UNESCO and SONY ERICSSON WTA TOUR Global Partnership for Gender Equality UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, the world’s leading global sport for women, are collaborating in a landmark global partnership to further gender equality and promote women’s leadership in all spheres of society.

 

QUICK LINK: www.unesco.org/en/gender/wta-tour The programme also represents the first time that UNESCO, the only organization of the UN system with a mandate for education, science and culture which are most critical for laying the grounds for gender equality, is partnering with a professional sports league for this objective embraced by all world leaders (2005 World Summit Outcome). UNESCO, with a Division specifically devoted to the promotion of gender equality and women's empowerment, is committed to mainstreaming gender equality considerations in all its programmes, globally and at the country level. The social responsibility programme draws upon the history of the Tour and players in fighting for equality. The idea came about through the Iguales campaign at the Tour’s season-ending event in Madrid in 2005, and marks a new level of commitment by the Tour and players to raise awareness of gender equality issues, and advance opportunities for women. Since its founding in 1973, the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour and its players have been leaders in fighting for equality, including most notably in the area of equal prize money at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Billie Jean King, the founder of the Tour, also founded the Women’s Sports Foundation in 1974, a charitable educational organization dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity. The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour is the world’s largest premier professional sport for women with more than 1,300 players representing 75 nations competing for $60 million in prize money at the Tour’s 63 events in 35 countries. More than 4.5 million people attended women’s tennis events in 2005 with millions more watching events on television networks around the world. Further information on the Tour can be found on their website: here. Partnership Components Contacts

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Announcement - (BSP/GE) The Division for Gender Equality, Bureau of Strategic Planning, is pleased to announce the nomination of the tennis player, Ms Vera Zvonareva, as UNESCO’s fourth “Promoter of Gender Equality” within the framework of the UNESCO - SE WTA Tour Partnership for Gender Equality. The ceremony took place on 20 May 2009, in UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, at 11:30am, Salon Ségur.

Billie Jean King named “Global Mentor for Gender Equality” - (UNESCO Press Release No.2008-114) Paris, 06 November 2008 – The Director-General of UNESCO Koïchiro Matsuura today named U.S. tennis legend Billie Jean King “Global Mentor for Gender Equality” within the framework of UNESCO’s partnership with the Sony Ericsson Women’s Tennis Association Tour. The naming ceremony took place in Doha, capital of Qatar, with Assistant Director-General for Strategic Planning Hans d’Orville representing the Director-General of UNESCO.

UNESCO-Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Partnership - nomination ceremony of Ms Jie Zheng, Beijing, 17 September 2007 - (UNESCO) The nomination ceremony of Ms Jie Zheng, Chinese tennis player, as “Promoter of Gender Quality” for the UNESCO-Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Partnership took place on 17 September 2007 in Beijing (China). Together with Venus Williams (USA) and Tatiana Golovin (FRA), who were previously named “Promoters of Gender Equality”, Ms Zheng will be a key factor in the successful implementation of the partnership as she will provide a role model for millions of girls and young women around the world.

PORSCHE donates 50,000 euros to UNESCO-Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Partnership for Gender Equality - (UNESCO (BSP/GE)) The landmark global Sony Ericsson WTA Tour partnership, formed in November 2006, is designed to further gender equality and promote women’s leadership in all spheres of society with the involvement of leading female professional tennis players.

Nadia Petrova and Tatiana Golovin visit UNESCO to discuss gender equality - (BSP/GE) UNESCO, Paris, 6 February 2007– Nadia Petrova and Tatiana Golovin visit UNESCO to look at ways of promoting gender equality.

UNESCO AND SONY ERICSSON WTA TOUR LAUNCH LANDMARK GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP TO ADVANCE GENDER EQUALITY - (UNESCO BSP/GE) 11-11-2006 1:00 pm Madrid (Spain) – UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, the world’s leading global sport for women, announced today a landmark global partnership to further gender equality and promote women’s leadership in all spheres of society. Venus Williams first to be named "UNESCO Promoter of Gender Equality".