Girl Global Fund

Why Girls count Who We Are What We Do What You Can Do

We believe that investing in the future of every girl and young women is key to achieving healthy, fair and productive societies. In our 100 years of experience in working with girls and young women, we understand that they are key to addressing and impacting significant issues such as poverty, discrimination, the spread of disease, and climate change. We know that girls and young women should be at the heart of these issues empowered, heard and effecting change.

However, the challenge for girls and young women to be heard and to effect change in their communities is a significant one. Even in the 21st century, gender inequality remains:

There are twice as many illiterate women over the age of 15 than men. Women earn 10 per cent of the worlds income but work two-thirds of the worlds working hours. 70 per cent of those living in poverty are women. 45 million girls are currently denied an education In Europe women earn only 76 per cent of mens gross hourly pay for the same job Just 9 per cent of HIV positive women in the developing world have access to the treatment that blocks HIV passing to new-borns Women hold only 18.2 per cent of the worlds parliamentary seats This is unacceptable, and must not be allowed to continue. We believe that the solution lies in equipping and empowering girls and young women to become agents of change themselves - impacting their homes, their communities, their countries and their world. As the largest voluntary Movement dedicated to girls and young women in the world, WAGGGS is the best placed organisation to effect this change. The Global Girls Fund has therefore been set-up to provide the means by which we deliver real change and empower each and every girl with whom we are in contact.

Who We Are What We Do What You Can Do

The Global Girls Fund was launched by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts to mark the Movements centenary celebrations. For the past 100 years, Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting has focused on changing the lives of girls and young women around the world by equipping them with valuable skills, knowledge and opportunities. The Global Girls Fund is led by a dedicated Board. Chaired by Kavita Oberoi and formed of influential

individuals, the Global Girls Fund Board advocates and and contributes to the strategic direction of its fundraising efforts.

supports the activities of the Fund

A Global Girls Fund Council of Ambassadors works along side our patron, Her Royal Highness Princess Benedikte. Formed of inspirational international figures, the Council of Ambassadors acts as role models to the girls and young women the World Association and its Member Organizations support worldwide. "The girls and young women of today will be the leaders of tomorrow, in their families, their communities, and in the world. Helping them to develop the best skills to fit those roles, and their fullest potential, is a hugely important task and a meaningful way to invest in the future and in building a better world." - HRH Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Patron of The Global Girls Fund

Who We Are What We Do What You Can Do The Global Girls Fund was launched by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts to mark the Movements centenary celebrations. For the past 100 years, Girl Guiding and Girl Scouting has focused on changing the lives of girls and young women around the world by equipping them with valuable skills, knowledge and opportunities. At the same time, this occasion provides the ideal opportunity to look forward to the next 100 years. When we look to the future, we envisage a world where girls and young women overcome the gender inequalities that prevent them from being heard and effecting change in their communities. We believe that the key to overcoming gender inequality lies in equipping and empowering girls and young women to become agents of change themselves - impacting their homes, their communities, their countries and their world.

We believe that... A girl with a safe place to belong is a girl with confidence... A girl with confidence is a girl who leads... A girl who leads is a girl who is heard... A girl who is heard today... ...Changes her future. Changes our world. The Global Girls Fund has therefore been set up to provide the means by which we achieve this by empowering each and every girl with whom we are in contact. The Global Girls Fund seeks to do this through a 3 step process:

Increasing sense of self by offering girls and young women peer support and a place to belong, so that they can create a safe space in which they can start to explore issues that affect them and those around them. Increasing sense of confidence by helping girls and young women develop as leaders, empowering them to become active in their world and agents of their own destiny. Increasing sense of impact by teaching girls and young women about effective advocacy: educating them on core issues and giving them a platform on which to speak out on issues that affect them and those around them so that the voice of the girl can be better heard. With your help, we aim to raise 10million by June 2014 in order to create and develop related projects and programmes that will ensure each and every girl has the opportunity she deserves to research her fullest potential. Learn more about The Global Girls Fund programmes:

Who We Are What We Do What You Can Do Donate to the Global Girls Fund All donations help support our work with girls and young women worldwide. Your contribution will enable us to develop and deliver innovative non-formal education programs related to building leadership and advocacy skills, and creating opportunities for girls and young women to influence issues that affect them.

Support a young woman to participate in a leadership development opportunity Give the gift of a life changing experience today! The Support a Young Woman scheme is designed to help fulfil the Funds vision of allowing more young women to participate in a leadership opportunity. Every contribution makes a difference. Consider giving the gift of a life changing experience today.

What your company can do In-kind gifts and donations In-kind support is valuable to us and an easy way for your company to support the Global Girls Fund. Offering us your products or services for free or at low cost means more of our funds can be spent directly on our work with girls and young women across the world. Sponsorship There are many opportunities to help raise your profile amongst customers, suppliers and your competitors and show them your socially responsible image. WAGGGS at Commission on the Status of Women 2012 Each year, WAGGGS sends a delegation of young women to the United Nations (UN) 56th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), an annual meeting in which UN members discuss issues around women and gender equality. Frequently asked questions

Contents

Daily updates Blog Frequently asked questions Delegate profiles Delegate schedule

What is CSW? CSW is a functional commission of the UN that is dedicated exclusively to gender equality and the advancement of women, taking place in New York City, USA, from 27 February to 9 March 2012.

Every year, representatives of UN Member States gather to evaluate progress, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and the advancement of women worldwide. Visit the CSW website for more information. Why does WAGGGS go to CSW? WAGGGS is committed to providing a platform for our members to directly engage with decision-makers and have the voices of 10 million girls and young women heard at the UN. WAGGGS delegates seek to influence decision-making at a global level to ensure that governments focus on gender equality and empowerment. CSW is also an opportunity for them to promote their Member Organizations, and personal projects that they have implemented to empower girls and women worldwide. What will the delegates do at CSW? At CSW the youth delegates will attend the conference and side events, speak on panels, give media interviews and meet their government representatives. In all their activities, the youth delegates will showcase the work that Girl Guides and Girl Scouts are already doing to empower girls and young women worldwide. See the delegate schedule for more details. Who is in the delegation? The WAGGGS delegation is made up of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts from different countries who have applied to attend CSW. Our delegate profiles will tell you more about them. How can I track the delegation? Delegates will be posting updates from CSW on Twitter under the name@WAGGGSdelegates. They will also be posting blogs on this page. WAGGGS at previous CSW You can access information about WAGGGS' activities at previous CSW through our international events page. World Thinking Day 2012

Each year on 22 February, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts all over the world celebrate World Thinking Day. World Thinking Day was first created in 1926 at the 4th Girl Guide/Girl Scout International Conference, held at Girl Scouts of the USAs Camp Edith Macy (now called Edith Macy Conference Center). Conference attendees decided that there should be a special day when Girl Scouts and Girl Guides all around the world think of each other and give thanks and appreciation to their sister Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. Each year on 22 February, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts all over the world celebrate World Thinking Day. Its a day when Girl Guides and Girl Scouts think of each other and give thanks and appreciation for the international friendship they find in our Movement. The theme for World Thinking Day 2012 is we can save our planet, based on UN Millennium Development Goal 7: environmental sustainability. On this website youll find activity ideas, information about the theme, and lots of resources. The new activity pack for World Thinking Day 2012 is bigger than ever! Its packed with lots of fun and educational activities, extra information on the theme of environmental sustainability, plus ideas for how you

can speak out on environmental issues. There are activities for all ages, and we also have a list of fundraising ideas to make your events as successful as possible. Dont miss the fundraising tips! This year the activities have been divided into four sections. 1. 2. 3. 4. Reduce the use of fossil fuels (complete two activities) Save resources in and around your home (complete two activities) Switch to sustainable energy solutions (complete two activities) Speak out to make a difference (complete any one activity that delivers WAGGGS demands on MDG 7) The activity pack can be downloaded here in English, French and Spanish. Make sure you log your activities on our activities map, and read about our special online resources.

To earn a World Thinking Day badge, complete six activities including at least one fundraising activity. We have included some fundraising suggestions in this pack, or you can get creative and design your own. Badges are available to purchase from WAGGGS online shop and completing the activities is not compulsory.

Facts and figures

In Latin America and south-east Asia. 100 per cent of people living on less than one US dollar a day

areexposed to indoor air pollution from the burningof fuels like wood and charcoal. In Bangladesh,95 per centof the population relies on such fuels.
In countries where water is not easy to find, women and girls, some as young as seven years old, are

having to walk three times as farto find it.

It now takes the Earth one year and six months to regenerate what we use in a

year. www.footprintnetwork.org
Girls spending more time walking for watermiss out on their education. If we could capture all the sunlight that falls on the earth in just one hour, we would have enough

energyto power the whole world for one year.

Girls and women walking long distances, often alone, face a greater risk of being attacked. About 90 per cent of the rubbish in landfill sites could have been recycled. If meeting basic needs like food and waterbecome harder, girls have to take on morehousehold

responsibilities and are forced togo out to work to help their family, preventingthem from attending school. Women are often central in determining their households contribution to climate change and lead the way in low-emission living. In developed countries,women typically eat less meat than men and more. often choose green products when given the option. When extreme weather strikes, girls and young women are less likely to leave the home to seek help, or to have basic survival skills like swimming or climbing. Around 2.7 billion people, almost half of all people in the world, rely on biomass (such as plant or animalmatter, like wood) for cooking and heating. Burning biomass puts lots of CO2 into the atmosphere and breathing the smoke every day is very harmful. www.sustainableenergyforall.org/about