Smithsonian Women’s Environmental Leadership Summit
999 9th St NW
Washington
DC 20001
Monica Jahan Bose will be participating in the the third annual Women’s Environmental Leadership (WEL) summit taking place from Thursday September 14 through Sunday September 17, 2023, in Washington D.C. The summit is a signature program of The Center for Environmental Justice at the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum (CEJ). Launched this past Earth Day, the Center builds on the work of the Urban Waterways Project, which for twelve years explored and documented the relationship between urban waterways and their surrounding communities. WEL was launched in 2018 to build capacity for future women environmental leadership. Through summits, community forums, lectures, and oral histories, a national network of environmental leaders and young women have explored the importance of mentorship, various educational and career opportunities, and the multitude of ways in which leadership is enacted. The launch of the Center and the WEL summit are part of our museum’s focus on Our Environment,
Our Future, a year-long celebration of programming which includes the exhibition To Live and Breathe: Women and Environmental Justice in Washington D.C., and the first cohort of our Environmental Justice Academy. Over the course of the summit, we will welcome attendees for an opening Dinner & Discussion, two days of panels and workshops, and a day of field trips, all designed to empower the next generation with the knowledge, skillsets, and inspiration they need to take the next steps in their personal and professional pathways.
Monica will be a panelist on September 16, for the session, The Arts, Environmental Advocacy, and Activism. Discussion will explore the role of the Arts in environmental advocacy and activism through an exploration of how the environmental experiences of artists inform media and messaging, the various spaces such work can inhabit, and how such engagement serves to make environmental practice more accessible.
Image: This digital artwork by Amir Khadar has been commissioned as a mural by the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum for the exhibit To Live and Breathe: Women and Environmental Justice in Washington, D.C.
