I am a military officer, with a background in maritime logistics and strategic human resources, notably in the field of gender, who late last year, left the comfort of my home and life in Australia to take up a secondment with UN Women in New York. That my awesome career of over thirty-six years has led to me combining my passion for women’s equality and empowerment with working with a non-military, global entity with the same goals, never ceases to amaze me. Which got me thinking about how little we usually know about the day-to-day lives of most professions, especially those that take forks in the road.
In my role as a policy specialist and military liaison officer, a first for the Australian Defence Force and for UN Women (and which came about during my last appointment – I must admit to having a hand in developing this initiative with my eyes on the prize!), I am responsible for providing policy advice on preventing and responding to sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), and enhancing women’s participation in international peacekeeping operations and in national defence and police forces. As a military officer, I am in a very privileged position; being able to bridge the gap between UN Women and the other military components of the United Nations (UN) and other international organizations, as well as support and enhance UN Women’s security sector reform work in countries including those experiencing conflict or turmoil.
So, what does my work look like? How do I spend my days? From my perspective, my life is very exciting and I get to do some amazing stuff (my career journey is testament to this). It’s hard to describe just one day in my life – or the life in one of my days as I like to say – as it is never the same, but it can look like this:
7:30 am I begin the hour-long commute into Manhattan. I’m living in a very quaint, English-looking town called Rye, about twenty-seven miles north of the city. I moved here to enrol my youngest daughter into the local high school (second best public high school in New York and picture Hogwarts from Harry Potter!), and it is very pretty and quiet (without the constant emergency service sirens and crowds of Manhattan). So, a five-minute walk to the station, forty-five-minute train commute and ten minutes’ walk from Grand Central Station to my office gives me time to check social media, listen to podcasts or audio books, and think about my day ahead.
8:30 am At my desk with first (Starbucks!) coffee of the day. I usually take this time to scan emails, plan my day, prioritize tasks, schedule calls and meetings, and fill in my daily planner – the usual and necessary start to the day for an anal, to-do list kind of person! I respond to the easy emails and mark the action items.
9:15 am Completing yet another visa application – for an overseas mission – and dropping it and my passport off at our visa services office, about two blocks away. I love the walk (in good weather!) and helps me achieve my 10,000 steps per day.
10:00 am A short walk over to UN headquarters to meet with the retired General who conducts our Female Military Officers Course to discuss budgeting, the course schedule for 2018, and contract requirements for the current and ex-military personnel who provide the training. We rely heavily on donor funding from Member States to fund this course, and we conduct it in three locations around the world.
11:00 am Back in the office to draft a donor funding request for the next course. The General has already done the ‘back-office’ work in liaising with his contacts and I manage the direct and more formal approach through relevant Embassies. This process has opened my eyes to the very political and diplomatic aspects of working with Member States who are keen to fund activities that support the UN’s mandate and goals relating to gender parity, women’s leadership and participation, and protection of women and children.
12:30 pm Skype call with one of our country offices in Eastern Europe to organize a potential mission for me to assist with some security sector reform work. In this case, it’s to help support the development of a gender impact assessment, and to meet with senior Government and security sector officials, and present to security sector staff on the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in armed forces and the role of Gender Advisers.
1:00 pm I normally eat my lunch at my desk – I know you’re saying that’s a no-no! – but today I’m off to have lunch with various colleagues and friends from other UN agencies and international organizations, to chat about forthcoming events in New York and overseas. Because of my last few roles, I have a huge international network from which I can seek help or assistance, and it’s always wonderful to cross paths in our individual roles. I value these people immensely for their expertise, knowledge and intellect.
2:00 pm Our regular staff meeting to discuss current priorities and future events, and brief on relevant activities. Sometimes this includes connecting with our colleagues in regional offices. Working with men and women in my section who are committed to the organization’s mandate, who are staunch feminists, and who dedicated to making a difference in the lives of women and girls – these are people whose energy, tenacity, enthusiasm and expertise knows no bounds.
3:00 pm Coffee with some civil society and Australian Government colleagues here in New York for the Commission for the Status of Women. This is a great opportunity to not only spend some time with some Aussies (a rare treat!) but to share information on current WPS activities they are pursuing back home and how perhaps I can assist them here.
3:45 pm Time to spend on tasks that have come in via email. Today that includes reviewing content for a manual being developed on SEA, assessing a proposal for collaboration between UN Women and another UN agency on addressing female police participation in peacekeeping, and developing talking points on our current issues for a colleague in our Brussels office.
5:00 pm I leave for the commute home, and generally watch a show on my iPhone to tune out. At the moment, I’m a sucker for ‘Chrisley Knows Best’!
6.30 pm I head out for a forty-five-minute walk to help me achieve my 10,000 steps. Then I spend about an hour with ongoing training requirements; mandatory training for UN Woman and the ADF, as well as completing modules for a Peace Operations Specialised Training certificate with a focus on WPS and gender perspectives in operations through the Peace Operations Training Institute.
8.00 pm Tonight I’m off to dinner with a small group of expat Aussie women keen to stay connected. Interestingly, one was the wife of one of the only two other Aussie military colleagues here, the rest were wives of bankers, consultants, and financiers. Some have been here for a short time, others as long as fifteen years. Like all Aussies, we instantly connected! Great way to end the day.
10:00 pm Skype calls with my beloved daughters, who remained in Australia to continue their education. Then some quiet time to reflect on tomorrow.
This is the life in my day, but I’d love to hear what happens in yours – isn’t it fascinating to learn about all the possibilities out there in the world?
PS. To learn more about my journey and exciting adventures, please visit www.jenniferwittwer.com.
