From Where I Stand: “We cannot talk about sustainable development without gender equality and inclusive education.”

Ayşe Yorgancıoğlu is an academician based in Istanbul. She is also a gender equality advocate and a member of the ‘SES Equality, Justice, Women Platform’, a civil society organization (CSO) that aims to support equality and solidarity values. Yorgancıoğlu attended the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) held in New York in July 2022, with the support of UN Women Türkiye.

“I teach corporate social responsibility and sustainability as a lecturer. In my lectures, I not only focus on environmental sustainability, but also talk about social sustainability, and how gender equality is a fundamental pillar of women’s human rights and human dignity.

Currently, women’s rights are at stake around the world, from reproductive health to girls’ access to education. To address these dire issues and make women’s voices heard, we need to come together through platforms such as HLPF and share our local experiences for global action.

Participating in the forum and joining such high-level policy dialogues on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been a milestone for me. Through the sessions, I had an opportunity to meet decision-makers from different countries and join discussions on many important issues under the SDG 4 “Quality Education” and SDG 5 “Gender Equality”. Some of the most crucial items for discussion were girls’ access to education which has been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent abortion bans in various countries and the intensifying climate crisis. Thanks to the HLPF, the importance of collective action for achieving these SDGs and leaving no one behind to ensure social justice have been once again inscribed in my heart and soul. 

As we all know, CSOs have a crucial role in democratic governance. Since HLPF provides space for the local CSOs to have a voice on a global scale and join a network of women’s rights advocates from around the world, my attendance in the Forum as a civil society representative has been an exceptional opportunity. I strongly believe that CSOs should continue strengthening cooperation with such networks and continue to support local women’s rights advocacy efforts in Türkiye through global experiences and international cooperation.

We need to achieve gender equality as well as inclusive and equitable quality education for all to ensure that communities live in democracy, peace and freedom. We cannot talk about sustainable development without these crucial pillars in every society. Thus, UN Women’s support to CSOs that focus on gender equality is particularly valuable in this context.”

Ayşe Yorgancıoğlu attended the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development convened by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York on 5–15 July 2022. Her participation in the forum was supported by UN Women Türkiye through the Strong Civic Space for Gender Equality project funded by the European Union. The work of Yorgancıoğlu relates to SDG 4 on ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all, and also SDG 5 on achieving gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.