Oh, the people you will meet

Maggie, Jean Paul, and I as Rotary Scholars had the pleasure of meeting with the Hon. Ruth Dreifuss this week. 

Ruth is the current Chancellor for the University for Peace and if you Google her, you will find out she worked on the Swiss Federal Council for 10 years, and she was the first woman to hold the position of President of the Confederation for one year.  She is an amazing woman with an amazing history.

She began as a social worker in Switzerland but she grew disheartened by the daily cases she worked with and began to see that a greater change needed to occur at the level of policy.  As a Trade Unionist and a representative of the Socialist party, she became active in politics in Switzerland and her political career began to grow. 

She worked tirelessly for over 20 years to get maternal leave for mothers in Switzerland.  During her time in the council, she motioned for the laws to be passed granting mothers paid maternal leave and these motions were denied 5 years in a row.  The laws were finally passed the year she was finished with the council.

She told this amazing story in my class.  When I met with her afterwards, what struck me was how easy and down to earth she happened to be. 

She was sweet and sincerely interested in learning about JP, Maggie, and I and about the scholarship which brought us here.  I am so inspired to have met such an incredible woman who made such a difference in her country through her determination and perseverance in a field dominated by men.

I feel like this is a testament to the character of Upeace and with each day I grow more certain that I picked the institution most fitting for me.  I am excited to see where these experiences will take me.