Girl Up, the United Nations Foundation’s adolescent girl campaign,
supports the empowerment of girls everywhere. Since its launch
in 2010, the campaign has funded UN programs that promote
the health, safety, education, and leadership of girls in developing
countries and built a community of nearly half a million passionate
advocates. Its youth leaders, representing more than 800 Girl Up
clubs in 66 countries, stand up, speak up, and rise up to support the
hardest to reach girls living in places where it is hardest to be a girl.
First Lady Michelle Obama inspires young female activists at the Girl Up
Leadership Summit
-July 20, 2015
By Nehal Jain
COMMUNITY & LEADERS
Helping Girls Go Places, One Bike at a Time
-Sept. 8, 2015
The most captivating part of her speech was when the First Lady put all of us
in the shoes of the 62 million girls who can’t go to school.
By Melissa Hillebrenner
At the end of 2014, we came to you with a big ask: help us
launch our SchoolCycle campaign and raise funds for bicycles for
adolescent girls in Malawi. In Malawi, one of the poorest countries
in the world, girls don’t have a safe way to get from place to place.
Lack of transportation is one of the most critical challenges keeping
girls from reaching graduation.
“Think about what it would be like to see your
brothers going off to school every day while you
were stuck at home,” she said.
It struck me how different my life would have been had I been born somewhere
else in the world. As the younger sister of two brothers, I would most likely
already have a husband and kids. And I’m only 15 years old! The money from my
marriage might have been spent to keep my brothers in school for a few more
years while I stayed at home. I wouldn’t be educated and I wouldn’t have a voice.
They often have to walk long distances – sometimes more
than 10 miles – to reach school. These long walks put
girls at risk for experiencing violence. Many girls drop out
because they are afraid or can’t manage the long distances.
In her speech, Mrs. Obama emphasized that “an education doesn’t just
transform a girl’s life, it transforms their communities, too.” This statement
resonated deeply with me. Statistics show that girls re invest 90 percent of their
income into their family and communities, compared to only 30-40 percent
for boys. This is why educating girls is so important: When a girl is educated,
she is more likely to educate her children, and her children will be more likely
to educate their children, leading to a more educated society. Adolescent girls
are the future of their countries and their voices can move mountains if we let
them speak.
“You all are here today because someone believed
By providing a girl with a bicycle, she can go places – to school,
to after-school programs, or to health facilities. So that is what
we did. With your help we raised enough to provide 550 bikes,
spare parts and bicycle maintenance lessons to girls in Malawi!
We know that girls are the most powerful force for change. An
educated adolescent girl has the unique potential to break the
cycle of poverty for herself, her family and her country. She’s
already going places. Now, thanks to the help of our donors
and the Girl Up community, these bikes will help her go farther.
in you, because someone gave you the chance to be
everything you would want to be,”
The First Lady told us. She’s right. Now it’s our job to be there for the 62 million
girls who don’t have anyone who believes in them.
We’re going someplace, too. We are going to Malawi to join our
United Nations partners as they distribute these bicycles to their
new owners! During the trip, we will meet with our UN agency
partners and visit the camps, communities, schools, and youth clubs
where Girl Up is working to ensure every girl has the chance to
reach her full potential. On Sept. 16, I will be joined by several Girl
Up supporters as we meet the girls and watch them ride away on
their new bikes toward a brighter future.
POUTMAG.INFO
The first step toward educating these girls is to have faith in them and give
them the opportunity to go to school. Once they have that chance, they truly
can change the world.
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PHENOMENAL OPTIMISTIC UNIQUE TALENTED
COMMUNITY & LEADERS
On July 14, First Lady Michelle Obama spoke at the Girl Up Leadership Summit.
There was a line through the lobby and down the stairs as participants and
chaperones eagerly tried to get seats in the hall, and the energy in the room was
at an all-time high. The room was packed with 225 girls all rapt with attention as
the First Lady talked about one of Girl Up’s five main pillars – education.
POUT Inc. publisher, Ashley Scott is a community
partner for Girl Up. The blog posts from Girl Up
website are used with permission.