On June 27^th, Chargé d'Affaires Colleen Hyland delivered keynote remarks at a USAID REPOWER event launching the new Association of Women in the Energy Sector (AWESK).  In March 2016, as part of its Gender Action Plan, the REPOWER project and women professionals across the energy sector met for a workshop to establish a professional mentoring and networking framework.  These women then identified the need for a formal association of women in the energy sector.  AWESK’s mission is to empower women in this sector through career and professional skills development, networking, and participation in decision-making to more-powerfully contribute to Kosovo’s sustainable economic development.  In the next several months, AWESK will draft a three-year strategy with specific objectives, activities, and a sustainable fund-raising strategy.  The launch event was an opportunity for the Association to fundraise by networking with stakeholders and potential donors, and by recruiting future dues-paying members.  In her remarks, Hyland commended the attendees for their dedication to greater gender equality in the energy sector, and for their critical efforts to “bring more talented women into the energy workforce, to empower them as decision-makers in the sector, and to ensure they have equal access to education, advancement, and professional development.”