About IWF Pittsburgh

The IWF Pittsburgh Forum was established through the vision of charter member, Jacqui Morby who saw the need for professional women to have more prominence in the region. She brought together a small group of influential women who worked for several years to lay the groundwork for what would become the IWF Pittsburgh Forum. In 1996, the then named, Western Pennsylvania Women’s Forum was officially approved for affiliation at the International IWF Board of Directors Meeting.

The Forum started with 38 members and over time has grown to over 100 members. In 2011, feeling the need for a stronger local identity, the Western Pennsylvania Women’s Forum voted to change its name to the IWF Pittsburgh Forum.

For nearly three decades, the IWF Pittsburgh Forum has advanced its mission through its excellent local programming for members. The Forum has also played a significant role globally by hosting IWF’s World Leadership Conference in Pittsburgh in 2008, and the leadership roles our members have taken on both the International Board (Esther Bush) and the IWF Foundation Board (BJ Leber). In addition, Pittsburgh Forum members Karen Feinstein and Debra Caplan launched the first global special interest group on healthcare, which has since become a model for IWF. As a result, our members have had the opportunity to build significant relationships, not only with prominent women regionally, but with women across countries and industries in support of one another.

In 2022, the Pittsburgh Forum celebrated its 25^th Anniversary marking a quarter century of commitment to advancing women’s leadership and championing equality in the region.