Over the past 25 years Judi has been actively involved with numerous area agencies including CALM, Congregation B’nai B’rith, Lobero Theatre, Granada Theatre, Building Bridges Community Coalition, Anti Defamation League, and Women’s Economic Ventures.
“Judi is the perfect fit for our organization. Her passion for social justice, love for humanity, and understanding of the Santa Barbara community is extremely important for our ongoing success and growth,” said Victoria Riskin, Chair of the Santa Barbara Committee of Human Rights Watch and member of the International Board of Directors. “Judi has extensive experience in fundraising, event coordination, and community and leadership building, and we’re thrilled to welcome her to our team. It is the time for everyone to work towards justice for all and Judi is wholeheartedly committed to this mission.”
The Santa Barbara Committee of Human Rights Watch has been growing its presence over the past decade, and includes 62 prominent citizens from a variety of backgrounds and professions. The Committee is part of the Human Rights Watch Council, a network of committees across 17 cities in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America that play a key role in the organization’s global defense of human rights. Committee members, along with an extended network of friends and donors, meet regularly to learn about human rights issues, sponsor policy discussions, and generate support for Human Rights Watch and its mission through fundraising, outreach, and advocacy. The group’s largest annual fundraiser, the Voices for Justice Dinner, will take place on Sunday, November 13th at the Doubletree, and is expected to raise over $300,000.
Human Rights Watch is one of the world’s leading independent organizations dedicated to defending and protecting human rights. The organization shared in the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1997 for their extraordinary campaign to ban the use of landmines that led to an international treaty. The director of Human Rights Watch’s emergencies team, Peter Bouckaert, a proud UCSB graduate and winner of the prestigious Storke Award, is a 12-year veteran with the organization and has been reporting from Egypt and Libya, and documenting abuses there since the onset of the demonstrations swept through the Middle East.
Learn more by visiting the Human Rights Watch website at www.hrw.org or by calling 805-284-4232.