After travelling dozens of hours and thousands of miles we arrived in Bangalore to the hustle and bustle of early morning rush hour; we witnessed families starting their days as Sabhir, our driver, weaved in and out of traffic on our way to Wayanad. The next day, the four of us stepped foot in Prashanthagiri, and the beautiful rural community seemed like a world away from the busy city. We were eager to learn about
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In 2012, Profugo started a Tailoring Training Program within our Center of Development. It was a program designed to teach women in an agricultural community the basics of tailoring. What developed from this program went far beyond technical skills, and far beyond what we expected. These women generated income that helped provide for their families. They became motivated, confident, and empowered. They became leaders in their community-something that is truly impressive in a patriarchal society.
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Women’s rights activists around the world have found a new poster child, literally, in 2014 Nobel Peace Prize co-recipient Malala Yousafzai. Famous for having been shot by members of the Taliban because of her outspokenness about the importance of education for girls in Pakistan, she continues to petition for equal access to education for all children around the world. I heard the announcement about Malala’s Nobel Peace Prize win just after returning to the village
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Profugo has been lucky to have a team of very active and involved student interns. Most impressively, all of our interns are women. These young women couple their schoolwork with professional work in an effort to gain valuable experience in the realm of international development. They want to change the world. Every single one of them is passionate about creating a global community that ensures the rights of all. Included in the all are women.
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In the struggle towards securing Women’s rights and gender equality, the term progress is often strewn throughout the pages of articles and media sites, with no real evidence or data. How do we define real, quantifiable progress in an area that is complex in nature, and means something different to women worldwide? To Malala Yousafzai in Pakistan, gender equality means the equal access to education. To the thousands of women in Darfur, who are raped
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