Women make up more than half of the world’s population and potential, so it is neither just nor practical for their voices, for our voices, to go unheard at the highest levels of decision-making – Meghan Markle UN Women Ambassador for Women’s Political Participation & Leadership

Duchess Meghan shared her thoughts as the civil rights history of tomorrow is being written as Judge Kentaji Jackson became the first  Black woman to ever be nominated for the US Supreme Court.

Judge Jackson’s nomination has opened new ground for women’s representation at the highest level of a judicial system that for too long has tilted against the very community she hails from. For the millions of young women who will rightfully find inspiration from this moment, let us remind ourselves that Black achievement is something that exists not just today or yesterday, and not just in moments of celebration, but as a fabric woven into the entire chronicle of the American story.

Archewell invested in leading organizations working to advance gender equity, build policies that empower women and families, ensure meaningful media representation for women, and provide women with a network of tools and support for gaining employment.

Meghan Markle has a long successful working history with the United Nations. Elizabeth Nyamayaro Senior advisor to UN Secretary General mentored Meghan at the United Nations. Elizabeth was impressed by Meghan’s intelligence, commitment, and curiosity. In 2015, Meghan Markle received a standing ovation from an audience, including UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, for a speech she made on International Women’s Day.

Under the leadership of Rebecca Epstein, the Center on Poverty and Inequality’s Initiative on Gender Justice & Opportunity develops innovative policy solutions and conducts groundbreaking research to help schools, hospitals, the juvenile justice system, and other public systems better support marginalized girls. Archewell’s support is allowing the Initiative to deepen and expand its work recognizing and cultivating Black girls’ leadership, reducing discriminatory school discipline, and strengthening trauma-informed practices so that girls can heal and thrive.

Archewell also invested in National Women’s Law Center. Archewell and NWLC will be working together to examine the systems that brought us to this breaking point and explore data and trends that will bring about solutions to more sustainably further economic justice for women.

Since 2019, Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex became Patron of Smart Works, a UK charity that exists to give women the confidence they need to reach their full potential, secure employment, and change the trajectory of their lives. Archewell Foundation’s support will enable the creation of the Smart Works Female Unemployment Index, which will be an extremely robust study looking at unemployment issues that affect women across the UK, with the aim of creating an annual benchmark against which progress, and change can be tracked.

In February 2019 SmartWorks helped 187 women in London alone. This represents a 47% increase from 2018. Proving to be the Duchess of Influence. Smart Works dressed 27% more women this July 2019 than 2018 as a result of Meghan.

As Smart Works patron Meghan Duchess of Sussex partnered with Designer Misha Nonoo to develop the Smart Set. The first release of the Smart Set Tote sold out online in pre-selling before the official launch. The Smart Set Sold 10,000 items in 2 weeks. For every capsule piece purchased, one was donated to Smart Works. Ten days after the launch, enough was sold to provide the charity with a year’s worth of clothing. British women are more likely to be unemployed than men women’s unemployment is widespread. Women are more likely to live in poverty than men.

Meghan Markle’s public service record is one of women’s empowerment. The Duchess of Sussex was drawn to Smart Works because it reframes the idea of charity as community. It’s a network of women supporting and empowering other women in their professional pursuits. These investments are representative of the approach that Archewell Foundation, as well as The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have taken towards advancing racial and gender justice.

Throughout her life, Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex has worked to promote stronger communities and more equitable outcomes for families. She has met with leaders across the public and private sector to champion women’s economic independence and access to paid leave and has sought to bring a comprehensive approach to women’s empowerment . in her experience as a humanitarian ambassador, which took her to countries like Rwanda and India, she tackled issues ranging from clean water and food insecurity to girls’ education and period poverty.

Meghan served as an ambassador for World Vision. World Vision is an organization that fights global poverty in children. The experience inspired her to write an op-ed in Time magazine about the effect stigma around menstruation can have on a girl’s future.

In Rwanda Meghan taught students at a Mbandazi school how to paint using water from the brand-new pipe installation to create watercolor paintings. After her visit, she brought the paintings to Canada to promote the students’ stories at an event called The Watercolor Project. The event raised $15,000 for World Vision, which then built a water source that could be used by an entire community.

Part of Archewell Foundation’s core commitment is to build strong, compassionate, and equitable communities across the world.