VOICES OF OUR FUTURE TWO YEAR CUMMULATIVE REPORT (2009-2010)
Women’s Voices Are Not Being Heard
“There can be no full freedom of the press until women have an equal voice in the news-gathering and news dissemination processes” IWMF Global Report on the Status of Women in the News Media
There is not a single nation in the world where women have an equal voice. Across the globe, the challenges facing grassroots women leaders - such as gender-based violence, lack of education, inadequate health care, and political oppression - are compounded by societies and leadership that do not value the role of women in building solutions. Women comprise 51% of the world's population yet currently worldwide women hold only 17% of Parliamentarian seats, 15% of corporate "C-level" positions, 1% of media editors, and 20% of non-profit leadership.
We are at a remarkable place in history where new media has the potential to provide extraordinary opportunities for women to access, actively engage with, and drive global conversations. Women are taking to the streets in Yemen, Libya, and the Ivory Coast protesting injustice, political corruption and violence in their communities. But do they have the skills and knowledge to participate in regional and global conversations reshaping their future? Will their voices be heard, their protests addressed, their solutions implemented?
World Pulse Is Shifting The Paradigm
"Thank you for giving us the confidence. The power of knowing our right is the key that unlocks our voices." 2010 Correspondent, Achieng Beatrice Nas, Uganda
Each year through Voices of Our Future, over 500 women are exposed to the basic principles of new media and women's empowerment through our month-long online application process. Once applications are completed, thirty women who demonstrate solutions-oriented writing and strong leadership skills are selected as Correspondents.
To support Correspondents in completing the program, and to help them overcome any personal, communication or technology challenges, we worked with program partner the Empowerment Institute to pair them with a mentor; recruited professional journalists, bloggers and writers to partner each woman with a personal editor; and gave them a technology stipend to help offset program costs.
Working with program partners (Global Press Institute and Op-Ed Project), our staff trained the thirty Correspondents on the principals of practicing ethical citizen journalism. The learning in our online classroom are divided into four modules which focus on: conducting an interview and writing a profile; writing about a timely issue which affects their community and is related to larger global concerns; writing an op-ed; and writing a feature-length article which ties together the skills they’ve learned in the previous modules. Each learning module has an associated writing assignment, which Correspondents posted on our community newswire, PulseWire.
New media concepts and opportunities are integrated within each learning module. Correspondents were taught how to: pitch stories online and offline; use blogging, Twitter, and Facebook; create podcasts; use mobile phones to access the internet; and how to use these new tools to amplify their voices.
Acknowledging that Correspondents often live and work in unfriendly media environments, in 2010 we created a Safety and Security toolkit, which provides resources for staying safe online and offline, risk minimization tools and strategies, and links to human rights and journalist associations around the world.
Amplifying Impact: Each One Teach Five
In addition to the materials on citizen journalism and social media, in 2010 we launched Each One Teach Five. Through this training of trainers model, Correspondents were given the tools to reach out to at least five other women in their community to train them on the principles of citizen journalism and new media literacy. Correspondents will be implementing their Each One Teach Five projects over the next six months, and we look forward to the results. In this way, thirty Correspondents quickly becomes 150 vocalized women leaders.
Demonstrating Impact
"When I was young, no one listened to me, instead they told me that I should be voiceless as a woman. However, today, from thousands of miles and skies away, people are waiting to hear my voice. People are encouraging me to speak out for positive change. People are waiting to hear more and more. This is all because of World Pulse." Sunita Basnet, 2009 Correspondent, Nepal
In two years, Voices of Our Future has exceeded expectations:
Ÿ Over 1,100 women from 103 countries have been introduced to new media, citizen journalism and women’s empowerment concepts during the online application process.
Ÿ 90% of correspondents have completed the program, despite political turmoil and violence, natural disasters, technology challenges, and competing priorities for their time.
Ÿ 98% of respondents to our final surveys have reported an increase in confidence and empowered leadership; and 96% have reported increased knowledge in citizen journalism and new media.
Ÿ Our correspondents’ breaking stories have been picked up by other media outlets such as the BBC, CBC, and Women's United Nations Reporting Network and Women News Network.
Ÿ Our partners, plus over 200 volunteer listeners, mentors, and editors, donated nearly $600K in time, talent, and intellectual property.
The training provided during the Voices of Our Future program is strengthening and lifting women’s voices, generating opportunities for dialogue and social change on a global scale.
“The program helped me develop a new perspective with regard to what happens around me...I feel that now I have more sensitivity and curiosity to research and write about unusual and taboo topics….I feel more empowered to speak up and I realized that my opinions are relevant.” 2010 Correspondent, Thais Moraes, Brazil
Ÿ Nilima Raut’s Voices of Our Future story on Chhaupadi (http://womennewsnetwork.net/2011/03/20/nepal-banishment-ritual-girls/), the ritual banishment of women during menstruation in Nepal, was published as a feature story on the Women News Network. This news site has a readership of over 320,000, including 480 UN networks and affiliates, and Nilima’s story is already receiving attention at high levels of government in Nepal.
Ÿ During the 2009 Voices of Our Future program, Maylayapinas received rigorous journalism training, and was supported to write a Feature Story on a politically-motivated massacre of women activists and journalists in the Philippines (http://www.worldpulse.com/magazine/articles/my-cry-from-the-islands-of-blood). Her story was picked up by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation's "Dispatches" program, and she was interviewed to recount the events to a global audience
Ÿ Halima Rahman’s article on female genital mutilation in Sudan is one of our most read feature stories ever, with more than 50,000 readers (http://www.worldpulse.com/node/13683). She produced the original story for an assignment during her 2009 Voices of Our Future training. Recognizing the power of her voice and the unique perspective she offered, our Editorial team worked with her to publish a more polished and vetted piece, and the resulting article was picked up and shared in numerous online news sites and forums, Halima has continued to actively contribute insightful articles to our website, including a recent video collaboration about the women protests in Sudan.
Through Voices of Our Future, women are taught to recognize the power of their own voice. We believe that when a women’s voice is heard, she can transform her life, the lives of those around her…the whole world.
“If I did not find world pulse, I would still be boiling, my voice was always indoors, burning, longing for a way out. I am grateful I found not only a channel but listeners too. I will speak for change to my very last breath.” 2010 Correspondent, Achieng Beatrice Nas, Uganda
• Achieng Beatrice Nas is creating a wave of change in her own community and empowering others to do the same. When threatened with eviction from her family land after her last son died of AIDS, Beatrice’s mother turned to her for help. Having received mentoring and support from the Voices of Our Future Program and information about local NGOs in her community working for land rights, Beatrice decided to stand up for her family and help her mother overcome local customary laws. Together they challenged the community leaders and won their case. They are now pursuing legal registration of their land to ensure their family’s future. Throughout this process, Beatrice was also elected to become a youth leader for her community of 700,000 people. http://www.worldpulse.com/user/6478
Ÿ Gertrude Pswarayi took off with trainings in Zimbabwe! After completing the VOF program, she embarked on a training program for 30 women, 30 girls, 15 sex workers, and 50 minorities. She trained these communities on basic computer skills, and how to use social networks (including PulseWire) to tell their stories, find resources, information and solutions. Through the program, Gertrude deepened her skill-set with computers and social media, and became a leader in her community by sharing her skills, and connecting others to our global network. http://www.worldpulse.com/user/1537
Ÿ With the support of her program mentor and encouragement from other correspondents, MariposaAsia from Pakistan discovered a newfound strength to pursue her vision of starting her own NGO to train rural women in basic computer and professional skills. She has already set up her first training center and will be using materials from Voices of Our Future to empower women across Pakistan. http://www.worldpulse.com/user/6203
Voices of Our Future Correspondents are connected to powerful global networks of support.
“World Pulse has helped me realize the potential of my voice. I have always known that I was born to write and to speak, but through World Pulse, and through seeing what impact my writing has had on women of different colours, creeds and countries, I am more convinced than ever that I can and will make a difference” 2010 Correspondent, Fungai Machirori, Zimbabwe
Ÿ With the training and skills she received through Voices of Our Future, Lindy Wafula from Kenya launched a community media training program which aims to empower rural women with skills in citizen journalism and new media, so they can report on human rights issues in their communities. Through the World Pulse network and empowered leadership, she has been able to raise nearly $50,000 for this training program and the other programs she runs through her NGO, Project Africa. http://www.worldpulse.com/user/1511
Ÿ After completing the VOF program, several of our Correspondents including Joanne Wanjala, Gertrude Pswarayi, Dando Mweetwa, Nusrat Ara, Laura Golakeh, Warona Maifala, Fomuso Leina, Thais Moraes, and Sapna Shahani have been hired by Global Press Institute as paid journalists to report from their countries. This succession is evidence of the rigor of our journalism training, and how our program links women to global platforms where they can be loudspeakers for their communities. http://www.globalpressinstitute.org/content/our-reporters
Ÿ Sarvina Kang from Cambodia was interviewed by the 10x10 project, a global social action campaign and film directed by an academy award nominated director, and was selected as one of their first Girl Advocates. She will be mobilizing her community to promote girls’ education through writing, social media and speaking out. http://10x10act.org/2011/01/sarvina-%E2%80%9Ci-want-to-give-a-voice-to-the-girls-and-women-of-cambodia%E2%80%9D/
World Pulse Live! Media and Speaking Tour
"When our whispers trumpet throughout the world, we will be a great power for change." Malayapinas, Philippines - 2009 Correspondent speaking at TEDWomen
In the fall of 2010, we launched the first ever World Pulse media and speaking tour which brought three Voices of Our Future Correspondents to the US for a five-city tour, where they spoke live to social change leaders, decision makers and local communities. They were invited to speak at the Paley Center for Media, The Global Digital Programs hosted by the US Department of State, and at TEDWomen.
In October 2011, Sarvina Kang from Cambodia, Martha Llano from Colombia and Formuso Leina from Cameroon will be traveling to the US for this year’s tour. They will be speaking in Portland (OR), Denver (CO), Washington D.C., San Francisco (CA), and New York City (NY). The tour is set to reach 24,000 people this year, and World Pulse has been additionally invited to speak with Gloria Steinem at the Bioneers conference.
Challenges
After our initial launch of the Voices of Our Future program in 2009, our team assessed the overall challenges and program gaps. In 2010, we implemented changes to address these challenges and to better meet the needs of our community.
Improved Safety and Security
Many women participating in this program live in countries that do not have supportive media and freedom of speech laws. To ensure that the correspondents are both able to make informed decisions about their participation in the program, and have the resources they need to ensure their safety and security, we created the Safety and Security Module mentioned in the above section, as well as brought on a Security Advisor. Both the learning module and the Advisor have been key in addressing questions from this year’s correspondents, and ensuring a safe training environment.
Criteria and Legal Clarity
During the application phase in 2009, some women were unclear about the criteria we used to select the thirty correspondents. To address this confusion, we worked with our legal team to create a set of rules that clearly outlines all of the criteria, the timeline for the program, and the prizes that are given to a select few correspondents, such as being selected to come to the United States for the World Pulse Live! media and speaking tour. In 2010, we received significantly fewer questions around criteria and selection.
Partnerships
To ensure the sustainability and stability of our program, we identified a need to secure longer-term partnerships with our program partners. We created two-year agreements that were signed by both the Op-Ed Project and the Global Press Institute, which ensures their participation through the end of the 2011 program.
Evaluation and Lessons Learned in 2010
The second year of Voices of Our Future was incredibly successful, with all thirty Correspondents finishing the entire five month train
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