Goal 5: Gender Equality
Gillian is a master chess player and was aware that there are significantly less girls taking part in the game than boys. She thought of a creative way to get girls interested: "I’m creating bookmarks for the library to introduce chess for the younger students! My goal is to introduce more girls into chess by showing them the rules and how to play."
Natalie and Leanna chose to focus on the issue of period poverty - how a lack of access to menstrual products can impact people who menstruate: "We believe in equality and education for women. Having the privilege to attend an all-girls school, we’ve learnt that many women around the world cannot attend school due to their menstrual cycle. Our plan is to collect fabric and make reusable pads that we can donate to a charity in need. We’re starting small, and hopefully, we can give girls the chance to feel comfortable at school, even if they’re on their period. We want to educate others about this problem and give women opportunities, because they deserve them." You can also visit their website, Goodies for Girls, here! Natalie and Leanna also introduced a change at school: they created a menstrual product basket in the student washroom so that students could easily access products when they need them without shame or stigma. Check out their video below!
Period Poverty.movVanessa & Rey Rey.movVanessa and Rey Rey learned about the problem of child marriages that are faced by millions of girls their age around the world: "1 in 5 girls from rural areas are stuck in the cycle of child marriages, forced to leave their education behind. To make a difference, remember the 3 E’s: empower girls, educate families, and establish laws prohibiting child marriages." They made this video to educate people about the 3 E's!
Reese and Chloe researched a number of issues facing women and girls and created these thought-provoking posters to bring attention to these challenges: "Throughout the world many gender stereotypes have been formed, giving people all over the globe limits to how they live their lives based on what modern society believes. It is our responsibility to help conquer these issues so that the generations after us can live freely and the way they wish to. Big changes start small, help us make gender stereotypes a thing of the past."
