GOA Girl Advocate Speaks at United Nations

Earlier this week, GOA Girl Delegate, Demetra Chudley, co-lead the International Day of the Girl (IDG) Summit at the United Nations. The ECOSOC Chamber was nearly full, with Demetra moderating a conversation between member state representatives and girl activists from around the world before an audience of approximately 350 in-person attendees and an additional 200 online participants.

This year marks the 10th annual celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child, calling for a retrospective on the progress made for girls' rights, listening to girls' continued demands for change, and a push for further accountability for girls' rights. Specific topics included combatting the environmental crisis, preventing gender-based violence, and access to education for all. This was the first time that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America was present in this space. As the only religious organization formally engaged in IDG, the GOA is paving the way for other religious groups and NGOs to advance the rights of girls everywhere.

The GOA Girl Delegate Program empowers Orthodox girls from Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Parishes to advocate for issues important to them at the United Nations. As a pilot program out of the Department of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations, the GOA Girl Delegate Program will likely expand in 2023 which will enable more girls to join. For more information, please email [email protected].