Beatrice Rangoni Machiavelli is an Italian politician, author, and activist. She was President of the

Economic and Social Committee The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is a consultative body of the European Union (EU) established in 1958. It is an advisory assembly composed of "social partners", namely: employers ( employers' organisations), employees (trade ...

of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

from 1998 to 2000.

Life

She was born in Rome to a prominent family and studied physics and political science. She started her career as a journalist and essayist. From 1985 to 1994 she co-edited ''Libro Aperto'' magazine with

Giovanni Malagodi Giovanni Francesco Malagodi (12 October 1904 – 17 April 1991) was an Italian liberal politician, secretary of the Italian Liberal Party (''Partito Liberale Italiano''; PLI), and president of the Italian Senate. He was the third and sixth Pre ...

. For ten years she directed the weekly ''La Tribuna'', the press organ of the

Italian Liberal Party The Italian Liberal Party ( it, Partito Liberale Italiano, PLI) was a liberal and conservative political party in Italy. The PLI, which is the heir of the liberal currents of both the Historical Right and the Historical Left, was a minor party ...

. In 1982 she became a member of the European Economic and Social Committee, on which she served until 2002. On October 15, 1998, she was elected President of the committee. In an interview Machiavelli said that as a member of a wealthy Lombard family, she grew up around educated, emancipated women. It was not until she read ''Ainsi soit-elle'' by the feminist author

Benoîte Groult Benoîte Groult (31 January 1920 – 20 June 2016) was a French journalist, writer, and feminist activist. Life and career Groult was born on 31 January 1920 in Paris. She was the daughter of André Groult and Nicole Poiret, sister of Paul Poir ...

that she became aware of the subjugation of women outside her privileged circle. She became a strong advocate for women's rights, as well as human rights in general. As a member of Les Femmes d'Europe, a feminist organization, she worked for the rights of women prisoners. She was the Italian correspondent for ''Women of Europe'', a magazine published in nine languages by the

European Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...

. She was part of the Italian delegation to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

World Conference on Women in

Nairobi, Kenya Nairobi ( ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows throug ...

, in 1985. She is a patron of the International Network of Liberal Women and a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Public Service Users (Assoutenti); Italian Society for International Organization (SIOI); Atlantic Committee (ATA); and the Italian Association of Women for Development (AIDOS). She has published essays and articles on economic and social problems and on the theme of European integration. In 2016 she self-published a memoir, ''Viaggio Nella Memoria''.

Awards

In 2000 she was named a "Woman Who Makes a Difference" by the

International Women's Forum The International Women's Forum (IWF), founded in 1974 as the Women's Forum of New York, is an invitation-only women's organization with some 7,000 members. Its mission is "to support the women leaders of today and tomorrow". The IWF hosts two con ...

. The following year she was named an officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

by French president

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

for her dedication to the European cause. In 2005 she was named a Grand Officer of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

by president

Carlo Azeglio Ciampi Carlo Azeglio Ciampi (; 9 December 1920 – 16 September 2016) was an Italian politician and banker who was the prime minister of Italy from 1993 to 1994 and the president of Italy from 1999 to 2006. Biography Education Ciampi was born i ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Machiavelli, Beatrice Rangoni 21st-century Italian women politicians Italian women journalists Italian feminists Political office-holders of the European Union Year of birth missing (living people) Living people