Too Young To Wed Launches Exclusive Print Sale

Posted on September 10, 2015 by thirdeyemom

“Stephanie Sinclair has spent the last decade documenting some of the world’s most controversial subjects, from Yemen’s child brides to Texas’s polygamists. But her goal is simple: to record what is in front of her and pass as little judgement as possible”. Her beautiful photographs take us in and make us want to help change the tragic realities we are seeing. Her work also inspires hope that change is possible.

Images of 3 Iconic Prints for Sale from Stephanie Sinclair’s award-winning documentary photography collection. Photo credit: Stephanie Sinclair

Too Young to Wed, a non-profit organization, that employs visual media, photography exhibits and campaigns to educate and engage the global community to demand an end to the practice of child marriage, has launched its first print sale in collaboration with Photoville, New York City’s largest annual photo festival. I have written before about Too Young to Wed in a must-read post after meeting Founder and Executive Director Stephanie Sinclair last fall. Her work on shedding light about the injustices faced by young women and girls is inspiring and has already brought about change. It is nearly impossible to view Sinclair’s stunning photography without being deeply moved and wanting to help change the fate of these girls.

This photo of Ten-year-old Nujoud Ali taken two years after her divorce grace’s National Geographic’s “Women of Vision” cover. Nujoud’s story caused parliament to consider a bill writing a minimum marriage age into law. Photo credit: Stephanie Sinclair

Too Young to Wed: Mission

Every two seconds, a girl is forced into marriage against her will. The younger she is, the more likely a child bride is to experience domestic violence, contract HIV, develop complications from pregnancies or even die during childbirth. Child marriage robs girls of the childhood and the education they deserve, silencing them and preventing them from achieving their fullest potential.

Too Young to Wed’s mission is to protect girls’ rights and end child marriage. We do this by providing visual evidence of the human rights challenges faced by women and girls. Through our storytelling, we generate attention and resources to amplify the voices of these courageous women and girls and inspire the global community to end child marriage. We transform influential advocacy into tangible action on the ground through partnerships with international and local NGOs and by supporting initiatives in the communities where the girls in our stories live.

Sinclair’s work is phenomenal and incredibly moving. Now you can have a limited edition copy of your own and the purchase is for a fabulous cause. Each 8X10 archival print was hand-printed and signed by Ms. Sinclair, whose award-winning work documenting child marriage has been exhibited around the world. Ms. Sinclair’s work will be featured at Photoville at Brooklyn Bridge Park, and like the premiere photo event, which attracted 71,000 visitors last year, and the print sale will run from Sept. 10 – 20, 2015.

Prints can be ordered at tooyoungtowed.org/printsale, and 100 percent of the contributions received from photo sales will directly support TYTW’s mission to protect girls’ rights and end child marriage. Too Young to Wed supports local organizations and persons making a difference in the lives of girls and boys who are affected by the harmful practice of child marriage such as:

The Samburu Girls Foundation, a grassroots organization in rural Kenya, which provides shelter and education to girls rescued from child marriage, female genital mutilation and other harmful practices. practices. To date, the organization has rescued more than 200 girls and placed 125 of them in boarding school.
The women and children of the Kagati Village in Nepal where Ms. Sinclair conducted much of her child marriage reporting in 2007 and an area that was destroyed in the recent earthquakes (child bride, Niruta, 13, is featured as part of this exhibition);
Girl Empowerment Groups – an adolescent girls empowerment initiative designed by the Population Council for vulnerable girls living in rural areas. In this capacity, Too Young To Wed will support the village of Gombat, just outside of Bahir Dar, Ethiopia where Ms. Sinclair first photographed Destaye, who was married at 11 to an Ethiopian Orthodox priest (also part of this exhibition).

Photoville Presentations and Talks:

Sept. 12: Stephanie Sinclair will represent Too Young To Wed in the panel Affecting Policy and Change through Photography from 4-5 PM and will discuss how her work transformed into a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending child marriage.

Sept 17: TYTW will engage students during Photoville’s Education Day, a one-day field trip to the photo village that’s free and open to NYC public schools. Hundreds of middle school and high school students participate in a day of photography and storytelling activities, and they’ll have an opportunity to see how photography can bring about social change.

Sept. 19: Stephanie Sinclair discusses her Too Young to Wed photographs during the event An Evening with National Geographic, from 7-10pm at the Photoville Beer Garden. The evening will begin with photos and videos from the past 127 years—including the most recent stories from National Geographic and their digital platforms. Other photographers included are Katie Orlinsky, Robert Clark and David Guttenfelder with Director of Photography Sarah Leen serving as Master of Ceremonies.

Ways to help end child marriage and support Too Young to Wed:

Purchase a print during this limited time: Visit tooyoungtowed.org/printsale to support our programming
Donate: Visit www.tooyoungtowed.org and click Donate.
Volunteer: Share your skills and collaborate with TYTW. For opportunities email info@tooyoungtowed.org
Be Social and Keep Educated on the facts by following Too Young to Wed:

Twitter: @2young2wed
Instagram: @tooyoungtowed
Facebook: facebook.com/tooyoungtowed

Hashtags: #endchildmarriage #tooyoungtowed

OFEDA: Women Survivors of Haiti’s Earthquake Creating Hope and Possibility

Posted on August 12, 2015 by thirdeyemom

It was 4:43 in the afternoon on a typical hot and humid January day in Haiti when the first tremor stuck and rattled the ground below Port-au-Prince with relentless terror. Haiti has had its fair share of political, economic and natural disasters in the past yet nothing prepared this poverty-stricken island nation of 10 million people for the destruction and aftermath of the January 10, 2010 7.0 magnitude earthquake.

As the earth shook with violent ferocity and the buildings began to crumble and fall, hundreds of thousands of Haitians were killed and entire communities were flattened. An estimated 1.5 million people were left homeless, and most were in Haiti’s overcrowded capital Port-au-Prince. International aid poured into Haiti along with countless NGOs (non-governmental organizations) who set up emergency services to provide immediate medical treatment, water, food and much-needed shelter.

The “Gingerbread” homes and slums that raise up the mountains behind luxurious Pétionville.

Faced with the urgent needs of providing immediate shelter to the homeless, hundreds of tent communities popped up around the city, some legal and some not. Despite good intentions, many of the tent communities were in deplorable conditions often lacking water and sanitation and safety. Some tents were made from donated plastic tarp while others were more homemade being patched together out of spare linens and plastic sheets. When the floods and unbearable heat came, the situations inside the tent communities become like hell on earth if they weren’t already miserable. Tragically, hardly any humanitarian aid reached some of these communities and families were left to fend for themselves to survive.

As many as 50,000 Haitians slept in this earthquake survivor camp in the Del Mas area in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 21, 2010.Photo credit: Fred W. Baker III via Wikimedia Commons

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The art of making Papier-mâché in Jacmel

Posted on June 22, 2015 by thirdeyemom

Papier-mâché = French for “chewed paper”, is a composite material consisting of paper pieces or pulp, sometimes reinforced with textiles, bound with an adhesive, such as glue, starch, or wallpaper paste.

Papier-mâché is an extremely important form of art in Haiti and there is no other place where it is produced in such magnitude as Jacmel. We visited this beautiful seaside town to meet some papier-mâché artisans who supply the colorful papier-mâché vases and serving trays to Macy’s Heart of Haiti program.

Papier-mâché has been made for centuries originating in China, the inventors of paper, back in the Han Dynasty (BC 202 – AD 220) and spreading to Japan, Persia and Egypt and eventually Europe in the mid 17th century. In Haiti, papier-mâché has been made for generations as an important artistic and cultural part of Carnival and other celebrations.

Our group visited the studio of papier-mâché artisan Pierre Satyr where we received a live demonstration of how to make a vase out of papier-mâche by artisan Harry Sylvaince.

The studio of Papier-mâché artisan Pierre Satyr in Jacmel, Haiti

Inside the studio we met Paul Satyr and Harry Sylvaince, two papier-mâché artisans who have been working with Macy’s Heart of Haiti program, a trade not aid program that began after the earthquake to help Haiti’s artisans find a market for their products. Paul “Satyr”, a master painter whose friends call him Satyr, is President of the Jacmel Guild of Artists in Haiti, where he hopes to build a new artisans’ center. Patterns from his collection are inspired by patchwork and made from old rags. When asked about his work, Satyr mused: “We are creating joy from remnants and are sending joy out into the world. We hope that people will smile and feel great happiness when they see and collect our work”.

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Meet Christelle Paul, Haitian Bone and Horn Artist

Posted on June 15, 2015 by thirdeyemom

Before visiting Haiti, I never would have imagined that this tiny island nation has such an amazing artistic culture. The arts have not only survived poverty, earthquakes and other natural and political disasters, they have thrived and persevered just like the Haitian people.

What is the most astounding aspect of Haiti’s art community is the artisans’ unbelievable imagination and creativity to produce art from pretty much anything. Thrown out oil cans became the inspiration for a dynamic metal arts community. Old pieces of newspaper are striped, dyed and used to create papier-mâché masks, vases, floats, and other masterpieces. Even horns and bones from cattle that normally are thrown away, are dried and sanded to make gorgeous jewelry and furniture. The list is endless.

I had never heard of Horn and Bone art until I visited Haiti and met with Haitian Horn and Bone artist Christelle Paul, founder and chief designer at her workshop “Atelier Calla“ in Port-au-Prince. Horn and Bone art began within the walls of Haiti’s prisons in the 1950s. To pass the time, the men in prison enjoyed playing games and they ingeniously discovered they could use old horns and bones to make pieces for card games. The art continued to evolve over the years being passed down from generation to generation.

Photo of Danica Kombol (Everywhere Agency) and Christelle Paul in Haiti.

Christelle has always been passionate about art yet she had pursed a career in banking. One day back in 2006 she was out shopping and noticed that there were a lot of products made out of horn and bone yet none that she really liked. This inspired her to start creating her own horn and bone jewelry based on the designs and ideas she desired. What began as a hobby suddenly grew into a passion. Yet the journey from being a full-time banker to full-time artist was a long one.

Some of Christelle’s beautiful creations.

A series of setbacks such as the 2010 earthquake stopped Christelle from following her dreams yet after a meeting with famous designer Donna Karan, Christelle decided to quit her job and pursue her passion for Bone and Horn art full-time. Her workshop Atelier Calla was opened in October of 2011 and today her team employs 7 artisans within the community who were once unemployed. Her mission is to provide fair wages and work opportunities to help young, unemployed people find a fulfilling, sustainable career in the arts. She is a remarkable woman.

We visited Christelle’s studio to learn more about this unique kind of art and also hear how her studio and workshop have helped other Haitians pursue a career in art and provide for their family.

Artisans at work at Christelle Paul’s studio, Atelier Calla

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Jacmel’s amazing papier-mâché

Posted on June 3, 2015 by thirdeyemom

Besides being known as a beautiful, colonial beachside town, Jacmel is one of the leading producers of papier-mâché in all of Haiti. In fact, this dazzling town of about 40,000 residents is famous for its arts and has dozens of studios and shops where papier-mâché is made, sold and celebrated especially during Haiti’s Carnival.

Our team visited Jacmel to see firsthand how papier-mâché is made and to meet some of the different artisans who sell their art to Macy’s Heart of Haiti program and Artisan Business Network (ABN). ABN is the heart and soul of Macy’s Heart of Haiti program (a “trade not aid” initiative that began after the earthquake to help local Haitian artisans sell their products in the United States). Run by Nathalie Tancrede, an amazing Haitian American woman who left her home in New York after the earthquake to help, ABN works with a variety of Haitian artisans to assist with long-term economic development and training on design, marketing, packaging and exporting so they can expand internationally. ABN has made a huge impact on the artisan community of Haiti which was largely hurt after the earthquake. It was amazing to see some of their incredible work and it just so happened that we were in Jacmel a few days before Carnival.

Founded in 1698 by French colonists, Jacmel has the most creative and yet traditional Carnival in Haiti awash with brilliantly colorful papier-maché masks and marionettes, bands à pieds, and street theatre depictions of politics, religion and pop culture. As we entered town, we could see papier-mâché statues and masks everywhere.

Given Jacmel’s vibrant cultural and artistic scene, it wasn’t a surprise to see art being made en plein air right on the streets. It felt like the entire city was alive and was quite invigorating.

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World Bicycle Relief #ThisIsNotABike Campaign

Posted on May 27, 2015 by thirdeyemom

“For many people around the world, the bicycle is a crucial form of life-changing transportation. It can meant the difference between getting to school, seeing a doctor, and making a living – or not”.

World Bicycle Relief is a not-for-profit organization that is dedicated to mobilizing people through The Power of Bicycles®. World Bicycle Relief accomplishes its mission by designing, manufacturing and distributing high quality bicycles that withstand the challenging terrain and conditions in rural Africa. This month marks bike month and World Bicycle Relief has launched a new campaign called “This is Not a Bike” to help promote the importance of the bicycles as a mode of transportation that changes people lives.

In honor of this cool campaign, I am featuring a guest post written by Ruth-Anne Renaud the Director of Global Marketing at World Bicycle Relief.

When we think of farmers we often think of men. But, the reality is that many farmers in the US are women. The same goes for rural developing regions around the world. Farming is a challenging and tough job no matter where a woman is farming. But, women in rural Africa for example, face more challenges than farmers in developed nations. Transporting their product to market is one of them.

Imagine a farmer’s profit was held hostage by the amount of produce or milk that she could physically carry to the market on foot. This is what farmers face everyday in developing parts of the world where there are no affordable transportation options. Farmers are left to carry their goods to the market on foot and, consequently, their profits suffer.

Meet Georgina, a farmer in Zambia, who uses the Buffalo Bicycle.

Now, imagine a farmer in rural Africa having access to a rugged, durable bicycle built for rough, rural terrain and a rear rack that can carry 220lbs. Suddenly, she can transport greater loads and reach more distant markets- both increasing her overall productivity, sales and the price she can access in markets farther away. For a farmer in rural, developing areas, a bicycle can have a dramatic impact on her business – lifting her and her family out of a chronic cycle of poverty and saving lots of time.

Riding a bike is four times faster than walking. Imagine getting to work or school four times faster every day. Speed and efficiency translate into increased profits and accelerated learning.

Georgina and her bicycle.

For the developed world, where we have access to a myriad of transportation options, we have limited experience with what it is like to only have one option: walking. When an individual who relies on walking finally gains access to a reliable bicycle, amazing things happen to her, her family and her community. This is what World Bicycle Relief has discovered after delivering over 225,000 specially designed, rugged bicycles to entrepreneurs, students and health care workers in Africa, Asia and South America.

This is not a bike- at least not in the terms we consider in the developed world; rather, it is an engine for economic and cultural empowerment. The magic with a bicycle is the untapped potential it releases in individuals. Riding a bike is four times faster than walking. With this increase in efficiency, an individual can accomplish many more tasks in her everyday life. Besides farmers and entrepreneurs increasing their efficiency and profits, students and health care workers also use the bike to great benefit. World Bicycle Relief’s Education Report from Zambia in 2012 noted a 28% increase in attendance and 59% increase in academic performance. Health care workers with a bicycle often double the number of patients they can visit in a day. A bicycle is a powerful catalyst that supports three important pillars of a healthy and thriving community- economic growth, access to education and health care.

Bicycles have played a part in the recent economic achievements of India and China. In China, it is estimated that 435 million people own bicycles with many using their bicycles as their primary mode of transportation. In Africa, where 40% of the population lives below the poverty line and survives on around $2 per day, affordable, reliable transportation is crucial to development, but often out of reach for these individuals. The inefficiency of walking has a profound effect on economic development, as well as educational and health care outcomes.

Recognizing the great need for transportation in these areas, World Bicycle Relief has tapped the bicycle industry’s expertise to design a high quality, low cost bicycle for individuals at the bottom of the economic pyramid. World Bicycle Relief takes both a philanthropic and a social enterprise approach to delivering bicycles. The organization provides bicycles to students and health care workers through study-to-own and work-to-own programs. Its social enterprise side sells bicycles to individuals (farmers, metal workers and builders) and development organizations like World Vision who use bicycles to better implement their programming. Looking to the future, World Bicycle Relief envisions a market-driven solution that would provide sustainable, affordable access to transportation that would address the profound transportation gap that exists in rural, developing areas globally. With affordable, durable bicycles available on the marketplace, access to transportation infrastructure doesn’t have to end when the pavement does; the most remote villages could be connected to the larger transportation system.

One of the great common denominators of humanity is that we all need transportation. By extending transportation options to everyone no matter where they are on the economic ladder, every individual will have the transportation tools they need to build a better life.

This is not a bike. It’s so much more.

To learn more about World Bicycle Relief and how you can help click here.

About World Bicycle Relief:

World Bicycle Relief is dedicated to mobilizing people through The Power of Bicycles®. World Bicycle Relief accomplishes its mission by designing, manufacturing and distributing high quality bicycles that withstand the challenging terrain and conditions in rural Africa. Entrepreneurs use the bikes to increase productivity and profits. Students with bikes attend class more regularly and academic performance dramatically improves. And, health care workers with bikes visit more patients, more often, providing better, more consistent care. World Bicycle Relief also promotes local economies and long-term sustainability by assembling bicycles in Africa and training over 1,000 field mechanics. Since 2005, World Bicycle Relief has delivered over 200,000 bicycles. For more information, please visit: www.worldbicyclerelief.org / Follow us @PowerOfBicycles and Like us at facebook.com/worldbicyclerelief

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Haiti’s Metal Artisans of Croix-des-Bouquets

Posted on April 20, 2015 by thirdeyemom

This post is part of a series on my recent trip to Haiti as part of Heart of Haiti’s #Bloggers4Haiti trip. To read more in this series, click here.

After we landed in Port-au-Prince on a Thursday afternoon, our team of three bloggers, one daughter, and three representatives from Everywhere Agency (who sponsored our trip and works exclusively on the Heart of Haiti initiative for Macy’s) gathered in our van and drove to neighboring Croix-des-Bouquets,a famous artist community in Port-au-Prince known for its metal art.

We were thrilled to all be spending the next four days meeting with Macy’s Heart of Haiti artisans, and there couldn’t have been a better way to jump-start our trip than by visiting Croix-des-Bouquets and seeing for ourselves what Haiti is known for: Spectacular metal art.

In Croix-des-Bouquets, we were going to visit several metal artisans’ studios and get a real live demonstration on how the art is made. We also would learn a bit more about the history of Croix-des-Bouquets, a unique artist community that has grown into one of the largest, sustainable metal art communities in Haiti.

En route from Port-au-Prince we finally reach the famous Croix-des-Bouquets community.

Over 60 years ago, Georges Liautaud began a movement in creating metal art from recycled products that became the thriving metal artisan community of Croix-des-Bouquets. Today, Croix-des-Bouquets has over 1,000 metal artisans making their fabulous metal art with over 60 different shops and studios creating social change and opportunity in this growing community in Port-au-Prince. Croix-des-Bouquets is where the most famous, accomplished metal artisans reside who have traveled the world with their art and have become instrumental within the community by creating apprenticeship opportunities for Haitians to learn their trade.

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Macy’s Heart of Haiti Creating Sustainable Income and Hope

Posted on April 9, 2015 by thirdeyemom

This post is part of a series on my recent trip to Haiti as part of Heart of Haiti’s #Bloggers4Haiti trip. To read more in this series, click here.

On January 12, 2010 the earth rumbled and shook. Although it only 30 seconds, the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti, devastated Port-au-Prince and killed an estimated 220,000 people. Already reeling from a series of natural, economic and political disasters, the earthquake was nearly catastrophic to the people, infrastructure and economy of Haiti. Although thousands of lives were lost, more were forever changed on that fateful day.

The “Gingerbread” homes and slums that raise up the mountains behind luxurious Pétionville.

As news poured into the United States and around the world, governments, aid organizations and humanitarians across the globe came together to help. One woman, American Willa Shalit, an artist, producer, writer and social conscious entrepreneur, came to the rescue. A pioneer in a growing social-entrepreneurial movement, Shalit’s company Fairwinds Trading joined forces with the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and retailer, Macy’s. Together, they developed the mission of providing unique Haitian products to U.S. consumers while at the same time, creating sustainable wages for the Haitian artisans who make them.

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An Afternoon Volunteering at Feed My Starving Children

Posted on January 11, 2015 by thirdeyemom

“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one”. – Mother Teresa

I have always been committed to volunteering and giving back either locally or around the globe. Since having children my focus has been more on them and volunteering at their elementary school. Yet as they get older, there is less volunteer work needed so I decided it was time to branch out and find more volunteer opportunities locally.

One place I’d been longing to volunteer at is a fabulous non-profit faith-based organization called Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). Founded in 1987 in Minnesota by a Christian businessman, FMSC has produced nearly 900 million meals and shipped them to over 70 countries around the world. Last year alone, FMSC donated 191.6 million meals!

I had the pleasure of accompanying a good friend to FMSC November Gala and made a promise that I’d set aside some time to volunteer at one of their three packing plants here in town. I was inspired by their mission and their business model of volunteerism. Not one person is ever paid to pack a meal and no machines are used. Every single meal that goes out is hand-packed by volunteers around the United States (they have packing sites in Illinois and Arizona and mobile packing sites anywhere in the US). Furthermore, all meals are funded by donations.

Just to get an idea of the vastness of hunger, it is important to step back and look at the numbers. 1 in 8 people in the world go hungry every single day. That means almost 1 billion people do not eat each day. To me, it is utterly unimaginable.

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SutiSana: Helping Survivors of Prostitution in Bolivia

Posted on December 17, 2014 by thirdeyemom

Whenever I travel, I try to ensure I’m fitting in a little bit of time to learn about some of the social issues that impact a country I am visiting. Through my work as a social good blogger and advocate for various non-profit organizations, I have learned about many of the issues that negatively impact women and girls around the world. From poverty and hunger to lack of education, safe water and health care services, each issue has its unique set of challenges that keeps women and girls from thriving. Human sex trafficking is one of the darker topics I have touched upon, and sadly it is often one of the most tragic especially when it involves young girls.

Bolivia is a country that is notorious for prostitution as well as child labor. Child labor (children can work independently as young as ten) and prostitution are actually legal. Although it is not legal for girls under the age of 18 to be prostitutes, sadly the law is often overlooked and disregarded. As in most places around the world, a life as a prostitute is not one that most girls or women would choose and the majority of girls who end up in prostitution have been sexually abused as a child.

Despite being legal in Bolivia, it is often not very well-regulated and bribes are common ways to get anything done under the table. Women who are registered as prostitutes are required to have regular medical check-ups but it is easy to let it slide. Furthermore, there is much corruption within the prostitution industry. Women and girls are abused by their pimps and their customers, and are paid very little for the services they provide. The average “trick” is about $3 and in order to pay enough to cover rent at the brothel women must multiple tricks a night. It is not uncommon for some women to do up to 40 tricks a night.

On my first day in Bolivia, I met with SutiSana to learn about their amazing work in helping women leave prostitution and change their lives. Founded five years ago by the faith-based non-profit Word Made Flesh, SutiSana helps women in El Alto, Bolivia leave the lives of prostitution by providing them with training, support and guidance to become self-sufficient and gainfully employed.

The name SutiSana comes from Aymara and Spanish, the two languages that the women speak, and was chosen for its beautiful meaning. In Aymara, Suti means name. In Spanish, Sana means healthy or healed. As women leave prostitution, they often leave behind a name they used there and find a new identity – a Healed Name.

Since SutiSana is a Christian-based non-profit organization, they have a small room for prayer. In this room, as you look outside the window you will see the row of nondescript buildings that are the brothels. The largest brothel is the building on the right edge of the photo. It has four floors with 100 prostitutes working a night.

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Spread Joy and Opportunity – The Power of A Bicycle

Posted on December 8, 2014 by thirdeyemom

This is a guest post written by Ruth-Anne Renaud who recently joined the team at World Bicycle Relief as director of global marketing. Her bio is located at the end of this post.

I distinctly remember the Christmas I received my first bike. It was sparkly blue, with a banana seat, training wheels and a basket. I knew it would take me everywhere once the snow melted. This fall, new memories have been imprinted on my heart on what it means to receive a bike.

Destination: Zambia, Africa. I had just started my new role as Director of Global Marketing at World Bicycle Relief (WBR) and I participated in one of our immersion trips called Africa Rides. Together with about a dozen supporters and partners – I spent a week learning how a bicycle can transform the lives of students, healthcare workers, entrepreneurs and their communities.

At the outset of the trip, we spent a day at WBR’s Zambia headquarters to learn about the scale of the bike distribution program, the criteria for selecting field partners and recipients, and the deliberate, yet simple rugged design of the innovative Buffalo Bike. In fact – we had to assemble our own Buffalo Bike.

Here is a Buffalo Bike (with a holiday bow that can be given to children and health workers in need via World Bicycle Relief).

It was a daunting task since I’m not particularly mechanically inclined. But I am proud to share – after a successful quality control check – I rode that bike over the next several days with our group of Africa Rides travelers visiting villages and schools. I physically experienced the searing mid-day heat, the distance and rugged dirt paths that felt like they were never quite going to end – to get to school, back home or to get water from an isolated well. I felt what it meant to be constantly chasing daylight.

Here I am helping a young girl ride her new bike.
Photo credit: World Bicycle Relief

Here I am helping Grace learn about her new bike.
Photo credit: World Bicycle Relief

And she’s off!
Photo credit: World Bicycle Relief

Riding through the gravel roads of Zambia
Photo Credit: World Bicycle Relief

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To the Market: Empowering survivors around the world

Posted on November 11, 2014 by thirdeyemom

During the ONE Women and Girls AYA Summit I attended in mid-October, I had the pleasure to meet Jane Mosbacher Morris, Founder and CEO of TO THE MARKET | Survivor-made Goods. Jane presented on her social enterprise TO THE MARKET | Survivor-made Goods (TTM) an amazing, creative organization that combines the powers of commerce and storytelling to empower the world’s most courageous survivor populations.

To the Market showcases handmade goods made exclusively by proud and passionate artisans who have overcome the perils of abuse, conflict, and disease. By assisting local partners around the world in bringing these goods “to the market,” TTM takes an active role in equipping the survivor’s they employ with economic independence, while raising awareness of the challenges that they face.

I was so impressed by Jane and the organization that she founded, that I invited her to do a guest post on my blog to introduce you to her work and To the Market. Here is her story.

This is taken in the slums of Dehra Dun, India and shows Jane talking with a mother of a polio survivor. Her son, the polio survivor, is able to work, allowing the family (including the mother pictured) to be supported. Photo credit: Neil Ruskin

To the Market: How and Why it Began

Guest post by Jane Mosbacher Morris is the Founder and CEO of TO THE MARKET | Survivor-made Goods

Whether working domestically or abroad, I am consistently reminded of how crucial it is, especially for women, to have some form of economic independence. This economic independence helps to ensure that we are not left at the mercy of others when we unexpectedly find ourselves in a dire situation.

This point was hammered home to me during my time working for the U.S. State Department on women and security. I began studying the approach that many governments and non-profits were taking to provide assistance to vulnerable populations, many of whom were women. What I observed was a major focus on social service provision—administering things like medicine, housing, and pro-bono legal assistance. Social services are extraordinarily important, particularly in emergency situations, but they are generally not available to the beneficiary for the duration of his or her life. What seemed to be lacking was a plan to support those in need after they received the emergency assistance.

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