New York, NY (March 6, 2017) — WEDO welcomes Daniela Pedraza to the team as the Trade Policy Fellow. As the Trade Policy Fellow, Daniela supports WEDO’s advocacy efforts on economic justice by monitoring the impact of trade liberalization on development, environment, and women’s human rights. Daniela, originally from Colombia, holds a B.A in International Relations and is currently finishing her last year of law school. In the interview, Daniela reflects on her fellowship and professional path.

What is your main responsibility as a WEDO’s Fellow?

To be a WEDO fellow means to work in a team of people willing to share their knowledge, continuously learn about the intersection of women’s rights and climate change, share ideas with advocates around the world, follow UN processes, support and give presentations. But overall, it means to use knowledge, skills, and creativity to advocate for the development of gender-responsive trade and environmental policies.

What is the main challenge of being the Trade Policy Fellow?

The main challenge is to get used to all the acronyms that are involved in UN processes! It gets better with the time, though.  A more serious challenge, which I love to face, is to keep up with and match the high level of depth and technicality of WEDO’s submissions and research. This requires a lot of reading, reviewing and analysis, but I think it’s what has allowed me to become a better researcher.

And what is the biggest reward?

I believe the biggest reward of being a WEDO fellow is the chance to have your ideas taken into account and included into projects or processes. By working with WEDO, I have become more creative, proactive and solution-focused. I have also gained a lot of technical knowledge on UN processes such as UNFCCC.

Another benefit is the opportunity to learn how to approach the daily tasks and obstacles an advocacy organization faces.  All of these have been possible because of the collaborative spirit of the team.

Finally, how has this fellowship impacted your professional path?

My experience with WEDO has allowed me to grow both personally and professionally, in a bigger way than I could visualize.  It has made clearer to me the challenges of being an advocate; but at the same time, the imperative for more people to commit to the fight for our rights. Being a WEDO Fellow has made me more committed to becoming an agent of change for women’s rights and sustainable development.