Monday, May 16, 2011
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BEDFORD — As the world grows smaller and more interdependent, New Hampshire women are offering solutions to global challenges. The efforts of Jackie Eastwood of Durham, Bess Palmisciano of Newmarket and the Senator Jeanne Shaheen of Madbury on various fronts are being recognized as they have been named New Hampshire Magazine's Remarkable "Women of the World."
Eastwood, Palmisciano and Shaheen will appear together for an unprecedented event on May 18 at the Bedford Village Inn in Bedford.
— As a successful entrepreneur, Jackie Eastwood knows the secret of leadership: "You build it up and then get out of the way," she says. That's why she retired from Salient Surgical Technologies, a company she founded and served as CEO until a couple of years ago. Her latest entrepreneurial effort has led her to the urban depths of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where she entices savvy street kids out of the alleys and gutters with an opportunity to attend school. Her organization, The Global Child, pays kids a dollar a day to attend classes and learn their lessons in both English and the local Khmer language. Part of the lesson plan is how to manage their stipend for home expenses and savings, so children are equipped to become citizens and leaders in the country's fast-growing (though still impoverished) economy.
They did so well attracting students (one walked 15 miles from a dump where she was living) that it was soon apparent they would have to provide boarding as well. And in a city that is the center of the international sex trade, a house full of children is a dangerous lure. "We literally had to put up a sign that read 'No pedophiles,'" says Eastwood.
The school has since relocated to the more tourist-oriented areas near the Angkor Wat temples, where they can even run a coffee shop and a boutique. Ultimately, Eastwood aspires to retire from the Global Child as well: "I'd like to see it run completely by the Cambodian people."
— Driving through the "sparse arid beauty" of the deserts of Niger, the 4X4 kept coming upon people - people walking, driving animals and watering them by hand. "It was like turning a page upon a Bible scene," recalls Bess Palmisciano. "We just couldn't imagine how they lived." Palmisciano has since learned a lot about the strengths and the needs of people who somehow thrive in the world's poorest country. They are Muslim, but practice what she calls "a mellow Islam." Women have more freedom than in many Third World countries and the culture is "matrilineal," i.e. people trace their heritage through their mothers and women own the family home and have other property rights.
At first she hoped to help through some existing organization, but the ratio of cost per person to deliver aid is very high in such a desert environment. "I couldn't find anyone to step in, so I decided to do it myself," she says.
Palmisciano founded and now directs Rain for Sahel and Sahara as the result of that decision, improving lives through education, water security, agriculture and income-producing activities. Another emphasis is Rain's mentoring program for girls: "The goal is to have this program in every school where we work," said Palmisciano. — Senator Jeanne Shaheen is the first woman elected as N.H. governor and the first woman to be elected as both a state governor and a U.S. Senator, but her focus is now on global horizons. As the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs, Shaheen has been involved with issues that have taken her to places as far flung as Afghanistan, Iraq, Brussels, Germany, Saudi Arabia, England and the Balkans. But she says her deep ties and experiences here in New Hampshire keep her grounded and provide perspective.
"Whether meeting with New Hampshire companies that export their goods abroad or visiting with our brave troops serving overseas, I am constantly reminded how important international relations are," says Shaheen. Her past experience in breaking a political "glass ceiling" does come into play in a global future. "We know that when women are full participants in society, nations have stronger economies and greater stability," she says. "In these turbulent times, promoting women's rights is essential to building a safer world and a brighter future for our children."
Eastwood, Palmisciano, and Shaheen and the extraordinary women listed below will appear together on May 18 at the Bedford Village Inn for "Women of the World." They will include: Eleanor Briggs (Harrisville) whose photography and work with the Wildlife Conservation Society connects people and protects environments across continents; Sy Montgomery (Hancock) a renowned author of books on rare and endangered creatures; Bess Palmisciano (Newmarket) founder and executive director of Rain for the Sahel and Sahara; Gretchen Wallace (Hanover) mentors and raises consciousness among women in the developing world; Jackie Eastwood (Durham) created The Global Child to educate street children in Cambodia; Jeanne Shaheen (Madbury) NH senator whose focus is now on global horizons; Sara Jayne Steen (Plymouth) president of Plymouth State University, currently transforming it into an international center.
These women will reveal their points of view on a world of challenges and solutions over breakfast. Guiding the discussion will be Annabel Beerel, an expert on ethical leadership and founder of the N.H. Women's Leadership Summit. This event is open to the public and tickets are $27 which includes breakfast. Visit www.nhmagazine.com/remarkablewomen for more details.
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