Honouring Our Outgoing Interim Executive and Advisory Committee Members
We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the outgoing members of WHRDIC’s Interim Executive Committee and Advisory Committee, including those who stepped down earlier in the process due to changing roles, for their time, energy, leadership, and wisdom. These incredible individuals held WHRDIC through multiple, layered phases of transition with exceptional care, commitment, and dedication.
The Interim Executive Committee was composed of organisations from the outgoing Executive Committee, alongside organisational members who opted into the responsibility of carrying the Coalition into its next phase of governance. Their overarching role was to accompany WHRDIC through a complex transition period and to help lay the groundwork for new governance policies and structures. Alongside them, the Advisory Committee brought together members who chose to take on a more hands-on role, offering guidance and insight on the Coalition’s work through deep political engagement and care.
Together, these committees stewarded WHRDIC through a time marked by limited resources and profound global challenges, while still holding space for vision, learning, and solidarity.
Reflecting on her motivation for joining the Advisory Committee, Cynthia Rothschild spoke to the importance of showing up during a difficult moment in the Coalition’s life:
“I wanted to lean in to supporting the WHRDIC during a hard phase… We had almost no funds, our people were exhausted—but we still had great camaraderie, love and belief in the IC and our work.”
Her words capture the spirit that carried WHRDIC forward: commitment rooted in shared history, political clarity, and a belief in a feminist future still being shaped.
For Nathalie Margi, the Committee was a space of both political courage and human connection:
“We have had profound conversations about power and have had the collective courage to not just name challenges but actually roll up our sleeves and take action to shift governance and membership structures to build a coalition where all members feel a sense of belonging.”
At a time of escalating threats against WHRDs globally, this willingness to act together was a powerful reminder that care, accountability, and transformation are inseparable.
Jenny Radloff reflected on the joy and purpose found in collective work, particularly in advancing feminist engagements with technology:
“There was a deep belief in the mission and vision of WHRDIC and a caring for the membership. I loved that people started seeing how vital engaging with technology with a feminist lens is and how critical it is to bring this to advocacy work.”
Her contribution highlights how WHRDIC continues to evolve, expanding its analysis and practice to meet new realities while remaining grounded in feminist principles.
For Susana Fried, who has been part of WHRDIC since its inception, the transition process itself was a testament to the Coalition’s strength:
“We have had to grapple with a number of pretty tricky questions - about membership, governance, etc. And the process of coming to consensus has been a testament to the depth of everyone's commitment.”
That commitment - to process, to politics, and to one another - has been a defining feature of this chapter.
We wish to acknowledge and deeply thank all members of the Interim Executive Committee and Advisory Committee whose collective leadership made this work possible.
Interim Executive Committee members:
Guadalupe Marengo, Lisa Maracani - Amnesty International
Misun Woo, Sadia Afrin Khan - Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD)
Anissa Daboussi - Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID)
Pooja Patel, Tess McEvoy - International Society for Human Rights (ISHR)
Bing Parcon, Debanjana Choudhuri - Women's Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR)
Advisory Committee members:
Cynthia Rothschild (Individual member)
Susana Fried (Individual member)
Jenny Radloff - Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
Nathalie Margi - Urgent Action Fund for Feminist Activism (UAF)
As WHRDIC moves into its next phase of governance, we do so standing on the foundation built by these members - one shaped by care, feminist leadership, political imagination, and deep solidarity. We are profoundly grateful for all that our outgoing Executive Committee and Advisory Committee members have given, and for the paths they have helped open forward.
