July 11, 2007

Helping women find their voice
In my research I have seen how frustrating changing a society truly is as the governments in countries like India and Bangladesh have constitutions that make gender equality obligatory, yet none of the policies or programs are being enforced.  The women in these countries are so downtrodden that they don’t know their rights and don’t understand their power to demand them.

What I appreciate and admire about the project I am working on is that its purpose is “to strengthen the voice of women with disabilities to individually and collectively claim their rights to equal treatment and participation.” By going to the public and grassroots organizations in these countries, and training and teaching women with disabilities about what they can do to appease their situation, the project hopes to give a rights-based solution to the suffering these women endure.

Today, I read one survey from Orissa, India, that found that 100% of disabled women and girls were beaten at home, 25% of mentally challenged women had been raped and 6% of woman with disabilities had been forcibly sterilized. It is amazing to me how easily people are silenced and stripped of all human rights. The work we are doing in Civil Society is so important because it is not only our job, but it is also our duty to give the voiceless people of our world the power to say, “I matter!”

June 25, 2007

Bringing worlds together
Healthlink Worldwide is located in a large building on Leonard St. along with about 25 other NGOs. As I entered the office, I was given a warm welcome by the office manager, Stephanie, and immediately introduced to the other six or so employees at the organization. It was great to finally put a face with a name, and after taking a thorough tour around the building, David Curtis, my project manager, gave me several documents about the organization to begin familiarizing myself with exactly what I will be doing there.

Healthlink’s mission is to improve the health and well being of disadvantaged communities in developing countries. What makes the organization unique is that it not only provides vital health information, but also assembles innovative knowledge and communication processes that enable active participation in health development.

As David described his recent return from Bangladesh and his upcoming trip to Ethiopia, I realized the importance of interactive communication and partnership association that Clarke emphasizes in his book Worlds Apart that we have been discussing in class. By supporting other organizations and working together, David explained how future plans are made a reality.

The work I’ll be doing for the organization is primarily research and the beginnings of a toolkit for a new project called Creating Spaces for Women with Disabilities, specifically for the status of women with disabilities in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

David explained that women with disabilities in developing countries end up outcaste and disregarded by their socio-culture. The goal of the project is to bring leadership skills and public awareness of women with disabilities to communities that struggle to recognize not only women but especially those with a disability. By creating a leadership community for these women it is hoped that they can begin to be recognized as productive individuals. As I begin my research I realize that it is a very tedious and time-consuming process, yet crucial to effective program building.

 

Getting started
This summer in London, I am interning with the organization Healthlink Worldwide. My work focuses on communications and research for a three-year project it began in January of this year called “Creating Spaces for Women with Disabilities to Communicate and Advocate for their rights in Asia and the South Pacific.” Healthlink is “the specialist health and development agency that empowers through communication,” working to improve the health and well being of disadvantaged communities in developing countries. The organization works on small- and large-scale projects and programs, forming partnerships in more than 30 countries to improve the health of people living with HIV and AIDS, disabled people, children and young people and vulnerable women.

My specific duties include recommending Web sites and summarizing organizations that are available for women with disabilities, forming documents that discuss the basic human rights of women with disabilities and working to clarify the project for the upcoming November workshop for empowering women with disabilities.