Tag Archives: Half the Sky

Community Organizer for Heifer Cambodia Project Wins Award

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It’s exciting when Heifer is able to make connections between people and groups that might never have otherwise happened. Heifer International recently helped nominate a talented young Cambodian women for recognition from Students Rebuild and Half the Sky Movement, and now we’ve learned that she was selected as one of the five award winners. This means a cash prize of $10,000 for her to spend on her community project of choice.

Lay Savorn is one of the community organizers who helps implement a Heifer project in Cambodia. She plans to use the prize money to open an agricultural supply shop to sell goods to farmers in her community at reduced prices, with proceeds benefiting local elderly, women and children.

Young women in Cambodia wins award from Half the Sky, Students Rebuild

Ley Savorn of Cambodia

To create the award, Half the Sky Movement – created by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, authors of The New York Times bestseller “Half the Sky” – partnered with Students Rebuild, an initiative of the Bezos Family Foundation that mobilizes young people worldwide to connect, learn and take collective action on critical global issues. Winners of the awards were selected by a panel of judges and a public vote.

The daughter of a traditional musician and a farmer in the Battambang district of Cambodia, Ley became a community facilitator in Dak Sor Sor village, organizing 597 families into self-help groups for a Heifer International project. The shop she plans to open will supply fertilizer, agriculture materials and groceries to area communities at reasonable prices, cutting out the middlemen. Profits will go to assist elderly people and vulnerable women and children in her community. Ley wants to see every child in the village go to school.

Ley currently leads a new cooperative of 120 families named “Poleu Strey,” which means “Women’s Light” in English. It became a formal cooperative in 2012 and has pooled $3,000 as a revolving credit fund. “What I want to see from my work is people in my community live harmoniously with dignity, have food security for the whole year, share their own resources to support lonely elders, liberate victimized women from domestic violence and assist women and children to live in dignity and prosperity,” she says.

Half the Sky Facebook Game Features Heifer and Inspires Action

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When you think of games people play on Facebook, the first one that might come to mind is FarmVille. But today marks the official launch of a new game that hopes to build on the success of such social games to raise awareness of the difficult issues that face women in the developing world.

Half the Sky: The Game

Half the Sky Movement: The Game is inspired by the book “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide” by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn and a companion PBS television series. Kristof and WuDunn have made it their mission to offer a window into the lives of women who face the threat of malnutrition, oppression and disease each day.

The book and TV series attracted attention from people who already care about women’s issues, Kristoff told Fast Company, which hosted a roundtable discussion to coincide with today’s launch. But the Facebook game is intended to reach all the people who may not know about the problems women face worldwide. “It potentially offers a way of luring people — a gateway drug, if you will, to women’s empowerment,” he says.

This game seems poised to do just that, and it also has the potential to generate support for seven NGO partners — including Heifer International — that are featured prominently in the game. There is a natural link between the scenarios presented in the game and organizations like Heifer that work to improve the lives of women and girls worldwide. At many points throughout the game, users can learn more about Heifer, share info about the organization through their own Facebook profile and even make a donation.

When I played the game, I was introduced to Radhika, “a simple woman from India who wants to make things better … for both herself and women worldwide.” The game is a series of quests, and my first quest was to help Radhika get her young daughter to a clinic to receive treatment for a serious illness. I faced a number of decisions, and I had to reason with a reluctant husband, pick and sell mangoes, haggle with a taxi company, and decide how to pay for an immunization.

When all was said and done, Radhika’s daughter was saved, and I was hooked. This game let me walk in Radhika’s shoes in a way that’s simply not possible through reading statistics. It’s safe to say that games like this represent a powerful new medium for telling some of the world’s most important stories.

To begin playing, visit the Half the Sky Movement: The Game Facebook page. Even if you’re not able to make a monetary donation to Heifer’s work, you can still help by playing. The game’s sponsors have pledged a total of $500,000 for players to unlock through a number of in-game projects.

This game was produced by Games for Change — an organization whose mission is catalyzing social impact through digital games. I had the chance to sit down with Asi Burak and Emily Treat of Games for Change last year when they came to our offices to conduct a digital games workshop, and you can read that interview here.

Around the Web: Beatrice’s Goat, Cow Puja, Effective Giving

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Every Sunday we highlight some of the people who are funding our work creatively or helping us spread the word of our mission online. If you spot Heifer International while you’re surfing the web or know of a fun or creative fundraising effort, please share it with us here in the comments.

Building Faith online Christian Ed community mentions Beatrice’s Goat, a book by Page McBrier, among a list of several great Stewardship Books for Children. This book tells story of a girl and the difference the gift of an animal from Heifer makes in the life of a community.

Cow Puja Cookies

Photo credit: Squash Blossom Farm

The 2nd Annual Cow Puja and Farm Fair was held September 30 at Squash Blossom Farm, and the awesome cookies pictured here were up for grabs in exchange for a donation to Heifer International. Thanks to the cooks, Bethany and Brendan! See more pics from this fun and festive day!

Diane Lane, a longtime supporter, talks about filming the PBS documentary “Half the Sky” and a bit about her experience with Heifer International.

You may want to check out this blog on the Provident Planning blog, What’s the Most Effective Way to Give? The blogger and his wife, who have donated to Heifer, outline their priorities on deciding where a donation will make the biggest difference.

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School students in Dunedin, Florida, raised more than $1,000 during its “moo” service learning initiative to buy two cows for hungry families and communities in developing countries through Heifer International. To raise the money, students sold cookies and milk during snack time and after Mass in September, and made and sold cow-print hair bows and awareness ribbons.

Half the Sky Part 2: Talent and Opportunity

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This post is a continuation of my reflections on the documentary, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide. You can read my thoughts on the first half here.

Half the Sky

During the second half of Half the Sky, there were two stories that made me realize how important education and leadership are for women globally. When woman are provided with opportunity, they do not just lift themselves out of poverty, but they also lift their entire families out of poverty as well.

The documentary travels to India, where 90 percent of sex workers’ daughters also follow in their footsteps. When a woman was asked why she didn’t send her daughter away for an education, the woman replied, “Because my daughter would be smarter than I am, and judge me.” The daughter herself was afraid of her fate because she knew that her appearance would fetch a high price in that community if she were sold. All the young girl wanted was a chance at something else in life.

After India, Half the Sky visited a female village in Kenya where they have learned to build their own school, become business leaders, and make their own decisions with what little resources they have been able to find. As we meet a woman who owns an oil business in her community she said, “What I learned, I did not keep to myself. I shared it.” Though she was not part of a Heifer project, it really stuck with me that Heifer’s Cornerstone of Passing on the Gift should be shared for all of us.

At Heifer International, we help lift women and their communities out of hunger and poverty using the our 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development, which include: Training and Education, Gender and Family Focus, and Full Participation.

The fastest way to make a difference is to invest in women globally. By providing education, leadership and resources to women in need, they will do what it takes to help their families. As Nicholas Kristoff said last night, “In this world, talent is universal but opportunity is not.”

Did you watch either or both parts of Half the Sky? Tell me in the comments section below what you thought about it.

Did you miss it but want to watch it? Watch Part I (available online until October 8).

Watch Part II (available until October 9).

Half the Sky Part 1: Everyone Can Help

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Watching the Half the Sky documentary last night, I felt equal parts stunned and electrified by the heroic and harrowing stories featured. I was especially humbled at the humanity of our global society. We are all so connected, no matter how different our stories and circumstances.

Watch Half the Sky

When Eva Mendes, traveling on behalf of the International Rescue Committee, asked a 14-year-old survivor of sexual assault to chose which necklace she liked better, I was concerned that the gift would be greeted as a westerner trying to “buy” the young girl’s affections. But as Ms. Mendes reached out to her, offering her the necklace the young girl chose, she stated: when you wear this, you pray for me; when I wear this (the necklace kept), I’ll pray for you.

This powerfully sweet message reminded me that we can be connected for a lifetime even if our paths cross only for a few minutes.

I sympathize with many who will say the problems are too great and the solutions too complicated.  We have all experienced the feelings of futility, and that is why I really identified with the quote from Somaly Mam.

She said, “Everyone can help. Everyone can do one thing, start by your heart.”

As an employee of Heifer International, I’m fortunate that I work for a development organization I so firmly believe in with my head and my heart.  And I’m proud that Heifer’s model of development encourages partnerships with other nonprofits and agencies, especially at the in-country project level. Collectively, we can have exponentially greater impact and positive change than if we work solely on our own.

I will be tuning in tonight for the second part of Half the Sky with tissues in hand and a hopeful heart ready to learn about the work happening with Save the Children in India, the Edna Adan Maternity Hospital in Somaliland and Umoja Women’s Village in Kenya.

Did you catch the first installment of Half the Sky last night? Tell us what you thought in the comments below.

If you missed it, catch the second part tonight on you local PBS station at 9 p.m. EST.

Follow the live chat during tonight’s broadcast here.

Susan Sarandon: Heifer International’s Work Empowers Women

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Susan Sarandon in Cambodia

I have followed and supported Heifer International’s work with women and their families for more than 20 years. I am excited Heifer is a featured nonprofit for the Half the Sky movement, which premieres its documentary tonight at 9pm Eastern. Last year I had the chance to see Heifer’s work in person in Cambodia, and below are my reflections on the importance of Heifer’s transformational work with women. Women, particularly in poor rural communities, really are the “glue” and the key to ending global hunger and poverty.

 

 

I encourage all of you to watch Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, a four-hour television series on your local PBS station.

Editor’s note: Photo and video courtesy of Heifer International.

Women’s Empowerment is Key to Turning Oppression Into Opportunity

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At Heifer International we believe there is no development strategy more beneficial to society than the one that involves women as central players, and at the same time engages men to encourage a more accepting view of women’s participation. Our work, our stories, our evaluations demonstrate that when we work in partnership with women, families benefit, communities benefit—positive changes do occur.

And we know that given help, tools and training to enhance food production and the chance to build assets and income, these are the women who will feed the world’s exponentially growing population.

We recognize that women are the backbone of agriculture and the key driver of food production. Here are a handful of facts to illustrate this point:

  • Worldwide, 36 percent of the world’s farmers are women—compared with 34 percent for men.
  • In developing regions, the figure is much higher. In Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, 60 to 70 percent of farmers are women.
  • There are 650 million smallholder farmers in the world, and 50 to 80 percent of them are women!
  • They grow 70 percent of the food that is eaten every day and have the potential to feed the world.

Despite these impressive numbers, women still face significant disparity in the resources and support they can access, including land, credit and education.

This is not acceptable.

Gender equity is a basic human right and an important component of international development work. By gender equity, I mean that women and men, girls and boys are valued equally and enjoy the same opportunities to achieve their full potential. When gender equity is present, there is accountability, efficiency and sustainability. At Heifer, we know what women can accomplish, and we recognize the value of empowering them. We ensure that gender equity is present in all of our projects – it’s one of our 12 Cornerstones.

I recently traveled to Nepal and met with many women’s groups. Let me tell you about two of them. They are involved in Heifer projects that have a five-year implementation period. The first group of women, in the initial project stage, was shy and nervous. Their husbands, also in attendance, dominated the conversation.

The second group of women had been part of their project for over two years and participated in Heifer’s Value-Based Cornerstone training. Such a contrast! These women were powerful, talking about their future plans and present successes. And the men – quiet, reverent, awestruck.

For Heifer International, development is not just about offering the opportunity of a livelihood and access to basic social services; it is about creating an environment where people can realize their rights, achieve self-reliance and participate meaningfully in society.

I am proud of Heifer International’s support of the Half the Sky Movement, which is putting an end to the oppression of women and girls worldwide. I encourage you to watch Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, a series on PBS tonight and tomorrow night (9pm Eastern) and join in our shared pledge to helping women and girls succeed so they can achieve their dreams of hope, happiness, opportunity and prosperity.

Editor’s note: Photos by Dave Anderson, courtesy of Heifer International.

Half the Sky is Coming Soon

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Half the Sky

Filmed in 10 countries around the world, Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide follows Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn as they tell the stories of women making changes in their own lives and communities. Watch the trailer:

You can watch Half the Sky in two parts on PBS October 1st and 2nd. To host your own salon or group discussion after viewing, go here for materials. If you’re on Twitter, share your thoughts and support by using #halfthesky.