Bridges Connecting Women

Bridges – Connecting Women

‘We build too many walls and not enough Bridges.’ Isaac Newton

Bridges are the inspiration of this forum. With a mission to bring together women of different cultures Bridges , aims at Connecting Women from across the world and across social barriers to address the issues that affect them deeply; that of  Empowerment , Education  Health  and Women’s Safety .

It is a progressive endeavour to connect women and draw them together to share the problems faced, exchange thoughts and ideas and give inputs and support to each other to find solutions and create paths where there were problems.

Keeping in mind that women, by and large in both progressive and developing countries are faced by similar core issues, the Forum will reach across borders to highlight and look for solutions and support to improve the quality of life of women at every level.

A Bridge Between Women Artisans and Reatailers:

The Indian Women is gifted with unimaginable artistic abilities. A work force of immense magnitude is out there; unseen  , unheard ,often exploited and underpaid for their work. They also face the issue of not being able to find buyers for their arts or guidance on contemporary tastes.

These arts and skills are mostly practised from the home, while performing the invaluable job of taking care of children and the family. We ain at intervening,  by creating a vital connect between the craftsperson and the retailer and creating a bridge to fill the gap that would make a formidable difference.

THE OBJECTIVES OF THE FORUM ARE:

Women’s Empowerment

• Education, Vocational training
• Women’s Safety at work place at home and in society
• Influencing laws for protection of Women

Women’s Health and Wellness

• Women in Control of Child bearing
• Protection of the Girl Child before birth and after
• Mother and Child Well being

Connecting Women :

• Connecting Women from different Countries to share their issues and solutions
• Connecting women entrepreneurs from across the continents to create  better opportunities for each other
• Sourcing products made by women for exports.

The Forum has been founded by:

Ms. Nelofar Currimbhoy

Nelofar Currimbhoy, President, Shahnaz Husain Group, India’s iconic company that pioneered the resurgence of Ayurveda and took it to Global platforms, is in the frontline of a business that has gone from strength to strength. Educated at some of the best institutions, Mater Dei School and Lady Shri Ram College in Delhi, Nelofar studied cosmetology and advanced cosmetic therapy in London, obtaining a post-graduate Diploma.

The strong point of the Shahnaz Herbal franchise network lies in its commitment to India’s Ancient medical Discipline Ayurveda and also the encouragement and training given to women across the world while empowering them to become business owners while running the Shahnaz Herbal salons and centres.

Nelofar has a keen interest in research and product development which is her forte, she is credited with the introduction of some of the company’s runaway successes, like the 24 Carat Gold Range, the Pearl Range and the Flower Power Range based on Himalayan plants. Her concentrated effort has been to excavate formulations in India’s 5000 year old science – Ayurveda, while keeping abreast with market demands and the latest scientific techniques.

Nelofar has been deeply involved with women’s empowerment for over a decade. She runs a centre where she empowers daughters of factory workers in vocational courses. She also conducts training at Lepra India Centres for healthy children of leprosy patients enabling them to move out of a stigmatic life. She is also deeply involved with training Tibetan students at the SOS Centre in Dehradoon, India.

Dr. Nandini Tandon ( Chair Person GCC Countries Chapter )

Dr.Nandini Tandon, Ph.D. is the first Indian, first Asian to be Vice Chair and Board Trustee for El Camino Hospital (ECH), in Silicon Valley, California, and is first Indian to be on the premiere Bay Area Council Economic Institute’s board.

Dr. Tandon  co-chaired the healthcare delegation of the Mayor of San Francisco’s under auspices of Sister City Initiative; Nandini is focusing on investments and betterment of healthcare delivery and healthcare business for cross-border investments in India and USA. Dr. Tandon is presently focusing on investments in USA, Emerging Markets, India and Middle East, in Healthcare/IT/Life Sciences sector and is very excited about the Indo-US cross-border investment potential and connecting women entrepreneurs of either side of the globe.

Nandini  is a board member and Chair for M&A committee for U-Systems Inc., a breast cancer company, in Silicon Valley. The technology of U-Systems is history making in that it will change the course of women’s protocol for early breast cancer detection and more significantly will save precious lives especially impacting Asian women due to their tissue type.

Dr.Tandon has leveraged her diverse leadership roles and board positions to mentor entrepreneurs globally, is a prolific speaker on healthcare investments, entrepreneurship, innovation and gender empowerment.

A White House Intern, Nandini received her Ph.D. in biochemistry, Phi Lambda Upsilon from Duke University, North Carolina and her B.A. cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Hollins University, Virginia.

Dr. Tandon is presently focused on setting up of Medical facilities in Dubai and in her homeland . India where she feels health care will have far reaching effects on National productivity.

Ms. Priya Tandon ( Chair Person U.S. Chapter )

Priya Tandon, founder and chair of IndUS Setu Global Foundation, has been successfully building and sustaining relationships across public and private sectors over a decade with international leaders to catalyse dialog between global Indian diaspora leaders and key policy makers of their respective countries addressing socio-political-economic issues. Setu is engaged with several platforms for cross border entrepreneurship to help build relationships with influencers on both sides of their business locales in their specific sectors. Through Setu, she has hosted multiple conferences at institutions such as Stanford University, Columbia University and in conjunction with President Mikhail Gorbachev’s Foundation, the State of the World Forum.

Priya is also the recipient of the prestigious Bharat Nirman Award, from the Maharashtra Government, for her excellence in community work, raising political awareness and promoting entrepreneurship amongst women and gender empowerment. Priya is co-chairing and Setu is co-sponsoring the Silicon Valley – Delhi, Healthcare & IT Entrepreneurship & Women Empowerment Delegation to India in December 2013.