The WOW Foundation is excited to announce WOW Global 24, a free 24 hour online WOW Festival uniting women and girls across the world.
There is no better time. As WOW marks its 10th anniversary of celebrating women and girl’s achievements, and examining and highlighting the problems they face, the world is facing a new threat to women’s rights. The effects of Covid-19 pose a profound risk of reversing progress made towards achieving gender equality; a risk the world must not ignore.
With the overarching theme of “Women and Girls in a Time of Crisis”, WOW Global 24 will analyse the issues, explore solutions, spotlight what is already being done, and hear from women, girls and people of all genders who are working towards a better, post Covid-19 world.
Amongst all the gravity and seriousness of the issues explored within WOW Festivals, they are also places of warmth, inclusiveness and fun. WOW Global 24 will be filled not just with serious intent but also with energetic spontaneous encounters, human connection, unexpected delights, adventure, levity of spirit, and laughter. The Festival is free and accessible to anyone who is able to watch online or on a mobile device. Committed to being fully intersectional, it’s for people of all ages and backgrounds who can join at any point along the way.
Everyone watching will be participating in the largest ever online gathering of women and girls, boys, men and people of all genders who support gender equality – brought together to build the case for understanding what actions are required by society at this point of crisis.
Now more than ever we need to find community; to connect women, civil society and governments and make women’s stories central to future planning across the globe. This is an opportunity to join hands, listen and ask ‘what do we need to change, and how?’
The focus of the festival will move as the world turns. Anyone can tune into one of two channels – The Global Channel and The Local Channel – streaming live and simultaneously over the 24 hours. The programme is designed so that when you’re watching during daylight hours, the multitude of events will be generated from your area.
WOW Global 24 will be curated by a team from all over the world supported in their choices through partner organisations and following the findings of the WOW Think Ins, which are taking place across the world to tease out the problems, concerns and opportunities unique to each area. They have always been the source of the content of all WOW Festivals, to ensure that what we cover is not imposed from one specific group in one specific area but generated in the area by the people most involved.
