Sleeping Lady
Photo courtesy WebGoddess
Welcome to AWN
Welcome to the Alaska Women's Network (AWN). Alaska is a big state, but with a population of just over 600,000 residents, it is really a small community. AWN connects Alaskan women with each other, the rest of the country, and the world. We are an apolitical organization providing information to women of all backgrounds. Want to get involved? Talk to us!
The Alaska Women's Network, working with women from communities throughout Alaska, encourages participation from urban and rural women and from all ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Put more simply, it's all about connecting with each other.
Membership in AWN
If
you support the mission of the Alaska Women's Network, sign up now. Members are eligible for participation in the AWN ListServ -- a tool for hundreds of women connected by email all over the Land of the Midnight Sun.
2008 marks the twelth year anniversary of our organization and our website. Since 1996, AWN has served as the portal to Alaska, not just for the women of Alaska, but for tens of thousands of women from around the world. Our commitment has been to be the communications network for the women of Alaska and, after twelve years, we remain the only statewide information source by, for and about women.
Help us make this a true network as only women can. We do not require dues of our members, but we do need and accept tax-free contributions from those who visit our webpage and benefit from it. Your financial support will help us continue to provide this service. Everyone is a volunteer at AWN. Contributions go toward keeping the organization and infrastructure running. Checks should be made out to Alaska Women's Network and mailed to:
Alaska Women’s Network,
c/o Susan Olsen, Treasurer
8601 Sultana Drive
Anchorage, AK 99516
Thank you!
AWN Board of Directors
Yeganeh Ataian, Anchorage
Barbara Belknap, Juneau, Co-Chair/President
Jan Blanchard, Anchorage
Deborah Collins, Anchorage, Web Goddess
Carolyn Fleming, Anchorage/Texas, Secretary
Debra Gerrish, Juneau, Co-Chair/Vice President
Susan Olsen, Anchorage, Treasurer
Carol Swartz, Homer
The History of the Alaska Women’s Network
The Alaska Women's Network was founded in Juneau, Alaska, during the Alaska Women's Conference held in March 1996. Over the three-day gathering, women sought each other out to talk about a lasting legacy of the conference. As the tables and chairs were being put away at the end of the last day, a group of 25 to 30 women from different Alaskan communities gathered together to talk about some kind of organization that would serve as a statewide clearinghouse for information of interest to the women of the state.
A major catalyst for action was the 1995 United Nations Conference on Women held in Beijing, China. Many of the women who had traveled to China for this historic event were at the Alaska Women's Conference. They wanted to continue the momentum and fervor they had experienced in China. Their passion and excitement was contagious. Many of the women also wanted some kind of replacement for the Alaska Women's Commission, which had been phased out by state government.
After a few hours of spirited discussion, it was agreed that there would be an organization based on a website. The Internet seemed like the logical answer to how information could be shared on a shoestring budget in a state the size of Alaska. The Alaska Women's Network was born. (Many of the founding mothers are still board members.) Working through e-mail and by telephone, a Board of Directors was selected. The Alaska Women's Network website was up and running by August 1996. Within a few years, AWN became a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation and the idea of a "cyberspace organization" with no regular meetings, chapters, or dues was no longer strange.
AWN now has almost 200 members in 27 communities throughout Alaska, as well as women who have left Alaska and stay in touch through AWN.
How AWN Works
There is a board of traditional officers with the exception of a Web Goddess position. Since AWN is the website, the Web Goddess is critically important. An Executive Committee handles business between board meetings and makes recommendations to the full board. All communication is done electronically with the exception of quarterly teleconferences and an annual face-to-face meeting.
The primary functions of the board are to ensure that the website reflects the mission, to approve the budget, to contribute ideas for projects and additions to the website content, and to recruit members.
A major cornerstone of AWN is the Platform for Action from the 1995 UN Conference on Women in Beijing. Board members also look for opportunities to act on the Platform recommendations in Alaska. Funding for teleconferences and special events comes from grants, donations and voluntary contributions by the board members. Board members are recruited through AWN's list serve and every effort is made to have representation from different regions of the state.
