The VEZ Voliunteer Awards in Germany selected GGM Germany, our newest chapter, as one of its awardees, honoring 21 projects from 201 applications that have impressed with their innovative and committed contributions.
VEZ was particularly pleased that Global Girl Media Germany was bringing the second volunteer award in the women’s power category to Schwerte. The award winners came from all over North Rhine-Westphalia, such as Cologne, Düsseldorf, Münster and Schwerte. GGM Germany supports girls and women in the media sector through training and workshops. GGM Germany has the motto: “Be the heroine of your life, not the victim” (Nora Ephron, filmmaker, USA).
In addition to the prize money of 200 euros, each winner received a trophy, a certificate and, most importantly, a tree planting in the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state forest.
A top-class jury selected the award winners, including the well-known artistic director and professor of acting and directing at the Folkwang University in Essen, Brian Michaels. Board member and Program Director Meike-Corina Kühne-Schmithausen traveled to Duisburg with press spokeswoman Henriette Kühne and joyfully and proudly accepted the NRW volunteer award.
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NEWSWEEK: SOPHIA RISING: THE STORY OF ONE GIRL DEFYING THE ODDS
FROM NEWSWEEK
Author: Laura Powers
A new film is changing the narrative of young woman and girls in Africa. Produced by young women, “Sophia Rising” follows the story of Sophia, a nineteen year old in Northern Kenya, as she escapes child marriage, female genital mutilation (FGM) and limited access to education to graduate high school and apply for university. The film was written, filmed and produced by Kenyan and Tanzanian girls, as part of the UNEARTH project, is a collaboration between BRAVE, Global Girl Media, and Samburu Girls Foundation, and puts young women and girls at the center both as the subject and as the storytellers.
The challenges that Sophia has faced are not uncommon. At 14, her family (predominantly her uncles) pressured her to marry a 58 year old man. With the support of her father, she was able to avoid that life and attend school instead but not all have been as lucky. According to UNICEF, in 2014, 23% of women in Kenya were married before the age of 18. Sophia’s older sisters were married by the age of ten, and there is pressure for her younger sister to follow suit.
With the pressure to marry at a young age, receiving an education can be challenging. In Northern Kenya, 19% of girls start school, let alone finish. But studies have shown that higher rates of young women with an education and an independent income reduce violence against women and improve overall economic strength. Women often bear the brunt of negative impact from climate change, political violence and economic downturns, but without access to education, it is difficult for them to enter spaces where there voice will be heard on these issues.
As the film and Sophia’s story highlights, women in these difficult situations are not without agency. Without being handed the space to speak out, women in places like Kenya are increasingly creating their own spaces to tell their stories. Non profits are supporting these efforts, like Fempo in Democratic Republic of Congo, which gives women the training and tools necessary to run for public office.
One of the co-producers of the project, BRAVE, has discovered a unique way to support young girls and provide them with skills and self-confidence to speak out: Travel. BRAVE takes young women and girls facing violence, child marriage and FGM and takes them on a trip across their country, which is often the first time these girls have left their communities. India Baird, the founder and director of BRAVE, says, “BRAVE uses the challenge of travel and adventure in wild places to create opportunities for girls, and works with those who can provide the resources, knowledge, experience, and safety that girls need to lead.” The trips create a safe space for them to speak about their experiences, while learning about things like conservation, advocacy and even filmmaking. By learning from other girls in different situations, as well as discovering the experiences of people in other parts of the country, these young women gain understanding of issues that they face, and brainstorm solutions.
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MAIA ADELIA WINS
Global Girl Media UK graduate (2019) Maia Adelia has been awarded the BAFTA Scholarship to support her continuing documentary filmmaking studies at the prestigious National Film and Television School. Since attending the GGM UK Summer Academy, Maia has been working as an Assistant Producer in TV. Her credits include: The Good Fight Club (Sky Documentaries), Changemakers (Paramount+) and Danny Dyer: 21st Century Man (Channel 4). Maia is the founder of Next Gen Docs, a resource for emerging documentary filmmakers.
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GGM MOROCCO GLOBALGIRL ATTENDS STANFORD AMENDS, 2017
Within the framework of women and youth empowerment through digital media, Salma TAKKY- Global Girl from Morocco – has been part of the American Middle Eastern Network for Dialogue at Stanford 2017 (AMENDS).The American Middle Eastern Network for Dialogue at Stanford (AMENDS) is a collaborative student-led initiative interested in the promotion of understanding and respect around the Middle East, and the support of a generation of leaders who are working to ignite concrete social and economic development in the MENA region.From June 19-24 2017, Salma Takky attended a series of workshops at Oxford university, followed by a TED-style talk where she described the journey of Global Girl Media & Network. Salma closely introduced the different activities and programs that enable her and all the Moroccan women and youth to take a new and favored attitude within the Moroccan culture. -
GGM WINS GIRLS VOICES FOR CHANGE AWARDS IN TWO CATEGORIES!
We are thrilled to announce GlobalGirl Media won the top video awards from Girls Voices For Change in the Story Category, we won the Judges Award for Sophia Rising (Kenya) and the Audience Award for Under the Lemon Tree (Greece). Congratulations to our lead producers, Adele Qias and Sophie Lesiapadei who were also awarded cash scholarships to go towards their education. We are so proud of all the girls who participated in the production of these stories as well. Thanks to our partners Melissa Network and i-MedD (Greece) and Samburu Girls Foundation and BRAVE (Kenya). You can watch these videos on our site.
