris, France, in June 2021, the Forum will secure a set of concrete, ambitious, and transformative commitments to achieve immediate and irreversible progress towards gender equality. The landmark effort will bring together governments, corporations and change to define and announce ambitious investments and policies.
The Forum responds to the fact that—despite the commitments made in Beijing in 1995 to take strategic, bold action on gender equality—progress and implementation has been slow. Not a single country today can claim to have achieved gender equality. With women’s rights at risk of rolling back further as a result of the COVID-19 crisis—due to heightened poverty and risks of gender-based violence—the Forum is a rallying point to finally achieve the human rights of all women and girls…” ~ Source
“Over twenty-five years after the historic Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the Forum will take stock of progress and drive concrete actions to accelerate progress towards gender equality…” ~Source
BPW Canada Members: CSW Questions? Contact BPW Canada Vice President UN/CSW at [email protected]
How can I become a Delegate to attend CSW at the UN in New York?
What if I cannot get a Delegate Ground Pass, can I still attend?
What if I cannot go to New York, how can I participate?
Besides attending the Speakers/Panels/Meetings and Parallel and Side Events, what is the purpose of CSW meetings?
Click here for answers to these CSW questions and more.
Click here for more photos.
BPWI Leaders’ Summit 2019:
BPW Canada members with Susan O’Malley, Chair NGO CSW
BPW Canada members with Regional Co-Ordinator Dawne Williams:
Clare Fulcher Dinner, celebrating BPW USA 100th Anniversary, 2019
BPW Canada Members and BPW International President
(Far Left) Dr. Amany Asfour: 2018
BPW Canada and BPW International Sisters: 2017
BPW Canada and BPW International Sisters: 2009
BPW Canada Members – Canada Desk: 2009
BPW Canada Tourists: 2006