Dear Astrid,

I am happy to tell you that even slowly, the Women’s Museum in Albania has started to be build. As initiator of this initiative, personally, I feel very good with this beginning. As far as is taken as a personal action at the beginning, the Museum is going to be constructed in a private apartment which is now under a new renovation.

At the same time, there is a small working group of historians and ethnographers, who have are working on classification of periods on women history.

With the idea to raise awareness especially on women community, actually we are organizing some meeting with business women who can be part of donors for the museum.

There is a good communication with foreign embassies as well. Media is very positive and there are articles, interviews I have done on the museum. Next week will be an interview on Klan TV, one of the main in the country.

The Museum is the main place of exhibition, but there will be many other activities around it. There is a small board of directors who are mainly women from different fields, like, history, sociology and arts. There are many ideas for future activities on art, history, education, etc

In general the news on Museum is very welcomed for the community of women and others.

For sure the opening of the Museum will create a great impact in the Albanian society.

Elsa Ballauri

Tirana, Albania, March 11, 2010

“Still looking for a building and for this I am in touch with the local government in Tirana, nest week I will have another meeting and hopefully some news. Also I will have a meeting in prime Misnitry…let see’..

At the same time, I have works on creation of a small network inside the country with specialists and young people. I wish and hope that the project dent by Gabriela (gender museum, Innsbruck) to EC will be succeded and will be a very good and important step forward.”

Elsa Ballauri writes:
“I am Elsa Ballauri from Tirana, Albania and I am interested to be in contact with you. I am director of Albanian Human Rights Group, but also I am active on women rights movement in the country.

I got your direction from Mr. Daniel Zeust who is working in Swiss Cooperation Office, in Albania. As he told me, he met women from Merano Museum couple of weekes ago.

I am interested knowing and meeting you because in my committment on Gender Torch (which I won severel months ago. This is a global activity under MDG3 and the Torch it is a Danish action of Minister of Development), one of the activity is to open a Women’s Museum in Albania.

I would like to be part of your network, I saw some very nice and interesting web sites on you and i really will honoured to be in contact and communicate together.”

You’re welcome in our network, Elsa!