Strength and Beauty: Diana von Furstenberg's Perspective

Diana von Furstenberg defines beauty as strength and individuality. She is captivated by the dignity of women she has met around the world: those working in the fields of India in bright saris, carrying bricks on their heads in Indonesia, bringing children to African hospitals. Their innate grace is, for her, the standard of true beauty.

She considers some of the strongest women to be participants in the international organization Vital Voices, founded by Hillary Clinton. Diana is on its board of directors. The organization finds and supports women leaders worldwide, helping them unlock their potential. These women have not only survived difficult circumstances but have dedicated themselves to helping others.

Among them is Sunita Krishnan, a petite woman 1.4 meters tall (4 feet 7 inches). At fifteen, she survived a gang rape, and later founded the organization Prajwala, which rescues and rehabilitates victims of sex trafficking in India. Despite beatings and threats, Sunita continues to work, driven by «the power of pain.» When she speaks, her inner beauty and grandeur become evident.

Another heroine is Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya from Kenya. At five years old, she was betrothed, but she made a deal with her father: female genital mutilation in exchange for the opportunity to study. After receiving an education in the U.S., she returned to her native Maasai village and built a boarding school for girls, changing the approach to education in the region.

Or Chouchou Namegabe – a journalist from Congo who gave a voice to hundreds of rape victims, recorded their stories for radio, and then testified at the International Court in The Hague, demanding justice.

Getting to know these women shocked Diana. Their bravery and perseverance made her think: «I have done nothing.» Although she herself, through fashion and charity, sought to strengthen women«s confidence, it was these stories that filled her with strength and inspiration.

The idea to establish an award arose after a conversation with her children. They suggested creating a fund to support the projects of Vital Voices heroines. The thought remained in her head until her friend Tina Brown, then editor of The Daily Beast, invited Diana to the first «Women in the World» summit. As part of the summit in 2010, a gala dinner was held at the UN with the presentation of grants of $50,000 each.

Thus, the DVF Awards were born, founded by the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation. They honor women who have shown courage in struggle, strength of spirit in survival, and leadership in inspiring others. Since 2010, many have received awards, including participants from Vital Voices. The «Lifetime Leadership» award has been given to Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, television host Robin Roberts, and Gloria Steinem.

The «Inspiration» awards were presented to Ingrid Betancourt, Elizabeth Smart, and Jaycee Dugard – all three had to endure kidnapping and captivity in childhood. Like Diana«s mother, they refused to consider themselves victims. Jaycee, who spent 18 years in captivity, founded a foundation to help families after traumatic events.

The «People»s Voice« award is also presented based on public voting. All these women start small, at the local level. Diana recalls her mother»s words: «Save one life, and it will be the beginning of a dynasty.» One saved life already means a lot.

For Diana, beauty is inseparable from health. As chair of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), she reminds designers every season before Fashion Week: «Beauty is health, health is beauty.»

In 2006, when she was elected president of the CFDA, the media talked a lot about the spread of anorexia among girls and the role of the fashion industry. Diana was shocked to learn that the industry contributes to this problem. She emphasizes: the thinness of top models is often genetic, not the result of starvation. Imitating them by starving oneself is dangerous.

Diana urges girls to be cautious: the modeling business is not an easy path, full of rejections, and behind the facade of fashion, human trafficking and exploitation sometimes hide. «Use your brain,» she says. «How you look is important, but who you are determines how you are perceived.»

Under her leadership, the CFDA in 2007, together with experts, modeling agencies, and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, developed industry standards. They include recommendations for model protection, seminars on eating disorders, and a call to seek help for problems.

The next step was age regulation. To break the vicious cycle where designers demanded increasingly younger models, the CFDA introduced rules: only models aged 16 and over can work on the runway, and for minors, there is a ban on work after midnight.

In 1994, at age 47, Diana was diagnosed with cancer. It all started with a noise in her ear after a conversation with Ralph Lauren about his tumor. The inflammation on her neck turned out to be a malignant cyst. The diagnosis came on the day Jackie Kennedy Onassis died, which intensified the shock.

After the initial fears, Diana gathered her strength. She faced seven weeks of radiation therapy. A friend invited Deepak Chopra, who taught her to meditate. Before treatment, she spent time at his center in California, preparing for the battle with meditation, Ayurveda, and long walks.

In New York, she underwent daily radiation at Sloan Kettering clinic, then returned to the hotel, drank wheatgrass juice, meditated, and had a massage. On weekends, she went to a country house, where nature gave her peace. The support of loved ones – her children, mother, friend Barry Diller – was crucial.

In the middle of therapy, Diana attended a dinner at the White House with the Clintons in a John Galliano dress, feeling beautiful despite radiation burns. Later, she visited her dying father in Belgium, which was an emotional ordeal.

After finishing treatment, she returned to Chopra«s center for recovery. It was a difficult week, but she managed. Her father passed away, and at his funeral, Diana felt calm and grateful for his love. Then she went to Berlin to feel alive, and gradually returned to normal life.

This experience strengthened her belief that beauty is health, and strength of spirit is the most beautiful thing in a person.