Project EcoEmpowerment

Project EcoEmpowerment gives young women and LGBTQ+ community a chance to survive and prosper by creating startups that are eco-friendly. Not only does violence against women harm countries’ GDP, but by empowering women educationally and economically, they change the world for better. The solution: a safe shelter for women where they can innovate environmental solutions while becoming financially independent. I picture an open space that has space for women to sleep, rooms to be used for teaching and another room that the girls can create in. The shelter can also be used as an incubation center where business ideas can bloom and take shape. 

Globally, women experience more domestic and sexual violence, and receive less education. This creates an inescapable cycle for women because they lack opportunities. Project EcoEmpowerment will end this cycle, giving women tools they need for a brighter future, making them eco-entrepreneurs.

Earlier this year, the World Economic Forum revealed that “gender parity will not be attained for 99.5 years” (“Global Gender Gap Report 2020”). To date, only 69% of the gender gap has been closed. Project EcoEmpowerment works to disprove this statistic by making parity the norm this decade. Project EcoEmpowerment specifically combats violence that women and the LGBTQ community suffer, domestic or sexual. Globally, 31% of women experience physical or sexual violence. 72% of human trafficking consists of young girls and women. This connects to how girls receive little/no education in almost 40% of countries. 

Worldwide, women are less likely to enter secondary education, which means that they are less likely to obtain jobs with specialization. In developing countries, 38% of women are married before age 18. And women in developing countries suffer disproportionate harms caused by such environmental problems as deforestation, water pollution, and environmental toxins (Warren). They also face increased risk of injuries, sexual harassment and assault when environmental degradation forces them to search farther afield for resources. Our mission is to provide confidence to learn and express their dreams, so that they aren’t seen as just objects-- but as forces that can change the world.

Each Project EcoEmpowerment center first works to solve local environmental problems and then tackle the bigger picture for global solutions. By doing so, we spark confidence in young women and the LGBTQ community to learn and express their dreams in our safe centers. Climate change and deforestation has a direct effect on their disempowerment. Our solution is to make centers for women and the LGBTQ community that provide childcare, access to clean food and water, sanitary products, shelter from violence, confidence to learn and confidence to become economically independent. 

We will create an investment outreach to The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Bank, the Finance Initiative, and the Council of Foreign Relations, in the hope that they will partner with us “to help women start and grow their businesses, with increased access to finance, markets, and networks” (World Bank). Projects funded and organized by Project EcoEmpowerment will include environmental protection such as clean water, cleaner air, reduced and recycled garbage and waste products. Project EcoEmpowerment is a catalyst and launchpad for dreams of young women and the LGBTQ community who can change their community and the world for the better.

My solution serves young women and members of the LGBTQ+ community in developing countries. Project EcoEmpowerment impacts their lives environmentally as it will make them more aware about their impact on their ecosystems and how they can make a difference. Project EcoEmpowerment is also a safe haven for those that suffer from violence and human trafficking and provides them with safe alternatives of work, community and protection. Project EcoEmpowerment also gives them the encouragement and confidence that they need to reenter society and express their dreams and ideas to make the world a better place.

The target population of Project EcoEmpowerment consists of LGBTQ individuals and young girls and women who have been unable to reach their dreams because they have suffered from violence or discrimination or other barriers in their path. Project EcoEmpowerment starts by offering sanctuary and education and resources to knock down those barriers and open up doors to their hopes and dreams and even letting them know that they can have dreams. We also provide them with connections and networks that let them access the outside world and help them actualize their dreams.

The problem is that people in the developing country do not have access to resources, or even the mindsets to develop solutions to local and global environmental problems. Women and the LGBTQ community are at a larger disadvantage because they suffer from more disproportionate rates of violence and are less likely to be given opportunities. Project EcoEmpowerment supplies these individuals with shelter and basic needs, confidence and even connections to make a difference. By doing so, Project EcoEmpowerment reduces the barriers that young women and members of the LGBTQ community face to help them achieve and actualize their dreams.

Project EcoEmpowerment links environmental issues with women’s issues. There are several organizations that help the environment, and several organizations that help women, but few, if any, that help both and note the correlation between the two. Climate change and environmental degradation have a harsher impact on women, as they are typically the ones (almost 80%) who are the farm workers, and those who are designated to fetch water or firewood. When they spend more time collecting resources, they have less time to spend on education; therefore, they have less time to spend pursuing their dreams. Although there are organizations that attempt to soften the blow of these issues, there are no organizations that empower women and give them a platform to solve the environmental problems that affect their futures the most. Project EcoEmpowerment tackles issues at the root cause and lets each woman develop sustainable solutions. They become the catalyst for change in their own lives, and the world. Our solution is so innovative because it works from within.

Project EcoEmpowerment powers itself, and that’s what makes it great. Once we provide these groups with basic resources, their minds open up and they can change the world just by having access to opportunities. Project EcoEmpowerment gives women confidence and a platform to solve the environmental problems that affect their futures the most. Not only does our project assist women in generating ideas, our project is set on following through and providing these women with the correct connections and resources to see that their goals are met. Project EcoEmpowerment connects the innovators with investors and companies such as Bechtel who will be able to build our centers and the innovations of the young women. This will “help women start and grow their businesses, with increased access to finance, markets, and networks”. Project EcoEmpowerment is driven by the women themselves and the connections that they will form with our assistance.

Positive reinforcement and shelter is proven to contribute to talent arising in humans. When people feel safe and are not in a fight-or-flight construct, they have new possibilities and even time to grow solutions. But under the threat of violence, the threat of being outed, or the threat of being displaced because of environmental issues, humans are not able to come up with ideas, because they must devote their time to other matters. These threats stunt the minds of humans and limit the possibilities that they have. Project EcoEmpowerment first offers shelter and acceptance to each and everyone of our members, because it is important for individuals to feel their best so that they can try their best. Our core technologies are the young women and LGBTQ youth we give hope to.

Deforestation has made it more difficult to find wood (the most widely used solid fuel), meaning that women and girls take about 2 to 20 or more hours per week collecting wood -- a task that is not only physically draining, but also cuts into the time that can be used for innovation. When environmental degradation forces them to search farther afield for resources, women and girls become more vulnerable to injuries from carrying heavy loads long distances, 9 and also face increased risk of sexual harassment and assault.” In the time that women spend gathering wood, they could be designing new ways to do their tasks more efficiently, and environmentally-friendly. Project EcoEmpowerment intends to create a safer environment for women and a cleaner environment for humankind.

According to the UN, 80% of people displaced by climate change are women. “In the wake of the 2004 tsunami, an Oxfam report found that surviving men outnumbered women by almost 3:1 in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and India” (Halton, BBC). Women are also 45 - 80% of the food producing workforce in developing countries. And those that live in developing countries experience the most change from environmental degradation. My solution serves those women who have made sacrifices, and through Project EcoEmpowerment, they will finally have the time and resources they desire to come up with more innovative ways to solve environmental problems. If Project EcoEmpowerment is successful, we will have changed the social perception of women and LGBTQ individuals, gender equality, and the environment, all for the better.

Our goal within this next year is to partner with Destiny Reflection, an organization located in Kolkata, India that fights against sex trafficking and provides them with access to education, skills and employment. We intend to partner with them to tackle numerous problems ranging from human trafficking to domestic violence to water pollution. Within the next five years, we intend to grow this model in other areas of the world such as Latin America and Africa.

Cultural and societal norms are the most prevalent barriers in the next year. While there has been a lot of advancement for women in India in the past twenty years, it is still not enough. We want to make it known that human trafficking and abuse are never justified. Domestic violence and abuse are embedded into Indian society and are especially more common for women that live in poverty or that are forced into human trafficking. Being part of the LGBTQ community is also very taboo in India, so it is difficult for those individuals to be open with their identity to others, but even themselves. Part of our mission will have to be overcoming the stigmas around being female or LGBTQ.

Project EcoEmpowerment offers safety, whether it be physical or emotional, for women and those struggling with their sexual identity and/or sexual orientation by helping all of our members realize that they have the power to solve environmental problems and that they have the power to make a difference to society. Once society realizes that women and LGBTQ individuals are necessary to solve these issues and help the world, they will change their perceptions and start to view both groups as valued, thoughtful members of society.

We currently have 2 people working on our solution team.

Project EcoEmpowerment understands the intimate relationship between young women’s potential and the environment. The degradation of the environment makes it worse for women to find opportunities of obtaining education and escaping violence. We are a unique idea that correlates these two issues and works actively to solve them both.

We are about to sign an agreement with Destiny Reflection, an organization run by Smarita Sengupta and Jeevan Basumatary. Destiny is an organization located in Kolkata, India that fights against sex trafficking and provides them with access to education, skills and employment. We intend to partner with them to tackle numerous problems ranging from human trafficking to domestic violence to water pollution.

http://destinyreflection.org

Our business model is Open Science, and equal access. We are focused on making projects that help young women achieve their potential and change the world, and we are open to collaborations that agree with our values.

We’re looking for partnership with Destiny, and then investment with the Venture capitalists for the environment at https://www.fsicon.com and with Brown University https://www.brown.edu/academics/institute-environment-society/.