About Anqi Shen

Anqi Shen was a former writer/videographer at the Canadian Women's Foundation. She is passionate about multimedia storytelling, research and policy analysis, and education. She has written and produced content for national news organizations and nonprofits.

How 8 trail-blazing women started the Canadian Women’s Foundation

2023-05-29T19:01:23+00:00October 5, 2022|Empowering girls, Gender-based violence, Impact stories, Women in media, Women’s poverty|

Nancy RuthBefore they helped the Canadian Women’s Foundation get off the ground, they were politicians, lawyers, and women’s rights advocates. Aside from their contributions to this organization, our eight founding mothers have also left their mark on Canadian history in various ways. Among our founders are the first black woman to be elected to a provincial legislature, Canada’s first openly gay senator, and founding members of some of the country’s most well-known institutions.

For Women’s History Month, we look back to the 1980s to understand how and why these women from different backgrounds came together to start a national charity for women and girls.

Bringing Violence Prevention to the North

2017-12-19T17:03:39+00:00May 19, 2016|Empowering girls, Gender-based violence, Impact stories, Sexual abuse, SHE Magazine|

Girl smilingIn a classroom in the South Slave Region of the Northwest Territories, students leave their books and desks to one side, gathering in a circle in the middle of the room.

They are about to begin a warm-up exercise as part of the Healthy Relationships Plus program developed by the Fourth R, a violence-prevention organization based in London, ON. The Fourth R’s healthy relationships curriculum is already offered in 5,000 schools across Canada. Now, funding from the Canadian Women’s Foundation is helping expand the program into schools in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

Prosperity is a Relative Term

2017-12-19T17:22:25+00:00January 14, 2016|Women’s poverty|

Woman in auto shopA new year brings with it the age-old tradition of making resolutions: a roadmap for the next 12 months that may change course, depending on who’s driving. Our resolutions are not only based on what we wish for, but to a large extent what we already have. So a common goal like financial success can mean vastly different things to different people.

A woman looking to start a business may set out to build a top firm, or she may be motivated primarily by the need to pay rent and support her family after losing a job. For many women in Canada, financial success means becoming financially independent: earning a steady income, or feeling more financially secure, aspiring to move out of low-wage or precarious employment, and much more. We tend to hear about wealth and poverty in broad strokes, but there are many degrees of poverty and privilege.

Day 16: Freedom from Gender-based Violence is a Human Right

2017-12-19T17:23:59+00:00December 10, 2015|Gender-based violence, Sexual abuse|

Woman wearing leather jacketWe hear about it every week in the news. We have a sister, female colleague or friend who has experienced it. We hope the next generation won’t have to.

“It” is gender-based violence. On December 10, Human Rights Day, we are reminded that the right to live free of gender-based violence is a human right that is yet to be secure in any country.

Established by the United Nations in 1950, Human Rights Day is recognized by organizations and governments around the world, and it comes at the end of the 16 Days of Action Against Gender-Based Violence.