A Communications Initiative for a Balanced, Planned and Stable Population

A Communications Initiative for a Balanced, Planned and Stable Population

Gender Blender

“The youth need to be sensitized.” “We did not know that we could be change makers. We want to be part of the change process that happens in India. “Students made profound statements like theseafter a three-day workshop on gender sensitization organized by Population First.

Forty members from various Change Maker Club from S.K. Somaiya, Wilson, Hinduja, Jai Hind, Guru Nanak Khalsa and Sathaye College,came together at theYWCA International Centre in Mumbai from 25-27October 2014,for the workshop.

The whole idea behind getting this group together was to create champions of change, to helptake gender and its related issue forward in the personal life ofthe students, in their communities, in theirneighborhood and through the students to other colleges too.The workshop touched upon gender and gender related issues, leadership and communication skills, and role.

The mandate for conducting these sessions was that they needed tobe interactive, participatory, exploratory, experimental, creative and student-oriented.

To facilitate this process, we invited Manjul Bhadrwaj, the founder of Experimental Theatre Foundation,to take the student through the workshop, using the philosophy of Theatre of relevance. Says Bharadwaj, “Theatre of relevance is a philosophy which believes that the world can be changed by theatre and is being used and practiced all over the world.My use of the philosophy is to change the mindsets of the youth.”

Prior to this workshop, a meeting with NSS and WDC student representatives of Colleges was organized at the Population First office to discuss about the current activities undertaken under the Laadli campaign. Dr. Sharada educated students about gender equality and asked students what activities they would like to conduct in their colleges to promote awareness about gender sensitization. The meeting ended with screening of seven 1-minute movies based on gender equality.

Susannah Malkan, Head, Dept of Sociology , S.K Somaiya College of Arts, Science and Commerce, who also was part of the workshop along with her students, added, “ During the workshop, students were thoroughly sensitized through a process whereby they questioned themselves as well as one another about their own thoughts concerning women as well as those of others around them. Many of them realized their own strengths and weaknesses as responsible citizens of the country.”

Dr A.L. Sharada, Director, Population First, conducted sessions various gender related issues for the students in the workshop.

Talking about the relevance of the workshop, Bhadrwaj adds, “This workshop was a unique initiative by Population First to expose the youth with leadership skills, planning and motivational tactics, and clarifying the gender perspective. This clarification in turn leads to propagating and working towards gender non-violence in society. “

He further added, “The youth are full of energy, curiosity and courage. They are willing to explore new dimensions of themselves and society. I interacted with a group, who were willing to change the status quo. Today’s youth are willing to be agents of change and willing to commit themselves to beambassadors of change.”

Shreya Boral, a student from S.K Somaiya College recounting her experience of attending the workshops says, “I gained confidence, the confidence to speak up, and the workshop helped me hone my presentation skills.”

Talking about what influences that the workshop created for the students, Malkan added, “This workshop has truly made an impact not only on the girls but also the boys who have now gained the confidence to stand up for women's equality, at a personal level, within their families and within society at large.”

Another student, Gitesh from S.K Somaiya College says,” Through this workshop, I have learnt about things that I had not considered important and useful earlier. I have learnt a lot of new things too.”

Bindiya from Jaihind College adds, “This workshop has been a lot of fun. I would like to thank-you for that. I learnt how totackle problems in a slightly different way, through humour and keenness. I have changed in a small way, as a person. I always knew that I could lead or start or initiate and hold my own ground, but until this workshop, I did not really have the concrete proof that I can. I’ll always remember that I must speak up and stand my ground.”

Post the workshop the students created a whatsapp group to share their ideas and experiences with each other. They have also shared athree-month plan on the various activities that they are going to do in their respective colleges. Population Firstwill have a follow up sessions with all the participants in December, to keep the momentum going.

Advocacy initiative with advertising head honchos

As a part of Population First advocacy initiative with the advertising fraternity, a meeting with senior advertising and media professionals was held onOctober 9, at The Ambassador Hotel, Mumbai.
The objective of the gathering was to review theGender Guideline for Advertising drafted by Population First,to explore the avenues available for promoting the guidelines through the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) and to review the status and the future of Laadli Media and Advertising Awards.

Dr. A.L. Sharada , Director, Population First, gave the audience a brief overview of the Laadli Campaign viz Media Awards, Fellowship, Gender Sensitization Workshops etc. She touched upon the award process, and how the workshops use theatre techniques to build the commitment of the participants to promote gender sensitivity and equality.

In the second part of the meeting, Dr Sharada briefed the members about the two high profile events held in 2013- the IAAI workshop VOW (Violence On Women) and the ‘Men are from Venus and Women are from Mars’ workshop which looked at ASCI rulings as well as presented the findings of a survey on gender sensitivity in ad agencies. The workshop with Film Writers Association was also discussed. The guidelines prepared by Population First for promoting gender sensitivity in advertisements were then distributed for feedback.

Incorporating gender as a category in Ad Club awards was also discussed and it was agreed that it needs to be considered by the authorities.

Small savings fulfill big dreams

Sadhana Chaudhary, Tembhurli village.

This is a story of 16 young girls keen on pursuing their higher studies but did not have any avenues or opportunities to do so. They hailed from a small tribal village of Chikhalgao in Shahapur block of Thane district. Coming from a background where the family sustains on single crop farming, pursing studies and hoping for a successful career was a distant dream for them. They were unaware of the options available to them to fulfill their dreams, until Population First began engaging with them in 2013.

Discussions on adolescent health related issues, helped the girls shed all their inhibitions and started interacting very confidently. Through these intense yet interactive engagements, the girls found a new platform to voice their concerns and queries on any issue they were facing in their personal lives.

Saving small amount of money every month emerged as a solution to fulfill their dream of pursuing higher education. The girls had the example of their mothers who were part of some self-help groups and were financially independent to fulfill their needs and wants. Following the footsteps, the girls started a SHG and even went ahead and opened a bank account in the Thane District Co-operative Bank.

With the help of Population First team, the girls learnt how to make basic bank transactions and maintain their account. What began with a monthly contribution of Rs 50 per person in March 2013, has now summed upto Rs 17,780.

The girls purchased educational material and paid their tuition fees from these savings. The villagers were impressed by the sincere efforts of the girls. When the village received rupees three lakh as funding from the agriculture department, the villagers donated Rs 90,000 to support the education of this group.

The determination and sincerity of the girls paid off. They did not even realize that a small contribution of Rs 50 would turn into a large pool of funds, opening several windows of opportunities for them!

Participating in the Giving Back - NGO India 2014 expo

GuideStar India invited Population First to participate in the third edition of ‘Giving Back - NGO India 2014’, a not-for-profit large scale exhibition and conference designed to bring together NGOs, Foundations and Corporate CSR from across India to share learning and best practices among peers, and engage with key stakeholders.The event was held on Sep 25 and 26, 2014 at the Nehru Centre, Worli Mumbai.NGO India is UBM India's CSR initiative produced in association with GuideStar India.

It was a great place to see innovative solutions, scalable models and interactions with social entrepreneurs driving these initiatives. Giving Back - NGO India 2014 sought to make a real difference with connections being translated into partnerships, and appreciation being converted into engagement and support.Every exhibiting NGO and Foundation had undergone GuideStar India's rigorous due diligence process.

Being part of AWC Shopping Mela

Population First was invited by American’s Women Club (AWC) for their Shopping Mela on 11October at Trident Hotel. Being the international day of the girl child, the theme of the mela was ‘Education and Welfare of the girl child’.

The Charity Mela started with introductions from the 22 NGO’s and 30 vendors that were present. Melanie our Program officer represented Population First and introduced Laadli. Population First stall consists of diyas, t-shirts, cards, bags and mugs. School performed dances, whichportrayedthe importanceof theGirl Child.

Population First, 3rd floor, Shetty House, 101 M.G. Road, Mumbai 400 001, India

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