Tag Archives: New York City

Look What @ExplorersTYWLS Did in Bryant Park!

Since camp began five days ago, the @ExplorersTYWLS have been tweeting away (check out our Storify to see how great they’re doing!) So for today’s workshop, we decided to give them a  little break from pure social media and let them brush up on their offline reporting skills, which they’ll then post to their Tumblr. We armed them with these basic questions…

  • What are you the first to do?
  • What would you like to be the first to do?
  • What inspires you?

…and then we set them loose in Bryant Park!

We all gathered on the steps of The New York Public Library to regroup and talk about their experiences (and, of course, for a photo opp!)

I was particularly proud of the Explorers today because they stepped outside of their comfort zones to connect with people from all walks of life. In-person interviews can be very intimidating, especially when approaching people on the street. The girls were nervous, but not one of them backed down; no one said “I can’t” or “I’m too scared.” They worked through their fears and had incredible success, interviewing tons of people. That, my friends, is courage.

Look out for the articles that the Explorers will be posting about their interviewing experiences on the Tumblr blog: ExplorersTYWLS.tumblr.com.

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Let’s Dance! Bollywood Dance Class Will Sponsor Girl in India

iNFiN8 dancing at our She's the First Soiree last November!

In the mood to get your dance on? If you live in New York, then come join She’s the First on Sunday, September 18th for a special Bollywood Dance Class taught by the South-Asian Dance Company iNFiN8! For those of you who have been following us for awhile, they were the awesome group that performed at our first birthday celebration last November!) The proceeds of the class—and any additional donations—will go toward sponsoring a girl at our partner school Shanti Bhavan. The event is organized by Shanti Bhavan and iNFiN8, based in NYC/NJ area just like us, so we’re thrilled we can attend in person and support!

Keerthishree

iNFiN8′s goal is to sponsor Keerthishree, a 4th grader who dreams of being both a software engineer and singer when she grows up. You can learn more about the event on iNFiN8′s Facebook page and sign up for it here. Even if you can’t attend the class, you can still donate a few dollars to give Keerthishree the education she deserves to continue to have—and you can help her become the first software engineer AND singing pop star some day.

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She’s the First Attends TEDxTeen

The TEDxTeen 'Class of 2011' speakers

On Saturday, April 2, She’s the First was bi-coastal! From New York City, Tammy Tibbetts live tweeted from TEDxTeen, while in San Diego, Notre Dame sophomore Lindsay Brown tweeted from Clinton Global Initiative University (her blog post is coming next!).

TEDxTeen is a one-day event that screens some of the best talks from the annual TED (Technology-Education-Design) Conference–a gathering of the world’s leading thinkers and doers–and then invites speakers to the stage. These individuals have diverse passions and visions, but one thing they share is “ideas worth spreading.” TEDx events are independently organized (this one was hosted by the We Are Family Foundation). For TEDxTeen, the audience was predominately under age 20, and the speakers were either teens or an “old person” who had a message that everyone should learn before they “grow up.”

You can follow our favorite tweets here! Special shout outs for standing ovations given to:

  • Angwech Collines, a refugee of the war in northern Uganda whom Invisible Children sponsored to attend college in the US. When she graduates, she will be among the 1% of women from northern Uganda who have completed university.
  • Kathy & Amy Eldon, a mother-and-daughter duo who told the story of son/brother Dan, who was murdered abroad as a 22-year-old Reuters photojournalist. He left behind journals and a legacy that “the journey is the destination.”
  • Natalie Warne, volunteer for Invisible Children, who led activists to the Harpo Studios to catch the attention of Oprah and get the publicity needed to make a 100-city project called “The Rescue” a success.

 

The talks were split into three sessions, and in between breaks, we chatted with attendees to make a little Flip video (we didn’t have our talented video volunteers do this one, so pardon the lack of polish!).

What’s your favorite TED talk? Let us know what you think!

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She’s the First Spring Tweetup!

#CelebrateSTF Tweetups are quarterly events that She’s the First decided to host free of charge, starting last summer, to give our online following in NYC the chance to meet together offline. Why go on a bunch of little coffee meetings with you all if we could just bring you all together to have the creative sparks fly, and let the thought-provoking convo on girls’ education take us in new, unexplored directions?

We’re thrilled to announce our next Tweetup will be on April 6th, at MTV Studios, which donated use of a conference room, and we’ll feed our minds with Hummus Place treats, also a generous donor!

Since space is limited, RSVP here on Eventbrite, if you are 100% certain you can attend. There is a capacity of 40 people, and we’re already at 23, in less than 24 hours!

Even if you are not in NYC, you can participate in the discussion by following #CelebrateSTF tweets. You can even tweet in your own questions and comments, which our event leaders will share with our attendees.

Expect an evening of…

  • creative brainstorming for a National Poetry Month campaign in April that aims to sponsor a girl in Sudan
  • an up-close look at our She’s the First partner in Uganda
  • forming new friendships with go-getters who like to give back
  • a special preview of GIRLS WHO ROCK, the biggest fundraiser for She’s the First, returning this June!

 

Remember, if you live outside of NYC, you can host your own Tweetup for She’s the First any time! All it takes is a hash tag and online enthusiasm to get your friends and followers together offline for meaningful brainstorms on how you can support and fundraise for girls’ education.

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She’s the First Gets Tech Savvy with Girl Delegates at the UN

Photo Courtesy of Plan International & Because I am a Girl

Hey everyone, remember me? I am a researcher for She’s the First and I am also the representative for a non-governmental organization (NGO) at the United Nations.

I am so excited to be attending this year’s 55th Commission on the Status of Women Conference at the UN, a solid two weeks when women and delegates from all over the world come to New York City to discuss issues of gender and inequality facing women today. Together, they look for solutions.

But what is a women’s conference without some girl power?

My role for the conference has been helping to facilitate the attendance of more than 250 girl delegates from several continents, picked to represent their organizations at CSW 55, preparing them to advocate for girls across the globe.

In a parallel event last week, the girl delegates from Plan International’s Because I am a Girl, an organization dedicated to breaking down the unique barriers against the girl child, presented to a packed room in a side event called Girls Take the Stage.

From a video presentation featuring global girls’ perspectives on Internet communications, to a panel of girls from around the world voicing their takes on technology, the girl delegates exposed us all to the potential they see in every tweet and text message.

While some girls admitted to their 24/7 obsession with Facebook and others expressed having no access to computers, all girls agreed that technology can be used effectively to educate girls. Ya Marie of Sierra Leone could not have expressed it better. She said, “when you educate a girl, you empower her.”

Early on in the panel (while I was live tweeting the event!), it became pretty clear that the girl delegates and She’s the First are pretty in sync when it comes to the benefits of using technology to create positive social change and better the lives of girls everywhere.

Continue reading →

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Friday Morning Discussion at the UN – RSVP’d!

the UN, on First Ave. - one of many reasons we are grateful to be based in NYC

We are so jazzed to be attending this event tomorrow, a Friday morning breakfast where we’ll listen to a dialogue among the powerful female leaders championing a better future for adolescent girls worldwide. We’ll tweet as much as possible from @shesthefirst and blog our notes — Tammy Tibbetts and Researcher Hannah Brencher will report back soon!

UNITED NATIONS, New York, 22 February 2011—Government ministers and representatives of the United Nations, the private sector and youth organizations will hold a special event to encourage investments in adolescent girls and promote their rights. The event, Invest in the Future: Empower Adolescent Girls Now, is in line with the Joint Statement on Accelerating Efforts to Advance the Rights of Adolescent Girls, issued in March 2010 by the UN Adolescent Girls Task Force, which helps developing countries formulate policies and programmes that empower adolescent girls.

The event is being organized by the UN Adolescent Girls Task Force, which is co-chaired by UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, and UNICEF, in partnership with the International Labour Organization, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), UN Women, World Health Organization and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The event, sponsored by the United Nations Foundation, precedes a review of progress in efforts to eliminate all forms of discrimination and violence against the girl child, which will take place during the 55th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women.

WHY: Adolescent girls play an important role in the present and future economic and social development of their countries. The high-level discussion will underline the United Nations commitment to achieving gender equality and to involving governments, donors, media and the private sector in concrete actions to support adolescent girls.

WHO:

  • Theresa Mwale, Minister of Gender, Child and Community Development, Malawi
  • Sonia Escobedo, Secretaria Presidencial de la Mujer Guatemala
  • Michelle Bachelet, UN Women Executive Director
  • Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, UNFPA Executive Director
  • Saad Houry, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director
  • Kathy (Bushkin) Calvin, CEO of the United Nations Foundation

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Keynoting a NYC High School's National Honor Society Induction

All high school students, faculty, and parents of the inductees attended the NHS Induction Ceremony on Nov. 15th

She’s the First was invited to keynote the National Honor Society induction at NEST+m, New York’s premier K-12 public school on the Lower East Side (this is the type of school we wish could be accessible to girls all over the world!). Tammy Tibbetts, our President, was introduced by Kira West, a go-getting student and officer of the NHS, whom Tammy met when she spoke at the K!dult Youth Leadership Conference this summer.

Tammy, the first female keynote this NHS chapter ever had, spoke about the vision of She’s the First and our belief that social media can create social change. Below is a transcript of the speech. Let us know what you think, and if you were a member of your high school’s own National Honor Society!

As Kira mentioned, a year ago, I started a not-for-profit called She’s the First, which connects young donors to girls they can support in the developing world. We are a movement of young men and women using our creativity to give just a little, and turn it into a lot with our collective teamwork.

Tammy & Kira

Girls’ education became a strong passion of mine after I did some traveling and saw how a education program for abandoned children in Liberia, West Africa transformed their opportunities in life. I started to learn in my 20s that there are 600 million adolescent girls in the developing world, and a majority of them are not completing school. Yet, when a girl is educated, there are so many positive correlations: she’ll get a job, earn a salary, marry later, have less children, raise healthier children, and the health and wellness of the family and community will improve overall. Eradicating abuse and neglect of girls and women worldwide is being called the cause of our time.

But if you think I was voted Most Likely to Save the World in high school, think again. Yes, I had a very high GPA, and I was inducted into my own National Honor Society chapter at South Brunswick High School in suburban New Jersey. But when it was yearbook time senior year, classmates voted me Most Shy. I never said a word in class…if I couldn’t speak up about my thoughts on The Odyssey, how could I even think about being an advocate for others, especially those on the other side of the world? It never crossed my mind. I did community service, but in a very quiet, and almost a very routine way, for the college admissions process.

Back then, the thought of giving a speech would have had my stomach in double knots. No surprise, I was not popular at all. I didn’t even go to my high school prom…so it’s just a little ironic that several years later, I would become the prom web site editor of Seventeen magazine and launch its DonateMyDress.org campaign for girls who can’t afford prom dresses. I now often say, “If you rock the prom, you can rock the world,” based on my job…but really, that’s another way of saying, if you have the chance to go to school and make a difference there, then there is no limit to what you can achieve when you walk out these doors with your cap and gown. Continue reading →

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Glamour Women of the Year Awards: Official Video Recap!

This is what we experienced just 24 hours ago at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards at Carnegie Hall! She’s the First was in the house!! Tammy Tibbetts, President of She’s the First, was honored among 20 young women, and in the audience, we were proud to see some faces familiar to She’s the First: Devin Tomb, our Campaign Developer & an Editorial Assistant at Glamour; plus, She’s the First NYC fans, Sammy Davis (Soiree emcee!), Stephanie Mattera (GIRLS WHO ROCK volunteer), and Jess Strul. We all soaked up the inspiration you see wrapped up in this video — with some memorable quotes pulled out below.

“This honor tonight says to all of you that you can be what you want to be.” — President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

“It was once said of Eleanor Roosevelt, that it’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” — Chelsea Clinton

“Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. No is just some [bleep] word that someone made up.” — Cher

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She's the First Soiree: Success!

In case you missed our Newsletter announcement this morning (subscribe here if so!), here’s a report on the smashing success of our first birthday benefit bash, the She’s the First Soiree!

Dear She’s the First Supporters,
On November 1st, we celebrated our first birthday in New York City…

Carrie Spindler of GoodieBox Bakeshop, with singers Cara Salimando and Shontelle. Our shared wish: universal girls’ education!

…Our goal was to sponsor one year of education for a girl at the world-class Shanti Bhavan Children’s Project in India. This includes her fees for school, housing, meals, medical needs, and recreation.
AND WE DID IT!
We also raised enough to equip the She’s the First*{Campus} network with fundraising materials, so they can multiply sponsorships in 2011…we are going to trace this impact on shesthefirst.org throughout the year so you see exactly what your dollars achieve!

Before we show you some photos and videos below, and invite you to raise a hand (adorned with a She’s the First bracelet, of course!)
to help in 2011…allow us to say,
first and foremost, thank you,
from our team and the girls at Shanti Bhavan!

Thank you from Shanti Bhavan
Girls of Shanti Bhavan Continue reading →

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1 Day Till She's the First Soiree!! Be there!

The super She’s the First Soiree at Pop Burger — featuring a  one-hour open wine  bar, our best raffle ever (did we mention Gayle King donated a signed Tory Burch bag she wore on the red carpet?), cake & cupcakes, music by DJ Kalkutta, a special dance performance, photo booth, and more! — is only one day away! Can you believe it?! After one year of hard work and dreams-come-true for our team, and the 30+ girls we’ve sponsored with you — it’s finally time to celebrate and unite to dream even bigger for year #2!

This past week, we’ve been spotlighting an attendee every day and publishing why she is excited to attend the Soiree (our featured faces have all  been female, but there are guys coming to the party too — bring your guy friends!). Today, we present a barking order from one of our tiniest fans in Florida, Belle. She’s the First Researcher Maisy Page is her proud owner — and clearly the She’s the First love runs in the family. :)

Save time and money: Get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

Support for She's the First comes in all shapes and sizes.

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2 Days to the She's the First Soiree, NYC

Arianna is not only partying with us at Pop Burger, but on Facebook too -- her profile pic has been Soiree'd!

It’s Halloween weekend for everyone else, but here at She’s the First headquarters, we think of it as only 2 days left till our first birthday! Please remember to buy your ticket online (before Monday morning) to our She’s the First Soiree, to avoid delay and extra bucks at the door — then get on with your Halloween fun!

Today’s featured face to help us count down is Arianna Davis, an assistant at O, the Oprah Magazine (she secured a very awesome donation from Gayle King for our raffle!):

I knew I had to support She’s the First after meeting some of the girls from the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa when they were visiting the US. Knowing their stories and the unfortunate circumstances they came from, it was amazing to see them being able to achieve their dreams. But then I got to thinking: what about the millions of other girls around the world who haven’t been as fortunate? I can’t wait to help raise money through the Soiree on Monday to give other young girls their own opportunities to become ‘the first’ at whatever their hearts desire. And I’m especially excited because I’ll be at the letter station, where everyone can join us in writing and decorating letters of encouragement to the girls at Shanti Bhavan!

Be sure to get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

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3 Days to the She's the First Soiree, NYC!

Stephanie has her ticket ready for the She's the First Soiree on Monday -- say hello if you see her!

We celebrate the countdown to She’s the First Soiree with Stephanie Mattera today! She is Glamour‘s New York City Glambassador (see her Facebook page here), and we’re honored she’ll be joining us! It’s not too late to get your ticket (remember they’re a bit cheaper online than at the door)…hope you’ll join us for all the fun – open wine bar, super glam raffle, dance performance, cake & cupcakes, photo booth, etc. — and the fulfillment of supporting girls’ education worldwide.

She’s the first was built on the belief that we all have the power to change the world, one girl at a time. I support She’s the First because it encompasses all of the values that are dear to me. Education has been the foundation of my success and it has given me the confidence to pursue my dreams with vigor and integrity. It is my hope that every girl around the globe will have this opportunity too! Please join me in celebrating the 1st birthday of this extraordinary movement of young women on a mission to change the lives of girls everywhere!”

Be sure to get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

She’s the first was built on the belief that we all have the power to change the world, one girl at a time.

I support She’s the First because it encompasses all of the values that are dear to me. Education has been the foundation

of my success and it has given me the confidence to pursue my dreams with vigor and integrity. It is my hope that every girl

around the globe will have this opportunity too! I am so proud of Tammy Tibbetts, She’s the First founder and president, for

making her vision a reality. Please join me in celebrating the 1st birthday of this extraordinary movement of young women

on a mission to change the lives of girls everywhere!”

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4 Days to the She’s the First Soiree, NYC!

Irene is a She's the First Soiree Party Guest!

To count down the She’s the First Soiree, we’re posting comments from a ticketholder each day…there’s still time to join us on Monday, Nov. 1st! Make your donation/purchase your ticket today!

Today’s featured face is Irene Kwon, an Assistant Editor at Working Mother:

I work in an industry that I’m passionate about, and I’m only here because of the women who have gone before me and have helped me reach my dream of working in magazines. We need to advocate, sponsor and push each other to reach our maximum potential. None of us would have gotten to where we are without the gentle nudge or encouraging words of someone else. In a society that’s so individualistic and concerned about making it big for oneself, it’s so refreshing to see that there are people out there echoing the words of Winston Churchill through their actions: “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

I’m looking forward to getting together with a group of talented, caring, passionate women who are looking to make someone else’s dream come true!

Be sure to get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

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5 Days to the She’s the First Soiree, NYC!

Blaire was the *first* to buy a ticket for the She's the First Soiree!

Today’s featured ticketholder, invited to share why she’s coming to the She’s the First Soiree on Monday Nov. 1, is Blaire Briody, a writer for The Fiscal Times. We hope you join us!

I purchased a ticket for She’s the First Soiree because their work inspires me, and it has the potential to inspire so many girls around the world. With nearly 1 billion people worldwide having no schooling or dropping out early, and two-thirds of those being girls, it’s a glaring problem that can’t be ignored anymore. I’m especially an advocate for increasing our focus on women in science and math. Pushing girls to pursue their dreams, even if no one around them has done it before, will have the potential to change families, communities, countries, economies and more. Supporting She’s the First will help lead the way.

Be sure to get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

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6 Days to the She's the First Soiree, NYC!

Nicole has her ticket for the She's the First Soiree!

In anticipation of our She’s the First Soiree and FIRST birthday on Monday, November 1st — 6 days away!! — we’re going to run daily posts highlighting one of the ordinary young women lending her extraordinary support to our cause. Look out for their faces  in the crowd on Nov. 1st at Pop Burger in Midtown, along with members of the She’s the First leadership team, GIRLS WHO ROCK stars Shontelle and Cara Salimando, bracelet designer Asha Patel, the directors of the Shanti Bhavan Children’s Project & Kenya Education Fund, Infin8 dance troop, and more!

Our first featured face is Nicole Cacioppo, who works by day with Simon & Schuster:

It’s important to me to support this cause because girls everywhere should be given the opportunity to an education.  Knowing my support will help even one girl on her path to a better future is a rewarding experience.  I’m proud of everything She’s the First has accomplished in its first year and can’t wait to see what the following year brings!

I’m really looking forward to watching the Infin8 Dance group perform and the amazing raffles for a great cause!

Be sure to get your ticket in advance at http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com!

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Ready to Report: 10th Annual Avon Foundation for Women Gala, NYC

We’re so honored to be invited to attend the Avon Foundation for Women Gala tomorrow night in NYC! We plan to tweet during the event and blog afterward for Aspire and Huffington Post Impact to share the inspiration with Team She’s the First! Stay tuned…

Our invitation!


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Support Shanti Bhavan with She's the First, at our Soiree on Nov. 1st!

there’s a special surprise about the She’s the First Soiree revealed at the end! :)

As we prepare for the She’s the First Soiree in 9 days — Soiree’ing our profile pictures on Facebook, putting together photo and video slideshows, coordinating with our cake baker, and promoting the new She’s the First bracelet by Asha Patel Designs — we sometimes have to pause from the whirlwind of party planning. When we do, we think of the girls who we’ll be connected to long after this event is over, just as we were with GIRLS WHO ROCK — after two intense months of concert planning, it ended in a flash…and what was most special to us was that we walked away with a lasting impact on three girls in AfricAid’s Kisa Project program in Tanzania.

At Shanti Bhavan in India, girls' lives are transformed through education & arts

All of you who are part of the She’s the First Soiree — whether you are attending in NYC, or spreading the word, making a donation on eventbrite.com, or buying a bracelet from anywhere — are now going to be intertwined with the future of the girls at Shanti Bhavan in India. Since Since She’s the First launched a year ago, Shanti Bhavan has been a distinguished partner in our directory. Two of their American volunteers at the school have even become She’s the First guest bloggers from India.

This past June, Shanti Bhavan graduated its first class of students ever –  a historic occasion, because these students were all born into the lowest caste in India, the Dalits, or Untouchables. If you’ve ever seen Slumdog Millionaire or read The God of Small Things, you understand that this status dooms them to a life of menial labor, abuse, and discrimination — and it’s even worse for girls and women. Shanti Bhavan rescues boys and girls from this fate and opens a whole new future of possibilities for them. They get on the college track and virtually any career is attainable to them.

The other amazing thing about Shanti Bhavan is that the school values the arts as much as academics, understanding that children who can express themselves creatively master a whole new sense of confidence and problem-solving that makes them even stronger adults. The kids have FUN and love learning. You can’t mistake that when you watch any of Shanti Bhavan’s videos on YouTube. In fact, on the cusp of Halloween, look at how funny this “Thriller” performance is!

On a more serious note, these students have overcome the worst kind of abuse and they know the future will not be easy — there is much corruption and bias to overcome. But they wholeheartedly believe they are going to be the first to do it, the girls in particular. Just look back on some of our past blog posts:

  • Shilpa’s essay: “Journalism is as new as the tar that has been poured onto the mud roads in my village…my interest and love for a career I dream to pursue doesn’t crumble to the fear of not being accepted.”
  • Bina’s essay: “I am proud that as a girl I too can contribute to my society and make this world a better place. I want to work in Shanti Bhavan and share my talents to the future children of this school.”
  • Ranjini’s essay: “I want life to be a challenging path towards success where I give my best in everything I do. I relate my expectations to my positive approach to life. Many people have said ‘Expectations hurt.’ I believe they hurt when you let them defeat you, when you turn down opportunities, when you have lost faith in yourself.”

At the She’s the First Soiree, we’ve got shining stars of the Indian culture collaborating  in creative ways — the bracelet of Asha Patel Designs, the music of DJ Kalkutta, the dance of Infin8 — all to support the amazing work of Shanti Bhavan and She’s the First. 100% of the raffle tickets at the Soiree — where you can win fashion/beauty/entertainment packages worth $250+ dollars each! — will go toward girls’ sponsorship at Shanti Bhavan, as will a portion of every She’s the First bracelet sold. And what’s more…

On the third floor of the Pop Burger lounge, you will be able to decorate a card to be sent to girls at Shanti Bhavan!

See you there? :) Be sure to buy a ticket in advance for ease of entry (and to save a few bucks!): http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com

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She's the First Soiree: 11 Days!

More have been Soiree’d on Facebook in celebration of our first birthday in NYC on November 1st!

The birthday bash will officially debut our bracelet by Asha Patel Designs, benefiting the Shanti Bhavan and Kenya Education Fund, and support the work of our She’s the First*{Campus} chapters. We’ll have a first-class raffle that donates all proceeds to Shanti Bhavan girls in India, a dance performance by Infin8, DJ Kalkutta, sweet treats by GoodieBox Bakeshop, photo booth, and more!

Whether or not you are in NYC to celebrate, please help us spread the word — share http://www.shesthefirstsoiree.eventbrite.com with your network — and add a fun hat to your Facebook profile pic, using Picnik. Here’s how — or send us your photo, info@shesthefirst.org, and we’ll do it for you!

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Take a Field Trip to the United Nations: Girls' Education on Display

In September 2000, 192 United Nations member states announced 8 major world goals to be completed by the year 2015 — the Millennium Development Goals (or MDGs). You may remember how world leaders descended on NYC and the United Nations this past September to have critical discussions on reaching these goals — She’s the First was there (read Kaitlin Davis’ reports here). I first heard of the Millennium Development Goals during my sophomore year in college and the concept has thrilled me ever since.

The idea is that between all 192 member states, some awesome international organizations, and the general citizens of the world, we can make some major changes to the world by 2015.

Supporting education has a snowball effect, helping each goal be achieved.

The 8 goals are as follows:
1.    Eradicate extreme poverty & hunger
2.    Achieve universal primary education
3.    Promote gender equality & empower women
4.    Reduce child mortality rate
5.    Improve maternal health
6.    Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, & other diseases
7.    Ensure environmental sustainability
8.    Create a global partnership for development

Last weekend I had the opportunity to tour the United Nations headquarters in NYC during my Fall Break. Most of the building is rather plain, but one bright display caught my attention. In bold, hot pink letters, “Education Counts” was printed across the wall. Naturally, I had to check it out — and if you’re in the NYC area you definitely should too! She’s the First field trip, anyone?

The display outlined the 8 MDGs in detail with fantastic graphics and blatantly pointed out the solution to reaching every single goal: educating girls. As you walk around the walls of this display, the United Nations outlines the benefits of educating young girls. Some of the information we’ve heard before, like the fact that girls statistically receive higher returns from a secondary school education than boys do.

Girls tend to gain more from a secondary school education than boys.

There were also some stats I had not heard, like the fact that all low-income children in the world could be sent to school for $16 billion in aid a year, which is about half what all Americans and Europeans spend on ice cream annually.

The only bit of information this display is lacking is a resource for inspired viewers to help in completing these goals through educating girls. I bet you can tell where I’m going with this…She’s the First.

This web showed how achieving universal primary education will help all the other Millennium Development Goals fall into place!

If you didn’t believe us before, you now have the United Nations as a reference.  Educate a girl, and the rest will fall into place.

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Join us at Glamour's Women of the Year Awards!

here's our invitation -- and the new issue of Glamour, featuring Taylor Swift, who we dream will one day join forces with She's the First!

She’s the First is so honored to be invited to Glamour‘s 20th Annual Women of the Year Awards in New York City on November 8th — just a week after our first birthday bash, the She’s the First Soiree! This feels like when Charlie got the golden ticket…except instead of the chocolate factory, we’re going to Carnegie Hall to hear inspiring speeches from women who are shaking up our world for the better.

We’re taking you along for the ride, because YOU are what makes She’s the First the force we are on Facebook and Twitter, a wave of change for girls worldwide. We want our RSVP to represent you all…so, will you be there with @shesthefirst? :)

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