YWCA facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
YWCA

Founded	1855; 170 years ago (1855)
Founder	Mary Jane Kinnaird Emma Robarts
Founded at	London, United Kingdom
Headquarters	Geneva, Switzerland
Region	Worldwide

The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a global organization that helps women, young women, and girls. It focuses on making them stronger, helping them become leaders, and protecting their rights. The YWCA works in over 100 countries around the world.

The main office for the global YWCA is in Geneva, Switzerland. In the United States, the YWCA has its main office in Washington, DC.

The YWCA is separate from the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association). However, some local groups have joined together to form YM/YWCAs. These groups offer programs from both organizations. For example, in Sweden, the YWCA and YMCA joined forces in 1966.

How the YWCA is Run

The World YWCA has a special group called the World Board. This board guides the entire global YWCA movement. It includes people from all parts of the world where the YWCA is active.

Every four years, a big meeting called the World Council takes place. This council is the main decision-making body for the World YWCA. During this meeting, 20 women are chosen to be on the World Board. The World Council makes important choices about the YWCA's plans, rules, and how it will spend its money. Representatives from over 100 member groups attend this council.

A Look at YWCA History

The YWCA started way back in 1855. A kind person named Lady Mary Jane Kinnaird created the North London Home. This home helped nurses traveling to or from the Crimean War. It also supported single women who moved from the countryside to work in London's factories. The home offered them a safe place to live, education, and support in a friendly Christian setting.

In 1877, Lady Kinnaird's group joined with the Prayer Union, which was started by Emma Robarts. This merger helped the organization grow even more.

The YWCA in Australia began in 1880. Mary Jane Barker organized the first meeting in Sydney. Ann Alison Goodlet became its first leader and served until 1903.

In 1884, the YWCA changed its structure. Before this, the London group was almost separate. But after 1884, there was one main YWCA organization. It had different teams and leaders for London, England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and other countries. This organization shared Christian writings and helped young women improve their living conditions. In 1884, they were helping Scottish fisherwomen and even ran a restaurant for women in London.

The World YWCA, which connects all the groups globally, was officially started in 1894. The founding countries were the USA, Great Britain, Norway, and Sweden.

A YWCA poster from 1919, showing its service to girls worldwide.

The first big world meeting of the YWCA happened in London in 1898. There were 326 people from 77 countries attending.

Early 1900s Changes

A YWCA poster from World War I, encouraging women to join the war effort.

The YWCA building in New York City in 1905.

At the start of the 20th century, the YWCA began to change. At first, it focused on helping women morally and socially in cities. But new ideas from the socialist movement started to influence the YWCA.

A big moment was at the 1910 World YWCA meeting in Berlin. A decision was made to study social and work-related problems. The YWCA also decided to teach working women about new laws and protections for them. Over time, active members helped the YWCA become more focused on social issues. By 1920, the YWCA was largely a non-religious organization, though it kept its name. It also worked with groups focused on social justice.

Until 1930, the World YWCA's main office was in London. Its leaders were mostly British. This meant the organization often saw the world through a British viewpoint. But in 1930, the World YWCA moved its main office to Geneva, Switzerland. This was the same city as the new League of Nations. This move showed that the YWCA wanted to be more diverse and work with other global groups like the International Committee of the Red Cross and the YMCA.

World War II and Beyond

During World War II, YWCAs in some countries, especially in Eastern Europe, were shut down. But in places under occupation, women still worked hard to help their neighbors and people who had to leave their homes.

After the war, the YWCA worked to bring women from different countries closer together. In 1947, they held their first World Council meeting in almost ten years in Hangzhou. This was important because it was the first time the meeting was held outside of Western countries. It showed the YWCA's goal to be a truly worldwide movement. It also brought together women from countries that had been enemies during the war. This helped Western YWCAs understand that war's damage was not just in Europe.

In the years that followed, the World YWCA spent a lot of time on important issues. These included helping refugees, working on health issues like HIV and AIDS, improving literacy, and protecting the human rights of women and girls. They also worked to help women advance, end poverty, support sustainable development, protect the environment, and promote peace. Helping young women become leaders has also been a key part of the World YWCA's work. These issues are still very important to the YWCA today.

YWCA Programs

Week of Prayer

Since 1904, the World YWCA and the World Alliance of YMCAs have asked people to pray together. This happens during the Week of Prayer and World Fellowship. During this week, both groups pray and work on a specific topic. This shows their support for members and partners around the world. The week-long event includes a Bible study based on the year's theme.

World YWCA Day

In 1948, "World YWCA's Observance Day" began. It helped each member see how they could act locally based on the year's theme. Some past themes included "My Faith and My Work" and "My Contribution to World Peace." In 1972, the event's name changed to World YWCA Day. It is now celebrated every year on April 24.

YWCAs Around the World

The YWCA is active in over 100 countries. It has national and regional groups in eight main areas globally. Many local YWCAs work independently but are part of their country's national YWCA.

Europe

The European YWCA includes national groups in countries like Belarus, Belgium, Denmark, Great Britain, Norway, and Romania. This European YWCA group acts as a main organization for all the national YWCAs in Europe. YWCA Scotland now uses the name The Young Women's Movement.

Middle East

In the Middle East, YWCAs are found in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine.

Africa

There are over 20 national YWCAs helping communities across Africa. These include groups in Burkina Faso, Malawi, South Africa, and Togo.

Asia

The YWCA is present in many Asian countries. These include Bangladesh, China, India, Korea, Nepal, Taiwan, and Thailand. Sophia Cooke started the Young Women's Christian Association in Singapore in 1875.

Pacific

National YWCAs in the Pacific region include New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Samoa. In 1878, people in Dunedin, New Zealand, started the first YWCA in the southern half of the world. The YWCA in Christchurch began in 1883 to help visit the sick. In 1885, the Auckland group started, focusing on providing safe and clean living spaces for working girls. YWCA Australia began in 1880 in Sydney to help women who had moved there.

North America

In North America, the YWCA is active in the United States and Canada. YWCA USA started in 1858. Today, it has over 200 local groups helping more than 2 million women, girls, and their families. YWCA USA is one of the biggest providers of programs and shelters for victims of domestic violence in the United States. YWCA Canada started in 1870. It now has over 30 local groups helping 1 million women, girls, and their families.

YWCA USA's main office is in Washington, DC. It used to be in the famous Empire State Building in New York City.

Caribbean

National YWCAs in the Caribbean region include Barbados, Grenada, Haiti, and Trinidad & Tobago.

Middle and South America

YWCAs in Latin America are found in Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Honduras, and Suriname.

YWCA Leaders Over Time

The YWCA has had many important leaders throughout its history. Here are some of the people who have served as Presidents and General Secretaries.

YWCA Partners

The World YWCA works with many other important groups. It is part of the "Big Six Alliance of Youth Organisations." This alliance includes the World Alliance of Young Men's Christian Associations, World Organization of the Scout Movement, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Foundation.

The YWCA also works with groups like Accountable Now and ACT Alliance. It has a special role with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), which means it can advise the UN on certain topics. The World YWCA also partners with many religious organizations and international governments that provide support.

See also

In Spanish: Asociación Cristiana de Mujeres Jóvenes para niños