Our open house and holiday craft bazaar on December 9th was a big hit!

Many thanks to all who shared this opportunity with us to celebrate another year of accomplishments for Vital Voices. There is still clearly much to do, but it’s great to have a moment to reflect on the progress we’ve made this year thanks to our great staff and the amazing women and men in our network who share with us the belief that women’s progress translates into global progress. It was inspiring to see all the generations represented and watch as people came together to meet, share stories and catch up on holiday shopping in our bazaar. Based on the response it looks like we’re going to have to double our stock for next year. The hard work that artisans and our team of advisors have put into creating a product line strong enough for the global market is a testament to the strength of women and community. Catch up with your holiday or gift shopping at our marketplace - hosted by Bridge for Africa. Also, read Alegre’s blog post about the open house, she’s done a great job describing the energy and mood of the night.

If you didn’t make it, don’t miss our open house next year. Coming up, be looking out for our Women’s Week events and our annual awards at the Kennedy Center.

Happy holidays,
Alyse

A couple of stories came up, and observations, that I was not able to fit in along the way so I thought I would share them now.

At the Women’s Business Forum training, a lawyer who was giving information on the legalities of starting up a business, opened his talks with a story about his sister. He and his sister were in the same class in school. They were both good students but his sister always was a bit ahead of him. About the age of 12, both of them had to start doing a lot more work at home. His sister had to help with the other children, the dishes, the cleaning and the cooking. He had to help herd the cows.

Continue Reading »

The training is over, the event is over, and I’m on my way home. What a rewarding trip this was. I was hired to impart my wisdom and experience to girls and young women and I feel like I am coming home with so much more than I could ever possibly give.

I would say the overall theme of this trip was “Pay It Forward.” That started with the slogan of the Women Mentorship Walk on November 29. It was highlighted throughout my time in Kenya and it is so true. Continue Reading »

Today was the corporate launch of the Partnership for an HIV FREE GENERATION initiative in Kenya. The day started with the Roundtable—what we have been preparing for all week. The eight girls mentioned in my previous blog, plus two more that joined us the last day, had 2-3 minutes to tell their story. Those in attendance were the U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger, Buck Buckingham, head of PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), Ian Kirumba, head of the HIV Free Generation initiative in Kenya, and representatives of other corporate partners (such as Warner Bros. and Coca-Cola) and other NGOs.

The girls were so excited ahead of time and their energy was quite high. I could tell they were nervous, but also positively excited. We were there at least an hour before they had to speak, so we had time to kill. We kept them busy talking, laughing, taking pictures…anything but obsessing about their presentations. Continue Reading »

Our training started today. The Nike Foundation introduced their powerful programs by showing their videos. (Please go to the website that I highlighted at the end of the day yesterday and view these videos.) The PEPFAR program was introduced and what the girls will be doing on Friday with the corporate launch of the HIV Free Generation program. Our purpose in this training is to teach the girls leadership and communication skills. We want to make them realize that they are already leaders! And how to communicate their story and their leadership messages.

My expectations were by far exceeded. These girls are incredible! They started showing their leadership and profound thoughts from our first team-building exercise in the morning. Continue Reading »

Today I went to the slums of Nairobi for the first-time and it was such an uplifting experience.

That may seem like an odd statement and my emotions from today are so high that it may even be hard for me to explain.

I must start out here by saying that I am tired. It is getting late and training starts tomorrow. So I may leave some holes and some questions, but please be assured that I will try to fill in those holes throughout this week. However, I have to share some points about my day despite the late hour at night.

Today we did site visits to some of the homes and businesses of girls who are going to be in our training program this week. We visited two girls that are in a program conducted by TechnoServe. Continue Reading »

In the afterglow of the mentoring walk, the 25 mentees began a week-long orientation in residency in Ikeja, Lagos. The 7 days’ orientation and leadership development program includes training for mentors and mentees on the basics of mentoring, expectations and requirements of mentors/mentees, and workshops led by some of Nigeria’s most powerful women leaders.

The mentees are on a tight leash for the 7 days as they reside together in their hotel, affectionately called “The Big Sister House.” They leave only on the mentee bus to attend sessions, and can only socialize within the confines of the hotel. Cell phones are turned off during all sessions, and the fine for a cell phone ringing during a workshop is 200 Naira per ring! The standards of excellence required are high, as the programs’ founder, Lucy Kanu, is a driven professional and will accept nothing less from the participants.

Continue Reading »

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the first activity held by the Peruvian network of Vital Voices. Spearheaded by Gladys Zarak, Executive Director of Angeles D1 this was the first step in the creation of a new collaborative space to strengthen women’s leadership in Peru. After returning from the regional summit held in Buenos Aires in October, the participants that joined us from Peru returned home energized and determined to coordinate local efforts. This coincided with the women mentoring women opportunity and they did not hesitate to take it on. They partnered with Calandria an affiliate organization of Vital Voices in Peru and worked around the clock to make it happen. Continue Reading »