A young entrepreneur, in 1968 Pida established a London based art business and galleries (Crystal Palace and Chelsea), representing artists and organising exhibitions in many different environments, including Southwark Cathedral and Stadt Museums in Germany. Her entrepreneurial spirit led her to develop other business ventures including interior design, high value property development, fragrance creation, and leisure market products (gold medalist).
To allow her time to diversify her business interests, she turned the Chelsea Gallery into the world’s first original film poster gallery in 1975.
Developing a range of fragrances in 1975, she successfully forced Faberge Inc to withdraw a product line and publicly apologise for illegal use of her trademarks. She then leased her proven intellectual property to Avon Inc.
In 1988 she was awarded the Gold Medal for the best new gardening product at the annual Garden Leisure Exhibition (GLEE) in Birmingham. Thereafter she successfully developed several high value property projects in central London.
She has demonstrated a lifelong commitment to the principle of voluntary service and community engagement. In 1983 she became an active member of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry, FANY (PVRC), the world’s longest established women’s uniformed ‘military’ voluntary organisation. Founded in 1907 the Corps has an illustrious history of service in both war and peace.
Article: ArmedForces.1987.FANY80thAnniversarybyPida Ripley.pdf
Social Entrepreneur
In 1987 she founded WomenAid/Women of the World, also known as WomenAid International, a humanitarian aid and development agency to provide assistance to women and families in crisis caused by war, poverty, repression and abuse, to raise awareness of issues adversely affecting women and children, and, importantly, to act as a catalyst for international and national legislative and public policy change.
In the same year she also founded the Women of the World Global Awards (WoW Awards). Dame Vera Lynn was one of the first recipients, later recipients include Nobel Laureates, Mother Teresa and Wangari Maathai.
In 1989 she was appointed the first Director of Development of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), long regarded as one of the world’s premier policy institutes on international affairs.
Pida Ripley at Chatham House
Working closely with the then Director, Sir James Eberle (
former Supreme Commander of NATO and a former Commander-in-chief of the British fleet) she created, at extremely short notice, the institute’s 70th Anniversary fundraising campaign, raising over £1,000,000 in the first nine months.
The first Chatham House Fellow, Osako Gas,
Hideo Taki & family at Chatham House with Pida
Coordinating the funding applications of seven research departments, increasing corporate and individual membership, Pida also successfully devised the institute’s first Chatham House Fellowship Program, a Post-Soviet Business Forum and several other initiatives creating a foundation which has continued to support the expansion of the think tank.
Subsequently she was appointed the Executive Director of a high tech trade association of global and national companies with a focus on AV and business communication (1993-5), negotiating a package that allowed her to maintain her voluntary leadership in developing the growth of WomenAid, the humanitarian and development agency she had founded in 1987.
In 1999 she was appointed the Executive Director of a health promotion organisation implementing major health training programmes in the Russian Federation. Funded by DFID, the organisation arranged medical specialists exchange programmes and convened major conferences on health issues including child mental health, midwifery, and HIV/STDs. (1999/2000).
Despite having a full-time career path, Pida Ripley also continued to simultaneouly manage WomenAid International's programmes given the support of a large number of loyal and dedicated volunteers in the WomenAid London office. She established a WomenAid base in Tirana, Albania, raising awareness and aid for refugees from Kosovo. She also launched a major anti-trafficking network (UKAT) and organised the UK’s first international conference on the issue.
At the close of 1999, following a successful audit by ECHO of the multiple high value programmes undertaken by WomenAid International in the Caucasus, WomenAid was offered confirmed funding and encouraged to continue developing its global humanitarian work.
However WomenAid decided to prioritise working in the Caucasus but with a focus on civil society development and stabilisation programmes - working closely with several governments on securing policy changes in areas of women’s empowerment, gender violence, human rights of women and children and environmental health.
Honours and awards
1975 United Nations International Women’s Year (IWY) Recognition Award. She received a UN IWY award organised by WFUNA at the UN in New York for her activities promoting UN International Women’s Year, IWY.
1986 Senior MacArthur Fellowship, Washington. Awarded by the MacArthur Foundation. University of Maryland.
1999 9th Annual European Women of Achievement Awards, Finalist ‘Humanitarian’ category. 09.07.99
Nominated in recognition of her voluntary work with WomenAid International in the former Yugoslavia and the Caucasus. ”The Finalists are all ‘can do’ women, not only are they all inspired to succeed, but they are also inspirational to others in all their different fields of endeavour…we applaud the wonderful women who are helping to power Europe into the 21st Century.”
2011 UN Centenary Year International Women’s Day, Excellence Awards UAE.Dubai.
Citation: Pida Ripley, WomenAid International, for her excellent contribution & commitment towards Community Service. Her dedication and hard work will be an inspiration to the younger generation.
Pida has been a
guest & keynote speaker on diverse subjects, authored multiple articles, book reviews, press advisory notes and releases etc and has participated in numerous radio/TV interviews in UK and abroad.
