Communicating Your Vision: The Case of EWLA

April 6, 2023, at 5:30 pm – 9:00 pm

The Need For Communicating Vision

When a leader is able to communicate their vision with the same level of intensity and autonomy to their team, a sense of ownership and responsibility will be planted in the mind of their brain, which will unequivocally inspire within them an automatic thought processes that originate from the center of the common shared vision. A vision is a universally agreed and expected position that an organization takes.

Communicating a Change Vision

A vision can be as powerful as intended by the visionary. There have been real-life phenomena that are simply regarded as “miracles,” but if we were to look in more details, each “miracle” has a concise and clear image of the outcome and, even in the face of unlikely circumstances, materializes. A vision communicated sufficiently inspires the intended subjects. It will eventually be the driving force in the other person’s consciousness and become the origin of thoughts thereon. The degree of understanding and belief in the significance of the vision dictate the effectiveness of the outcome. An organization without a vision is an arrow without a target to hit. As they say, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Because every plan serves as a guide to a missile; the missile is the employee’s focus and energy in the pursuit of something. Anyone that wants to cultivate creativity from its team members must understand this principle. A vision is far greater than the visionary. This greater purpose comes into fruition through the cooperative effort of the qualified team members. A vision’s power is clearly and equally demonstrated in each endeavors of life.

The Case Of Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA)

The issue of women’s rights was the elephant in the room; not only were the rights of women unrecognized and violated, but laws existed to justify the unjustifiable. With a burning desire and clear vision to see Ethiopian women enjoying equal rights as men, the founding members of EWLA were committed to deliver. They went through trials & tribulations from political as well as communities only to come out as a strong and powerful entity with a voice. They knew they had the right vision and worked tirelessly on communicating this noble yet powerful vision. They knew what they stood against had roots deep inside of the patriarchal society. They all had the vision as their anchor in each setback.

EWLA’s founders dedicated their lives to connect their vision to the community and serve their purpose of benefiting women to win justice. By working relentlessly closer to their vision, through intense research and advocacy, free legal aid and consultancy for economically disadvantaged women, and awareness creation in the community, they managed to bring about the changes they wished to see. EWLA has a track record of convincing the national policymakers to revoke, correct, and make new laws in the nation and at international conventions using a very powerful movement that has become a savior for millions in Ethiopia. EWLA has a shared vision–a clear and articulated future state that members of the organization identified and internalized—a vision created by the founding members.

A vision shared is a vision realized. If all stakeholders have a clear concept of how their work helps to contribute to broader goals of the organization, they can work harmoniously to achieve them. A leader who masters communicating a vision is like a conductor leading an orchestra. It is about writing a score for each section and showing them how to effectively play their part while blending with the others; then, truly beautiful music can be made.

Speakers

She pursued her postgraduate in International Gender Studies at the University of Iceland (First class with distinction) and Law (LLB) at Mekelle University and pursuing her MSC in project planning and management. She has worked as a law assistant, paralegal, and legal researcher for law firms and civil society organizations (CSO), including the Ethiopian Lawyers Association (ELA). She delivers various trainings on peace and security, advocacy, leadership, and gender budgeting.

With a specialization in women’s rights in Ethiopia, Lensa brings 10 years of professional experience and expertise in leading, coordinating, researching, advocating, and implementing programs related to human rights, gender equality, and democracy. She has also been serving on as a board of director, founding member, and research & advocacy advisor of several CSO organizations. Lensa is a youthful professional and advocates for human rights who displays a fervent passion for promoting various causes such as human rights, democracy, public policy, and the Women’s Peace and Security agenda.

Meron has accumulated 14 years of experience in both the civil society sector, as EWLA’s Executive Directress, and the government section. She has acted as Board Leadership at UN Women’s Civil Society Advisory Group at a regional organization called the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network),and EWLA.

Committed to advocating for the protection of women’s and children’s rights, Meron has taken a passionate approach to raise awareness of gender-based violence, policy advocacy tasks, and promoting the amendment and implementation of laws for the establishment of gender and child rights-sensitive structures.

With an extensive background of cooking for esteemed clients such as the Pulitzer family, Brad Pitt, and Candace Bergen, this master chef is a connoisseur of Ethiopian spices, offering his consultancy services to major corporations like Unilever and Nestle in the creation of seasonings suitable for the Ethiopian market.

An ardent admirer of art, he hosts a number of art exhibitions each year to aid the artistic society. By setting up workshops and speaking engagements, he endeavors to build bridges with people and organizations in Ethiopia and beyond.

Moderator

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