Moving into Action

The WSG Team (Jaleh, Lars-Erik, Erin, our Senior Researcher Dr. Dalia Abdelhady and our amazing interns), together with the WSG Board is working to develop and define WSG's long-term output. Throughout the next year our research platform will be initiated, tools for community development created, pilot trainings tested and new team members brought on board all while maintaining our roots firmly in academia and growing an increasingly interactive international community.

Her conversations highlighted many similarities in the narratives, barriers and opportunities for women in both regions and across all sectors. So the question arose; could academics, businesswomen and policy makers from both regions come together to explore and deepen their understanding of the dynamics of female leadership today?

Could these discussions assist in facilitating female leaders to create cross-regional cooperation to promote sustainable growth and development?

Investigating the Possibilities

In the winter of 2010, Jaleh teamed up with Lars-Erik Olofsson, Project Coordinator at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) at Lund University, to investigate the VALUE and NEED that could be addressed through a cross-regional, cross-sector and cross-generational collaboration in Scandinavia and the Gulf. The initiative, based at CMES and supported by Zayed University (ZU) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), aimed to receive input from a variety of stakeholders in both regions as well as survey existing networks, organizations, and research on women.

To capitalize on the excitement generated during the spring through a succession of visits to and conversations in both regions, the first working group was hosted by CMES at Lund University in June 2010. Participants came from both Sweden and the UAE and represented a cross-section of stakeholders. During this first meeting, working group participants listened, shared and contributed to build the foundational concept of WSG through discussions on the following questions:

1. What are the most important barriers towards increased female involvement in business, and how can academic institutions, governmental organizations and individual women best address them?
2. How can women leaders in both regions share knowledge (or co-mentor each other) to expand and nourish business relations?
3. How can we promote socially responsible business practices and sustainable living through these dialogues and interactions between female leaders?
4. What are the largest cultural impediments to business relationships between Scandinavia and the Middle East? How can they be overcome?
5. What skills, training and resources need to be provided to support female entrepreneurs?
6. How can we encourage, inspire, and assist young female professionals?
7. Who are the women leading the way in promoting innovative and creative solutions to increase sustainable business practices?

The working group agreed that there was a clear NEED and VALUE for an initiative focused on supporting, promoting, connecting and training female leaders between Scandinavia and the Gulf.

Building an Idea

With the need defined, the WSG Team began to facilitate discussions with stakeholders and experts on how the initiative could work. What would WSG do to achieve its vision? To build on the ideas and carry the energy generated in Lund in June, the WSG Team, with the support of new team member Erin Frazier, worked with Zayed University to organize a second working group in December 2010 in Abu Dhabi with WSG's founding members to finalize the initiative's mission, vision and objectives.

Sharing the Mission

Following the two founding working groups, the WSG Team and its partners at Zayed, Yale University and 85 Broads, together with the generous support of Nordea and the UAE Embassy in Stockholm, began to plan the WSG Inaugural Summit for March, 2011 in Stockholm. The purpose of the summit was three fold: 1) to share the WSG vision, mission and objectives with a wider audience, 2) to facilitate discussions on the potential output of WSG, and 3) for the Board of Directors to begin to discuss and direct the question of HOW. The Inaugural Summit showcased the WSG argument, spotlighted female leaders and institutions, organized workshops on community creation, and facilitated networking and idea generation.

Vision

To promote sustainable growth through increasing female leadership in society and creating a bridge between the GCC and Scandinavia.

Mission

To encourage, support and develop female leadership in Scandinavia and the GCC.

Through collaboration WSG intends to fuel sustainable economic growth and development through socially responsible practices.

Our focus areas are female leadership, sustainability and bridging cultures.

Values

Solidarity, Respect, Openness, Trust

Authenticity, Transparency, Action - Oriented, Courage and Creativity.

Why the Gulf and Scandinavia?

The principles and objectives of WSG are not new or limited to the Gulf and Scandinavia as they can be used around the world at both local and international levels. Rather, WSG's community consists of individuals from Scandinavia and the Gulf (and wider Middle East). We are, therefore, working to conduct research, facilitate cooperation, and create sustainable prosperity for our community.