"People don't seem to talk much about child brides ... but I can not stay silent," said Archbishop Desmond Tutu last month at the Social Good Summit in New York City. Held during UN Week, the Social Good Summit was a partnership effort between the United Nations Foundation, Mashable, and the 92nd Street Y to bring global leaders together with a live audience in New York City and thousands around the world participating via Livestream.
Read MoreKiva and Dermologica launch microlending platform joinFITE.org to fund women entrepreneurs. Join Team Tabby to help women achieve financial independence through entrepreneurship.
Read MoreHer Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa joined hundreds of teen girls at a Girl Up rally in Los Angeles last Friday to raise awareness and funds to help adolescent girls in developing countries around the world.
Read MoreBecause so many women don’t have an image of what a natural, empowered birth looks like, there is a lot of fear surrounding the act giving birth. Accordingly, the majority of women give their inner authority over to doctors in their birth process. They trust the doctors more than themselves. The problem with this is that many women aren’t aware that the majority of her doctor's medical decisions are being made today for monetary and legal reasons, and not necessarily for the good of her and her baby.
Read MoreOne such campaign, which had its official launch this month, is called Girl Up. Started by the United Nations Foundation, Girl Up was created to channel the energy and compassion of American teen girls as a powerful force for change. As Girl Up global advocate Queen Rania of Jordan has put it, "Girl Up is about changing peer networking from sharing movies and music, to sharing missions and movements."
Read More"So when you educate a woman, you really do transform societies," said Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan yesterday in the panel discussion. "It's not just about doing girls a favor, it's really about benefits that cascade throughout society and really make a huge difference."
Read MoreUntil we get this disrespect and dishonoring of women and girls straightened out, we are going to have a long way to go to create world peace. I believe it is this abuse of the feminine that holds us back. Without taking responsibility for abusing the Divine Feminine, we are killing ourselves internally and externally. Look at what’s happening to Mother Earth, for example. She is being raped just as the women and girls are around the world. We keep taking from her, expecting her always to give back, but soon she will not. Her anger and hatred will be so strong, that we will destroy ourselves.
Read Moret’s no secret that women have had to play a certain game to make it in the business world, i.e. be the bitchy boss, dress down their femininity, or abide by the rules of a hierarchal structure. Today, however, women are running their own businesses in increasing numbers and are making their own rules. According to the Center for Women's Business Research, women-owned businesses comprise 40 percent of all privately-held companies in the U.S. and women entrepreneurs are among the fastest growing groups of business owners.
Read MoreDo you have a fear of public speaking? I do. (Yikes!) Even though I am a writer and reporter and have spent plenty of time on stage as a singer and many years center stage as a teacher, I am still carrying around the fear of public speaking. Ridiculous, right? Maybe not. (Statistics show that the fear of public speaking ranks up there with the fear of death for the majority of people, and for some, even higher.)
Read MoreIf you are a female entrepreneur, groups like SMARTY, eWomenNetwork, Ladies Who Launch, or First Tuesday are great options to connect with outstanding women. Whatever group you may choose, I think if we as women gather together in the truth of our vulnerabilities, fears, needs, dreams, desires, and passions, we will be creating an expansive space to raise our daughters, granddaughters, nieces, students, and other amazing girls in our lives and in the world.
Read MoreOn August 26, 2010 women will gather around the US and Canada in celebration of their fearless journey for a first annual “Fearless Women Day.” On this day, 90 years ago, the 19th amendment was ratified to give women the right to vote. Each city participating will vote for, select and honor one fearless woman who has contributed to their community and the world by awarding them with a “Fearless Women, Susan B. Anthony” award.
Read MoreA good photograph commands a conversation. It even can change the direction of the culture. Think: Demi Moore’s nude seven-month pregnant body on the cover of Vanity Fair’s August 1991 issue. That photograph made way for women to appreciate their pregnant bodies – and even see them as sexy – as opposed to cloaking their feminine selves underneath baggy, unattractive maternity clothes. Today women are celebrating their round-bellied bodies and embracing the beauty of their pregnancy. Maternity clothes have gotten more hip too. So what’s this got to do with a woman’s business?
Read MoreBuilding confidence is one of the main takeaways for women who venture into the S Factor experience. Even Hollywood stars from Teri Hatcher to Kate Hudson say it has increased their confidence. “S Factor is about Empowerment … it’s about finding this place of comfort and confidence in your own body,” Teri Hatcher said in a testimonial for S Factor.
Read MoreThrough S Factor, Sheila Kelley has created a culture for women to come and let their body be expressive and truthful, experienced and acknowledged, and seen not just in the bedroom, but experienced and expressive everywhere. What a goddess!
Read MoreHere’s a myth for you: men donate more money to charity than women. Perhaps this myth stays alive because most people don’t think of women as high-activity donors. But that’s not true. Certainly women give of their time and skills to help worthy causes, but now they are bringing money too.
Read MoreWhat’s so inspiring about Jacqueline is that she combines cool-headed business analysis with an equally warm heart. She won’t invest in businesses that don’t work well because she is always looking at the bigger picture and the greater good. “The world will not change with inspiration alone; rather, it requires systems, accountability, and clear measures of what works and what doesn’t,” she says.
Read MoreI have always been motivated by the desire to improve the world for women, in particular in the media -- because the media is the "face" of the collective philosophy; watching media tells you what we think of ourselves and our "ideal" images and states of being. Right now women's place within that context is deeply troubling on a symbolic level and this translates to trouble for women in society and all over the world, as media is our most powerful export.
Read More“Can you imagine in 10 years if we were to have 50 Global Girl Media news bureaus operating in the most economically disadvantaged places in the world, and those girls connect and form a network of support, education, and power? Well, suddenly we really are affecting change,” said Global Girl Media program director Kamala Lopez in an interview on Thursday.
Read MoreKara Isreal is the recipient of the 2010 Step Up Women's Network Los Angeles Teen Scholarship. Step Up is dedicated to connecting underserved teen girls with professional women mentors and enrichment programs to empower the girls to become confident, college-bound and career-ready.
Read More“When the girls tell their stories it becomes so clear why they are locked up. It usually starts from a trauma they have experienced causing them to be angry and depressed, which causes them to drop out of school, do drugs, join gangs, and eventually become incarcerated. It’s a pretty clear cycle,” says Meade.
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