Avon Donates $1.75 Million to End Violence Against Women Worldwide

by Jyl Johnson Pattee on March 2nd, 2010 | No Comments »

Many companies, organizations, and brands give back. But the one I am highlighting today is a company I have a particular fondness for—Avon, Inc. I had the pleasure of getting up close and personal with Avon while working on a 2-year project with them a little over 10 years ago. I became so close with one woman in fact that she actually flew out to Utah from Tennessee to throw me my first baby shower. That type of kindness and love was common at all levels in the organization.

Avon's tagline is: the company for women. While they may dedicate a lot of R&D to making great products, I've witnessed firsthand Avon's passion for helping women succeed in their personal and professional lives as well. This passion starts at the tippy top of the company and oozes out of every Representative you meet. So, learning last week that Avon just announced plans to set up partnerships, secure grants, and donate money to end violence against women is not surprising to me.

Did you know that one in three women worldwide experience violence in their lifetime?And did you know that in the U.S. alone, a woman is assaulted every nine seconds? Around the world, services for victims are often vastly underfunded or unavailable, and in many countries, laws to protect women do not exist or are not enforced.

To help eradicate violence against women and help ensure justice for all women worldwide , Avon:

Secured a $1.5 million grant to launch the Avon Global Center for Women and Justice at Cornell Law School. This new center will focus on working with judges, legal professionals, governmental and non-governmental organizations to improve access to justice in an effort to eliminate violence against women and girls.
Expanded its relationship with the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) with a new commitment of $250,000 for the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which will be added to the grant of $1 million awarded in 2008 for the Trust Fund.
Is donating 100% of the proceeds from these products—the Empowerment necklace, bracelet, and ring and t-shirt. I bought a t-shirt today. It was a small thing, but a simple way in which I could contribute to the cause.

Avon believes that when women are empowered they can make their dreams a beautiful reality.

March 8 is International Women's Day. What can you do to help empower women and further their rights and justice worldwide?

To learn more and to help, connect with these organizations online: @UNIFEM and Facebook.com/UNIFEM.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.

Note: I am participating in a social media campaign with Avon to help end violence for women. While the topics I address and the details I provide in my posts during the campaign are at my sole discretion, I am receiving compensation for the time I put in to writing them.

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Jyl Johnson Pattee

An active part of the Mom It Forward team, Jyl primarily writes about parenting, social good, and all things travel related. In a past life, Jyl was an award-winning copywriter and designer of corporate training programs for Fortune 100 companies. Offline, Jyl is married to @TroyPattee; a mom to two teen boys and a beagle named #Hashtag; loves large amounts of cheese, dancing, and traveling; and lives in the beautiful Rocky Mountains. Topping her bucket list is the goal to visit 50 countries by the time she's 50.