We are pleased to announce that Academic Travel Abroad (ATA) will provide travel services for The American Association of University Women (AAUW), delegation to Cuba in November of this year. The delegation will research “Gender Equity and the Role of Women in Cuban Society.” As the Executive Director of AAUW, I am honored to have been selected as leader of this delegation and invite you to join me in this unique opportunity to learn about a key aspect of women’s lives in Cuba.

As you may know, travel to Cuba is restricted by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Treasury Department.  Each member of the delegation must be in compliance with the General License issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control authorizing full-time professionals to conduct a full-time schedule of non-commercial research activities in Cuba with the likelihood that this research will be publicly disseminated. To ensure compliance, each participant in the program will be required to provide a resume and sign an affidavit attesting to their status as a full-time professional, paid or unpaid, in the field of women’s issues and studies.  Before traveling, each delegation member will be given a copy of the regulation that will serve as their license to travel authorized by the Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Our delegation will depart for Cuba from Miami on October 30, 2010, returning to the United States on November 04, 2010. The attached preliminary itinerary outlines the planned meetings.  These meetings and the specific topics of discussion will be defined based upon the final research interests and make up of the team.  We will interact with our counterparts and participate in intimate dialogue and group meetings as a means of researching the role of Women in Cuban Society.

Washington, DC-based ATA is a 60-year-old organization that handles the logistical arrangements for prestigious organizations, such as National Geographic Society, The Smithsonian Institution, The American Museum of Natural History and many top universities. Academic Travel Abroad is licensed by the OFAC as a Travel Services Provider for U.S. travel to Cuba.

The Gender Equity and Role of Women in Cuban in Society delegation is an important opportunity to support ongoing, meaningful engagement in efforts to improve women’s lives globally through research and analysis.