Elena Gonzalez
Women on a Mission - Kyrgyzstan Expedition 2022
Fundraising for Women for Women International UK
Story
Next September, I’m joining a self-funded expedition to Kyrgyzstan with a team of 12 amazing women from around the world. We will trek 150km on foot in just 8 days across mountainous landscapes, between 2,500 and 4,000 metres high, with the objective to raise in total $100,000 USD for women survivors of the recent wars in Ukraine, Afghanistan and Syria, via the NGO Women for Women International UK (WfWI), an organisation that works with some of the most marginalised women in the world helping them to transform their lives by providing them with the tools and resources to build a sustainable future for themselves and their families.
Women for Women International was founded in1993 by an Iraqi woman, Zainab Salbi, who experienced war and marital abuse first hand. WfWi has reached over 519,700 marginalised women in 8 conflict-affected countries through training, support networks and providing them with livelihood.
Women suffer the most in a conflict: they are forced to flee their homes to escape violence and routinely face the threat of sexual violence in the form of rape, forced marriage and sexual slavery. Increasingly, women and girls are targeted by the use of sexual violence as a tactic of war.
Some of the Programs:
- Stronger Women, Stronger Nations: Offering training and financial means to women to break the isolation of war, conflict, and gender discrimination to realize their own power. As they form connections in class, women learn to save, build businesses, understand their rights, improve their health, and change societal rules. They pass this knowledge on to their families and communities — creating a ripple effect for generations.
- Conflict Response Fund: Through a non-partisan approach and responsive grants, Women for Women International is able to track crises in real time, identify credible partners on the ground and allocate resources to meet the needs of women survivors, no matter what side of a conflict they are on.
What your money could buy:
45 SGD / 30€ could pay for Rights Awareness Training, so that a woman can learn that she is worthy of contributing to the decisions at home, including financial decisions, which may be traditionally handled by only men in the family.
65 SGD / 45€ could pay for a goat, which can be raised for milk or cheese that can be sold at market, changing a woman’s life by giving her an income and status in her community.
130 SGD / 90€ could pay for a bicycle, so a woman can quickly transport her goods, helping her grow and expand her business and become more self-sufficient.
270 SGD / 185€ could pay for Men’s Engagement training, to give a man a place to explore gender, masculinity, and understand the benefits to families and communities when women are empowered.
900 SGD / 615€ could pay for ten sewing machines, to enable women to set up a tailoring business and provide an income for their families.
5,000 SGD / 3,430 € could pay for a greenhouse, for a woman to grow organic herbs to sell at market.
65 SGD / 45€ could pay for a goat, which can be raised for milk or cheese that can be sold at market, changing a woman’s life by giving her an income and status in her community.
130 SGD / 90€ could pay for a bicycle, so a woman can quickly transport her goods, helping her grow and expand her business and become more self-sufficient.
270 SGD / 185€ could pay for Men’s Engagement training, to give a man a place to explore gender, masculinity, and understand the benefits to families and communities when women are empowered.
900 SGD / 615€ could pay for ten sewing machines, to enable women to set up a tailoring business and provide an income for their families.
5,000 SGD / 3,430 € could pay for a greenhouse, for a woman to grow organic herbs to sell at market.
All the donations will go 100% to our charities and all the costs are paid by the team members.
Learn more
Women for Women International UK
www.facebook.com/WOAMsingapore
For the ones who know me, you can imagine how excited and thrilled I am to participate in this adventure, as it combines my two passions: mountain trekking & raising awareness on various challenges faced by women. Growing up in a family of strong women, my interest in human exchanges and understanding complex issues pushed me to take this new challenge.
So after 2 Covid years of powerless cabin fever, I embark on this worthy endeavour and will need your support to help contribute to this higher purpose.
Thank you again for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are also safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails.