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Gloria Feldt, women's rights activist, author, speaker, media commentator, and former president of Planned Parenthood, was dubbed "the voice of experience" by People Magazine. Feldt will give a keynote address at Passion Into Action on January 23 in Grass Valley. Courtesy photo |
Comments (2)Women Acting Passionately
A new conference by and for women
Published: January 16, 2010by Beth Ingalls
I was preparing for an interview with Gloria Feldt, one of Vanity Fair magazine’s “Top 200 women legends, leaders, and trailblazers.” I hadn’t been this nervous as a reporter since interviewing reggae legend Burning Spear. The more I learned about Feldt, the more intimidated I became. She’s a renowned activist and expert on women, health, media, leadership, and politics, and former president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the world’s largest reproductive health care and advocacy organization. She’s also an acclaimed author and a board member at the Women’s Media Center in New York. Her recent book, “Send Yourself Roses,” penned with actress Kathleen Turner, is a New York Times bestseller. Gathering my wits, I took a deep breath and dialed her New York City number. When she answered, her friendly, receptive voice put me immediately at ease.
As a woman on the front lines of women’s rights issues for so long, and one who was buoyed by Obama’s election last year, I had to ask Feldt the most pressing question on my mind: has she been disappointed by Obama’s performance during his first year in office? “Absolutely,” she said. “We were hoping for big change. So far, he’s falling short.” A fighter and an optimist by nature, Feldt is holding out hope that Obama will eventually “lead us to our higher selves as a nation.” One thing she thinks is lacking in Obama’s leadership so far, which she states in her blog, Heartfeldt, is this: “There is nobility in pulling together to solve a big problem, and we need a leader to elevate our aspirations beyond our own personal needs.”
Feldt will be a keynote speaker at the first annual Passion Into Action: A Women’s Conference, set for Saturday, January 23, in Grass Valley. With a goal of serving women in rural communities and small towns, Passion into Action seeks to show women how little steps can lead to big changes. The conference is designed to give women the opportunity to network and explore ideas to strengthen themselves and their communities. It’s being organized by See Jane Do, a social change multimedia production company that captures the stories of everyday women doing extraordinary things for our planet.
Headlining the event with Feldt is Nina Simmons, president of Bioneers, a national nonprofit that helps spearhead breakthrough solutions to vexing environmental and social challenges. Linda Tarr-Whelan, an expert on women's leadership, will also be there, with loads of local and regional leaders rounding out the event. Organizers hope to create a space where women can tap into their passions and fuel their creative engines through participating in workshops on self development, green living, health and wellness, leadership, and much more.
Feldt will be traveling to Grass Valley from Arizona State University, where she teaches a winter semester class entitled Women, Power and Leadership, and she’s thrilled and honored to be coming to the area for Passion Into Action. While she hasn’t actually prepared her speech yet, she knows she’ll focus primarily on a message of “sister courage.”
“Women have a tendency to isolate themselves, especially when they’re struggling,” she explained. “We all need to take a breath, look around, and work with other women. Working with other women is the solution… that’s sister courage.”
Her words resonated with me. After I hung up the phone I felt empowered and hopeful. Chances seem pretty good that the women attending Passion Into Action are going to walk away feeling exactly the same way.
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