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BRIDGING WORLDS EMERGING LEADERS
PROGRAM HOST ORGANIZATIONS
In today's climate of fear and
misunderstanding about foreign countries, cultures and
religions, face to face dialogues and interactions are
important for building peace and compassion around the
world. As globalization expands and the world becomes
increasingly interconnected, the need for interaction
between women's organizations and "emerging leaders" has
never been greater. Jagriti International embraces the
objective of women's empowerment through the Bridging
Worlds Emerging Leaders Program, a global education
and exchange model for women's leadership development.
By investing in women for social and economic change,
we believe that emerging women leaders will continue to
be key players in transforming cultural attitudes and
practices.
The goals of this program include:
- Supporting the work of women's organizations
by providing opportunities for the training
and skills enhancement of "emerging women leaders"
through internships with U.S. based groups working
on similar issues.
- Creating "bridges of understanding" between
women's organizations from the region and with
U.S. based women's groups
- Raising awareness in the U.S. about the work
of women's groups through public speaking engagements
and education programs with schools, civic groups
and community women's organizations.
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As part of this program, Jagriti International, with
support from the Global Fund for Women, Citibank and private
donors, six emerging women leaders from India, Nepal,
Afghanistan, and Pakistan have come to the United States
for three months to work with women's organizations across
the country. These young women, ranging in age from 22
- 39, were democratically elected as representatives during
a series of workshops that Jagriti International sponsored
in their home countries. These workshops brought together
women's organizations in each country and were the first
multi-organizational networking opportunities for many
of the women's groups.
The Bridging Worlds Emerging
Leaders Program represents an exciting opportunity
for not only the Emerging Leader, but also the hosting
organization and host family. Given the global nature
of many issues, women's organizations in North America
are also interested in creating bridges with women from
different countries. By providing residencies to qualified
candidates, who are "emerging leaders" of developing country
women's organizations, the foundations of these bridges
and larger networks of skilled, experienced and empowered
women can be built. We are pleased to introduce our six
host organizations for 2003.
| CEDPA |
| (Center for Development
and Population Activities) |
Hosting Pushpa Prakash
of Guild of Women Achievers, India
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The Center for Development
and Population Activities was founded in 1975, and
today focuses on women's rights, gender awareness,
reproductive health and HIV/AIDS education. CEDPA
believes that each woman is a resource for smaller
change, and thus works with individuals on a local
level. They believe in helping the individual first,
and that "only when a woman is beyond fulfilling
her basic needs can she move on to those of the
community. CEDPA has made its presence known globally,
and has been able to provide an "opportunity to
bring women's experiences and concerns to the attention
of decision makers." Today, CEDPA has a network
of over 5,000 women leaders and is also in partnership
with 138 different organizations in 40 countries.
Organization Website:
www.cedpa.org
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| Women's Funding Network
(WFN) |
Hosting Kabita Upadhyay,
TEWA, Nepal
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The Women's Funding Network
(WFN) was founded in 1985 as a growing international
association of over 90 public and private women's
foundations, federations, community foundations,
and philanthropic organizations. WFN is dedicated
to promoting the development and growth of women's
funds that "empower women and girls by fostering
strategic alliances among women, donors, communities
and institutions." Their mission is to "ensure that
women's funds are recognized as the 'investment
of choice' for people who value the full participation
of women and girls as key to strong, equitable and
sustainable communities and societies." This mission
is based on the view that through maximizing women
and girls' creative, financial, intellectual and
spiritual resources, women and girls can elevate
their assets and strengths, and can be recognized
as the key to solving the problems facing nations
and neighborhoods. Some of the activities sponsored
by the WFN include commissioning and disseminating
research on gender and equity issues as well as
reports on philanthropic trends and practices, and
setting ambitious campaign goals to increase their
donor base and raise funds for women's and girls'
organizations. The WFN also works for violence and
crisis prevention, economic empowerment, health
care and reproductive rights, equal opportunity,
as well as other international issues for women.
Organization Website:
www.wfnet.org
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| WOMEN'S EDGE |
| (Coalition for Women's
Economic Development and Global Equality) |
Hosting Sadiqa Basiri
of Afghan Women's Network, Afghanistan
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Women's EDGE believes that
"economic globalization and development can lead
to women's empowerment, but only if women are involved
in guiding that process." This organization works
with the U.S. government for human rights policies
that support women, and has succeeded in passing
some very important legislative acts such as the
Access for Afghan Women
Act, Afghanistan Freedom Support Act, Trade Impact
Review, and the GAINS
for Women and Girls Act. Such acts help Women's
EDGE to advocate international economic policies
and human rights in support of poor women worldwide.
This group hopes to end poverty in these women's
lives, communities and nations by "bringing international
voluntary organizations and domestic women's groups
together ... to address the issues of international
development aid and economic globalization."
Organization Website:
www.womensedge.org
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| Women's Economic Ventures
of Santa Barbara (WEV) |
Hosting Indira Ghale of
Feminist Dalit Organization, Nepal
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Women's Economic Ventures
of Santa Barbara (WEV) is a non-profit corporation
dedicated to helping women become economically self-sufficient
through entrepreneurship and career development.
WEV began providing programming for women in the
areas of employment, economic literacy, and personal
finance in 1987. Three years of research and development
resulted in the establishment of WEV's self-employment
training program in 1991. This organization primarily
serves low and moderate-income women, although services
are available to all for a sliding fee based on
income. Some of WEV's programs include Self-Employment
Training, Post-Loan Training Follow-up Services,
and a Small Business Loan Fund.
Organization Website:
www.wevonline.org
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| Girls Inc. Carpinteria
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Hosting Maryma Scotlin
of the Centre for Development & Research, India
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Girls Inc. began in New England
during the Industrial Revolution as a response to
the young women in search of work. During the Great
Depression, it became an opportunity for young girls
to gather and enjoy each others' company while their
parents were out in search of work. In the years
leading up to the First World War, it grew as an
effort to strengthen girls organizations across
the United States in order to turn little girls
into the "homemakers of the future." In the 1960s,
Girls Inc. changed its emphasis away from the traditional
"homemaker" model, and today has developed approaches
in six areas: "careers and life planning; health
and sexuality; leadership and community action;
sports and adventure; self-reliance and life skills;
and culture and heritage." Girls Inc. has a national
representative for each of its four regions spread
across the United States, as well as an extensive
national board, which helps to implement and find
funding for its programs, as it is a non-profit
organization. Some of these most recent programs
include a "pen-pal" exchange between girls from
Girls Inc. Carpinteria and women in Afghanistan.
Inspired by an article on the plight of Afghan women
in National Geographic
magazine in 1999, Girls Inc., Carpinteria decided
to establish a line of communication in order to
discover more about the conditions of women in other
parts of the world. This is just one of the many
programs that Girls Inc. has to offer to young girls
across the nation.
Organization Website:
www.girlsinc.org
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| Center For Victims of
Torture (CVT) |
Hosting Ayesha Mahmood
of Struggle for Change, Pakistan
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The Center for Victims of
Torture began when a Stanford Law student and volunteer
for Amnesty International, Rudy Perpich Jr. presented
the governor of Minnesota and his father, Rudy Perpich
Sr. with the idea of establishing the first treatment
center in the United States for victims of torture.
In 1985, the Center for Victims of Torture was founded
as an independent, non-governmental organization.
By 1987 CVT was running an outpatient clinic from
a small house on the University of Minnesota campus.
In 1991 the organization moved into a three-story
Victorian house on the Mississippi River. They rented
it from the University for only $1 per year, and
renovated it to make it as home-like and comfortable
for their clients as possible. By 1999, CVT had
expanded to West Africa, and in 2001 moved to St.
Paul, Minnesota. CVT looks at torture as "a crime
against humanity; as a strategic tool of repression,
it is the single most effective weapon against democracy."
Their mission is to "heal the wounds of government-sponsored
torture on individuals, their families and communities,
and to stop its practice." CVT has a staff of around
90 people, 12 of whom work in West Africa. Some
of CVT's current projects include "Guinea: The 'War
Problems' and 'Well-being' Interviews," which help
determine what constitutes mental health in Guinean
communities; "Former Client Surveys," which ask
former clients for feedback on their experience
with CVT; and "Life Events Measure," which gathers
information from former clients on the types of
events that have affected their recovery.
Organization Website:
www.cvt.org
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