EDUCATION
A Stitch In Time-Hope Through Education $4,000
In honor of 25 years of FAWCO Friendship Quilts & the quilters who made it possible.
Recipient: Sports for Health Teaching Curriculum for Afghan Girls - Kabul, Afghanistan (Nominated by AWC Berlin)
Girls in Afghanistan lack ownership of their own bodies, and they suffer from high rates of depression and suicide. Physical fitness and sports improve well-being, but girls are largely excluded from these activities due to myths about female bodies. By addressing misconceptions about this and by teaching them via physical fitness training, we help girls grow into healthy women, creating a virtuous cycle, increasing benefits over time as more and more women are empowered to contribute to society on multiple levels. This project builds on the capabilities of our trainers and our new sports-for-health teaching curriculum—including classes and workshops on topics ranging from misconceptions about female health and bodies to well-being and self-care. The DG funds would help to expand our program and reach into the community by delivering a condensed curriculum in an illustrated booklet and poster in Dari that will offer health facts and demonstrate the benefits of athletic activity for girls.
Educating Women & Girls Worldwide $4,000
Sponsored in part by Renuka Matthews
For programs specifically aimed at women and/or girls.
Recipient: Education, Training & Rehabilitation for girls in Virar East, Maharashtra, India (Nominated by ACIW Mumbai)
This project expects to work with 50 children from the Virar area, providing basic literacy classes so they do not miss out future educational opportunities. Mumbai alone, has over 250,000 children living on the streets. Amongst the most vulnerable, they are susceptible to abuse, exploitation and drug addictions. They are trapped in a cycle of poverty. For these children, education is the farthest thing on their minds. Yet, education is their best hope of living with dignity and respect. VOICE believes that the potential of every child is limited only by the education, love, and opportunities we can give them. By acquiring education, their entry into the labor force will be delayed, and children are likely to become more productive, earn more, have more control of their lives, and have a better future. The DG funds would allow us to hire more teachers and purchase materials so we can outreach all those children.
Pam Dahlgren Educating Africa’s Children $4,000
For programs specifically in the geographical area of Africa and will be awarded to the Africa-focused nominated project which receives the most votes.
Recipient: Feeding Our School Children - Antsiranana/Diego Suares, Madagascar (Nominated by AILO Florence)
The Madagascar School in Antsiranana/Diego Suarez is located in a poverty stricken area. No child who wants to attend is turned away, but few are able to pay the school fees. Many children suffer from hunger and malnutrition, and come to school on an empty stomach. A breakfast club helps, giving them some sustenance preventing lethargy and poor attention to their lessons. The school needs help with the food supplies and to begin a program of providing these children with extra nourishing food, fruit and vegetables to take home. This ensures the children have something to eat before bedtime and gives their families some economic respite. Feeding the children gives freedom from hunger, helps them to become strong and healthy, allows them to benefit from their education and get out of poverty. The DG funds would be used to provide 150 healthy, nutritious food rations per day for under-nourished pupils for 106 days.
ENVIRONMENT
Nurturing Our Planet - $4000
Sponsored by Patti Meek of AWC Dublin, in memory of her parents, James and Ethel Meek.
Recipient Harvesting and Storing for a Better Living - Palghar District, Maharashtra, India (Nominated by AWC Hamburg)
The tribal families living in rural areas of Maharashtra, India, live in tiny one-room homes where they have limited space to store their harvested grains and seeds. Because of the lack of storage, these families are forced to sell their crops during the harvest season at a low price. The DG funds would finance a solidly constructed 40 m2 storage building that would allow 22 families (120 persons) to not only protect their harvest from bad weather and predators but also to obtain a minimum 20% increase in revenues by selling when demand is high. This increase in income will provide families with basic necessities and access to healthcare and education. A better living for the tribals will sustain the successful watershed program implemented by the Nandanvan Trust, which regreened and restored desertified land in the area, making possible the cultivation of grain crops as well as fruit and nut trees.
GLOBAL ISSUES
Close To Home $4,000
Recipient: Empowering Refugee Women in Hamburg - Hamburg, Germany (Nominated by AWC Hamburg)
Close to 60% of refugees entering Germany today are women. Many are fleeing sexual violence, forced marriage, and “honor” killings, not to mention war and terrorism. Their path to integration is especially difficult. Hanseatic Help has brought a sense of community to refugee women through shared meals and volunteer work alongside local residents. A learning and support center was launched that will further empower these women. Volunteers will assist professionals in teaching basic computer and communication skills and help with bureaucratic applications for childcare, vocational schools, and work—filling the gap where government-sponsored institutions fail. The DG funds would support this center by funding needed equipment, books, furniture, and supplies. Up to 40 women will benefit from the center in the first year, improving their prospects for entering the job market or pursuing a career, thus allowing them to live independently and giving them a sense of purpose, responsibility, and community.
HEALTH
Critical Health Concerns $4000
Recipient: Psychological Support Project for Children - Saida, Lebanon (Nominated by AWC Lebanon)
This project will offer 80 developmentally disabled children services to help them overcome social, psychological, physical, and mental challenges. A specialized team of certified special needs and psychological professionals will execute the project. Lebanon is on the verge of economic collapse while amid a pandemic. Due to mounting financial difficulties, Ahlouna has had to put the Psychological Support Project on hold, exacerbating already challenging circumstances for developmentally disabled children and their families. The DG funds would allow Ahlouna to resume psychological support to individuals and equip beneficiaries and families with resources to overcome their challenges. An indirect impact of the grant would mean Ahlouna will be able to continue food distribution and other social welfare programs with the funds that would otherwise have gone to the Psychological Support Project. The DG funds would be used to pay the salaries of psychological professionals: social worker, speech therapist, special educator, and psycho-motor therapist.
HUMAN RIGHTS
Breaking the Cycle Grant $4,000
Sponsored in part by AW Eastern Province The Foundation would like to recognize and thank AWEP for their longtime support of the Development Grants.
Recipient: A Helping Hand to Victims of Human Trafficking in Torino - Torino, Italy (Nominated by IWC Torino)
Nigerian women are trafficked to Italy and forced into prostitution. A growing number of these women are facing incredible hardship especially during recent lockdown periods. Some manage to escape their situation and are then faced with building a new life in a foreign country. To start building this new life trafficked women need safe shelter to enable them to start or continue an education which should provide them with the skills to become independent and integrate into their new surroundings. One place of safe shelter is provided by the Instituto Alfieri Carru in Torino. The DG funds would provide financial assistance for housing, allowing the women to focus on schooling and training in job-relevant skills as well as opportunities for cultural integration for two trafficked Nigeran women.
FAUSA Effecting Change for Women and Children at Risk Grant $4,000
Recipient: Potatoes and Guayule Cultivation: Re-knitting the Social Fiber in Rural South Africa: A Covid-19 women-inspired social reconstruction project - Bira, Eastern Cape, South Africa (Nominated by AW Aquitaine)
Bira is an impoverished village in the Eastern Cape, one of South Africa’s poorest provinces. Currently the Covid-19 pandemic is hitting black women and children disproportionately harder than any other population group in South Africa. Rural communities depend on money sent home from the cities, but the pandemic has resulted in a loss of jobs and money to feed families. Bira women have already been planting guayule and harvesting seeds, but food security is more urgent now. Potatoes are an easy crop to produce. The DG funds would permit the purchase of cultivars, fertilizer, pest management, small equipment, fencing for the fields, plus rental of land preparation equipment, work, food and training to local women. They will be trained to produce potatoes (as organically as possible) to feed their families. Any excess potatoes can be sold in local markets, providing cash to buy other food products. The project addresses at least five SDG’s (#1,#2,#5,#8,#10).
AWC Amsterdam Tulip Grant $4,000
Targeting human rights projects for women and children in Europe.This will be awarded to the human rights-focused nominated project which receives the most votes.
Recipient: Providing support for victims of prostitution and human trafficking for sexual exploitation - Hérault County, France (Nominated by AWG Languedoc-Roussillon)
The Hérault (France) chapter of the Mouvement du Nid Association works with victims of prostitution and human trafficking for sexual exploitation in order to help them rebuild their lives, exercise their legal rights, access healthcare and trauma recovery, gain autonomy, learn French, sustainably exit prostitution if and when they are ready, build new careers, improve their self-image and sense of self-worth. The project addresses the harsh and often disastrous realities that victims of prostitution face:multiple traumas, fear for physical safety, social isolation, nonexistent self-confidence, language barriers, and lack of access to basic rights —by working closely with victims. The DG funds would be used by Mouvement du Nid to assist the victims in legalizing their presence in France, by helping them obtain residency permits and passports, and improve their French language skills, both of which are prerequisites to gainful employment and integration into French society.
A very heartfelt CONGRATULATIONS to all of our 2021 Development Grant recipients!
Is your Club considering nominating a project for a 2022 Development Grant? Consult the Timeline below for tips on efficient and timely completion of your Development Grant application.
