URGENT Action Fund For Women’s Human Rights

annual report 2009

Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights3100 Arapahoe Avenue, Suite 201, Boulder, CO 80303t: (303) 442-2388 f: (303) 442-2370www.urgentactionfund.org

Urgent Action Fund - AfricaCVS Plaza, 2nd Floor, Lenana Road, KilimaniP.O. Box 53841-00200, Nairobi, Kenyat: (+254) 020-2301740 f: (+254) 020-2301740www.urgentactionfund-africa.or.ke

Fondo de Acción Urgente de América LatinaCarrera 27A #40A-68, Bogota, D.F., Colombiat: (571) 368-6155 f: (320) 840-7740

Cover Photo: Colectiva Mujer u Salud, Dominican Republic, www.colectivamujerysalud.orgCover Art: Ibrahim Al Nashashibi, “The Muses of Jerusalem”, www.alnashashibi.comDesigned by: Design Action Collective, www.designaction.orgPrinted by: Inkworks Press, www.inkworkspress.org

DONORSAnonymous (3)Sunila AbeysekeraStephany Allardice

Stelya Designs

American Jewish World ServiceJune AngoleArcus FoundationKathy BarryJoe Barry and Lauri HannauDebi BaydushMekayla BeaverJoanne BergholdRita and Irwin BlittChela BlittMary Estill BuchananMaureen BurkhartSandra ButlerAmy Laura CahnBill CampbellRobin & Dan CatlinChannel FoundationJanet ColeJude ColleCommunity First Foundation Community Foundation Serving Boulder County

Anchor Point Gift Fund Jared Polis Gift Fund Rollie and Josie Heath Family Fund Serendipity FundSunshine Fund

CordaidPatricia CooperCopaken Family Foundation

In honor of Chela Blitt

Emily DavisDepartment for International Development (U.K.)Jelena ÐorðevicDobkin Family Foundation Eleanor DouglasJessica DouiebMary and James DowntonMarta Drury Dutch Ministry of Foreign AffairsHarriet EdelsteinElaine Enarson and Carl HeringJill ErtlCindy Ewing Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund

AnonymousAuld Family Charitable Gift FundDP FundXPU Foundation

filia die frauenstiftungAmalia Fischer

Ellen Flanders and Tamira Sawatzky

In honor of Lorraine Segato and Ilana Landsberg Lewis

The Ford FoundationKay ForsytheFoundation to Promote Open SocietyStacie FreasierLynn FreedmanMarcia FreedmanDavid Friedman

In honor of his father

Fund for NonviolenceThe Funding ExchangeAriella Futral and Erik LindströmGinni Galicinao

In honor of Chela Blitt

General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist ChurchCarol Gerlitz

In honor of Elna Gerlitz

Gill Foundation Global Fund for Women Google Matching Gift FundGreen Fund Revocable TrustTerry GreenblattJoan HaddenAlexis HalsteadMelissa HaniewiczLee Hartz

In honor of Jane Lewenthal

Patricia and Duane HaugenAnissa HélieHorizons Foundation

girls just wanna have funD

iGive.comInternational Development Research CentreJulianna Johnson Betsy Kasper KotcherVioleta Krasnic Shirlee KurlandAnn Lederer & Robert HicklerMarc LevyJane Lewenthal and Tomo TsukayamaSheila and Bob LindbergMandy M. Rigg ConsultingMarra Foundation The Marvin Naiman and Margery Goldman Family Foundation Kathleen May-RosenfeldAnne McCarten-GibbsBoli MedappaSara MichlLisa MiddagRebecca Mills

The Moriah FundJoe and Sharon MoyaTrena Moya and Don HarrisNetwork for GoodPeggy NewellMartha NewellThe Overbrook Foundation The Pannonia FoundationCarla PatonFrançoise Poinsatte Portero Nuevo FundSom PourfarzanehElizabeth Reder Andrea RiceElisabeth and Robert RixRose Community Foundation

Mally Fund

Penny RosenwasserIn memory of Andrea Lewis

Margaret SandThe San Francisco Foundation

Friedman/Meyer Fund

Jean Rannells SaulNilmini Senanayake Hecox Julie ShawLinda Shoemaker and Steve Brett

In honor of Jane Lewenthal

Sigrid Rausing TrustSilicon Valley Community Foundation

Joan and David Hadden Fund

Sisters of St. JosephIn honor of Terry Greenblatt

Sol and Doris R. Swiss Foundation Charitable TrustNorma StoneShalini SwaroopTides Canada Foundation

Cloverleaf Foundation

Tides FoundationAnonymousBright Horizon Fund - Ms. Deborah Rennels Salkind & Mr. Louis SalkindTikvah FundEffie Westervelt

Barbara and Larry TongateKeely TongateJolene and Michael Toscano

In honor of her children

Mary TrembourTWANDA FoundationSophie Walker

In honor of Les Femmes

Heather WalshRachel WarehamBarbara WashburnRita WeissKirsten Westby

Wexler-Beron Family Foundation William M. and Miriam F. Meehan FoundationWomen’s Foundation of California

Deborah Drysdale Fund

Working Assets/CREDO Cheryl WilfongCathy Ziemba

FOUNDING DONORS: UAF-LATIN AMERICAWendy EmrichLisa JacksonRebecca Mills

IN-KIND DONORSMónica AlemánNancy Billica Boulder BookstoreLinda BurnhamThe Cup Espresso CaféVanja DanilovicDoty, Lyle & Jones, LLCSusanna GeorgeGlobal Greengrants FundBrooke HirschfelderHogan & Hartson, LLPBeth KleinKingsbery, Baris, Vogel, NuttallCynthia MadanskyEva Maina AyieraMr. PoolJill NeuendorfMargo Okazawa-ReyKarina PallerosAwatef RasheedA Spice of Life CateringUAF’s Grantmaking AdvisorsUAF’s translatorsPam Vogel Whole Foods Market

VOLUNTEERS AND INTERNSIngrid EcheverryAnnalise EveretMatt FerraroHannah GreenstreetAsia KambalNadia KhasawnehSaren OliverKendra OttSue ShermanKim Waldron

Thank you for making UAF’s work possible!

The UAF Staff: Top Row: Erika Carlson, Kris Abrams, Trena Moya, Marcy Wells, Zoya Elhassan, Middle Row: Clare Murray, Keely Tongate, Bottom Row: Terry Greenblatt, Saira Hamidi

YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO INVEST STRATEGICALLY IN WOMEN AROUND THE WORLDWe support women in making critical interventions to create cultures of peace, justice and human rights, and this requires money. If you would like to become a part of this effort and strategically invest your dollars in some of the most cutting edge activism in the world, you may send a check to Urgent Action Fund, 3100 Arapahoe Ave., Suite 201, Boulder, CO 80303; donate online at www.urgentactionfund.org; or contact our office at (303) 442-2388 or urgentact@urgentactionfund.org. UAF is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Financials

ASSETSCash and equivalents Accounts receivable Grants receivable Promises to give, current Prepaid expenses ______________________________________ Total current assets

Fixed Assets, net Deposits Promises to give, net of current ______________________________________

Total Assets

LIAbILITIES AND NET ASSETS (EqUITY)Liabilities:Accounts payableGrants payable Other payables Accrued liabilities ______________________________________Total Liabilities

Net Assets (Equity):Temporarily Restricted Board Reserve Fund Other Unrestricted ______________________________________

Total Net Assets

Total Liabilities and Net Assets

SUPPORT AND REVENUESContributions Investment Income Miscellaneous Income ______________________________________ Total Support and Revenues

ExPENSESProgram Services Rapid-Response Grantmaking Research, Publications & Advocacy Alliance Building ______________________________________ Total Program Services

Management and Administration Fundraising ______________________________________ Total Expenses

Change in Net Assets Net Assets, beginning of year ______________________________________Net Assets, end of year

Total Net Assets (Equity)

$0

$200,000

$400,000

$600,000

$800,000

$1,000,000

$1,200,000

$1,400,000

$1,600,000

Total Assets Total Liabilities Total Net Assets(Equity)

($1,402,255)

($107,183)

($1,295,072)

54% Grantmaking Program

Fundraising

13%Management & Admin. 11%

Alliance Building 9%Program

14% Research, Publications &Advocacy Program

board of Directors: Sunila Abeysekera, Sri Lanka, Co-Chair • Jelena Ðorðevic, Serbia, Secretary • Eleanor Douglas (through April 2009) • Marta Drury, USA • Amalia Fischer, Brazil/Mexico • Terry Greenblatt, USA/Israel, Executive Director & CEO • Anissa Hélie, Algeria/France, Vice Chair • Rachel Wareham, Afghanistan/Kosova/Nepal, Treasurer

The financial statements for Urgent Action Fund are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) in the U.S. As of publication date, UAF’s 2009 external audit was in progress and the financial statements presented herein are preliminary. To obtain a copy of the full auditors’ report once published, please contact Urgent Action Fund or visit our website. UAF is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Total Net Assets (Equity)

$0

$200,000

$400,000

$600,000

$800,000

$1,000,000

$1,200,000

$1,400,000

$1,600,000

Total Assets Total Liabilities Total Net Assets(Equity)

($1,402,255)

($107,183)

($1,295,072)

Non-U.S. Governmental Agencies

Individuals, Donor-advised 31% & Family Foundations

40%

U.S.-based Foundations

Businesses & Organizations 1%

Non-U.S. based Foundations

15%

12%

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION December 31, 2009

STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES January 1 - December 31, 2009

2009 ExPENSES

2009 INCOME SOURCES

$794,538$456

$154,783$100,855

$9,541

$1,060,173

$8,893$9,413

$323,776

$1,402,255

$43,164$15,500$39,369$9,150

$107,183

$684,902$180,654$429,516

$1,295,072

$1,402,255

$2,209,834$139$78

$2,210,051

$764,652$195,219$122,654

$1,082,525

$152,370$177,243

$1,412,138

$797,913$497,159

$1,295,072

Women for Human Rights (WHR) Nepal $5,000In response to a government proposal to pay men to marry widows, WHR used UAF funds to transport hundreds of widows to Parliament’s doorstep to raise awareness about their desire to live lives of self-determination and dignity. The Supreme Court ultimately blocked the proposal.

Rural Poor Women’s Apostolate (RMP) Philippines, $5,000In response to the murder of a 23-year-old female activist, over a thousand people marched against militarization of the countryside and defended their land from being appropriated for mining operations and plantations. In the process, many joined a Peace Alliance and signed a Peace Manifesto, which called for military withdrawal. The military withdrew from some areas.

Outer VoicesCambodia, $5,000 Renowned Cambodian women’s rights leader and female Member of Parliament Mu Sochua requested funds to bring independent journalists to document her politically motivated trial. Their stories reverberated around the globe, Sochua’s freedom was preserved, and a clear message was sent to the government that it will not be easy to roll back gains in women’s rights.

AMIFANICNicaragua, $5,000An increase in cases of femicide led AMIFANIC to respond via a radio-based awareness-raising campaign to pressure the government to take action against the impunity surrounding murders of women.

ZAKHERPalestine. $5,000Israel’s offensive in Gaza left the area littered with landmines. Zakher was among the first to document this threat, when they observed children picking up live munitions and displaying them in their homes. With UAF funds, Zakher printed educational materials and recruited local volunteers to educate women and children about how to stay safe.

Rap•id Re•sponse Grants (n): Fast cash infusions to support women in making timely, strategic interventions in their efforts to create cultures of peace, justice, safety and human rights for all people. Activists may apply in any language on any day of the year, receive a response within 72 hours, and often receive funds within a week – because peacemaking, saving lives, and precedent-setting legal actions can’t wait for traditional funding cycles.

Areas shaded dark blue represent the countries grants were awarded in 2009

In 2009, UAF awarded 97 Rapid Response Grants in 36 countries.

Dear Friends, As I reflect on UAF’s work this past year, I am amazed at the im-pact a relatively small amount of money, strategically placed in the hands of women, can have. In 2009, women from around the globe used UAF funds to save the lives of women’s human rights activists, to advocate, agitate and educate for the rights of women and girls, to bring international media pressure to bear on repressive regimes, and

much more. UAF supported 97 women’s groups in 36 countries, touching the lives of tens of thousands of women all over the world.

I am thrilled to announce that UAF-Latin America opened its doors to the women of the region in 2009! Inspired by the catalytic nature of the grants and collaborative initiatives of our first Sister Fund, UAF-Africa, initiated by activists in South America and the Caribbean, and years in the planning, UAF-Latin America now directs all Rapid Response Grantmaking for the region.

There comes a time in the life of every organization to evaluate its work with clarity and honesty. This can be a scary process: we all care so much about the work we do – but do we have the impact we say we do? In 2009, we contracted with four independent researchers to conduct a ten-year evaluation of our grantmaking in multiple regions. Grantees reported that UAF grants:

• Often mean the difference between life and death• Allow women to intervene at critical moments in the lives of their community and country• Lead to higher levels of collaboration and solidarity among activists• Support transformations in consciousness

In addition, the evaluation informed our 2010-2012 strategic planning process, and invigorated our com-mitment to strengthening and sustaining women’s activism.

Some of the ways in which UAF sustains activism are impossible to measure: simply witnessing a woman in her pain, for example, or humbly communicating solidarity. Consider the words of one of our grantees, written from ground zero of a war zone:

I read UAF’s beautiful letter to [our members] and some of the sisters were shedding tears… They said, “There are angelic, merciful hearts in a place far from us that we have never met but they share with us because they are women as well.”

From our hearts, the UAF community thanks you for making this life-changing work possible.

- Terry and the UAF team

URGENT ACTION FUND SUPPORTS WOMEN’S RIGHTS DEFENDERS STRIVING TO CREATE CULTURES OF JUSTICE, EQUALITY AND PEACE.

Research, Publications & Advocacy“When the inner lamp burns, it illuminates the whole world.” - Gandhi

Many of us have experienced working when our inner lamp is burning with inspiration, clarity, and a pas-sion for justice. We have also experienced working in the darkness of burnout, fear, and trauma. What do women and their organizations need in order to protect and fan the flame of inner fire that keeps global activism alive?

UAF’s Research, Publications and Advocacy program researches questions of critical importance to activ-ists, publishes the results, and advocates in spaces where activist voices would not otherwise be heard. Over the past couple of years, in response to the needs articulated by our partner grantees on the ground, the above question has become a critical theme in our work.

We held our first-ever Sustaining Activism retreat in Turkey in September 2009. Women’s human rights activists discussed how individuals and movements can survive and even thrive in situations of stress, grief, and work that demands everything we have to give. We also increased access to our seminal publications Insiste, Persiste, Resiste, Existe, and What’s the Point of Revolution if We Can’t Dance?, with new transla-tions and website availability. And, UAF staff recommitted to ensuring that, with transparency and integrity, we continue to examine these issues on the home front as well.

What do “counter-terrorism” measures have to do with women human rights activists? More than they should. Governments all over the world have been using the language of counter-terrorism to justify targeting individual activists and their organizations. UAF grantees brought this issue to our atten-tion, and we designed a new pilot project that will document the threats, identify strategies women have used to respond, and call on policymakers and donors to challenge attempts to limit the civil society spaces in which women’s activism resides.

At times it feels like we’re walking in the dark, with starts and stops along the way. This is because, in this time of global war and economic uncertainty, we seek to create a new model for feminist philanthropic activism. We listen to and respond to the voices of women on the ground. We facilitate re-search and dialogues on topics that have long been considered taboo or irrelevant to social change. And we unapologetically leverage our international reach to amplify grassroots voices in spaces where they would not otherwise be heard. These times demand it. We will walk into the dark and shine a light there.