Here are some excellent websites to visit to learn more about and become involved in this timely, global movement.
Girl Effect
“The Girl Effect” film was introduced at the Davos World Economic Forum by the Nike Foundation in 2009 to bring visibility to overlooked adolescent girls around the world. Since then, the very clever, impactful short film has been seen by nearly 2 million people. The Girl Effect has been changing the way people think about girls by working with 150 partners in 80 countries in the last 12 years, and was spun off as an independent organization in 2015. Most recently, The Girl Effect Accelerator provides start-ups dedicated to improving the lives of impoverished girls with mentors to help transform their innovative ideas into reality. Here’s the film that started it all. It’s well worth 3 minutes of your time.
Let Girls Learn
This was a joint effort between several agencies of the US Government, including the State Department, USAID and the Peace Corps. It sought to “address the range of challenges preventing adolescent girls from attaining a quality education…and to combine the political will, diplomacy, grassroots organizing and development expertise to create lasting change.” Former First Lady Michelle Obama put her energy behind this cause, and corporations also stepped up with sponsorships. The CNN film, “We Will Rise” featured the organization’s and former First Lady’s visit to Liberia. Through Let Girls Learn, people became aware and concerned that there are 62 million girls out of school worldwide.
Girl Rising
Once again, the case for girls education is made through film and compelling storytelling by a group of professional journalists. A-list movie stars joined in as narrators to draw a wider audience. The Girl Rising movie was launched in 2013 with accompanying curriculum materials and has been widely viewed in community forums to raise awareness and inspire action. It has been translated into 30 languages. Their mission is to change the global mindset about how girls are valued and what they are capable of and to dismantle the barriers girls face, enabling them to take advantage of the scholarships that many other organizations, such as African Girls Can, are providing.
The World Bank
The World Bank offers a wealth of information on the topic of girls’ education, including a brand new report published in July, 2018. This report is available for download and indicates that “limited educational opportunities for girls and barriers to completing 12 years of education costs countries between $15 trillion and $30 trillion in lost lifetime productivity and earnings.” It also estimates the number of girls around the world between the ages of 6 and 17 that are out of school to be 132 million.
