Inside Diane von Furstenberg Awards Gala with Karlie Kloss

Last night Diane von Furstenberg hosted the 8th annual DVF Awards at the UN where she recognized five women making a difference in their communities and around the world. Honorees included: Dr. Jane Goodall, Karlie Kloss, Louise Dubé, Baljeet Sandhu and Yoani Sanchez. For the first time, the DVF Awards partnered with Crowdrise to further call attention to the work of the honorees.  Presenters included: Tracee Ellis Ross, Kate Bosworth, Cynthia Erivo and Laura Brown. Sarah Jones emceed the event. Andra Day performed, and Angel + Dren DJed, The DVF Awards were created in 2010 by Diane von Furstenberg and The Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation to recognize and support women who are using their resources, commitment and visibility to transform lives around the world.

·       Jane Goodall was presented with the  Lifetime Leadership Award in recognition of her revolutionary work in primatology and for inspiring generations of scientists. Karlie Kloss was honored with the Inspiration Award for providing women and girls with the opportunity to learn to code through Kode With Klossy, and her work with FEED and the CFDA through Klossies. Louise Dubé was chosen for People’s Voice Award for her leadership of iCivics, a program founded by retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor to restore civic education in US schools. Baljeet Sandhu earned the International Award for her leadership of the Migrant & Refugee Children’s Legal Unit (MiCLU), a legal, policy and education hub. Yoani Sanchez was presented wit the International Award for her creation of project 14ymedio, the first and only independent digital news outlet in Cuba.

Guests included: Allison Williams, Alexi Ashe, Anh Duong, Barry Diller, Dani Stahl, Huma Abedin, Jessica Jaffe, Joanna Hillman, Jonathan Saunders, Lindsay Ellington, Seth Meyers, Stephanie LaCava, Steven Kolb, Tina Brown (co-host) and Wendi Deng Murdoch.

Andra kicked off the evening with a rendition of “Rise Up.”  Tracee Ellis Ross, who presented to Cuban journalist Yoani Sanchez, discussed the importance of journalism and freedom of the press. In presenting the Lifetime Leadership Award to her “fantasy woman” Jane Goodall, Diane von Furstenberg said, “there are plenty of scientists who have the ability to observe, but [Jane] found a way to give a voice.”  With her acceptance speech, Jane closed out the night and said “we share a philosophy – we need to learn to live in peace and harmony with people from other countries, other religions and other cultures.”