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Date: Monday, March 13th, 2023 | Time: 4 PM EST / 1 PM PST
Women’s Empowerment with Digitization in the Pre and Post Covid Era
Zoroastrian delegation to deliver a panel discussion at the United Nations
As part of the 67th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW67)
NEW YORK, March 3, 2023 – FEZANA will be participating at the 67th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) Conference to be held at the UN Headquarters in New York, USA.
This year’s theme will focus on innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. FEZANA has put together a diverse team of delegates that will be attending and representing FEZANA at the conference.
Dr. Farah Shroff (Vancouver, Canada), Dr. Zebalda Bamji (Toronto, Canada), Sharmin Mistry (Toronto, Canada), Delna Sethna (Mumbai, India), Kaizaad Kotwal (Mumbai, India), Mahabanoo Kotwal (Mumbai, India), Javeed Shaikh (Gujarat, India), Afreed Mistry (Toronto, Canada) and Behram Pastakia (Washington, DC, USA) will be representing the Zoroastrians at the UN.
A subset of the above group will be presenting a panel discussion titled, ““Women’s Empowerment with Digitization in the Pre and Post Covid Era”. The panel will cover topics related to digitization (pre- and post-covid) concerning women. Issues covered with be related to mental health, society, technological accessibility and women’s safety. The panel will also provide actionable ideas for wider implementation.
This panel discussion is open to all, so please register to attend.
The panel discussion details are:
Date: Monday, March 13th, 2023
Time: 4 PM EST / 1 PM PST
Register: bit.ly/FEZANA
Speakers:
Dr. Farah Shroff
Farah is a visionary Canadian public intellectual with expertise in global public health research and education.
Planet. A policy expert, she has worked within and for many governments in Canada and elsewhere.
Her research areas are integrative health approaches such as Ayurveda and yoga, and social/environmental justice-from a feminist anti-racism decolonial lens. Speaking French, Spanish and English, she has worked in many nations as an educator in academia and other communities. She founded and leads Maternal and Infant Health Canada, a global public health collaborative aiming to improve the wellbeing of women, young ones and the environment.
Harvard School of Public Health recently awarded her a mid-career fellowship, recognizing her expertise in global
public health. She works as an independent consultant, faculty member at the University of British Columbia and
teacher of yoga, dance, meditation and other mind-body activities. Dr Shroff is regularly featured in the media.
Contact: drfarahshroff@gmail.com 
Dr. Zebalda Bamji
Zebalda has dedicated her career to improving patient outcomes and healthcare delivery systems, leveraging her profound scientific acumen and exceptional business sense. With an impressive track record of diverse leadership roles, she leads cross-functional teams in biomedical sciences, program management, and business development for multimillion-dollar high-growth initiatives in medical innovation and digital health. She has served as a top-level strategist and subject matter expert across diverse organizations from Canadian and US Health Authorities, Hospital Consortiums, Pharmaceuticals, and Research Organizations across Canada, the US, India, Nepal, China, and the EU. Dr. Bamji has earned her Executive MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, her MS and Ph.D. from Howard University College of Medicine, and her BSc. from St. Xavier’s College Mumbai. She has strategized and supported the development of 6 start-ups with intellectual property patents and venture capital funding. As a thought leader, she has delivered countless seminars and presentations, authored peer-reviewed publications, and taught thousands of medical graduate and undergraduate students over the decades. She has held faculty appointments with Howard University and Northeastern University. She serves on the Board of healthcare facilities, local NGOs, and start-ups. She is also a committed member of several International Charitable Organizations, aiding in poverty alleviation, women’s empowerment, stress relief through meditation, and scientific advancement.
Contact: zebalda@gmail.com
Sharmin Mistry
Sharmin is originally from Mumbai, India, now residing in Toronto, Canada, Sharmin is the Assistant Secretary of the Federation of Zoroastrians of North America (FEZANA). She is a marketing graduate from Seneca College, Toronto currently working at a global media agency, Publicis Media. As a women empowerment advocate, her goal is to inspire Zoroastrian women to become an inspiration for other women, through guidance, motivation and mentorship.
Contact: sharminmistry94@gmail.com
Moderator:
Afreed Mistry
Afreed is from Toronto, Canada and has been an active member of FEZANA since 2002. She co-chairs the FEZANA UN-NGO Committee along with Dr. Behram Pastakia. Afreed is also the main representative for FEZANA at the United Nations. She has attended and presented at eight United Nations’ CSW Conferences and also been a part of the UN DGC Conferences, Parliament of World’s Religions and attended numerous UN meetings.
Contact: Afreed@fezana.org
Dr. Behram Pastakia
Chair of the Zarathushti Youth Without Borders initiative of FEZANA, and Co-Chair of its UN – NGO Committee is a practicing radiologist in Metropolitan Washington D.C. He is part of RAD-AID International (rad-aid.org), an NGO which promotes health care in low resource countries, through education, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Contact: Behram@fezana.org
About United Nations
The United Nations is central to global efforts to solve problems that challenge humanity. Cooperating in this effort are more than 30 affiliated organizations, known together as the UN sytem. For more information visit www.un.org
About the Commission on the Status of Women
The CSW is a global governmental body that is dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. This commission was established by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in 1946. Every year the CSW holds a conference in the winter for a two-week period where Un entities, Member States and Civil Society discuss issues pertaining to women, girls and gender equality. The past 3 years this conference has been virtually hosted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
FEZANA Contact:
Sharmin Mistry, Assistant Secretary – FEZANA, CSW@fezana.org, +1-416-475-6986
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