At the end of October the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, was host to more than 500 members of Soroptimist International of Great Britain and Ireland (SIGBI) from around the world, including 7 of our club members, who gathered for our 88th Federation Conference in the International Convention Centre. A variety of speakers talked passionately about a range of current issues and projects as part of the theme ‘Climate for Change’. The inspiring talks covered voluntary work in education to establish first, a school and then a community centre in Kosovo, setting up environmental film and impact festivals in the global south, how to combat ‘Hype’ in science and technology in the media and helping us to find solutions to the climate crisis facing our planet. A representative of the British Red Cross spoke of their programmes shaping and leading the response to the global pandemic and the emergencies that have followed. Lots of information was provided through videos and speakers’ books were recommended for follow up reading.
We were also delighted to see our own member Anne, up on stage being welcomed as the new Scotland North Regional President.
Conference attendees donated toiletries and baby goods in support of ‘Compassion Belfast’, a charitable organisation which aims to advance community development, improve social welfare and offer relief to those in need.
As well as sightseeing and benefiting from the city’s hospitality club members also enjoyed an enthralling visit to Titanic Belfast, experiencing the iconic story and learning about the city’s industrial history.