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Conference Highlights – Networking Events
 Refugee Woman of Spirit Award 2008: At every RWN conference, RWN has honored a distinguished refugee or immigrant woman for her service to the community. This year’s Refugee Woman of Spirit Award was given to Kabzuag Vaj, a Hmong refugee woman from Wisconsin, who has used her experiences and learning to serve her community in Madison, WI.
Gallery of Change Makers was a display area where conference participants who are community leaders and activists displayed their work and their passion with all of us. RWN sought to facilitate dialogue between individuals with similar interests, projects and ideas so as to continue to support the work of building solidarity & community even after the conference.
Art Station was an art project where participants added their imagination and hands to a beautiful community tapestry that revolved around the theme of the conference “In Our Hands: Building Solidarity & Community.”
 Vendor Market: Many of RWN’s Microenterprise Program participants displayed and sold their products to conference attendees and hotel guests at the Conference. The marketplace featured refugee and immigrant women businesses and local micro entrepreneurs.
Caucus: Participants who were interested in discussing a particular topic were asked to create a caucus group and space was provided for those conversations. Some caucus ideas were suggested by RWN.
 Celebration Dinner & Fashion Show: On the first night of the conference, RWN hosted a dinner for all the participants. During the dinner a fashion show highlighted the different cultures and traditional clothes that participants brought. Over 20 women from Guatemala, Rwanda, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, India, Somalia participated in the fashion show.
Pre Conference hors-d’oeurves & networking: Participants who arrived early registered on Thursday and met other participants. About 50 participants, staff and volunteers participated in the networking event.
Conference Highlights – Plenary Sessions, Workshops & Caucuses
The conference provided 3 plenary sessions, each highlighting the theme of the conference, “In Our Hands: Building Solidarity & Community.” For a complete list of workshops and events, click here.
On Friday, November 14th, Ms. Kabzuag Vaj spoke on the topic of In Our Hands where she wove her personal journey as a Hmong refugee to her work as an advocate for women and children. Kabzuag Vaj came with her family to the US in 1981. She is a founder and Executive Director of Freedom, Inc., a grassroots organization that advocates and provides services to low and no-income communities of color in Madison, Wisconsin.
On Saturday, November 15th, a panel of concerned refugee, immigrant and American community members spoke on the theme of Reaching Across Ethnic Divides to Build Solidarity & Community. Representatives from the International Community School, Tapestri, Inc. and International Women’s House spoke on how they recognized that the learning and empowerment needs of immigrants and refugees were unique and that they were not being met adequately within the existing educational and service institutions. Panelists discussed how they worked through ethnic, social, cultural and economic divides to build solidarity, find common grounds and build a community that is responsive, respectful and supportive of the immigrant and refugee community.
On Sunday, November 16th, RWN Board member facilitated an interactive discussion on In Our Hands: Advocacy for Our Communities. Participants identified issues of concern to them that they would like RWN to advocate on.
Workshops: The conference featured two morning sessions and two afternoon sessions for a total of 28 workshops were offered. Participants had the option to choose from at least 4 workshop options. For a complete list of workshops and events, click here.
RWN received 362 evaluations back from participants for the 28 workshops offered. When asked whether they would recommend the workshop they attended to others, 94.3% of the ones who responded they would absolutely recommend it.
The 5 most highly attended workshops:
- Cultural Competency and Domestic Violence
- Leadership Development
- Immigrant Access to Healthcare: How Federal Law Addresses Discrimination and Other Barriers to Immigrant Communities
- Team Building
- Reproductive Health Matters
The 5 most highly rated workshops, in terms of knowledge gained were:
- Diversifying Health Workforce to Decrease Health Disparities
- Using the International Human Rights Framework in Social Justice Advocacy
- Working with Immigrant Survivors of Human Trafficking
- The Refugee Process: The Journey of Obtaining Refugee Status & Rights & Benefits of Refugees in the United States
- Deportation is Wrong!
Caucuses: Topics included the following:
- Community Organizing/Non-Profit Management
- Microenterprise Caucus
- Making Taxes Work for You
- Domestic Violence
- Team Building
- Health
- Women’s Empowerment
A Summary of Narrative Comments and Evaluations
- I cannot believe that it was only yesterday that we were discussing the theme and planning for the conference. Thank you RWN for working so diligently in making this year's conference the BEST EVER! Everything went smoothly and I met very many, many happy people. I am sorry it took me this long to share my gratitude and appreciation for giving me the chance to share story with the rest of the World. It is those gestures that help boost or break our Morales. I am glad to be part of that Agent of Change.
- Words cannot describe the joy and warmth I received during my stay in Atlanta for the conference. I received a few email messages from some attendees. They all shared same feelings and thoughts. They enjoyed the conference; they felt that the messages relayed were highly inspirational and motivating.
- When I say that this is far the best conference I every attended in recent years! I mean it and would like other women to share the experience in the near future. The conference provided the learning experience that cannot be achieved anywhere else.
- I loved meeting people from all over! I feel that this conference reinvigorated me or renewed my passion
- I loved networking and community marketplace, hearing stories and work going on across US.
- I was impressed to see on the agenda and was very impressed with such as the workshop on LGBTQQ refugees very forward thinking. Kudos.
- Packed a lot in but never felt overwhelmed - good rhythm to the weekend.
- The 1st night we hadn't had an opportunity to meet anyone first. So it was a little tough to truly 'network' but we're introverts so that's our own issue! However, the RWN staff did a great job drawing us in. Very well done!
- Fashion show was wonderful!
- Food was much better than average hotel fare!
- The networking connecting with others doing like work. Also always get jazzed about meeting global women.
- I cannot believe that it was only yesterday that we were discussing the theme and planning for the conference. Thank you RWN for working so diligently in making this year's conference the BEST EVER! Everything went smoothly and I met very many, many happy people. I am sorry it took me this long to share my gratitude and appreciation for giving me the chance to share story with the rest of the World. It is those gestures that help boost or break our Morales. I am glad to be part of that Agent of Change.
Words cannot describe the joy and warmth I received during my stay in Atlanta for the conference. I received a few email messages from some attendees. They all shared same feelings and thoughts. They enjoyed the conference; they felt that the messages relayed were highly inspirational and motivating.
When I say that this is far the best conference I every attended in recent years! I mean it and would like other women to share the experience in the near future. The conference provided the learning experience that cannot be achieved anywhere else.
- I loved meeting people from all over! I feel that this conference reinvigorated me or renewed my passion
- I loved networking and community marketplace, hearing stories and work going on across US.
- The feedback from my LGBTQ workshop was that women were very happy to be a part of the workshop. They had never had an opportunity to learn and discuss on this very important and often left out and ostracized community.
- Women who attended the deportation workshop were also very touched and found the information relevant to them and the communities.
The conference was supported in part by
- SisterSong, Women of Color Reproductive Health Collective
- 8 Consulting, LLC.
- Harper, Waldon & Craig
- Alliant CPA Group, LLC.
- South East Asian Resource Action Center
- H & R Block
- A to Z Information Services
- General Building Maintenance, Inc.
- Preprint Digital & Offset Color Printing Solutions.
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