What's the Philly connection? With 10,000 Girls -- a program based in West Africa having the following mission:
To offer education and employment opportunities for 10,000 Girls in rural Senegal, enabling them to develop as self-reliant and capable women, through a self-sustaining organization run by the girls themselves.
Glad you asked.
The new blog portal (student voices) was inspired by Philly Future, and uses the same app: CivicSpace. Our logo was donated by the good people @ AroundPhilly.com. & I'm a Philly native, and will be back for July, hoping to catch up with the DL crowd then. (Not that Matt, Suzie, Karl or anyone else remembers me -- but I remember them).
Of course, the bloggers here are girls-- mostly from the Kaolack region of Senegal. Most of whom are literate (if so) in French and Wolof not English. But hey, expand your horizons. The Internet is for everyone--even for people who might never own a computer. (& as Senegal right now has a per captia of $1700, with rural Senegal hurting even more, that's no joke).
So, slowly but surely, 10,000 girls online:
To the many bloggers @ Philly Future, I ask the following. If you find our mission and method acceptable, please consider providing a link to 10000girls.org.
Thanks,
Thom Haslam @ the soon-to-be-revived Societas
Back in town July 3 in time for Independence Day
10,000 can be 10,000,000
Philly,
get with the program! Use these tools to engage and encourage your 10,000. Make a positive impact on the world. Leave a legacy. Contribute like Thom did. Go Thom! Go 10,000 girls!
Link it up, make it happen. Change the world, one child at a time. Make the 10,000 become 10,000,000 so that the 10,000,000 can make a difference for the 10,000,000,000 to be.
10000 girls
Checked it out, awesome idea. Micro-economic programs already have a proven sucessful track record, and with the educational component, this is even better. I'm in.
10000 girls
Checked it out, awesome idea. Micro-economics already have a proven-sucessful track record, and with the educational component, this is even better. Count me in.
Thanks
It's also a fun project.
A little over the top
I'm promoting Viola and her people who are doing a great job. My people--the students @ SUDC--helped bring it all together. My congrats, luv & respect to them.
But the legacy--if any--belongs to Viola and members of the 10000 Girls program. & it's simply this: these girls have a better present, will have a better future, and will help improve their communitities. That's the result of education, opportunity and entrepreneurship -- not a web site.
We're happy to get the word out & do what we can. Meanwhile, the 10,000 Girls program rolls on. People who can help spread the word -- always welcome. People who can donate -- also welcome. & if you get yourself to Senegal sometime in the next year, I can put you to work!
As for 10,000 to 10,000,000 -- well, Viola's program does scale. But what I admire about her is that she doesn't promise anything she can't deliver. Likewise, the girls in the program know the odds against them. They bust their asses to stay in school, to get training, and get jobs regardless.
Not much romanitic IMO about Kaolack: hot, dusty & with far too many flies. (Mosquitos: a given). But I have to admire how the girls in the program persist and how many continue to succeed.
Best to all,
Thom Haslam
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