Displaying Posts Tagged ‘social programs’

Empowering Women, Empowering Their Children

admin / October 7th, 2010 / posted in afghan women, afghanistan families, economic sustainability, events, opportunity, social responsibility / no comments

With Child Health Day on Monday and U.S. National Children’s Day coming up this Sunday, October is a month dedicated to improving the lives of children in our global community.

At ARZU STUDIO HOPE, our mission is to empower women weavers in Afghanistan; and by doing so, we also strive to help their families. As the saying goes, “Educate a woman and you educate a family.” ARZU believes in this statement, with education being a main priority.

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“That which does not destroy, strengthens.”

Connie K. Duckworth / September 2nd, 2010 / posted in afghan women, afghanistan families, social programs, social responsibility / no comments

- Friedrich Nietzsche

What is amazing about Afghan women is that they are still standing after all they’ve seen and experienced. With a life expectancy of 44 years, life is short and harsh. Yet, despite the daily hardships of grinding poverty and insecurity, they have a resiliency of spirit that inspires me every day.

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A Ride on the “*hitter” and a Serendipitous Idea

Connie K. Duckworth / July 6th, 2010 / posted in afghan people, social change, social programs / 1 comment

According to the Oxford English Dictionary “serendipity” means: “the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way, as in “a fortunate stroke of serendipity; a series of small serendipities.” Horace Walpole coined the term in 1754 from the title of a fairy tale called The Three Princes of Serendip, where the heroes “were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of.” Flying back to Camp Leatherneck on a helicopter known as the “*hitter” because the ceiling pipes continually leak hydraulic fluid, I was once again struck by how much of a role serendipity has played in building ARZU STUDIO HOPE.

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Yes, Virginia. There Really Is Progress.

Connie K. Duckworth / June 3rd, 2010 / posted in afghan women, afghanistan families, social investment, social programs, sustainable community / 1 comment

Despite the all too many cases of subjugation and abuse, I believe in the possibility of change in the lives of women in Afghanistan. Although we may not “see it in The Sun,” it is exists – small signs of hope emerge every day. An illiterate woman learns to read; a child goes to school; a pregnant mother delivers a healthy baby; an unskilled man learns a trade. While, individually, none of these move mountains, taken together, they make a mountain. This week, opening day at the Laundromat was one of these small steps forward.

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For the Country to Work, Everday Afghans Need Work

Connie K. Duckworth / May 17th, 2010 / posted in afghan people, afghan women, economic sustainability, opportunity, social change, social programs, sustainable economic development / 1 comment

I founded ARZU STUDIO HOPE after a single visit to Afghanistan. I had no experience in the field of “International development,” no political agenda, and no special expertise. What I did have was some common sense and a firmly held point of view that a job is the universal enabler of hope for a better future. What I have come to understand is that it is also the universal equalizer in a civil society. I have come to see the right to work for one’s living as a basic human right.

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There’s a lot more to this month than just March Madness

Connie K. Duckworth / March 29th, 2010 / posted in events, people / no comments

Lost in the seasonal hype of college hoops, is the fact that March is also Women’s History Month. (You may recall, it kicked off with the global celebration of International Women’s Day on 3/8. See STIR BLOG “Like Labor Day with Flowers”.) As March 2010 comes to a close, I want to dedicate this space to three real and live Afghan heroines, each of whom I have had the great privilege of meeting as a member of the U.S.-Afghan Women’s Council.

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Like Labor Day with Flowers

Connie K. Duckworth / March 8th, 2010 / posted in afghan people, afghan women, afghanistan families, afghanistan people, afghanistan women, economic sustainability, events, people, social change, social programs / 2 comments

Happy International Women’s Day. If you’ve never heard of it, you’re certainly not alone. But, it’s a real holiday, not one invented by Hallmark. While not as well known in the U.S., IWD actually started here 100 years ago, when textile workers in New York called a strike to condemn child labor, demand safer working conditions, and push for women’s right to vote. It spread globally.

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If we’re stirring up change, then the internet is our spoon

Connie K. Duckworth / March 4th, 2010 / posted in afghan people, afghan women, afghanistan families, afghanistan women, business social responsibility, economic sustainability, people, social business enterprise, social innovation / 1 comment

While one person is writing STIR, it’s about the actions of many—hundreds of volunteers across the developed world working together with thousands of Afghans. Please note the added emphasis on the word “actions.” If we’ve learned anything in building ARZU, it’s that forward movement is an essential ingredient for change. It’s about taking a chance, making the first pass, taking one step forward, even when it means you fall two steps back. What’s critical is to begin.

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