Apply for a global competition:‘End Gender Discrimination Now!’

Do you know about an organization that’s changed the way it works in response to demands from its women clients or employees? Have you seen a community break silence and taboos to challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes? Has your organization introduced a policy or training to stop sexual harassment in a way that has produced notable results? Have senior managers engaged directly with women workers or women clients and then changed the way their organization does business? Report about how change is happening in organizations to build cultures of equality.

This global competition called ‘End Gender Discrimination Now!’ is seeking ideas and experiences about ending gender discrimination.  If your submission is selected, you will not only get an opportunity to highlight your work, but also get support to attend events related to tackling gender discrimination around the world.

The competition is organized jointly by Gender at Work, the Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID), BRIDGE, and Gender Society and Policies Area, Facultad Latino americana deCiencias Sociales – FLACSO Argentina, this competition aims to gather both formal and informal strategies for tackling gender discrimination. It is interested in how the internal cultures of organizations change, as well as how the impact or products of an organization’s work become more gender equitable.

There are three categories in this competition:

• The GenChange Award: Stories about changes that organizations are implementing that are chipping away at gender discrimination in your workplace and in your communities.
• The GenTruth Award: Stories about strategies that have been implemented and why they have not worked to reduce gender discrimination in your organization, community or country.
• The Gen-novation Award: Your ideas about innovative ways to end gender discrimination that you haven’t yet had the opportunity to try out.

If your entry is selected, your example will be featured on the websites of AWID, FLACSO, BRIDGE and Gender at Work, and in Gender at Work’s upcoming publication: Making New Rules: Secrets and Stories from the House of Gender. Winners will also be supported to attend and/or feature their experience at: a) a Gender at Work Collaboratory, a venue where practitioners, activists and academics working on gender equality issues meet to share strategies and build collaborations, OR b) the AWID Forum 2016, where they will have an opportunity to present their experiences during a relevant workshop. Winning selections will also receive a year-long subscription to the IDS Bulletin and a back catalogue of BRIDGE publications.

Submissions will be accepted from any individual or organization that has a good story to tell about gender and institutional/organizational change. You do not have to be working in the organization to tell the story.

Deadline: 15 October 2013

For more information, visit this link.

My mini-project but satisfactory outcome

Addressing the children, encouraging them to stay for their height and weight measurement.

Nutritional Assessment of children (under 5years) through Anthropometrics (Height and Weight) Survey and Provision of Nutritional Supplements for malnourished, underweight and stunted children in Ekulu-Pottery Community, Iva-Valley Enugu state, Nigeria

I decided to share with you a community project I conducted sometimes last year. It was conducted as a result of my interest  in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

Ekulu Pottery in Iva Valley is a locality located in the city of Enugu in Enugu State. The community is named after a valley in the area which bears the same name. The locality is the site of the Iva Valley Coal Mine. The community is under Enugu North Local Government Area, a LGA that covers the most civilized areas in Enugu such as; Independence Layout, New Haven etc. Iva Pottery Community is a remote area, rural area to be precise. The community has just one health centre. They have a large population size, it is a community where a 24year old girl is already  married with two to three children, Most of the women I discussed with said that their community is blessed with children and so they don’t need family planning because children are God’s gift. Common occupation for their men are: sands excavating, loading of gravel and breaking of brick stones for building constructions while most of the mothers are involved in petty trading, others are unemployed.

The objectives of the activities are as follows:

• 1To assess the nutritional status of the Children under 5years in the community.
  2To check the availability of food the children
  3To provide nutritional supplements to children found to be malnourished, underweight and stunt.
  
  Below are some pictures captured during the intervention.

    

Ikeme Amalachukwu (assistant), CPC Chairman - Hon. Ikechukwu Anikputa and the Oluwagbemiga Abiola (Project officer)

Visit to Rev. Father Kenneth Obodagu of the Catholic Church in Ekulu Pottery.

One of the children on a weighing scale

Abiola positioning a child for an accurate height measurement

Using WHO (2005), Standard of reference, 33 out of the 113 people were found to be underweight, undernourished and/or stunting. Prevalence result shown: Prevalence of global acute malnutrition (<-2 z-score and/or oedema) is 8.0%, Prevalence of underweight (<-2 z-score) is 9.1% and the Prevalence of stunting (<-2 z-score) is 13.0% using ENA.

One can easily tell from the physical look of the 33 children that they are underweight and malnourished, a parent had two of her kids among and one other parent had three of her kids among. They both testified that their children have been sick, one of the parents said that a friend just advised her to get Vitamin for her kids.

Intervention

•         big sachets of milk were distributed to 33 children
•          multi-vitamin syrup also distributed to them
•         tablets of Multivitamins given to each child
•          iron tablet given to each child.
•      thereafter there was an interactive session with the caregivers/ parents on the findings

some parents and children that benefitted from the project

A community Volunteer helping in giving drugs to the 33 children

A prevalence of wasting or acute malnutrition between 5-8% indicates a worrying nutritional situation and prevalence greater than 10% correspond to a serious nutritional situation (SCN, 1995). The prevalence of acute malnutrition of this survey is 8%, this I consider a worrying situation. The parents were all advised to always give their children good diet to ensure sound health. 

My intention was to monitor these children and possibly access them after the period of 3months but I couldn't make it happen due to lack of fund. the project was conducted with the little resources I had as their was no financial support from the organizations my proposal was submitted to. 

It feels so good to help better a life around you. I found the fulfillment!!! and I look forward to doing more of community projects that will positively affect lives.

I cherish your 'comments',  'likes' and shares' so do not hesitate to do that. In case you want to do similar project or any community intervention and you need a hand, kindly contact me. 

I leave you with this  'Help a life today'.

Opportunity: Innovation Prize for Africa 2014: $150,000 Prize For Innovative Solutions To African Challenges

The African Innovation Foundation (AIF) has announced the call for entries for the 2014 Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA). The prestigious Prize aims at encouraging innovations that contribute to sustainable development in Africa. The winning submission will be awarded a prize of USD 100’000, with two additional USD 25 000, one for the runner up with an innovation with the best business potential and the other one for the runner up with the innovation with the best social impact.

In an effort to drive African-led development, the IPA invites African entrepreneurs and innovators to propose projects that unlock new African potential under one of five categories which include:

• agriculture and agribusiness;
• environment, energy and water;
• health and wellbeing;
• ICT applications;
• manufacturing and services industries.

Prize

The 2014 IPA will consist of three Prizes, which will be given following the criteria outlined above:

• First Prize (USD 100,000): This prize will be awarded to the innovator with the overall best innovation that meets all the above mentioned IPA criteria with clear business potential.
• Runner-up Prize (USD 25,000): This prize will be given to the selected innovator with a commercially driven innovation. Beyond the aforementioned five criteria, this category of Award will be assessed on its marketability potentials and will be awarded to the innovation with the best commercial/business potential.
• Special Prize for Social Impact Innovation (USD 25,000): This category of award will be assessed on its particular social impact in the community/country and will be awarded to the innovation with the best social impact.
• Finalists: This is a group of IPA participants who will be invited to the face-to-face interview and to the award ceremony. All finalists will receive certificates, and the IPA secretariat will work with them to mobilize in kind support to facilitate next steps for their innovation.

Deadline: October 31, 2013

For more information, click here.

HEALTH DANGERS FROM LAPTOPS

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A lecturer once thought me this interesting topic called radiation, he confirmed that laptop emits radiation, while stressing the chronic effect of radiation exposure before the class; he stood so close to the projector emission. Simon (class mate) asked; Sir is the projector also emitting radiation? My lecturer replied ‘Yes it is’ then he moved a bit farther. My point is, few practice what they preach. So even if you have heard this before or you are just hearing it just read on, get informed and let it change your practice for the better.

What are the dangers of exposure to laptops?

Laptop radiation cannot be seen by the naked eye, but it can pose real dangers to our health. Laptop computer Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs), also known as Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR), all computers emits electromagnetic fields (EMFs) on many different frequencies. These EMFs can be extremely harmful to your health.

According to the Environmental & Occupational Health Publication in 2012 about exposure to Electromagnetic Fields from Laptop Use, the study investigates if there are health concerns when exposed to these fields, with particular emphasis on women and their fetus. They concluded that laptops generate Electromagnetic Radiations (EMRs), also known as a magnetic flux, that induce currents in the body, increases risk for tumor development, causing detectable impairment to the health of the exposed individual or his or her offspring.

Researchers Warn Laptop Computers Should be Renamed to Protect Users' Health

Laptops used directly in our laps expose us to more intense radiation that would be harmless otherwise if we were only a few feet away.

Laptops have internal parts that heat up and radiate. Older laptops emitting the highest levels of heat radiation. Laptops generate low-frequency radiations from storage and computing processing. According to reports, wireless radiation is considered to be much more hazardous than what comes from the laptop itself and therefore wireless technology is causing more concern for many people. When laptops use Bluetooth, WiFi and wireless cellular connections, they emit higher frequency, Radio Frequency (RF) radiation. All three of these sources are very close to your genitals, skin and muscles. Although, the World Health Organisation stated that there is no danger from Wi-fi as the radiation levels are much lower than the threshold for an effect on humans. It is still necessary to know that exposure to these dangerous radiations may create bodily reactions such as skin rashes and muscle soreness. In some cases, infertility can occur.

Previous studies have found that laptop use may damage sperm through a thermal effect, that is, by heating up the scrotum during use (this occurred even when a lap pad was used, most likely because the men' closed leg position, required to balance the laptop, also contributed to the heating effect). However the current study found laptop use also leads to non-thermal adverse effects, which means even if you manage to avoid the heating effect, laptop use, on your lap for several hours, may lead to various health problems like infertility or cancer (prostate and testicular), a prolong exposure can render the living body cells inactive, research shows that placing your laptop near your scrotum for an hour increases your testicular temperature by 2.7 degrees Celsius. For women, there can be an irregularity in their periods, causing fertility problems. Early signs of overexposure to EMFs include muscle aches, insomnia, stress and fatigue.

Countless epidemiological studies, from The British Medical Journal to the World Health Organization (WHO) to the California Department of Health, have linked EMFs to:

• Lymphoma
• Leukemia
• Autoimmune system deficiencies
• Birth defects
• Tumors
• Insomnia
• Heart problems and more.

 The fact that the laptop is often situated right next to your body means you’re receiving your computer’s radiation at its fullest strength. It’s been shown that EMF strength decreases with distance. 

How do we minimize laptop radiation…???

According to Dr. Mercola, Laptop computers are a high-energy source of both electric- and magnetic fields; avoid putting a laptop directly on your lap. You can block the thermal effects by using a lap pad if you also avoid sitting with your legs held closely together, and you can shield against the electric field by adding a reflective material or metal to it, but you cannot block the magnetic field component. Computer-charging devices are ungrounded, so ideally you'll only want to use a laptop when it's running on battery not when it's plugged into an outlet and charging.

SHOULD IT ALWAYS BE MEN’S WORLD?

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For me, saying that ‘women live in men’s world’ sounds like selfish and inconsiderate speech...  but you have to agree with me that it is a statement accepted by most men. My eyes are now widely open to the damages this statement has caused. I am sure rapists will laugh and say it is our world, leaving the woman or girl to weep and bleed.  

It is men’s world...

You've heard the expression a thousand times, the number of people chorusing these words in a society depends on the extent of gender inequality in that society, the gender inequality issues that is more rampant in Africa as a result of some ethics, culture and religion etc. has always favored the men. I don’t want to bore you with the details here but do you know that some churches will never allow women to mount the altar let alone becoming a pastor? It is also safe to say it is men’s world in such churches.

What prompted me to ask this question is as a result of my visit to ‘ogbete’ market in Enugu, Nigeria. It is a very big market in the eastern part of Nigeria. You are probably thinking if the men have dominated this market place too… hmmm not really, market place of such is still the women’s world, just patiently read on. Ogbete market accommodates far more than five thousand buyers and sellers in a day and women are in their majority. 

I was to meet with the market leaders and discuss with them prior to my community awareness on health issues, I had prepared myself for the meeting so much that I had to learn some few dialect I couldn’t speak, I had the picture of the normal set of market leaders- some old women of Enugu indigene and probably illiterates.. 

Here comes the D-day, in my formal outfit at Ogbete market, I started wondering when I got to the market office and was directed to the secretary, the storey building looks like I was in a semi - cooperate office, beyond just a market office. If you have visited a typical Nigerian market then you will understand the sharp contrast between the market and the office though I do not have issues with the building.  My perception of some old women as market executives was absolutely wrong! Majority of the market executives I saw that day were men, did I even meet women? NO, I can’t say if they are all men governing the market but I can say that the five executives I met were men. Also, the chairman, the personal assistant and the secretary were men!   

This left me to one conclusion, the authorities and leaders of the market are men so women’s voice might not be heard or faintly heard in a place that should be called women’s comfort zone. Someone once said that to be happy, we must admit women and men are not equal. Are these women happy that they don’t have a say even in their own domain? Is it absolutely normal? I am just thinking and waiting for your opinion but I don’t want to believe I am making the big deal out of it.