Thankful 🍂

When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed. Do something today that your future self will thank you for. #globalhealth

xx,
st

“Children should be the first to benefit from mankind’s success and the last to suffer from its failures, for it is how we bring up our children that our civilization is measured, our humanity is tested, our future is shaped.”
— Jim Grant, UNICEF

Invest in Our Girls

Women's Entrepreneurship Day ignites women leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs who drive economic expansion, and advance communities worldwide! Did you know:

- Women make up 4% of Fortune 500 CEOs in the US (oh hay!)
- 8.6 million businesses owned by women, generating $1.3 trillion in revenue and employing 7.8 million
- When you empower a young girl with long-term education, she devotes 90% of her earnings back to her children and local community, which elevates her family from poverty and changes her world.

34% of young women in developing countries are unemployed, in the labor force and not in school. Today we recognize the 4 billion women across the globe, ignite women leaders, and inspire the 250 million girls living in poverty. 

Benefits of change:
One formula that is either underestimated or deliberately neglected in most communities around the world that can break the toxic cycle of poverty: education of girls and women.

Improving literacy among girls and young women offers enormous economic benefits when she is seen as a wage-earner for her family. She has a better likelihood of making her own choices and resisting cultural pressure to have children. Educated girls are far more likely to protect their offspring from preventable diseases and avoid malnutrition. 

Reaching girls during their adolescent years is critical because decisions and behaviors established during this period affect their development and shape their adult life. 

This is about to blow your mind:
To close this deficit, approximately $40 billion is needed annually (which is the equivalent of 8 days of global military spending). 

I learned that women perform 66% of the world’s work, but only earn 10% of the world’s income. They also account for 85% of consumer purchases and control $20 trillion in worldwide spending.

Women who receive an education are more likely to become entrepreneurs, invest in their communities and empower other women. Suddenly, the vicious cycle of poverty becomes a cycle of prosperity. Everyone wins.

xx,
st

Dream big ✨

Dream big ✨

The Universal Language of Friendship 👫

On most days, he comes to school wearing very old clothes with holes in them, arms and legs covered in sand and dirt. I remember him on my first night at the IDP camp. Classes were suspended for two days as teachers had gone on strike. He was at the playground alone, standing on a broken plank and did not wear any shoes. I had wondered if anyone was looking for him. 

He saw me approaching from afar as I walked towards the school and without hesitation, he ran to me quickly with arms wide open, and wrapped them tightly around my legs. We exchanged smiles, both looked at each other and giggled. He then grabbed my hands, and together we ran towards the plank. He didn't want to let go. 

In a country I traveled alone to and knew very little about, I held a sense of insecurity, but something about being in the presence of this boy made me feel safe. That particular memory taught me a few things I will never forget:

1. Follow your dreams: I learned that life was more than the constant fight for acceptance and approval from my family in my professional advancement and personal relationships. Good was never enough. Nothing could be more harmful than great job. Chasing a meaningless dream only to satisfy your parents meant that I had to be okay with living a very long, unfulfilling life. I didn't want that. Slowing down and practicing patience helped open my eyes to something greater, and that was to join the fight against poverty.

2. The little things matter: I was once in a relationship where I was convinced to ignore my emotions, pick my battles, and only confront matters of upmost significance because the little things weren't entirely worthy of a conversation. Overlooking the present, in the now, moments was a choice. The attachment to a smartphone, taking human interaction and emotional connection for granted was also a choice. Though the signs may be subtle, another person's energy is an undeniably powerful, contagious thing. My heart was not full. This was a reminder that details mean everything, and the simple and small things DO matter because the way someone makes you feel today can manifest and change your world. 

3. Trust yourself: Someone who once meant the world to me had said that I would never be successful in this pursuit and that it was too ambitious. The worst thing you can do is to go against your gut feeling, and sacrifice your voice for the sake of someone else's opinion or happiness. It is something that is always worth protecting and fighting for. I learned that nothing is more valuable than believing in yourself, and no one can define your happiness or purpose than you alone. 

4. Pay attention to your heart: There is nothing that could describe, to the fullest extent, something that can only be felt in my heart. This boy possessed an unconditional love that radiates from within, and his eyes were filled with raw hope. He didn't ask for anything but for my friendship and company. I've never experienced anything more sincere, joyful and free. Nothing else mattered when everything before me became still; and it was beautiful!

It's amazing how much perspective and wisdom I have gained from slowing down, and appreciating the world around me! I knew the only obvious answer was to spread joy as much as possible, and make it my life-long goal to promote education so these children have an active role in someday working toward breaking the vicious cycle of multi-generation poverty, improving their health, promoting gender equality, peace and stability. 

The boy never told me his name, but I nicknamed him Star in Chinese (星 shares the same pronunciation as both star and heart), as he was the brightest one shining amongst the sky. We didn't speak the same language and he hardly spoke, but we shared a universal language: friendship, and that's all we really needed. He will never know this, but I owe it to him for teaching me to follow my heart. ☺️

xx,
st

Pictured: Star wearing the best clothes he owns, which is his school uniform required at Southern Cross Academy. Uniforms reduce conflict around social groups identified by appearance and promotes equality, which means greater ability to focus on ac…

Pictured: Star wearing the best clothes he owns, which is his school uniform required at Southern Cross Academy. Uniforms reduce conflict around social groups identified by appearance and promotes equality, which means greater ability to focus on academic performance. 

“The best and the most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt within the heart.”
— Helen Keller

Eradicating Polio

Finally: A generation of children has grown up polio free! In 1988, there were more than 350,000 children diagnosed with polio and in 2014, there were only 359. This is the FIRST time in the history of polio where so few children have this crippling virus.

The progress to end polio for good is tangible, and it is real. However, with just two countries in the world where polio still persists (Pakistan and Afghanistan), the threat of outbreak exists. UNICEF and Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) leads vaccine supply, providing cost-effective, easily administered vaccines to the most insecure and poverty-stricken areas of the world, reaching over 500 millions of children in over 70 countries. The goal is to eradicate polio entirely by 2019. We've never been closer.

On World Polio Day, we celebrate the brave leaders who go to great lengths to #ENDPOLIO.

xx,
st

It's Mashujaa Day! 🇰🇪

Today we celebrate Mashujaa Day, commemorating the day Kenya achieved full independence, and in honor of the heroes who liberated their country from colonialists. In the new constitution (2010), the meaning of this special day also recognizes all of their heroes at large. Heko! To the Kenya Defense Forces for their protection, to the Olympians who provide hope for their country, to their Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, to their courageous female leaders who inspire young girls that they can beat the odds, and to all of those who push for the reduction of poverty and environmental conservation.

I thank the educators at Southern Cross Academy, the hard-working families at the camps of Maai Mahiu, and every child who I know in my heart, are destined for amazing things.

Teachers at Southern Cross Academy (+Ian)

Teachers at Southern Cross Academy (+Ian)