Women's Entrepreneurship Day Aims To Empower Young Entrepreneurs Worldwide & At UN On Nov. 19

POTSDAM, N.Y., Oct. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Educators are invited to connect their students, campus communities and alumni to Women's Entrepreneurship Day (WED) on Nov. 19 and a new movement to create a worldwide network of women leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs igniting startups, driving economic expansion and advancing communities around the globe.

"Empowering women worldwide and investing in their futures helps to drive and promote economic vitality and security locally and globally," says Wendy Diamond, founder of WED. "Twenty-first century leadership skills, such as cooperation, communication, and sharing are more commonly associated with women. We want to celebrate the unwavering positives that women entrepreneurs bring to the global economy as well as inspire and support future generations of women."

Women's Entrepreneurship Day is the world's largest celebration of women entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, innovators and job creators, with the goal of empowering the four billion women on the planet and bringing hope to 250 million girls living in poverty. In addition to recognizing the contributions of women to the economy, WED also strives to gather a think tank of women leaders, which will ultimately create an amplified merged message to expand businesses with social good initiatives in communities locally and globally.

While women attend college at the same rate or a higher rate than men, they do not lead more companies or create more small businesses. The WED movement strives to get more college students excited about careers in entrepreneurship and create a better pipeline for women to pursue entrepreneurial endeavors.

Women's Entrepreneurship Day Education Program Chair Kelly Chezum, vice president for external relations at Clarkson University, is part of a team of educators encouraging more colleges and universities to hold WED events on their campuses. Through this network, the group wants to bring attention to the contributions of women entrepreneurs and encourage participation by alumni and student delegates at WED's signature gathering at the United Nations in New York City on Thursday, Nov. 19, with entrepreneurs from around the world.

"Institutions are being asked to host activities on their own campus that connect students and alumni with experienced women entrepreneurs and potentially find mentors. The important piece is creating awareness of women in business and women running their own business ventures," said Chezum. "For all of us, whenever you can see yourself in someone who is five to ten years later in their career, it's an exciting opportunity to think of your own career progression in ways you might not have thought of already."

Speakers and honorees at the United Nations event include

• Marina Abramovic - Groundbreaking Performance Artist
• Leslie Blodgett - Creator, bareMinerals and CEO of Bare Escentuals
• Caroline Donahue - Chief Marketing & Sales Officer, Intuit
• Vicki Escarra - Global CEO, Opportunity International
• Adena Friedman - President, Global Capital Access, Technology & Insights, NASDAQ
• Andrea Jung -President & CEO, Grameen America Former CEO, Avon

Products and Board Member Apple, General Electric

• Leona Lewis - Grammy Nominee, Musical Artist, Songwriter
• Heidi Messer - Co-founder, Collective [i] and Linkshare
• Craig Newmark - Founder, Craigslist and Craigconnects
• Alysia Reiner - Award-winning Actress, "Orange is the New Black"
• Andrew Serwer, Editor in Chief, Yahoo Finance
• Vivienne Tam, Internationally Renowned Fashion Designer

Based on alumni support of innovation, entrepreneurship and diversity, Clarkson is sending nine students to join other student delegates at the United Nations from Babson College, Brown University, Fordham, Yale University, Hunter College, New York University and Illinois State University, among many others who have made a commitment to attend. The United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship and Legacy Out Loud have also joined the Education Program Network.

"This is Clarkson's second year of being represented at Women's Entrepreneurship Day at the United Nations. It was truly transformative experience for the past participants and opened new networks and connections to personal and professional goals," said Chezum.

Anyone from the education community who would like to financially support a student from their institution or alma mater to attend the United Nations event on Nov. 19 can receive a 25 percent ticket price discount.

As part of the WED celebration, more than 144 Women's Entrepreneurship Day ambassadors will launch local initiatives across the globe.  Ambassadors representing countries across Asia, Europe, North America, Central America, the Caribbean, South America, the Middle East and Africa will host local activities in celebration of entrepreneurship.

To learn more about Women's Entrepreneurship Day and how to participate, visit http://womenseday.org.

Educators who want to learn more and join the Education Program network can contact Kelly Chezum at [email protected] or visit http://womenseday.org/education-program.

This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise(TM). For more information, visit http://www.newswise.com.

SOURCE Clarkson University