What does this mean to you?

So here I am, writing these blog posts for you. And here you are, reading about an issue that is dear to my heart, and maybe dear to yours, too.
So why are we both here? What is it about female empowerment that has you up at night thinking diligently?
Do you want to empower others? Do you want to be empowered? I believe the answer to both of those questions is YES. Because we can all be impacted positively from a reciprocal relationship. I've highlighted Nonprofit Organizations, programs, leaders, and companies from around the world but I hope you understand that these are closer to home than you think. These women are the same as your friends, neighbors, family members; and when such people in our lives are in need of help, inspiration, or direction, we listen to them, don't we?
Through my blog and the stories I've read and shared with you all, that's the lesson I learned; in order to help others positively, we must first learn to listen to their needs and to work with them. Before I began my blog, I had an ignorant idea about how NGOs went in to communities after coming up with a strategic solutions in their offices. Instead, what I learned is that many global leaders and organizations go in to communities in need first, immerse themselves in the people and their cultures to get a better understanding, and then create dialogues to dig deep into communicating what exactly the communities need.
This process of dialogue is what makes powerful connections and what leads to successful programs that empower the voiceless all around the globe.  My initial interest in empowerment and leadership development came from my own backyard experience, too, by working with a group of students at my university. Serving as their president, I aided in the leadership and professional skill development for students ranging from freshmen and seniors. When I truly started to see my own peers gain confidence and let their personalities shine, I myself felt inspired, empowered, and grateful to see that the friendships and dialogues I craeated with these young leaders lead them on the right path to success.
As I continue my journey to expand as a global leader, I will keep my experiences and the lives I've encountered close to heart. And I encourage you all to do the same; start small by talking to someone you want to help; hear and listen to their stories and see how you can help each other. The language of compassion and respect are universal and has no barriers. We need inspired leaders to empower the powerless around the world. I hope the stories and thoughts I've shared willl help inspire you, too.

Global Leader Highlight:

Therese Caouette: Executive Director of Partners Asia 

Therese Caouette is the Executive Director of Partners Asia which works on community development with local communities in Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia. As a leader, Caouette learned at an early age that the most important way to help others is by showing respect in order to help them be more empowered. In the last three decades, Caouette has worked on emphasizing community engagement as a means to building leadership and skills to bring resources to the local levels where they are most needed. She believes in using her privilege to listen to the people in need and to personally work with them to find the best solutions that work for each community. 
This is the method Caouette values because she understands every community works differently and in order to bring change to the world, organizations must find ways to help others in personalized ways. Through participatory action research and creating dialogue with local citizens, Caouetteand Partners Asia have helped sex workers, refugees, and migrant workers find their voice, stand up for their rights, and become leaders and advocates for themselves. 
Caouette was honored for her work and received the second annual Global Hero Award in Seattle in 2012. This award recognizes Washington based change agents who have made significant contributions to global issues. Caouette will continue to work with people in SE Asia and help empower future leaders in developing countries. For her compassionate and brave approach to changing the world, I believe that Caouette is a true global leader and hero.

More about Partners Asia:
Mission:
Partners Asia supports community initiatives to improve the lives of the most vulnerable among the people of Myanmar. Many of these people live in unstable areas within Myanmar and along its borders, where they are at risk of displacement and exploitation. At Partners Asia, we build relationships with innovative organizers in these communities and with international donors, bridging the gap between local leaders and global resources.

Approach: 
We believe that local initiatives led by local leaders stand the strongest chance of weathering unpredictable challenges and creating positive, lasting change.
 More here

Values: 

“Learn from the people

Plan with the people

Begin with what they know

Build on what they know

Of the best leaders

When the task is accomplished

The people will say

We have done it ourselves”

-Lao Tzu

Make your donation today or get involved with Partners Asia

Flash Feature of the Week!

Trochet - Saudi Arabia  

"Upcycling Saudi women out of poverty"
Trash + Crochet = Trochet

Who would have thought that recycled garbage could be a trendy fashion statement? Trochet is a new startup to support women in need in Saudi Arabia. The project gathered recycled plastic bags and sends them to women in high poverty areas around Saudi Arabia who then knit or crochet the material into creative products such as coasters, pillows, yoga mats, and bags. The revenue from the sold products are cycled back to the women who are then able to support themselves. This new project is gaining public attention all around the globe and currently working on expanding.

Check out their Facebook page here.
Learn more about how the project got funding here. 

Cambodia Young Women Empowerment Network (CYWEN)

CYWEN was formed in late 2010 and is lead by 30 Cambodian activists who believe in the power and potential in the Cambodian women. This women's rights organization is dedicated to strengthening the voice, visibility, and collective power of women in their country through leadership training and taking action. 

Their vision is to give women the resources they need full of self-confidence, ability, and value to participate in the decision making process for the country alongside men. 

Their goals are:

• To build up self confidence of young women by providing them with the opportunities and encouragement to learn for their own needs.
• To assist pushing young women to receive knowledge, skills, and experiences from their own society.
• To give opportunity to young women to show their abilities effectively alongside men in social and political decision making settings. 

One Day One Voice: 

End Violence Against Women Human Rights Defenders

November 2014

This most recent event took place at the Khmer Youth Association office in Phnom Penh. CYWEN invited activists to speak on the current issues Cambodian women face, including land rights, LGBT rights, domestic workers' rights, and garment workers' rights. A total of 145 men and women came together to learn, discuss, and reflect on issues in the provided safe space and together identified many roots and to issues and how to work towards improvement. Together, they developed a statement letter to be shared at the National Human Rights Day. 

"I am very satisfied to create this safe space for our young women to deeply learn and discuss these issues. We are calling for them to stop all forms of violence against women. We are women, we are strong, and can change this situation." 
                                                                        - Yit Sophorn, Chair Coordinator of CYWEN 

This was a progressive event for women raised on Khmer culture where the value is placed highly on men and not women. Although one of the poorest countries in the world currently, Cambodia, too, is going through changes to shy away from a patriarchal system and begin to create a culture based on equal opportunity and peace. 

Visit the official blog here.

Women's Empowerment Initiative - Sierra Leone

OneVillage Partners launched their new Women's Empowerment Initiative on July 30th, 2013. Over a three year period between 2013 - 2015, they will be dedicated to give women and girls a greater voice in six rural villages in Eastern Sierra Leone.

Initiative goals (taken from their website here):

• Empower women to identify opportunities for change
• Create a critical shift in community perception that empowers women to openly acknowledge the barriers they face
• Increase their confidence and skills to make those opportunities a reality

Four ways to help women and girls accomplish these goals: 

1. Women's Self Help Groups
Sponsor Reflect circles to encourage dialogue, critical thinking, self-analysis, and personal & group goal setting. Help women understand their situations and what they can do to develop or improve through visuals and diagrams, aside from dialogue.

2. Women's Business Development
In addition to OneVillage Partners' microloan program in Sierra Leone already in place, the new initiative will also incorporate basic training to women on how to run a business so they can be self-sufficient. This includes training in numeracy, basic budgeting, and small business planning, as well as aiding in identifying opportunities for market growth in order to maximize future financial benefits. It's crucial to teach these skills to these women, who rarely have elementary level education and no background knowledge of loans or investments.

3. Targeted Health Trainings
Provide education on family planning options, infant care, and maternal health to reduce the risk of childbirth deaths in mothers and infant/toddler fatalities. Training and education plans will be tailored to fit the specific needs and knowledge of the different villages.

4. Family Savings for Girls to Attend School
In partnership with Village Savings and Loans Associations, OneVillage Partners will aid in education and help around families saving money to have daughters attend school. This is crucial in raising coming generations of empower girls and young women, who will carry on the strengths of women in their regions in the future. Now is the time to invest in these girls' educations and give them the power and the voice to speak up and create change from within.

The Barefoot College - Rajasthan, India

"Empowering Women 

as an agent of sustainable change"

Barefoot College, and NGO located in rural India, believes in the empowerment of women through providing practical training to help them gain knowledge and personal experience. Since 1972, more than 6,500 women from all different backgrounds (mothers, grandmothers, farmers, etc) who represent the profile of rural women from poor agricultural communities have been trained through Barefoot College in skills they can take back to their villages. From over dozens of countries, these women travel to Barefoot College to receive education in fields such as solar engineers, dentists, midwives, teachers, mechanics, and other technical skills that are useful back in their small villages. Not only are these skills important to the education at Barefoot College, but the cultural exchange among women from all over the world help empower one another and learn in ways outside of the classroom they would have never imagined. They return to their villages reborn as innovative leaders with skills and values that can be passed on to their community members. By training and empowering members within these small communities, they move further into the future to create a more self-sustainable community for themselves.

"Learning by doing. Doing by learning" - The Barefoot College Way

The Barefoot College Values:
1. Equality
2. Collective Decision Making
3. Decentralisation
4. Self-Reliance
5. Austerity

Bunker Roy on TedTalk: The Founder of Barefoot College

Check out the official website here.

Interested in learning about Solar Mamas? The women in the solar engineering sector of the college. Read about their journey here