UNITED NATIONS' 8 MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Project Big Bang Thinking

 

BIG BANG THINKING is a unique project devoted to solving practical problems through creative and  critical thinking. The team addresses WAFW project dilemmas, WAFW office concerns, Sias University challenges, and world issues.

 

The project promotes critical thinking skills and explores options for implementation. It also encourages team member's participation in brainstorming discussions and cultivation of new methodologies and strategies that promote and create change and progress. The project welcomes new ideas, expertise and engagement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Dream Harbor

 

DREAM HARBOR team members devote themselves to the United Nations' Millennium Development Goal 2, to Achieve Universal Education. Their goal is to increase students' awareness of the importance of education and stimulate their interest in studying. Dream Harbor sponsors local activities to encourage dropouts in returning to school.

 

Projects have included: Cooperating with Han Village, Shi Zhi Primary School, and AB International School, to interact with students and parents to discuss and share the impact of education on their future. The project members earned 3,000 RMB enabling them to send 12 children to school for one year.

 

DREAM HARBOR presented the documentary 'Girl Rising' to over 2,000 students. The documentary shows the difficulties that young girls throughout the world experience in getting entry into schools and gaining access to education. Numerous showings and discussions on this movie have been offered to students on Sias campus as well as other universities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Free Lunch

 

The FREE LUNCH project focuses on the United Nations' Millennium Goal 1: Eradicate Poverty and Hunger.
The project raises money through campus awareness campaigns, of children in Henan Province and mountain areas of China who do not have access to noon meals in their schools.

 

Each year's project generates funding through two events. Sias students and faculty donated to the project and local restaurants encouraged customers to contribute money when paying their check to the Free Lunch project. Last year's contributions provided nearly 2,100 hot lunches, at 3 RMB per lunch, to rural children from the funds generated by this team.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Give Voice to Women

 

The GIVE VOICE TO WOMEN project began to record the experiences of Academy members and has now become an outreach project that records the stories of village women and amplifies their voices for others to hear.

 

A recent project celebrated women who challenged, and changed, an old custom of burying the placentas of girl babies behind the toilet, while the placentas of male babies were buried in a place of honor in the village. Documenting these triumphs has inspired other women to work for change, while addressing the United Nations Millennium Goals #3, 4, and 5: to promote gender equality and empower women; to reduce child mortality; and to improve maternal health.

 

This project enables Academy members to bond with women whose struggles and successes have encouraged other women to speak out and take action. The result is more opportunities for women to gain access to employment, income, community leadership and greater possibilities for their lives. Conversations between Academy members and village and community women give them a chance to talk about their conditions, hopes, and visions. Academy members learn and grow through the experiences of others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Literacy Program

 

The LITERACY PROGRAM focuses on UN Millennium Development Goal #2: achieve universal primary education. Each week reading activities are held on and off campus encouraging parents to bring their young children. Team members demonstrate how to read to children and stimulate language development and learning. When children love reading and parents encourage good reading habits it will encourage further study and the value of education.

 

A love of reading can benefit our lives, so having a good childhood reading habit is extremely important. Parents can have a major effect on their children by spending time reading books with them regularly. Love from the parents is felt by their children, and the children learn to read in the process. Parents who cannot read are taught how to tell stories to children using the books provided by the LITERACY PROGRAM.

 

Brits Abroad, a Shanghai based ex-pat charity, contributed books and donated funds to this project. A joint project between Global Interactions, the World Academy, Henan Provincial Library and Ben Yuan Foundation generated more than 2000 English books to be used in conjunction with this project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project HIV/AIDS Awareness

 

The HIV/AIDS AWARENESS PROJECT was designed to address UN Millennium Development Goal #6: to combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases. The project promotes education and an understanding of HIV/AIDS-impacted orphans in Henan Province which has the highest level of aids infection in China. The team focused on HIV orphans staying healthy and developing a positive attitude. A partnership was developed with Chi Heng Foundation, an extraordinary organization that serves more than 14,000 HIV/AIDS impacted orphans throughout many provinces in China. The Chi Heng Foundation provided visits to HIV/AIDS infected villages and an internship in Shanghai to a World Academy member.

 

The team members corresponded with 18 HIV middle school orphans. In addition, the team held an HIV WEEK activity, including the HIV Orphan's Art Exhibition and sale of HIV/AIDS ribbons made by village women. An HIV Awareness Charity Bazaar featured a Drama-Dance based on the true story of an AIDS family. This project is not only to support these orphans, but to also increase awareness and reduce the stigma of persons with HIV/AIDS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project WAFW Marketplace

 

The WAFW MARKET PLACE provides an opportunity for Academy members to develop their entrepreneurial skills by finding products or services to sell. Profits from these items contribute to the funding of the World Academy, enabling more projects or services to be provided in accelerating women's leadership worldwide. Products include the sale of handicrafts made by rural women, World Academy branded items, and other merchandize that students, faculty, and Sias visitors can purchase.

 

The project vision is to open a permanent store on campus and increase sales, awareness, and profits to support our mission. This project promotes marketing, market analysis, advertising, sales, customer service, and general management skills for Academy members.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Green Journey

 

Addressing the United Nations Millennium Goal #7:  Ensure Environmental Sustainability, these two projects educate students, faculty, and the local community about environmental issues, with the philosophy that starting locally contributes to a global perspective for creating sustainability.

 

The oath of the GREEN JOURNEY Project is to improve awareness of the environment at Sias and be a strong voice to the world. GREEN JOURNEY members have initiated and executed numerous projects around the Sias University Campus to involve and educate students, staff, and faculty.

 

GREEN JOURNEY'S projects included:  Environmental Salon, a project to encourage conversations on taking better care of our world; collaboration with Love My Sias and other clubs to exercise creative thinking and discuss ways to save the environment; the innovative 2013 Fruit Card which used fruit with a written greeting instead of paper; a river ecology project to reduce overfishing of smaller reproducing fish; and The Green Journey water bottle to promote reusable containers to reduce the use of plastic bottles.

 

Green Journey received a scholarship of $1,000 from the Sias Foundation for their project.

'Love My Sias' is a project of the Men's Academy for the Future of Women and addresses a series of activities about energy conservation and environmental protection to improve the students' consciousness and knowledge of environmental issues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Sunshine Angels

 

SUNSHINE ANGELS is a project that is devoted to United Nations Millennium Development Goal #2 & 4: Achieve Universal Primary Education and Reduce Child Mortality. SUNSHINE ANGELS cooperates with the Xinzheng Special Education School for many activities including: weekly visits, art exhibitions, learning sign language, and a recent Special Education Experience-Sharing Workshop for teachers and parents.

 

A goal of the project is to integrate children with disabilities with other children for recreation and learning activities. The work, mission, and vision of SUNSHINE ANGELS is to promote caring about challenged children in our communities. SUNSHINE ANGELS supports parents in developing skills to manage the special needs of their children and encourage bringing them out of the shadows and into inclusive environments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Stand Up, Take Action, Make Noise

 

STAND UP, TAKE ACTION, MAKE NOISE is a project created by the United Nations to encourage individuals to take a stand for achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

 

The World Academy for the Future of Women organizes a STAND UP event each fall to promote Sias students joining World Academy members in taking a stand on one or more of these issues. The event includes an introduction to the UN Millennium Goals, guest speakers, a parade through the campus with the marching band, and Sias club members who join with the World Academy to MAKE NOISE and learn more about these issues.

 

Students sign a STAND UP commitment sheet indicating the Millennium Goal they will STAND UP for. The names are compiled into a database in order to communicate with students committed to specific goals and invite them to TAKE ACTION through the World Academy projects. Last year more than 2,000 students committed to stand for various UN Millennium Goals. Over 1,000 Sias University students took a stand alongside the World Academy for the Future of Women.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Warm Hearts

 

The WARM HEARTS project team collected second-hand clothes from Sias students and donated them to communities in need. This group focused on the United Nations Millennium Goal #1, Eradicating Poverty and Hunger.

 

Clothing was collected and donated to three regions of China this year: Tibet, the Sichuan earthquake region, and a village in Shanxi Province. Children receiving these donations did not have adequate clothing for the harsh winters where they live and were unable to attend school during those seasons. A former Sias student who owns a local laundry business contributed by cleaning all the clothing before it was sent to these regions. Donations were also received to cover the cost of shipping the clothing to these far reaching regions. Thank you letters from the children expressed their gratitude and encouraged the World Academy members to do this for other children so they could go to school as well. The Tibet school was visited by two World Academy Facilitators who were able to meet and see the conditions experienced by these children.

 

Future projects will engage Sias students and Academy members in identifying families within their own communities who would also benefit from clothing donations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Project Media Program

The MEDIA PROGRAM addresses the United Nations Millennium Goals #1-8 by researching and reporting on the status of projects, members, and World Academy Facilitators. In addition, the Media program has developed social media networks including blogs, QQ, Weibo, and WeChat to bring students together to support social causes. They develop promotional materials including websites, videos, brochures, and PowerPoint presentations describing the work and impact of World Academy activities and events.

 

The Media program aims to inform every Sias student about the WAFW purpose and mission, to invite their participation, as well as publicizing the World Academy both nationally and internationally.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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