THREE Ilkley Soroptimists were among 1,000 women from 125 countries attending the International Convention in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Queen of Malaysia officiated at the opening ceremony before keynote speakers including Christina Lamb, of the Sunday Times, Prof Jacqueline Cramer an expert on the Circular Economy and Catherine Geslain- Laneelle the EU’s candidate for Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation addressed the theme of Building a Sustainable World and a Safe Future.

Soroptimists were encouraged to undertake a wide range of projects aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and ongoing projects such as increasing access to formal and non formal learning opportunities, ensuring women and girls have food security and access to the highest attainable standards of healthcare, alongside mitigating the effects of climate change and disasters were highlighted in a wide selection of workshops.

Ilkley members were particularly pleased to meet up with their friendship link members from Brisbane and Beneden Maas in Holland but hearing women’s voices from five continents reconfirmed the advantage of there being a global voice for women which is at the heart of the Soroptimist movement.