Women for Women International and Google Team Up to Present “Join Me on the Bridge”

Events in New York and San Francisco will commemorate the Centennial International Women’s Day

Washington DC, March 7, 2011- Women for Women International and Google are proud to collaborate on “Join Me on the Bridge”, a campaign to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of International Women’s Day. In making the announcement, Zainab Salbi, Women for Women International founder and CEO, said, "Millions of women around the world are still being denied an education and most importantly denied their rights. This is why this global campaign, on the 100th Anniversary of International Women's Day, is one we are urging people all over the world to join." On March 8, 2011 Women for Women International and Google encourage women and men to meet on bridges in their communities to recognize the accomplishments of the past 100 years and to advocate for a future for women worldwide; a future characterized by peace, security, and opportunity.

Women for Women International and Google will hold their official Join Me on the Bridge events on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City, the Millennium Bridge in London and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Last year’s campaign brought together 20,000 men and women at 119 events in 19 countries and this year promises to be even bigger –as of March 1st, there are already 210 events planned in 53 countries!

Join Me on the Bridge is an opportunity to recognize the challenges that women across the world still face in accessing education, health care, economic opportunities, security, and representation. While women perform 2/3 of the world’s labor and produce 50 percent of the world’s food, they earn only 10 percent of the income and own only 1 percent of the property in the world. Women are 2/3 of the world’s illiterate population, leading to a decrease in lifetime income, increased health risks for them and their children, and decreased education levels for their children. This International Women’s Day Women for Women International and Google will offer many ways for supporters to become involved in advocating for change.

Major politicians, fashion icons, corporate partners, nonprofit organizations, media entities and celebrities are also lending their support to this global call to action. Lauren Bush, fashion model and CEO, Creative Director and co-Founder of FEED Projects LLC, Yaya DaCosta, actress and fashion model, and Azita Ghanizada, Afghan American actress, will be attending the Brooklyn Bridge event. Join us! Be part of this exciting collaboration, because while “one woman can change anything, many women can change everything.”

For more information, visit www.womenforwomen.org/bridge or http://www.google.com/iwd2011