Area 01
Parisian Zonta Clubs
Zonta Club Paris Etoile, Zonta Club Paris Port Royal Concorde and Golden Z Paris Gisèle Halimi:
The daylong symposium concerns “Child Marriages” and will take place on december 4th, with the participation of Zonta PIP Ute Scholz and Zonta PI Director Lydia Chaillou.
Leaders from the town hall, justice, medical offices, associations and well-care centers will speak and midwives and social workers will contribute with their witnesses.
Elke Farny, Zonta Club Paris Etoile, ZI-UN delegate UNESCO
ZC of La Roche-sur-Yon | now forming
Orange Your City campaign that took place in La Roche-sur-Yon. For the past four years, our town’s theatre has been illuminated in orange during the 16 Days of Activism, symbolizing our commitment to ending violence against women and girls.
This year’s campaign was particularly significant, as the city also took the opportunity to launch its “Ici, demandez Angela” initiative. This program aims to provide safe spaces in public locations—such as bars, shops, and restaurants—where anyone feeling unsafe or harassed can discreetly ask for help by “asking for Angela.” The participating establishments display a sign to indicate their involvement and are trained to provide assistance in a calm and effective manner. It’s a wonderful step forward in fostering safety and solidarity in our community.
The event continues to receive strong support from the Prefect of the Vendée, who not only honors us with his presence but also gives Zonta International a central place in his speech. The Town Hall remains a steadfast partner, ensuring that our message of equality and safety for all resonates widely.
Christine Mousset | ZC of Les Sables d’Olonne | District 29 Club Creator
© ZC of La Roche-sur-Yon | now forming
Area 02
Zonta Club Cologne | Cologne sends a strong signal against violence against women!
On November 25, we, the Zonta Club Cologne, together with the Zonta Club Cologne 2008, Soroptimist Cologne, the City of Cologne and the working group against violence against women and other members of the action alliance, organized the Orange Day on Severinskirchplatz.
The campaign was opened by Mayor Brigitta von Bülow. Supported by Equal Opportunities Officer Julia Pedersen and impressive speeches, the focus was directed towards a problem that is unfortunately still growing: violence against women.
Shocking facts from the latest BKA report:
- Femicides: In 2023, 938 girls and women were victims of attempted or completed homicides, of which 360 were completed femicides
- Politically motivated misogynist crimes: The number of these offenses increased by 56.3% to 322 cases in 2023
- Digital violence: Cases of digital violence against women and girls increased by 25% in 2023, with almost 17,200 victims
These figures show: Violence is increasing instead of decreasing. This is precisely why the appeal to the city of Cologne was so important: no cuts to support services and shelters for women! Representatives of the women’s service clubs, including Svenja Gasnier (Soroptimist Cologne) and Pinar Wege (Zonta Club Cologne), addressed clear words to the city.
There must be no cutbacks in the protection and support that women urgently need.
Our commitment on Orange Day:
- Symbolic: orange shoes commemorated the women who were killed
- Actions: An orange bench invited passers-by to show solidarity and share the moment on social media
- Musical contributions and informative talks on signs of violence, such as the one given by our President Christine Kronenberg, made the event a moving and informative day
Strong together:
With lively participation from association members, passers-by and women from the entire action alliance, we once again showed how important it is to show our colors. Orange stands for solidarity, hope and change.
Our goal:
Every woman has the right to a life free from violence. As long as even one woman is affected, we will continue to fight – with a loud voice and helping hands. When will you show your colors?
Birgit Hansen, Zonta Club Cologne, Area Director 02
© Zonta Clubs of Cologne
Area 05
Zonta Club Muenster
In 2023, the Zonta Club Münster and the two Soroptimist International Clubs Münster and Münster-Mauritz joined forces to carry out the “Gewalt kommt nicht in die Tüte” (“Violence is out of the question.”) bread bag campaign in close cooperation with Münster bakeries.
Financed by the three clubs and sponsored by the City of Münster’s Equal Opportunities Office and the AK Gewaltschutz (Committee for the protection against Violence) 168,000 bread bags were made available to Münster’s bakeries to draw attention to the isue sue of “violence against women” and publicize the helpline number.
After the bakeries in Münster criticized the layout of last year’s bag as being in need of improvement, the artistic design class at Adolph-Kolping-Berufskolleg was commissioned to create a new bun bag design for 2024 through the mediation of Zontian Ulla Kortas. Under the guidance of their teacher Erika Alexander, the pupils produced around 20 creative designs on the theme “Violence is out of the question”. Joshua Batkowski’s design was selected from these design proposals. His design, in orange and magenta, shows a hand as a stop signal as a central motif and refers to the help telephone number.
The bread bags with this motif were printed in an edition of 170,000 bags and will be distributed to customers in around 140 bakery outlets in Münster and partly also in the district of Coesfeld from November 25 to December 10.
The motif will also serve as a template for posters explaining the bread bag campaign, which will be made available to the bakeries by the clubs for display in their branches. In addition, the city of Münster will have the motif displayed on 95 advertising pillars in the city area during the campaign period from 25.11.2024. But that’s not all: All of the class’s design drafts will be printed on a roll-up and displayed in the city library from 24.11.24.
In addition to Zonta, this year’s campaign is also supported by the five women’s clubs of Soroptimists International from Münster and the district of Coesfeld, as well as by the city of Münster, the Committee for the protection against Violence and the district of Coesfeld.
Zonta says No – Art campaign in the Münster City Library
Monday, 25 November 2024 – 15:30 to Monday, 9 December 2024 – 20:00
The Zonta Club Münster is once again sending a strong signal against violence against women this year. In an inspiring collaboration with pupils from Wolbeck secondary school, life-size female figures were created last year in the style of the famous Nanas by French artist Niki St. Phalle. The pupils were given the task of illustrating the issue of violence against women and girls or emphasising the positive aspects of the female figure.
© ZC Muenster
Almut Kellermeyer, President ZC Muenster, Area 05
Zonta Club Siegen Area
Orange the World in Siegen | Joint action by Siegen women’s clubs
On 15 November, the Siegen Zonta Club invited members of the regional ‘FrauenForum’ to a public viewing of Zonta Germany’s online discussion, which was attended by almost 40 women. Prior to this, the women made a joint statement in cooperation with the FrauenForum Siegen-Wittgenstein: ‘We say NO to violence against women’ – in front of the new orange Zonta bench in the atrium of the SiegCarré.
© FrauenForum Siegen-Wittgenstein and Zonta Club Siegen Area 05/29
On 25 November, several women’s organisations set a strong example against violence against women with an information stand in the center of Siegen: The Zonta Club Siegen Area, Inner Wheel and Soroptimist International.
Anyone who wanted to could also make a personal statement with a photo on our new ‘orange bench’. The Siegen Zonta Club also asked women and men from our city and the region to make a personal statement against violence against women. For example: the district administrator of the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, the mayor of the town and another from a neighbouring town, politicians from the state parliament and the Bundestag. The ambassadors also include theatre directors, the rector of the university, a well-known film and theatre actor and a multiple German long-distance running champion.
These statements will be published on our Instagram channel #zontaclubsiegearea during the 16 days of the campaign. Ambassadors include
In addition, another orange bench was set up in the entrance area of the city’s ‘Kreishaus’ – with press press- and social media activitys the district administrator.
Roswitha Theis, President ZC Siegen Area, Area 05
