Providing support and non-gender streaming resources for women is essential for the well-being of our communities. With women constituting nearly half the countries population and, yet, not being equally represented in leadership or stable employment, a gap in opportunities is evident. This is in addition to the increased risk of women being subject to domestic violence and sexual harassment in public. To prevent this and encourage the entry of women as strong and equal individuals, we have designed a few programs for them.
Check them out below:
SECTION 1.1: Challenging Norms – Exploring and Loving Oneself
Understanding one’s strength, worth and abilities is important in the growth and success of individuals. However, having a strong and positive view of oneself is often not associated with traditional understandings of ‘femininity’ and rather more strongly linked with masculinity . This has strong implications on the social, mental, economic and physical well-being of women, particularly as they move within a patriarchal system. An overview of related programs in this stream are listed below:
A. Self-Love
Following the same format as the youth ‘Learning to Love Yourself’ program, this program will have a series of workshops where women explore topics affecting health, self-recognition, social movement, and support by addressing and challenging gender-specific barriers.
B. Social Circle
This program would provide an opportunity for women to gather in a safe space and discuss various topics that impact the gender-specific communities.
C. Exercise
Due to the limited amount of safe spaces for women’s-only exercise, we intend to introduce exercise programming for women. Professional instructors will be hired to lead sessions and ensure women are getting the maximum benefits from their workouts.
SECTION 1.2: Building Skills Experience
As outlined with youth, lacking a certainty of one’s future is linked with poor mental, physical and social health outcomes. Women, through societal gender-streaming practices throughout growth, are often forced to limit their aspirations. That is why we want to ensure that all women have the role models, resources and opportunities to plan and move towards their goals – without any limits. Below are a list of our proposed programs:
A. ‘How-To’ Career Building Series
This program would entail a set of workshops where women are able to explore different career areas, gain the skills and resources for moving up or into careers. Workshops would include: How to Get an Apprenticeship; How to Get into Post-Secondary; How to Build Your Resume and ‘How to Ace Your Interview.’
B. Panels
A series of interspersed panels will be organized where professional women in various careers share their experiences in moving into careers. The goal would be for women to begin networking, gain inspiration and tips into life in various careers.
C. Placements
Women would be given the opportunity to gain work experience (paid/unpaid) in various work settings. This would allow for women to explore career options while getting actual experience.