Twice a year, two special U.N. days highlight the importance of women and girls to our world. To recognize International Women’s Day on March 8 and International Day of the Girl on October 11, here are seven easy ways you can make a big difference in the lives of daughters, sisters, and mothers around the world — and right in our own neighborhoods.
1. Provide the ticket to a better life: clean water.
Did you know that instead of attending class, girls and women around the world spend 200 million hours each day getting water that is often dirty and dangerous to their health. If they had clean water close at hand, there’s so much more they could do: attend school, play, spend time with their families, and start a business — to name a few. You can help provide clean water and open the door to a better life for a girl. Walk the average 6 kilometers they walk for water on Saturday, May 20, 2023, in World Vision’s annual Global 6K for Water.
2. Support girls and women in crisis.
Millions of girls are subjected to abuse, child labor, trafficking, and other offenses. Your gift will go where it’s needed most, protecting girls and women by equipping skilled, local staff to offer training, education, counseling, medical care, small business loans, and other programs that empower women and girls as well as boys — helping to end cycles of gender-based violence.
3. Mentor a girl close to home.
Many girls growing up in the United States are held back by poverty, poor-performing schools, and teen violence. Reach out and influence the life of a girl in your own community by volunteering as a tutor or mentor. One way to establish a mentorship is through Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Help every girl and woman feel valued.
4. Invest in a small business owner.
Through World Vision microloans, you can connect with hardworking female entrepreneurs who are waiting to realize their dream of building or expanding a successful business. A small loan is all they need. Even better, when the loan is paid off, your donated funds are recycled again and again to help more people and make a bigger impact.
5. Use your voice to help keep girls in school.
When girls stay in school and finish secondary education, a lot of good things happen for them and their families. They enjoy better health and can take care of themselves and their children. They live longer, marry later, earn higher wages, and are more active participants in community life. Yet, 129 million girls ages 6 to 17 are out of school. Your support for the Keeping Girls in School Act can help more adolescent girls around the world to stay in school and receive a high-quality education.
6. Help a new mom.
The first 1,000 days of a child’s life — from conception to age 2 — are the most critical. You can help save young lives around the world by giving a new mother essential things like a bassinet, cloth diapers, blankets, a container for clean water, and soap. Your gift also provides life-saving infant care training. Know a new mom near you who might be feeling overwhelmed? Mothers of Preschoolers connects moms of young children all over the world to a community of women in their own neighborhoods who meet together to embrace the journey of motherhood.
7. Tell the women in your life that you care.
Want to encourage and empower girls and women? Start right in your own home, workplace, and community. Write a note of thanks to that teacher who encouraged you years ago; pick up coffee for that new mom in your office who’s struggling to balance it all; or tell your own sister, daughter, or mother how much you appreciate them.
