Posts tagged gender
Life is calling. How far will you go?
Our Best Diplomats: Women in the Peace Corps
Fifty years ago, 65 percent of the people volunteering to join the Peace Corps were men and 35 percent were women. Today, those numbers have flipped, with 66 percent of volunteers during the 2000s women and 34 percent men. This change, gradual over the five decades, represents women’s commitment to and confidence in international work […]
In honor of March Madness, here’s a great photo from our Digital Library. Peace Corps Youth Development Volunteer shared how she used basketball in her community:
This photo was taken in April 2011 in Guatemala. As an outlet and self-esteem builder, I started a basketball league for teenage girls from surrounding areas. This picture shows some of the girls wearing their newly donated jerseys from a family member in the states who works in the recreation department.
(Source: peacecorps.gov)
More photos from the 1st Annual Run For Girls Education in Tambacounda.
For three weeks during the winter school break another volunteer and myself ran a youth-camp. There were approximately 24 kids, between the ages of 7-12, with a roughly even percentage of boys and girls. We met every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday between the hours of 9-12pm for a total of 9 sessions.
The cross-sector camp was a collaboration between the Health and Business sector in the department of Rivas. Covered topics included: HIV/AIDS awareness, Gender Roles in Society, Self-esteem, Communication, Manualidades, Decision Making, Planning for the future, Leadership, and Creativity.
súper vacaciones campamento
10 de febrero de 2012 - San Jorge, Rivas
Race to Benefit Senegalese Girls' Education
A West Michigan man says the empowerment of women in Senegal helps not only them, but benefits the environment as well.
Andrew Oberstadt became an ally to women in that West African nation when he helped organize Race for Education, a run that will raise money for girls’ education in Senegal’s Tambacounda region.
He and Geoff Burmiester, both of Holland, organized the event with fellow Peace Corps Volunteers.
Oberstadt didn’t intend to take up the cause when he first moved to Senegal via the Peace Corps in 2010. He was more focused on issues such as environmental protection.
What Oberstadt didn’t realize was how keeping women in school could positively affect the environment, he said.
If women earn degrees, they begin careers. When they begin careers, many postpone marriage and pregnancy. When they can plan and space their pregnancies, they have fewer children. Overpopulation — a major issue for the African continent — wreaks havoc on the environment, as the demand for resources increases.
“I am now convinced that women’s empowerment and family planning are some of the best causes we can support to make a positive change in the world,” Oberstadt said in an email.
I wasn’t sure how my background in business could be useful in dealing with HIV and AIDS. But by teaching business skills to women impacted by the pandemic, they were empowered to create viable businesses that could sustain them and the people who depended on them.
Zambia, 2003–2004
Uganda and Kenya, 1998–2000
(Source: peacecorps.gov)
This photo was taken on August 2, 2009 with one of the several Window of Hope groups that I worked with in Namibia. Window of Hope is a UNICEF driven educational program made up of lifeskills and HIV/AIDS education workshops. We met twice a week for several hours to discuss things that many young students encounter throughout the world including self-esteem issues, gender issues, pregnancy and HIV/AIDS education. It was a safe-haven for students who could not speak openly due to traditional stigmas on feelings, and general fears or questions children have growing up in a rural hostel school. This group has just finished the program! - Peace Corps Education Volunteer Melissa Becci
My women’s sports club in Iargara, Moldova. I was inspired to start this club due to women being turned away at the local gym. The men believing women are incapable of working out. We proved them wrong! - Peace Corps Volunteer Jamie Lee Frits
This photo was taken in Karfigula, Burkina Faso during a camp for young girls. The camp used soccer as a tool to educate girls on HIV/AIDS. The photo shows Peace Corps Volunteer Brandon Perkins, and Burkinabe counterpart leading a group of young girls in some stretching exercises before an educational match.
