Shifting the Narrative

Visiting EMpower’s partners on the ground is an incredibly moving, emotional, and thought-provoking experience. Out of a whirlwind of sights and sounds and stories, there is always a universal life lesson to take home. Having recently returned from India, I would like to share something that made me think about my own professional experiences and the world in general. Having heard of it so much over the years, I finally had the absolute joy of visiting one of the Adolescent Girls Learning Communities with long-time EMpower grantee partner Jan Sahas in Rajasthan.

In Mexico, nestled within the community of Guaquitepec, shines a beacon of hope and change: Patronato Pro Educación Guaquitepec. This grassroots organisation was born out of the community’s need for better education and mainly serves the Tseltal people, a prominent ancient Mayan population residing in the Chiapas highlands. For over two decades, Patronato Pro Educación Guaquitepec has offered a uniquely tailored educational model which goes beyond traditional curricula, empowering students and parents—particularly from a gender lens. This International Women’s Day, I am heartened by all that they have achieved and are setting out to do. I recently witnessed firsthand how they transform attitudes and beliefs about gender and the role of women and girls.

“Experts.” If you’ve recently learnt about EMpower, you’re going to come across this word often on our social channels and in other external communications. You will rarely see us use it for any other group of people except youth. Of course, adolescents and young people (ages 10-24) make up our target population. But ever wonder why we call them experts?

In 2023, we experienced a dearth of global optimism amidst conflicts, disasters, and trauma that hit several parts of the world and whose impact is bound to linger. And yet, last year, EMpower partners and the young people we work with emerged as a wellspring of pride, accomplishment, and inspiration.

At EMpower, we recognise our role in facilitating opportunities that bring our grantee partners together to co-learn and strategise the best ways to do this. And our recent journey to advance youth safeguarding in East and Southeast Asia can shed light on how other organisations can do this.

Look around your office, look around your local park, look around your local café or restaurant—one in three women around you and in the world have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Violence is a problem that affects women and girls everywhere.