By Lela Macaire | Special Programs Assistant
Hello friends!
Project Soar is sending gratitude to You, our supporters for your continued and much valued support.
Donations to this Empower Teen Girls in Morocco GlobalGiving Project enable us to keep the Project Soar Empowerment Headquarters running smoothly. These Headquarters, located in Douar Laadam, Morocco, play an essential role in the work of Project Soar. The Headquarters are not only home to our main office but also host three Project Soar in a Box Girl Squads, serve as a Safe Space for local girls, and provide an environment that fosters intercultural interactions and the exchange of ideas.
Another exciting milestone took place at the Headquarters on October 10th, 2021, when the first of two Douar Laadam Orientation Days was hosted with great success to help launch the 2021/2022 programs. Over 50 girls were safely welcomed to the Headquarters, where the secure and welcoming environment enabled them to open up to one another and build new, trust-based relationships with each other as well as their Empowerment Facilitators. Project Soar cherishes these relationships with each and every Project Soar Girl and welcomes them gladly as honored guests. On this special day we also hosted another group of honored guests: the Norwegian Ambassador to Morocco, Sjur Larsen, as well as his two teenage children.
Ambassador Larsen came to Project Soar to learn more about Project Soar in a Box and hear first hand about the impact our work has on girls’ lives in Morocco. During his visit he participated in a discussion with 10 Girl Leader Club members. “Hosting feminist diplomatic representatives such as Ambassador Larsen is an ideal exchange as it helps to broaden perspectives for both the PS Girls as well as the foreign visitors we are hosting,” says Tess Dunn, Program Manager of Project Soar Morocco activities. Ambassador Larsen and his children sat with Girls and asked questions about how they have been impacted by Project Soar before taking questions from the Girls concerning gender equity in Norway. Aziza Eddari, a PS Girl Leader Club member who was recently elected as the Vice President of her local government, proudly noted that "the Ambassador was impressed and amazed with how strong I must be to be the first female that builds a handball team in my village and also that I am the first young woman who has won an election like I did. I felt very proud of myself when he was complementing me - this gave me more strength and confidence to shine!"
The Girl Leader Club members were also curious to learn about the differences between gender equity policies in Norway and Morocco. They were interested to hear Ambassador Larsen speak of paid parental leave for all parents, regardless of gender, and laws that require at least 40% of leadership positions be held by individuals who identify as women. The Girls and Ambassador Larsen agreed that being inclusive with decision making and providing opportunities to traditionally marginalized groups benefits the world as a whole, as diversity leads to more interesting ideas and better innovation.
We were very happy to welcome Ambassador Larsen to Project Soar! Thanks to the support of generous donors like you we are able to host such guests at our Headquarters and encourage enlightening cross-cultural discussions.
Stay tuned for more Project Soar news, and never doubt that you are making a difference!
Warmest wishes,
The Project Soar Team
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