Sustaining Community This Holiday Season and In the Year Ahead
By Dilly Severin, Executive Director, Universal Access Project
The holidays are upon us here in the U.S. and this time of year feels like a season for closing things out, for tying all the unfinished loose ends into a neat bow. Yet, perhaps because it was my privilege to take the helm at UAP this year, I am thinking a lot about beginnings, or rather foundations—those deep roots that sustain us and provide the nourishment we need to take catalytic action for the future. Thankfully, at the Universal Access Project, what most sustains us is you—a global community that is working to transform advocacy and philanthropy on sexual and reproductive health and rights and drive forward a justice-focused agenda.
Too often, the headlines on our issues are grim, but throughout 2023 we have remained grounded by the successes made possible, thanks in large part to UAP partner advocacy and your support:
The U.S. remains the largest donor for reproductive health and family planning assistance worldwide. President Biden’s budget request this year was 11 percent higher than the FY2023 appropriated funding level and called for the elimination of the Hyde Amendment.
Old and new Congressional champions introduced key legislation to beat back harmful policy riders, including the Global HER Act, the Abortion is Health Care Everywhere Act, and the Support UNFPA Funding Act.
The release of the 2023 Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice Policy Agenda laid the groundwork for strengthening U.S. leadership on global SRHRJ.
The Resilience Fund for Women in Global Value Chains, housed within UAP, marked its second anniversary and celebrated more than $3.2 million in grants disbursed or committed to date in funding to feminist, women-led organizations in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The Fund also continued its Learning Hub activities, led by our partner Women Win, to share lessons from two years of trust-based, democratized philanthropy.
As part of our Private Sector Action initiative, UAP kicked off the Accountability Platform, a new way we’re convening civil society and corporate partners to push for accountability in corporate commitments to women’s health and empowerment, drive collective action, and ensure partnerships are matched by progress.
Press engagement by UAP, including a press fellowship to the 2023 Women Deliver conference in Rwanda, generated coverage on our issues in outlets including The Washington Post, NPR, The Guardian, Devex, and more, drawing public and policymaker attention to the importance of SRHRJ.
2024 will be a year of major milestones—both external and internal—from a presidential election year in the United States, to the 30th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development’s historic program of action, to UAP’s own 15th anniversary. And at each milestone we will be grounded by three critical priorities:
Supporting our community of advocates and feminist organizations to continue building on wins in the face of increasing polarization and a well-funded opposition;
Using our convening power to build bridges, elevate existing champions and to bring new ones to the cause of sexual and reproductive health rights and justice;
Working to center justice in an endeavor that we know is both iterative and incomplete—especially in a time of widespread crisis.
Despite continued political headwinds, I’m leaving this year with a sense of pride in all we have accomplished and excitement for the road ahead.
Thank you for your support this year of UAP and the movement for sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice. I know we have great work ahead of us.
Onward, we go.