Iranian American Women Leave New York City Inspired
October 30, 2013, New York, NY – On Sunday, October 27, 2013, PAAIA proudly partnered with the Iranian American Women’s Foundation (IAWF) to celebrate the accomplishments of Iranian American women. Around 600 Iranian American women gathered in New York City to hear and learn from their peers, many of whom shared their professional and educational insights with the audience. The conference was opened by Forough Hosseini, Vice Chairman of PAAIA Board of Directors and Vice President of Information Technology at ICI Homes. Ms. Hosseini emphasized the importance of women, organizations, and communities working together towards the common goal of promoting and strengthening Iranian American women and our community.
The keynote speaker for the event was Sharmin Mossavar-Rahman, chief investment officer of the Private Wealth Management Group at Goldman Sachs. Other distinguished participants included Azita Aghravi (Commercial Real Estate), Anousheh Ansari (Entrepreneur / First Female Space Tourist), Davar Ardalan (NPR), Nadereh Chamlou (World Bank), Nazie Eftekhari (HealthEZ), Farnaz Fassihi (Wall Street Journal), Gisue Hariri (Architect), Laya Khadjavi (ICE Canyon), Angella Nazarian (Best-selling Author), Behnaz Sarafpour (Fashion Designer),and Fatemeh Ziai (United Nations) among many others.
The common theme of the conference was empowerment and mutual support. Shabnam Rezaie, co-founder of Big Bad Boo studios, encouraged all women “where ever you are in your career, in your life, reach down and help someone up.” Parisa Khosravi, Senior Vice President of Global Relations for CNN Worldwide, told the audience to be proud of who they are, claiming that she always says she is Iranian, not Persian.
The mission of the IAWF is to provide a platform of empowerment and mentorship for Iranian American women of all ages. Through its Leadership Conference, the IAWF brings women together from across the country and the world to exchange education and inspiration about a wide range of issues important to all women, such as how to climb the career ladder, how to find the courage to follow your dreams, and why one’s legacy matters. The IAWF has previously hosted five other leadership conferences in California and Washington, D.C, all of which have been sold-out.
Click here to learn more about the Iranian American Women’s Foundation.
To see what others have said about this conference, follow the hashtag #IAWFNY.
