// by Debra Rainey, Independent Sector

The troubling events of the last week are demanding that we take an immediate and actionable look at our belief systems and values — as individuals, as a community of changemakers, and as a nation – and how each of us can help provide the thoughtful leadership that is sorely needed to right the wrongs of the past and truly make our nation and world just and equitable.

How can just one individual light the match and be the catalyst for transformational, systemic change?

On Friday, June 5, at 1:00 pm ET, you’re invited to Upswell Pop-Up #2 to meet an extraordinary woman who has done exactly that (and so much more). Jody Williams, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997, joins Independent Sector President and CEO Dan Cardinali and Lynne Twist, author of the Soul of Money, for a timely and powerful conversation about “Leveraging the Power of Women to Create a More Peaceful World.”

Jody Williams has been a life-long advocate of freedom, self-determination, and human and civil rights since the days of the Vietnam War protests. She is coordinating founder of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, a global network of non-governmental organizations, active in some 100 countries, that works for a world free of antipersonnel landmines, where landmine survivors can lead fulfilling lives. At the time she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997, she was only the 10th woman – and third American woman – to do so in its almost 100-year history.

Named in 2004 in Forbes Magazine’s first annual list of the world’s 100 most powerful women, Jody helped found the Nobel Women’s Initiative in 2006, which uses the prestige of the Nobel Peace Prize and six courageous women peace laureates to magnify the power and visibility of women working in countries around the world for peace, justice, and equality.

During Pop-Up #2, we’ll also be inspired by poet Fred Fu, whose spoken words will help to empower and encourage changemakers during these uncertain times.

Then, we’ll take a deep dive “Inside a $60 Million Burst of Innovation for Pandemic Relief” to explore how Illinois philanthropy, business leaders, and donors quickly joined forces for an unprecedented approach to respond to the impact of COVID-19 on families, nonprofits, and the structure of the health and human services sector. And we’ll hear how agencies like Austin Coming Together quickly utilized their grants to help families meet their basic needs in this time of crisis.

Register now (for free) so you don’t miss a moment of Pop-Up #2, or one word of this special conversation with Nobel laureate Jody Williams. What she has to say about the origin of her grassroots activism, and why she believes peace is not a “utopian vision,” can help reinforce our commitment to a fairer and more equitable civil society and our work toward a nation where all can thrive.