So who are the 2015 Grant Finalists?
In 2014, 100 Women members invested over $100,000 in the empowerment of women and girls both here and overseas.
It is time for us to do it all again!
Twenty-four expressions of interest were received in July this year for the next round of 100 Women grants. At our request, eight of these organisations were invited to submit further information via a grant application and the following five finalists have been through a rigorous assessment process in preparation for member voting in December.
2015 Grant Finalists
1. Telethon Kids Institute has requested a grant of $39,450 for a project in the Fitzroy Valley, WA. The project aims to train and employ Aboriginal women from nine remote communities as researchers to gather information over two years for a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) intervention study. At the same time, the women will be supported to complete a Certificate II in Community Heath Research through the Menzies School of Health Research.
One in 12 Aboriginal children in the Fitzroy Valley have FASD, a spectrum of conditions caused by fetal alcohol exposure. The effects of alcohol on a fetus may include damage to the nervous system, under-nourishment and changes in facial features. Once born, children may have problems with growth, learning and behaviour, or abnormalities in organs such as the heart and kidneys.
2. Fair Agenda has requested $14,895 for an Australia-wide responsible media project. This community mobilisation project aims to incentivise media outlets to include support service contact details in articles covering domestic violence and to more broadly follow responsible reporting guidelines. Less than 10% of Australian media articles on domestic violence this year have included information about where to seek help if you are affected.
The Fair Agenda community also actively responds to high profile advertising and media promoting a discriminatory attitude towards women. As a movement of more than 30,000 Australians, the Fair Agenda community works to promote fairness and equality for women.
3. Caritas Australia is seeking $30,545 for a project in Vientiane, Laos. The project aims to support poor and marginalised women, particularly from the Hmong ethnic minority in Laos. This will be achieved through vocational training for home-based production and micro-enterprise to increase their economic empowerment through access to sustainable employment opportunities and a more secure home environment for the women and their children
Laos is situated in Southeast Asia between Vietnam and Thailand. Bombed heavily during the Vietnam War, it is one of the world’s poorest countries and one-quarter of Laotian adults cannot read or write.
4. Classroom of Hope has requested $40,000 for a project in Cambodia and Thailand. This project seeks to enable 20 disadvantaged female students to participate in a two-year tertiary Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) course. This will lead to a sustainable career and support for their families, as well as producing role models for other girls and women in their communities.
Classroom of Hope reports that education empowers women, with one additional school year increasing a woman’s wages by 10% to 20%. However, women are heavily under-represented in STEM fields in the region. This is despite employers experiencing shortages in STEM related careers.
5. Cambodian Children’s Fund is seeking $40,000 for a project in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The project will deliver a Specialist Child Interviewers Course to 24 Cambodian female police officers. This will enable them to conduct interviews that elicit evidence to international standards, assist in the arrest of offenders, are minimally invasive and reduce the number of times a child has to recount a serious crime to authorities.
The Cambodian Children’s Fund Child Protection Unit tackles serious child abuse in Cambodia, including homicide, sexual assault and trafficking. Training is delivered by experienced UK police investigators who also provide support to the Cambodian National Police for investigations into serious cases.
100 Women members will collectively decide on the grant recipients by voting for up to three preferred finalists.
The distribution of votes and grant pool funds at 31 December 2015 will decide the grants and their recipients. It’s not too late to join us and help change the lives for the women and girls impacted by these projects. Make your donation now!
Member voting opens in early December. This is your chance to carefully consider your vote and be the positive change you want to see in the world.
Article by Tamara Findlay, 100 Women Grants Subcommittee
